Sail Caledonia 2018

[Graham W]

Next year's sail & oar raid through the Great Glen of Scotland, from sea to shining sea, will start near Fort William on Saturday 26th May and will finish near Inverness on Saturday 2nd June.  As usual, this coincides with a bank holiday and school half terms.

Registrations will open on the Sail Caledonia website http://www.sailcaledonia.org at the end of this month, 30th June.  Floating accommodation is snapped up quickly, so if you want to stay on the barge or cabin cruiser that accompany the raid, book early.  The cabin cruiser accommodation has been upgraded for next year and should prove much more popular.  Cabins on HQ barge Ros Crana are usually fully booked within a week of being offered. Camping on land or on your boat is also available, with your luggage being ferried by minibus to the next night's campsite.

This event is popular with Swallows of all shapes and sizes and there is even a special trophy (sponsored by Matt) for the winner of their class.  Highlights include an alternating sail & oar race around the cans at Laggan, where the winner is usually the best able quickly to get the sails down and oars out and then vice versa; the fearsome Loch Ness Challenge, an all-day race the full length of Loch Ness and then two-thirds of the way back; and winding down with a bumper supper and music at the end of the raid.

All ages and abilities take part.  For some, winning is the main motivation.  For others, it's the opportunity to sail and row in company in magnificent Highland scenery.

[Graham W]

You may think that sailing and rowing through the Great Glen in varying Highland conditions sounds a bit tame.  In which case the Race to Alaska is the raid for you https://r2ak.com. 750nm from Port Townsend in Washington State, northwards to the next bit of US territory, Ketchikan in Alaska. 

There are lots of islands along the route which provide a bit of protection from the west.  However, motors and engines are not allowed and there are no support vessels.  First prize is US$10,000, second is a set of steak knives.  This year's race started early last Thursday and the first two prizes had already been claimed today, just under four days later.  Having a modern-rigged multihull with bicycle-type crankshaft propeller(s) seems to be the way to go.

The rest of the fleet is still out there and there have been several withdrawals from the race.  Amongst the risks to be encountered and obstacles to be overcome are tidal currents of up to 15kn; gear breakages from sudden squalls and running into submerged logs at high speed; and hypothermia and acute sea sickness.  Oh, and if you decide to run ashore for a brief rest, there are grizzly bears.  I expect that orcas and whales are a potential hazard too.

Some of us complain about the amount of rowing in Sail Caledonia, especially when the wind dies on Loch Ness, or about the difficult sailing conditions when the wind really picks up.  However it's a bit of a doddle by comparison with R2AK. I've done Sail Caledonia four times now and I'm beginning to wonder whether Nessie even exists.

[Graham W]

Registration for Sail Caledonia 2018 is now open and bookings for berths on the floating accommodation are already coming in fast.  2018 prices are being held at 2017 levels until 30th September, after which they will go up.  See http://www.sailcaledonia.org/page6.html.

Meanwhile, some of the participants in Race to Alaska are still struggling towards the finish line, 19 days after the start and two weeks behind the winners.

[Graham W]

Three of the first four boats to register for 2018 are Swallows.  There's no Morbihan next year and I've found little evidence that the Venice Raid will take place either, so come and join us!

[John Perry]

"Moireach" is now registered for 2018 - next year I will try and sleep in the cabin for the duration; obviously not for the races! Though my crew may wish otherwise... 

[Graham W]

After the fairly low attendance at the 2017 Sail Caledonia raid, the strong level of advance bookings for 2018 has surprised us all.  Probably something to do with other high profile events like Morbihan not taking place next year.

There is now no room to take on any more land-based campers at our usual spots, although booking yourself in at commercial campsites along the way may still be possible.  There is still space if you are intending to camp on your own boat, and we have three comfortable beds available on the Le Boat cabin cruiser. The HQ barge Ros Crana has been fully booked for several months. This surprising state of affairs so early in the booking season means that you should definitely book now to avoid disappointment.

Swallows participating in 2018 include two BRe's, a BR17 and a SeaRaider.  For more details, see http://www.sailcaledonia.org/index.html.

[Ged]

Norna has just confirmed that I can join as long as we sleep on the boat, so that's a Storm 17 added to the list... just got to make a tent now! 

We're thinking of doing the unsupported 'Highlander challenge' just to add to the sense of adventure!

[MarkDarley]

Norma informed me yesterday (Nov 18th) that Sail Caledonia is fully booked with waiting lists even for the camping entries.  If anyone is thinking of cancelling their participation for any reason, please let me know as I would love to participate with 2 brothers as crew.

Any other European Raids or great events such as La Semaine du Golfe (off year) suggested? I am willing to tow as far as Brittany, Venice or Scandinavia. How about Ireland? This is why I bought the boat!

Mark.

[Graham W]

Mark,

The Venice raid may still take place (mid-May?), although they seem to be leaving it a bit late to get the website up and running.  There's the Dorestad Raid in the Netherlands in mid-September, which looks like fun.

The Irish raid in 2012 was a once-off.  And Raid Finland also seems to have stopped at around the same time.

[MarkDarley]

I am delighted to say I got the very last spot with cabins for Sail Caledonia 2018.  Others may open up if there are cancellations. Now to equip the boat!

Due to prior commitments, I may have to make an advance trip to Scotland to drop the boat off 10 days ahead, fly home and then return for the start. Does anyone have any suggestions as to a secure location where I could park the boat and my car for that time?

Thanks
Mark

[Matthew P]

There is a nice article on Sail Caledonia in this month's Water Craft magazine by Kathy Mansfield.  BR 17 Tarika, Storm 17 Peewit and Searaider Craic all get a mention and indirect reference is made to an unnamed BR20 and  a brace of BRe20s.

Sail Caledonia is great fun and there are still places available for the May 2019 event I believe.  Unfortunately Gladys will be elsewhere this year.

Matthew
BR20 Gladys