Seaward 35, BRUISER – a Scottish adventure

We are always super-pleased to hear about our owners and their yachts going on adventures – it shows what is possible with a little planning , a big heap of (mainly) decent weather, and a can-do attitude. When our owners of the beautiful 2011 Seaward 35, BRUISER were chatting about their epic travels North last season (from Plymouth via Falmouth and Ireland, past Ailsa Craig and up into the Western Isles of Scotland for some proper cruising – including rounding Ardnamurchan Head and the island of Coll, then back through the wonderful Crinan Canal), before heading southwards.

Do have a quick look at her walkthrough video

Please do read on to find out about this plucky 35’ Nelson’s wanderings…

Seaward 35, BRUISER – Ships Log

The idea for the Scottish adventure actually came about when I was helping a Scottish pal, together with a couple of friends deliver his newly acquired Fleming 55 to Scotland via Dublin and we had just arrived in Howth and were enjoying our first welcome pint of the black stuff.

“What are you doing for your 70th birthday ?” I was asked and, before I had time to answer, was quickly followed up with – “why don’t you sail BRUISER (our Seaward 35) up to Scotland for the summer”?!

It would be a great adventure. Sailing the boat from Plymouth around Land’s End to the Scottish Hebrides would be a proper voyage and had always been a dream of mine. We now had both the right boat for the job and the time to achieve that dream – why not!

Planning and preparation took a good 12 months. BRUISER had her engines fully serviced (done annually by our trusted engineers) and was then lifted to have her annual antifouling and bottom and stern gear check with props polished, anodes replaced etc. This was all done undercover at Plymouth Yacht Haven.

All safety equipment (including life jackets)was either serviced or upgraded including a new 4 person life raft. All fire extinguishers were replaced as well as offshore flares and the EPIRB was serviced.

BRUISER was then launched, topped up with fuel and water and enough canned food to feed an army!

At the same time I had purchased all the charts and pilots required for the route north, completed the necessary paper work and made contact with the various marinas on route.

At long last in late April 2023, we were finally ready.

We had originally planned to leave Plymouth on Friday 5th May, but the forecast suggested that it might be wise to leave a day earlier for Falmouth to enable us to get around Land’s End and further north, whilst winds, tides and weather systems all aligned.

The route was relatively straightforward – Plymouth, Falmouth, Milford Haven, Dublin, Belfast, Troon, then onwards through the Inner Hebrides before finally arriving at Craobh Haven just to the south of Oban. Total Distance – around 750nm. For the first part of our trip to Troon, we had allowed seven days – including a two day stopover in Dublin at the request of the crew!

Our plan to base ourselves in Craobh Haven proved to be a great decision and it is a perfect location for exploring the Hebrides. We had also booked two of the lovely cottages run by the harbour office and overlooking the marina for a couple of weeks, so that we could meet up, chill out and celebrate with our family and close friends.

The return journey was to be equally exciting, with the highlight being a planned trip through the Crinan Canal and then onwards to Largs, before travelling from Belfast direct to Neyland in South Wales and aiming to be back home in Plymouth by early August latest.

Suffice it to say, it was a magical trip. The longest leg going north was around 150nm around Land’s End and in a straight line up the southern end of the Irish Sea to Milford Haven in South Wales.

We departed Falmouth on Friday 5th May and headed off to Milford Haven. The Lizard was in playful mood, but rounding Land’s End and finally heading north was a great feeling. The sun came out and BRUISER was literally surfing down the slight north going Atlantic swell at up to 21 knots under perfect control.

The Nelson hull is legendary for its sea keeping capabilities and it didn’t disappoint. No slapping or banging – just a smooth, purposeful, sustained glide.

We made a point of topping up (fuel that is) at every port we stopped at. For those of you who obsess (as I do) about range, we did the 150 nm to Milford Haven at an average speed of 18knts and when we came to fill up in Milford Haven, the tanks were still well over half full.

The learning for me here was that BRUISER (she has twin 315hp turbo assisted Yanmars) would easily do 275 nm at 18 knots with plenty of fuel (and range) in reserve. Honestly, I gave up worrying at this point.

BRUISER’s displacement speed is around 7.5knts and once up in Scotland where there was rarely a need to rush between islands, this is the speed we often travelled at – or less! We effectively used the tides as “conveyor” belts to transport us around. At this speed, we could probably have got to Iceland on full tanks!

We saw lots of wildlife over the ten weeks we were away – numerous sightings of dolphins in the Channel and Irish sea surfing alongside BRUISER, to sea eagles, golden eagles and even a whale spouting off Arran. Sea otters in Craobh Haven were a daily sight! Departing Milford Haven, we spent two nights in Howth (Dublin) and then had a great run up to Belfast in virtually flat calm seas.

On Tuesday 9th May we left Belfast early in the morning and within a few hours BRUISER was approaching the island of Ailsa Craig.

I have passed this famous granite outcrop several times from seaward over the years, but never noticed the cloud formation before. This time there was a ring of cloud just draping itself over the top. It was very noticeable.

Local folklore foretells a spell of fine weather is in store when this rare phenomenon appears and so it was to be, as we enjoyed literally nearly two months of exceptionally fine weather – the best summer in 23 years according to the marina manager in Craobh Haven. We were so lucky.

Once in Troon we had a couple of day’s rest before setting off a few days later to explore the islands further north.

There were so many highlights on this trip for me

• Our daily ritual of ending the days sailing with chocolate and a Macallan’s – absolute heaven!
• Rounding the Mull of Kintyre – perfect sunshine one moment, then thick swirling sea mist the next. Getting the timing of the tides right here to go north was key, as the main stream is quite close inshore.
• Port Ellen on Islay – I heard and saw more cuckoos in Port Ellen than I had done in my life ( I am sure it wasn’t the whisky) – there is actually no shortage of cuckoos in the UK, they just all choose to live on Islay and who can blame them.
• Gigha – a magical place with a fabulous seafood restaurant on the beach.
• The isolated sea loch Tarbert on Jura, which has a tricky entrance and where we were the only boat anchored overnight.

• Colonsay with its precarious climb (and descent) up the ferry pier wall from our tender. This would teach us not to arrive at low tide, but their gin, produced on the island, is exceptional!
• The island of Mull and Tobermory with its beautifully individual and coloured cottages straddling the harbour and the Mishnish pub which my wife Jane and I had visited nearly 50 years previously for a Ceilidh I am sure that it still had the same tartan carpet!
• The sea eagles nesting off the northern tip of Mull – we were literally yards from them magical.
• Rounding Ardnamurchan head (the most westerly point in the British Isles) which, incidentally, entitles all motor boat owners who round it, to proudly display a sprig of white heather from the pulpit of their boat.
• The tiny village and marina of Salen on Loch Sunart and Loch Teacuis with its sea otters popping up around the boat.

• The beautiful Island of Coll – I took a photo here of a lovely little fishing boat on its trailer in a collapsed shed, which later won a photography picture prize – I very nearly didn’t take it!
• The beautiful, but rugged Treshnish Islands with their seals and literally thousands of sea birds.
• Staffa, with its famous Fingles Cave – just bobbing off shore and watching as the tourist boats braved the swell to try to land their passengers.
• Iona – we anchored in the very shallow channel in front of the Abbey and went ashore to complete this part of the pilgrimage.
• Oban – where we stayed two nights and enjoyed some great seafood, then south to Craobh Haven through the notorious Cuan Sound. I admit that the reputation of this place had kept me awake at night, but I actually ended up going backwards and forwards through the sound a total of five times much to the amusement of a couple of anchored yachts – just to prove to myself that I could do it. The rate of the rushing tide was incredible and it is the only place I have actually seen a waterfall at sea!
• The beautiful Slate islands – there are some fabulous gardens here which Jane and I had great fun exploring.

• Craobh Haven itself – an absolute gem with its tiny coloured cottages and absolutely stunning sunsets. The haven staff were exceptional and made us so welcome. The tea rooms in the nearby village of Ardfern (Lucy’s) which became a favourite haunt.
• The lovely Loch Melfort Hotel, where we anchored several times during our stay in the peaceful bay just below the Hotel (and only a short hop from Craobh Haven) and had the best cream teas on the hotel veranda looking south towards Jura – an absolute must!

• Taking BRUISER to the notorious Corryvreckan whirlpool which, on the day and time we visited, was almost flat calm.
• The incredible Loch Fyne Oyster and seafood restaurant nesting at the top of Loch Fyne and their take away salmon meals – outstanding!

• Finally – we saved probably the very best until last – the Crinan Canal. Due to the exceptionally hot summer, we actually had to wait a week longer than planned due to lack of water can you believe!?

We did a couple of reconnaissance visits to the tiny village of Crinan, whilst we were waiting and enjoyed the delights of the tiny café alongside the wharf, although there was little boat movement.

As part of our plan to travel the canal in a leisurely two days, we booked a night in the Cairn Baan hotel (since sadly closed) which was half way along the canal.

We booked our travel slot and Pete the pilot (who proved invaluable) and waited to receive our call from the Scottish Canal authorities, who control the number of boats entering and leaving the canal.

It was the first wet day of the whole trip. We set off early in the morning from Craobh Haven together with our pilot who was a local chap.

We had planned our departure to arrive at Crinan in good time, motoring south through the notorious Dorus Mhor channel together with its associated overfalls and via which Crinan is approached. Thankfully, we got the tides and timing just right.

Despite the fact that we had reserved a slot in the Crinan basin, it was absolutely rammed, with every boat in the area having been held up by the dry weather, now arriving to make their way south to Ardrishaig and thereby cutting out the long trip around the Mull of Kintyre further south.

I hovered at the entrance to the canal talking to the slightly perplexed lockkeeper on the vhf who was trying to marshal the boats – but there was no way BRUISER would get into that loch .

So, I suspect to his great relief, I suggested that we wait for the next lock opening, which he assured us would be very rapid as there were very few boats coming out the other way. This proved to be the case and an hour later we were in the canal and homeward bound.

We loved the Crinan experience – a really memorable trip along the canal through some beautiful countryside with stunning scenery. We spent a night moored up by the hotel and then moved onto Ardrishaig and Loch Fyne. A leisurely 4 knts – so tick over speeds for two days.

We had a night in the sea Loch outside the canal in Ardrishaig which, with the benefit of hindsight, was probably not my best decision of the trip. The weather was on the turn and it was very rough!

The next morning, BRUISER headed south around Arran to Largs where, after a few days break, she began her return trip south to Plymouth via Belfast, Neyland Marina and Falmouth.

In summary, it was an absolutely fabulous trip – ten weeks of pure relaxation and adventures. BRUISER excelled herself and never missed a beat. There is something incredibly special about taking your own boat to Scotland and exploring this wonderful coastline of ours.

Importantly, don’t rush it and take the time to enjoy it. How lucky are we!

An Insight into the Current Plans for Seaward 35, BRUISER

We do hope you enjoyed that well-scripted log from her owners – it just shows what can be achieved with the right tool for the job!

BRUISER is now (rather sadly) on the market with Berthon International, since her owners have achieved exactly what they wished to do with her.

You will find her full specification here: online profile here: https://www.berthoninternational.com/yacht-sales-brokerage/yachts-for-sale/seaward-35-bruiser/.

For more information and an appointment to get on board this wonderfully well-equipped and comprehensively sorted semi-displacement cruising motor-yacht, please do get in touch with hugh.rayner@berthon.co.uk on +44(0)7920 465455.

About Hugh Rayner | Meet the Berthon Sales Group