Fairwinds 2005

Day 4 -Badachro - Lochinver 37 miles

Got up mid morning and had a leisurely breakfast of the mackerel caught the night before on the way in, then poked around with the alternator a bit - took the old one off and found that the spare had completely different contacts on the back. Dinghied into the pub at lunchtime and asked the barman if there were any alternator-savvy mechanics in the vicinity. He gave me the phone number of the garage in Gairloch, and I returned to the boat after having a wee play with the dinghy in the river that comnes in beside the pub, hoping to flush a bit of fresh water through the outboard.

We got the anchor and set off to motor the mile or so to Gairloch, intending to get the alternator looked at and spend the night there on the pontoon but . . . mysteriously, the alternator starts charging again, the wind is up, so a snap decision and it’s off towards Lochinver. (No, honestly, the passage plan is all in place - in my head).

There was enough wind to goosewing all the way to the entrance to Lochinver, where the wind eventually dumped us at ten minutes to eleven. We motor sailed in and tied up on the pontoon and guess what - the alternator has stopped charging again!

A kind gent named Ian took our lines then helped us move the boat to a better berth. This involved moving a line from a fishing boat, but Ian assured us this would be OK (and it was . . . but I probably wouldn’t have dared move it myself). Ian was waiting for a friend coming in singlehanded on a Fisher 34 from Loch Nedd, up past the Point of Stoer. We invited him on board for a dram while he was waiting. Ian had been involved in the recent Assynt community land buy-out, and talked of plans to put a marina in Lochinver. He was an ex trawlerman and knew the skipper of the Norlantean, the boat in the best selling book ‘Trawler’ by Redmond Hanson which I had just finished. Before the dram was even finished his mate Alastair turned up in the Fisher and we tied him up. This resulted in an invitation aboard for drams and snacks and some entertaining conversation. Another late night ensued, with the crew of Fairwinds getting to bed at half past one.