Loch Ness and the Challenge

What an experience our first few days in the Caledonian Canal have been. It’s quite impressive climbing up a flight of locks, so far we have been through seven locks of a total of 29, and three of the 10 swing bridges. The Canal was first completed back in 1822 and took 20 years to build. We spent Sunday getting up the first set of locks, with Muirtown locks being a series of four locks in a row. It’s literally like climbing a staircase – except on a boat. I must admit it was quite weird looking out from Scarlet and seeing roof tops in the valley below the canal. Locks are also a great way to keep the crew entertained, and at least most people got a chance to drive Scarlet through a lock. We did also have Fran and Shadab jump off to be our line handlers ashore.
We spent the evening in Caley Marina and went for quite a nice peaceful walk into a rather quiet Inverness City (it was a Sunday night though).
The canal just gets more beautiful the further West we go, with steep mountains on either side descending down to the canal. It runs along the Great Glen, which is a natural geological fault line which divides the Highlands with a series of Lochs, making it ideal for a canal.
I am also getting much better at pronouncing some of the Scottish names. I was a little bit shy when I had to call up Clachnaharry Sea Lock, and sheepishly just called them up as ‘Sea lock’. I got a little braver, and with a little pronunciation advice from our Scottish crew, I managed to not make too much of a fool of myself when I called up Dochgarroch Lock. I do enjoy the names, and was quite happy (although it did take a couple attempts to get it right) to moor up in Drumnadrochit last night.
Our first glimpse of Loch Ness was absolutely breathtaking. It just so happened that the sun was out and we had beautiful blue skies. I really didn’t expect to be reaching for the sunblock again up in the lochs, what an amazing day! Just as we entered the Loch we caught a glimpse of Aldourie Castle, hidden amongst the trees. This is a true fairytale castle, but is not open to the public so a glimpse from the Loch would have to do.
With not that much wind around we unfortunately didn’t get too much sailing done, but it was really good just to be able to appreciate the spectacular scenery. The Loch Ness Lifeboat came out to say hello to us, and Neil (the helm) very kindly went into Drumnadrochit Harbour ahead of us, just to check what the water depth was. It’s quite strange not having to worry about tides this week. Thankfully there was enough water for us, and thanks again to the RNLI for being our scout boat. Drumnadrochit is in the corner of Urquhart Bay, so of course a trip to Urquhart Castle had to happen. It also just happened to be that the Caladonian Ceilidh Trail Band was having their opening night at the castle. They were incredible – it was such a treat to listen to young energetic musicians enjoying playing their traditional music so much. They also announced the songs in Gaelic, and sang a few really beautiful songs in Gaelic (thankfully there was an English translation too).
Urquhart Castle, although a ruin, is stunning. This is on a headland about a third of the way down the Loch, which is also the deepest part of the Loch. I couldn’t believe it, but Loch Ness is deeper than the North Sea, and has an average year round temperature of between 4 and 7 degrees. The RNLI base is located in Urquhart Bay, and Neil very kindly showed our crew round their base. He was quite informative about the lock, and mentioned that with the temperatures so low, if someone went overboard first stage hypothermia would start after just 5mins, and would probably have to go to hospital after only 15mins (hence the RNLI being dressed in full drysuits, even in the middle of summer). Another interesting fact we learnt about this bay is that this is supposedly the most common Loch Ness Monster spotting ground…
So, armed with all of this useful information about Loch Ness and Urquhart bay, Karen and I decided that Urquhart Castle would make the perfect backdrop for our Loch Ness Challenge – and we did it! We anchored Scarlet off Urquhart Castle and went for a swim around her. I enjoyed it so much (and yet, it was cold) that I went around for a second lap – I suppose so long as you’re moving and swimming with speed it’s okay. Of course, this was great entertainment for our crew, who have probably decided that we are completely mad. It was a little eerie swimming in the dark, peaty waters, but was certainly refreshing. It was also just a little surprising to be swimming in fresh water for a change, and I bet Scarlet is also enjoying the fresh experience. [14/07/09 13:00]
Simon joined us sailing for the day which was absolutely fantastic. It was so good to have him on board, especially to experience the beauty of sailing down Loch Ness. Thankfully we did actually manage to sail! Fraser, Mandy and Emma all took to winch work, while Graham and then Shadab did a great job driving. With the wind coming straight up the Loch, we had quite a lot of practice at tacking, much to everyone’s entertainment. We’re now moored up in Fort Augustus (Scarlet was nicely parked by Emma) and have an early morning of locks to look forward to – this time a flight of five.
From an incredibly beautiful Caley Canal, good night!
Cath