While we were Away

We were only away for a few days, but so much seems to have happened in that short time.  For a start, we missed Regatta - for the first time in sixteen years - so many thanks to Stewart Pote and Trevor Potts for sending in pictures for The Diary.

Another event we missed was the great Kilchoan Pram Race, an event which rivals any at the Olympics.  Many thanks to Stewart Pote for these pictures:

The competitors lined up at the start of the race - please note the fine weather, something we didn't enjoy too much of down in England.

The winners of first prize in the senior section in action...

....and Katie Gane and Grant Cameron with their prizes.

This shows the Junior section winners....

....Morven MacIntyre and Rebecca Kerr.  That's one of the organisers of this event in the background, Cliff Isherwood of Kilchoan House Hotel.

Finally, the best-dressed prize went to Peggy May Chapple and Kayleigh MacGillivray dressed as Bill and Ben.

All photos copyright Stewart Pote.

The excitement of the Pram Race on Friday was followed by a demonstration by HM Coastguard and the RNLI as they exercised off Ardnamurchan Point in perfect conditions on Saturday.

 These super pictures were taken by Kenneth Cameron who watched the show from the Lighthouse.

The helicopter is from the Coastguard station at Stornoway, about 45 minutes flying time from West Ardnamurchan.

This picture shows the helicopter passing close over the lighthouse and wind turbine - though Kenneth says that the effect is heightened by the telephoto lens he was using.

The lifeboats were from Mallaig and Tobermory.  The Tobermory lifeboat covers most of Ardnamurchan's south coast, and round as far as Fascadale Bay, while the Mallaig boat covers the rest of the north coast.

Many thanks to Kenneth Cameron for the pictures.

The lifeboats have been busy in our absence.  Within an hour of finishing the exercise, the Tobermory boat was out at a yacht which had lost engine power off Glengorm Castle, and she was out again yesterday afternoon to the yacht in this picture, which she escorted in to Tobermory Bay.  A list of the Tobermory lifeboat's launches is on the Tobermory RNLI site, here.

Why were we away?  Well, we were down in East Anglia enjoying some Kilchoan sunshine and contemplating the future of Ormsaigbeg.