Storm Francis awakened us at about 4 am. Trixi is so smart that she has an inbuilt sensor to tell her when the wind is too strong to be safe …. and she brakes automatically. Without us having to do anything! The boat was rocking and reeling and the wind was howling. We knew we tied up tight, which gives a lovely secure feeling whilst listening to the wild weather outside. We woke late knowing that we weren’t going to have to go anywhere. The wind outside was ferocious. It was registering 30 knots on our instruments at the top of the mast……. and that’s in a protected harbour!! What it would have been like at at the Mull today ………😱 so spent most of the morning reading and writing. I gave Julian a haircut kneeling on a bin bag in the saloon . Watched the seagulls and guillemots and marvelled at the way they managed to stay in the same spot on the water despite the wind. In order to do that they must be paddling furiously beneath! Eventually the weather abated somewhat and we went for a walk around the town. Our exploration found the 3 distilleries that exist today…… at one time , there were no less than 30 distilleries in Campbeltown ! We could actually see into the grain warehouses where the grain was spread out in the floor presumably as it always had been….. fascinating. You could smell the aroma. The main reason I suppose that it has the definite feeling of bygone wealth. On our way back We went to put our payment for the Berth in the honesty box in the marina office lobby. When we got back the boat J decided that it wasn’t raining at that precise moment so might as well fill up the water. Got back into the boat and realised his wallet was missing ☹️. I hot footed it back round to the harbour office and could see the wallet clear as anything sitting there. One benefit of COVID.. all the toilets and showers are closed so much reduced footfall!! What a relief! Supper and tv followed. Now just writing this before bed. It is still raining though the wind has died Down and light winds forecast for tomorrow.
What I learned today ……………….Campbeltown was the centre of the whiskey producing industry ..,. Back in the 1800 s illicit production was rife and there were at most 37 distilleries in the town!
Sue x
Marina from across bay 
Angelique in centre 
Glen scotia distillery 
Barrels! 
Kilkeran distillery 
Spring bank distillery where we saw all the grain
Angelique 