We got up at 6 this morning as we wanted to leave whilst the tide was still high. It's still dark in the mornings and we're depending on fairy lights to see by. Quick breakfast then out, I rode on the quad with Rich down to the jetty. I normally walk but wanted to get down there quick, and as it's so boggy everywhere am wearing wellies all the time which I find difficult to walk in.
We had to pull the boat down a bit, we've got it off to a fine art now and have moved on from when we first had it and I wondered how we'd ever budge it (it weighs about 32 stone). Although running towards the sea dragging a boat over wet stones isn't easy, there's a certain art to it!
Once in the water Rich gets in and I stand there holding the rope while he starts the engine. I then have to leap (not sure that's the right word) it's more of a stop, drop, roll into the boat. Normally I kick one leg into the air and get it into the boat and the rest of my body follows. A few times as I've raised my leg I've managed to get a wave inside my waterproofs which is delightful when you sit down!
This morning though I managed it successfully and stayed dry. It's just starting to get light and luckily the sea is calm although the waves are always bigger halfway across. We beach the boat at the side of the jetty, I stand holding it while Rich fetches the car to pull the boat up with. To do this he has to reverse down the jetty. I haven't offered to do this yet as I'm worried about backing the car off the jetty and into the sea, it's quite narrow.
The sea sometimes really annoys me because even though we gave the boat 3 good pulls so most of it was out the water, as I'm standing there holding onto it, a wave manages to pull it back into the water and turn it sideways then as the waves hit it, the prop keeps hitting the jetty. This is the same place that the boat knocked me over a few weeks ago. My hands are frozen holding onto the wet rope and not for the first time I think, this is mad, what am I doing here? I'm relieved when Rich appears. The boat is pulled up and off we go to Ullapool followed by Inverness. It's going to be a mad dash to get back before it gets dark. The snow is beautiful, there's none on Scoraig but once over the loch the landscape is white and frozen, I'm amazed by it. We've suddenly arrived in Narnia, it's wonderful. Just hoping now we can get back before darkness falls and the sea remains calm. I'm still amazed at the energy needed just to do a weekly shop particularly when it's followed by the buying of building materials which weigh a ton and you wonder if you'll have enough strength to lift them in and out the boat or whether the car will even make it home with the chassis dragging on the road.
We return to the jetty in good time but it's quite busy and by the time we've finally loaded the boat with the shopping, 4 bags of cement and 10 bags of ballast the weather has changed. It's now pouring it down and the waves are getting bigger. We cross safely, I think singing 'for those in peril on the sea ' helped even though that's the only line I know, although we did hit a couple of waves which sent water over everything in the boat. We unload the boat, load the trailer and quad, pull the boat up with the winch then ride home, unload everything and carefully place the 4 wet bags of cement to dry in front of the fire.
We had to pull the boat down a bit, we've got it off to a fine art now and have moved on from when we first had it and I wondered how we'd ever budge it (it weighs about 32 stone). Although running towards the sea dragging a boat over wet stones isn't easy, there's a certain art to it!
Once in the water Rich gets in and I stand there holding the rope while he starts the engine. I then have to leap (not sure that's the right word) it's more of a stop, drop, roll into the boat. Normally I kick one leg into the air and get it into the boat and the rest of my body follows. A few times as I've raised my leg I've managed to get a wave inside my waterproofs which is delightful when you sit down!
This morning though I managed it successfully and stayed dry. It's just starting to get light and luckily the sea is calm although the waves are always bigger halfway across. We beach the boat at the side of the jetty, I stand holding it while Rich fetches the car to pull the boat up with. To do this he has to reverse down the jetty. I haven't offered to do this yet as I'm worried about backing the car off the jetty and into the sea, it's quite narrow.
The sea sometimes really annoys me because even though we gave the boat 3 good pulls so most of it was out the water, as I'm standing there holding onto it, a wave manages to pull it back into the water and turn it sideways then as the waves hit it, the prop keeps hitting the jetty. This is the same place that the boat knocked me over a few weeks ago. My hands are frozen holding onto the wet rope and not for the first time I think, this is mad, what am I doing here? I'm relieved when Rich appears. The boat is pulled up and off we go to Ullapool followed by Inverness. It's going to be a mad dash to get back before it gets dark. The snow is beautiful, there's none on Scoraig but once over the loch the landscape is white and frozen, I'm amazed by it. We've suddenly arrived in Narnia, it's wonderful. Just hoping now we can get back before darkness falls and the sea remains calm. I'm still amazed at the energy needed just to do a weekly shop particularly when it's followed by the buying of building materials which weigh a ton and you wonder if you'll have enough strength to lift them in and out the boat or whether the car will even make it home with the chassis dragging on the road.
We return to the jetty in good time but it's quite busy and by the time we've finally loaded the boat with the shopping, 4 bags of cement and 10 bags of ballast the weather has changed. It's now pouring it down and the waves are getting bigger. We cross safely, I think singing 'for those in peril on the sea ' helped even though that's the only line I know, although we did hit a couple of waves which sent water over everything in the boat. We unload the boat, load the trailer and quad, pull the boat up with the winch then ride home, unload everything and carefully place the 4 wet bags of cement to dry in front of the fire.
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