More Ships

Yesterday afternoon the Northern Lighthouse Board's Pole Star came barrelling up the Sound, heading straight for the Ormsaigbeg shore. There was nothing surprising in this as she sometimes anchors for the night here, usually quite close in, and leaves all her lights on, shading out the stars.

But yesterday she performed a tight 180-degree turn, heeling over....

....and set off back down the Sound, disappearing into the mist off Tobermory.

An hour or so later the Red Duchess came up the Sound. She's a bulk carrier, often carrying cargoes of timber or coal.

Last November she lost power in a westerly gale off the coast of Rhum and had to be held away from certain disaster by a tow from the Mallaig lifeboat - RNLI video clip here. The lifeboat was unable to make any progress against the wind but held her until the Anglian Prince, the Coastguard tug permanently on station off Scotland's west coast, came to her rescue. Full story is here, but the event, following closely behind the grounding of HM submarine Astute on Skye, added fuel to the argument that the Coastguard should not scrap the present arrangements for having a tug permanently on station.

Coincidentally, as the Red Duchess passed yesterday the wind was rising and settling into the west - The Diary has commented twice recently on the continuing calm brought by a persistent high pressure. The wind stayed in the west-southwest all night and has steadily risen, so that by 9.30 this morning it was gusting to force 7. The forecast for tomorrow is sleet and snow.