Troon

We weighed anchor at 9.30 and by 10.50 were leaving Loch Ryan heading north. The visibility was good as we could see Ireland and the Mull of Kintyre. The wind was light from the west so we were motoring with the main up.

Looking south down the coast towards the Mull of Galloway

About midday we had a timing error on our main navigational system of approximately half an hour, initially causing us to have quite a debate as to whether it was time to have lunch and then more seriously doubt the positional accuracy of the chart plotter. A couple of full system resets put the problem right. The only explanation Rob could think of was the possibility of a military jamming exercise interfering with our system.

As we progressed north the scenery was becoming more interesting with Ailsa Craig on the way and other highlands and islands appearing. Just after four we were passing to the east of Lady Isle. Seals on the Half Tide Rock were singing, a slightly eerie sound as if they have belly ache after too much fish to eat. Another seal poked its head up out of the water in the entrance of Troon harbour when we arrived. By 17.20 we were moored in the marina.

Ailsa Craig

Troon Marina

We stayed two nights at Troon so we could provision the boat and catch up with chores. A walk revealed the pavements in the area to be strangely strewn with bark. We soon discovered a constant stream of log wagons to the local sawmill and the heady smell of freshly sawn wood. We were impressed by the extent of the operation.