Sailing the Shipping Forecast: ‘It became a sun-sparkling day as we approached Kinnaird Head’

Celebrating the BBC Shipping Forecast's 100th Birthday, Jane Russell takes us on a Scottish coastal cruise through the forecast sea area, exploring some special places

Cromarty

Sea area Cromarty encompasses the east coast of Scotland from just north of Wick to just south of Aberdeen, including the entire coastline of the Moray Firth and the Inverness, Dornoch and Cromarty Firths. This side of Scotland does not attract as many sailors as the west coast and yet the summer weather is relatively benign.

In the rain shadow of the Highlands, it is also considerably drier.

From May to September the mean wind strength is Force 3 to 4, with only two gales on average during this time. Fog, which the locals call ‘haar’, is more common in early summer but on average occurs only two days a month.

Easterly winds can bring a long fetch across the North Sea, exposing this coast to swell and making many of the harbour entrances untenable. But the prevailing westerly winds are off the land and in these conditions the sea state tends to be relatively flat.

Nevertheless, the unwary may be surprised when a big Atlantic swell finds its way over the top of Scotland and down the east coast, contrary to the local wind direction. It certainly pays to keep an eye on the swell forecasts as well as the winds.

Tides flood over the top of Scotland and southwards from Duncansby Head but then split south-westwards and south-eastwards. At Rattray Head this southeasterly set meets the main southerly set down the North Sea and creates overfalls, especially with wind against tide.

Currents also run strongly in the Chanonry Narrows and under the Kessock Bridge in Inverness Firth.

South-west, veering west or north-west, 3 to 5. Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in west Cromarty. Showers. Good, occasionally poor.

Our arrival into the Cromarty sea area felt like the start of our home run. With only a few weeks left to complete our sail around Britain, we were back on the east coast and already enjoying a familiar combination of offshore winds and flat seas.

South of Duncansby Head, the northwesterly had freshened again and with continuing favourable current we had made good time past the lighthouse at Noss Head and round the corner into Wick. The harbourmaster met us on the pontoon and welcomed us warmly – a pattern that was set to continue everywhere that we stopped on this bit of coast.

Wick Heritage and Engineering

Thanks to the herring boom, Wick became the centre of trade in Caithness and at its peak it was the world’s largest herring port. We spent several hours in the engaging Wick Heritage Centre where we learned about the thousand-strong herring fleet – so numerous that the boats filled the harbour, gunwale to gunwale.

The wonderful Johnston photo archive captured much of this history, including images of the migrant Herring Girls who followed the fishing fleets around the country and gutted the fish, and the barrel-making skills of the coopers. David’s ancestors were coopers on Shetland, so we were completely hooked by some black and white footage that showed the whole process.

We were discovering that Scotland celebrates its engineers. Here in Wick, there was a lot of engineering to be proud of. The herring boom demanded a new harbour which was designed by engineer Thomas Telford.

He also laid out the gridiron street pattern of Pulteney town, built to house the massive influx of workers. The Old Pulteney whisky distillery was founded soon after and was a good reason for a walk through this part of Wick’s history.

Returning past the striking Seafarers Memorial we thought again about Black Saturday, in August 1848, when much of the fleet was lost on their attempted return to port in an easterly storm. Engineer Thomas Stevenson subsequently attempted to build an outer breakwater for the harbour. Despite its massive construction, it was never finished as further storms destroyed two attempts to complete it.

Robert Louis Stevenson, Thomas’s son, said that it was the chief disaster of his father’s life, and overseeing the building of it was enough to persuade RL not to be an engineer. Engineering lessons were learned from it and, thankfully, subsequent extensions to the harbour were a success.

Buckie and the Moray Firth

Variable 2 to 4, becoming south-east 4 to 6, then cyclonic 5 to 7 later. Slight or Moderate, occasionally rough later. Occasional rain. Good, occasionally poor.

We left Wick into a gentle easterly that was due to build, so we would have to forgo any exploration of Lybster, or Golspie and the lovely castle and grounds at Dunrobin. We reached down to the corner of the Beatrice wind farm then headed up to clear the Beatrice oil field which was looking rather battered and weary under the grey skies.

Staying on the wind, with one reef in, we didn’t have an angle for Whitehills but made comfortable progress towards Buckie. We knew that we would be well protected there from the blow due to come through that night.

Buckie harbour wall lies parallel to the coast, so the entrance doesn’t open up until you are nearly there, but we watched a wind farm support boat head in and approached with more confidence. Another very welcoming harbourmaster directed us through to the innermost number 4 basin to tie ourselves alongside one of the old pilot vessels.

This meant that we didn’t need to fuss about dock lines with the rise and fall of the tide and it gave us an easy platform to get ashore. The walk along the harbour road was mostly quite stinky fish processing plants but it was well worth persevering to reach the Cluny traditional fish smokery.

We bought kippers and herrings, and we were coached in how best to cook them – coated with oatmeal and fried: absolutely delicious! In places, Buckie felt past its heyday, but all along the ridge above the harbour were some very handsome old houses that told of an affluent past. The Seatown old fishermen’s quarter, with its own Fishing and Heritage Centre, had a cosier feel.

After a tranquil night, completely untouched by the easterly Force 7 that raged across the Moray Firth, we awoke to a blue-sky morning. We walked back up into town and had a good breakfast in one of the cafes on Church Street.

Whitehills and Rattray Head

Southerly or southeasterly becoming cyclonic later, 4 to 6. Slight or moderate becoming moderate or rough. Rain then thundery showers. Good, occasionally poor.

The sun was shining and a light southerly promised gentle progress along the coast, but it wasn’t long before thunder clouds built up behind us. In no time at all we were well reefed and hard on the wind into a fresh and gusting breeze.

We decided to go into Whitehills but now, at this stage of the tide, we weren’t completely confident about the depths in the entrance. A call to the harbourmaster reassured us but also made clear that the pontoons were full and it was going to be a squeeze.

As we approached, conditions were increasingly feisty and the lifeboat came out to help another yacht with engine problems. They thought it might be us but we waved them on. The entrance to Whitehills is narrow and the adjacent reefs focus the mind, but it seemed that as soon as we were under the harbour wall the wind switched off, the sun won through again, and we were into the cosy embrace of this especially couthy little harbour.

The harbourmaster had been out on the breakwater head to keep an eye on us as we came in and he now directed a couple of locals to help us with our lines. We came in alongside a fishing boat and they warped us backwards into the inner harbour where we tied against the quay. The lifeboat soon returned and they craned it up onto its trailer just ahead of us.

It was gala day, with a marquee, band and all sorts of festivities. Up in the village the supermarket and fish ‘n’ chips were doing good business and the pub garden was buzzing. Whitehills had often been recommended to us and now we knew why.

Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, veering westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7 later. Slight or moderate. Thundery showers. Good, occasionally poor.

The passage onwards needed some planning because at Rattray Head ‘there be dragons’. It is notorious for unpleasant or even dangerous overfalls, especially with wind against tide. We talked it through with the ever helpful harbourmaster and he confirmed our timings before seeing us off.

A gentle westerly blew us along the coast with our twin headsails just about filling. We had been hoping for a close-up of the RRS Sir David Attenborough because we had spotted her in the distance the day before, but they’d moved on.

We had heard that some of her team were monitoring the minke whale migration route across the Moray Firth. Off Troup Head we were heartened by the sight and sound of so many gannets. Maybe not as many as before bird flu, but enough of a noisy crowd to feel hopeful.

It became a sun-sparkling day as we approached Kinnaird Head but soon the wind dropped out and we needed to motor to make the most of the favourable current. Fraserburgh looked dauntingly jam-packed with enormous deep-sea fishing boats towering above the harbour walls and we were pleased when the wind filled in again on the starboard quarter to send us on our way.

The Rattray dragon was snoozing peacefully as we passed, although the cloudscape ashore to the west was looking distinctly angry, with dark thunder heads and flashes of lightning.

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Sailing the Shipping Forecast in Scotland – Getting Around

Stonehaven and the Forth Sea Area

Towards Peterhead we started to feel a rolling swell from the south-east, the residue from the blow. It was enough to bulge up around the end of the northern breakwater and surge us in. Having established that anchoring is no longer allowed in the northern corner of the harbour, we headed to the marina entrance which was marked by a surprisingly fluorescent orange anchor on the port hand breakwater. We had just tied up on the pontoon when the squall line found us with a 30-knot tantrum that burst on us from nothing.

We were glad to be in and were once again welcomed very warmly and helpfully. The following day was rather grey and drizzly and a visit to the nearby Peterhead Prison Museum was a possibility. But the forecast was for moderate westerlies and the swell was dropping to nothing. It was a good day to make progress.

Once clear of the harbour, we reached southwards over flat seas, following the coastline towards Aberdeen. Even without sunshine, it is these east coast conditions that we enjoy, with the wind off the land and smooth sailing. We would have loved to go into Aberdeen but it is a very busy commercial harbour and wasn’t going to welcome us unless we needed refuge.

Instead, we were entertained by the crew-transfer helicopters going to and from the oil rigs as we passed the main harbour entrance and then the new South Harbour. Onwards, effortlessly, we were aiming for Stonehaven. But first we had to say goodbye to Cromarty as we crossed into the Forth sea area.

Inverness is the capital of the Highlands and the main transport hub for the region. Several airlines fly into Inverness. There are also flights between Aberdeen and Wick. Trains and buses run between Inverness and Wick and between Inverness and Aberdeen, with stops at or near some of the smaller ports.

Marinas and crew changes

Inverness is the north-eastern gateway to the Caledonian Canal and Inverness Marina is a good place to pause and plan entry into the canal, or as a first stop on exit. There are also good leisure marinas at Wick, Whitehills and Peterhead.

A few of the big commercial harbours should be avoided by leisure craft, but several others are more welcoming, with a variety of pontoon or quayside moorings on offer. Some of these, for example Buckie, offer all-tide and all-weather refuge, but others are tidally restricted or their entrances are dangerous in onshore winds or swell.

A number of small drying harbours are inappropriate for larger or fin keeled boats but are ideal for smaller boats that can take the ground. https://welcome-anchorages.co.uk is a downloadable guide to shore facilities. Along much of this coastline the anchorages are relatively open, but there are some good spots in the Cromarty and Inverness Firths.

Pilotage information

Excellent guidance for all that this coast has to offer is the Forth Yacht Clubs Association’s East Coast of Scotland (published by Imray). These sailing directions incorporate The Yachtsman’s Pilot by Martin Lawrence and contain many years’ worth of accumulated local wisdom. The Cruising Almanac (Imray) is also very helpful.

Places to stop

The north-east corner of Scotland might seem remote but it has a long and rich history as a trading hub. The oil and wind farm industries are now very evident, but stretching back into pre-history these coastlines were on the trading routes into and out of the Great Glen. Even before the Caledonian Canal, this was an important through route.

Much of the landscape is soft, rolling and agriculturally productive. Harbours large and small were built to support trade in fish or fertiliser, wood or stone. Substantial historic houses and civic projects are testament to some of the wealth that has been generated in this region over a very long period of time.

But all of this human history still leaves space for nature. The UK’s largest group of bottlenose dolphins lives in the Moray Firth, which is also on the migration route for minke whales.

Troup Head is home to the only mainland gannet colony, and the more extended cliffs around the Moray Firth are breeding sites for many different seabirds including puffins. If one side of the firth is exposed, the other will be more protected and there is plenty of choice of places to stop and discover a bit more about this really interesting bit of coast.

Inverness – capital of the Highlands

Heading south-west into Inverness Firth you may well be entertained by the bottlenose dolphins in the overfalls off Chanonry Point. Once you’re under the Kessock Bridge and tied up in Inverness Marina there is much to explore ashore including Inverness Castle, the museum and art gallery and the Botanic Gardens.

Caledonian Canal

Inverness is the north-eastern gateway into the Caledonian Canal which is accessed through the Clachnaharry Sea Lock, just west of Inverness Marina. For lock and bridge opening times and lots of other useful information see the Scottish Canals Skippers’ Guide for the Caledonian Canal which can be downloaded from www.scottishcanals.co.uk

Dunrobin Castle

The Dornoch Firth offers wilderness anchorages within shoal and shifting sandbanks. Just north is the village of Golspie with a tiny pier and sandy beach providing anchorage in settled weather. Nearby is the fairytale Dunrobin Castle and Gardens, home to the Duke of Sutherland and open to visitors through the summer.

Cromarty Firth

Cromarty Firth has long been used as a safe haven and is favoured by the oil and renewable industries. There is a small but welcoming harbour at Cromarty, overlooked by the historic highland town. Five miles up the firth is the Invergordon Boating Club where there is an anchorage with good holding www.invergordonboatingclub.org.uk

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