Skipper Report
We were delighted that the cruise made it to St Kilda with lots of warm sunny weather, which just goes to show it can happen, even in a summer when the UK weather has not been the best. This was also the first cruise of the season for our Chef, Martin, with some great comments on his menus.
Saturday: Departing Oban, we cruised the Sound of Mull for our first nights anchorage at Tobermory. We had a lovely first meal with guests and crew all getting to know one another. The food highlight was Martin’s sea bass & shrimp risotto. Wildlife seen included colonies of common & Artic terns off Craignure on Mull with gannets & guillemots around in good numbers.
Sunday: The day started well with a sighting of bottlenose dolphins in the Sound of Mull. With a good forecast the boat made for Eriskay, located between South Uist and Barra in the Outer Hebrides which would be an ideal launching off point for St Kilda. On the way common dolphins were seen west of the Isle of Coll with great flocks of Manx shearwaters skimming the waves. Anchoring in sheltered Eriskay Harbour, guests went ashore for a walk on the stunning shell-sand beach nearby and a dram in the Am Politician pub of “Whisky Galore” Fame. The food highlight for the day (especially for the Skipper) was Martin’s home made sticky toffee pudding
Monday: Guests has their first sighting of harbour porpoise en route to St Kilda. There was great excitement amongst the guests as the stacs of the St Kilda archipelago came into view with rafts of puffin on the sea and a sighting of a Minke whale. Anchoring in Village Bay, guests went ashore on Hirta and walked up Conachair, the highest point on the archipelago, in excellent weather. The cliffs below Conacher are a sheer drop of 1400 feet, the highest in Britain. The St Kilda Wren was easily spotted as were the Soay sheep. The food highlight of the day was Martin’s Salami Salad with Inverlussa Mussels, from Loch Spelve on the Isle of Mull.
Tuesday: After another nights anchorage in Village Bay we awoke to a day of glorious weather. Guests walked up Ruival in short sleeves where from the viewpont they could clearly see a Minke whale and a basking shark.
Back on board for a delicious dinner of beef and local ale stew with dumpling mash, guests could still see the Minke whale and basking shark from the vessel.
Wednesday: It was time to leave St Kilda but before departing, guests enjoyed cruising close to the stacs and spotting a basking shark. While heading for North Uist we encountered a pod of rare white-beaked dolphins; wildlife guide Vivi was delighted! More Minke whales were spotted as well as little terns and Arctic skua. Anchoring in sheltered Lochmaddy on North Uist for the night, Martins fish pie at dinner got rave reviews from the guests.
Thursday was a lovely sunny day with great visibility. While cruising through the “Small Isles” a big pod of common dolphins were easily spotted off Canna. The evening’s anchorage was the idyllic Loch Na Drumbuie off Loch Sunart where one of the guests went for a swim and another a brief “dunk” in the loch! The Skipper dived for scallops in the loch for dinner which were served as a starter with Martin’s Cullen Skink – the perfect end to a perfect day.
Friday: Guests enjoyed brunch and a leisurely cruise down the Sound of Mull. We stopped over to view the nest of a white-tailed eagle and were a bit concerned to see the newly fledged chick sitting alone out of the nest on a branch. After waiting some time, all aboard were relieved to see the parents return and we happily continued to Oban for departure at midday.
Guests John & Angela Allan said ” We had a brilliant time and hope to be back for another of your trips, maybe in 2017″
We know nothing of Scotland. It’s time for us to see why people like this area of the world so much. We book a tour found on the internet. The dates are right. We travel to Oban and find the pre-trip information sent to us invaluable. We wait at the dock for the crew to meet us and take our soft-sided luggage to our cabin. The other guests are prompt and the crew is timely too. We marvel at the amazing cameras and the experiences of other passengers. Two have traveled with the ship multiple times. We are focused on where we are and the journey ahead of us. Our luggage is delivered to our ensuite cabin. There is plenty of space to store our gear and thoughtfully placed shelves for items, such as cameras and binoculars we might need without digging through our bags. The double bed has a portal window and well placed reading lamps. Our cabin and the public areas were impeccably cleaned each morning while we are off to shore with naturalist, Alexa. There is a library selection of literature and guide books to help identify what we saw on walks. I noticed a scrabble game, which we never found time to play. The chef, Mags, works in a tiny galley and turns out the most amazing meals. Giving people a choice between vegetarian and non vegetarian entrees, wine is included with the dinners. A breakfast buffet is laid out and there is always a hot breakfast available. There are 8 of us on this voyage. We all eat together and take excursions in the morning and afternoon. Craig is calm and also assists the chef and helps Chris, the Captain, anchor the boat when we stop for the night. Weather and sea conditions are the great unknown in the Hebrides. The deciding factor to where we will go. Chris lets us know the itinerary will be flexible. He picks amazing calm spots to anchor each night. He is very good at communicating why we are going or not going to an island and invites us up to see the bridge. We travel to amazing sites, such as the island Inch Kenneth and Ulva, and learn the history of eac
Greg and Bobbie Hobbs: 27 April 2019Idyllic Islands: Mull, Iona, Staffa & the Treshnish Isles