Head of Loch Aline

[DaveS]

On Friday I anchored at the top of Loch Aline, guided by the excellent Antares Charts. While there two interesting things happened.

Just as the sun was disappearing over the hill an otter swam up to about 20 feet from my stern and looked at me intently. It then dived and came up with a fish which it proceeded to eat in chunks while lying on its back and holding it between its feet. Between bites it had further looks at me. I got the distinct impression it was just showing off!

In the early morning I was woken by a heavy shower and found that quite a bit of water had come through the open companionway. Normally that doesn't happen at anchor, and I wondered if there had been some sort of tidal swirl turning the boat the wrong way round. Anybody familiar with these parts come across this?

[SteveN]

We anchor there quite often and I've never seen an otter there - that's very lucky.
Yes, it's quite common for boats to be sitting at all angles including stern to wind; the weak tidal streams are further complicated by the outflow from the river which takes control as the streams die away.

By the way just out of interest we picked up one of the new moorings installed just north of the pontoons as we wanted to use the pontoons to easily take our bikes ashore and go cycling. Nice moorings but spoiled by the very irritating noise of a diesel pump or generator in a little green wooden hut on the foreshore at the centre of the trot. It droned away 24/7 and made a sound like a flat reversing beeper for 30 seconds of every minute. I've no idea what it is but it put us off ever using them again.

[pagoda]

On Friday I anchored at the top of Loch Aline, guided by the excellent Antares Charts. While there two interesting things happened.

Just as the sun was disappearing over the hill an otter swam up to about 20 feet from my stern and looked at me intently. It then dived and came up with a fish which it proceeded to eat in chunks while lying on its back and holding it between its feet. Between bites it had further looks at me. I got the distinct impression it was just showing off!

In the early morning I was woken by a heavy shower and found that quite a bit of water had come through the open companionway. Normally that doesn't happen at anchor, and I wondered if there had been some sort of tidal swirl turning the boat the wrong way round. Anybody familiar with these parts come across this?

How far up Loch Aline were you? We were last up there a long way up on the Port side. Lovely and quite- past the nasty Antares reported rock!

[Telo]

Yeas, as Steve said, it's the current of fresh water from the river that cuts over the sea water. Even in southerlies, the boats anchored over towards the west side are very often facing north.

When at the head of the loch, we usually anchor clear of the moorings across from the cottage on the east side. That seems to miss the stream from the river.

[Telo]

It also happens at the south end where the tide runs fast,

[DaveS]

On Friday I anchored at the top of Loch Aline, guided by the excellent Antares Charts. While there two interesting things happened.

Just as the sun was disappearing over the hill an otter swam up to about 20 feet from my stern and looked at me intently. It then dived and came up with a fish which it proceeded to eat in chunks while lying on its back and holding it between its feet. Between bites it had further looks at me. I got the distinct impression it was just showing off!

In the early morning I was woken by a heavy shower and found that quite a bit of water had come through the open companionway. Normally that doesn't happen at anchor, and I wondered if there had been some sort of tidal swirl turning the boat the wrong way round. Anybody familiar with these parts come across this?

How far up Loch Aline were you? We were last up there a long way up on the Port side. Lovely and quite- past the nasty Antares reported rock!

Yes, I was more or less at the most northerly anchor-able point, past the beacon and Antares' rock outside it .