The English are coming!!!

[Silkie]

I'm sure you'll both enjoy your week but watch out for them hoolies. Just a pity you couldn't make it up to a proper cruising area.

[Clyde_Wanderer]

Hi Jim, looking forward to meeting you too, especially since I unfortunatly let you down on the promised berth for the SB cruise a while back.
Sorry no poteen to take along
I feel we could well be making our own hoolie though!
C_W

[Telo]

We hope Mr and Mrs Full Circle have a wonderful weekend.

[Clyde_Wanderer]

I'm sure you'll both enjoy your week but watch out for them hoolies. Just a pity you couldn't make it up to a proper cruising area.

Ahh, pardon you, we had the 'Norweigen Jade' pass down the Clyde last sat eve, a proper cruise ship in a great cruising area.
C_W

[Clyde_Wanderer]

Sorry no poteen to take along
I feel we could well be making our own hoolie though!
C_W

Eamonn, its your lucky day. I will bring poteen from a little place called Geary.

Great Jim, so long as its not from a Gearybox!
Where might Geary be? havent geard of it
C_W

[Booby Trapper]

Well Jim I was in Rothesay last Saturday night and I don't think I'll be in a hurry to get back. We were in a pub, can't quite remember the name of but I'm sure it was something Italian like toscana or taverna Maggie Zaveroni was doing a turn on the mike, the locals seemd to enjoy it.
I'm planning to be at Portavadie on Saturday night so our paths may cross.
Give me a call if you're up that way (Shearwater).

[little boy blue]

.......... Where might Geary be? havent geard of it
C_W

if your lucky - garioch, if not - who knows

[So_Sage_of_Lorne]

If the weather is in your favour and you feel like rounding the Mull, there is every likelyhood that BBH will be heading South to Gigha around mid week. The caviat is, that I will be accompanied by Mrs Lorne and her mother

[Falkirkdan]

If the weather is in your favour and you feel like rounding the Mull, there is every likelyhood that BBH will be heading South to Gigha around mid week. The caviat is, that I will be accompanied by Mrs Lorne and her mother

And of course the Chicks. Enjoy your trip, hope weather is good. Hope Margaret enjoys her trip and tell her not to spoil the chicks too much, as if

[Falkirkdan]

I will be in Rothesay Sat afternoon with Miss Sable. I am running KCC Treasure Hunt and wil be busy sorting out all the daft answers. Pete and anyone else coming out of Kip in Sat want to join in collect clue sheets from me on KCC pontoon between 10 and 11 on Sat (if I get up in time that is).

[Clyde_Wanderer]

A good low key night was had in the company of Jim and Lynne (Mr and Mrs Full Circle) and their host Pete Cooper, at Rothesay, also great to meet up with the cruisers from Kip inc yourself Danny, sorry for wakening you at 22.30 last night! and Johnathon and his wife (sorry forgot your name)
The bacon and egg buttie was a welcome prize even though my head was a bit on the sore side from the effects of the "Geary"
Hope you all enjoy the rest of your wk where ever you get too.
C_W

[So_Sage_of_Lorne]

Johnathon and his wife (sorry forgot your name)
C_W

That would be RoseMary, difficult to forget, you need to take more water with it!

[Pete Cooper]

I left Mr & Mrs FC yesterday in Largs. Sunday we hit the fleshpots of Tarbert, Monday was Lochranza, including a trip to the distillery, and Monday was back to Largs for a meal in the Lounge. Four days of gorgeous weather, calm seas and good company. Wednesday I returned to work in torrential rain and very high winds. I have not heard from Mr & Mrs FC today, but they had plans to go to the water sports place and take refreshment in Millport or stay in Largs with possibly a trip to the Holy Loch before returning to Kip on Friday.
In Lochranza we initially picked up a visitor's mooring, and encouraged by a couple of pints Deuchars, we returned to the mother ship and decided to berth on the pontoon. Within seconds of mooring some old biddie, who from her accent was from further South than me, offered to sell us raffle tickets so we bought some. She implied that the locals had built and paid for the pontoon although I suspect that this isn't the case, or at least not directly as the sign clearly states Argyll & Bute Council. She then went on to tell us that we couldn't berth overnight there so I pointed out that the sign doesn't actually say so - it says use the buoys for overnight berthing, but not what to do if there are no buoys available. Anyway we walked up to the pub again after tea and partook of refreshment. The staff were fun but the guy who runs it seemed to be a right miserable sod.
After an ample sufficiency of varying kinds of alcohol we returned to the boat to find that the NW wind was bouncing us on the fenders so we cast off and picked up an empty mooring. Yes we could have anchored, but the mooring buoy was a lot closer than the available anchoring area.
If you are not allowed to moor yachts on the pontoon I don't really see why it is there. It is no problem to lift or drag a dinghy out on the old slipway so nothing is gained by having the pontoon there.

[Telo]

She implied that the locals had built and paid for the pontoon although I suspect that this isn't the case, or at least not directly as the sign clearly states Argyll & Bute Council.

Many of the so-called "locals" wouldn't part with the steam off their pee if they could avoid it. The cooncil built it, at a cost of £158,000 from the public purse.

You might well wonder how it managed to cost £158,000.

[Bodach na mara]

No shame in picking up a mooring as opposed to anchoring in Lochranza. I have seen the best of them failing to get the hook to hold in the treacherous kelp that infests the bay. And it is not a place that you want to be in if the wind shifts and you drag, which is quite likely. I have heard it said that a large fisherman anchor is the only thing to use there.

Regarding the pontoon, I read about it last year. I do recall mention of a rule barring overnight berthing and restricting daytime berthing to three hours..

We were in Lochranza a couple of years ago and were disappointed with the place. Stores are restricted to what you can get at the caravan site, about a mile up the distillery road. There did not appear to be an operative pub or restaurant at that time. All in all, a pretty but not particularly welcoming place.