The Epic Expedition Finale

We left Loch Aline this morning and head south down the Sound of Mull to do a short survey around the island of Lismore and then head back up the Sound to Tobermory for our final evening together. It was a lovely trip south, with the ruined Ardtornish Castle on a bluff and Duart Castle farther along. With all the rain in the last 24 hours, waterfalls are cascading from the hills above. As we reached Lismore, the sky darkened and it became misty. A flock of spectacular eider ducks passed right by the boat, which was a special treat. After circling around Lismore, the weather deteriorated severely as we passed the Lismore lighthouse and back into the Sound of Mull. It was almost a complete opposite from earlier this morning and it was a much longer trip back to Tobermory. With the high winds (up to 30 knots) and the waves, Silurian's speed was nearly cut in half at times. The engine was working at 6.5 knots, but actual speed sometimes slowed to less than 3 knots). The decision was made to go "off effort", but acoustic surveying continued. The majority of people took shelter inside to stay and get dry (myself included), but it didn't take long to feel a bit sick below deck. So I went back outside to enjoy the fresh air and occasional face full of saltwater. At lunchtime a mug of soup appeared, but I lost the challenge and ended up wearing most of it, instead of eating it. I eventually went inside and got some dry clothes on. To warm up I crawled into my bunk and hid under the duvet....next thing I was conscious of was the boat was no longer rocking. I looked at my phone, which showed a 1.5 hours had passed and when I went up top, discovered we had arrived at Tobermory.

Once Silurian was tied up to the pontoon, cleaning duties were assigned. The next 2 hours were spent cleaning up and preparing Silurian for her next voyage. When finished we were released to go clean ourselves up. I took the opportunity to go home and have a shower and get some clean clothes. We rendezvoused back on the boat and around 8pm we journeyed in the drizzling rain together to the Western Isles Hotel for supper. A wonderful meal was enjoyed by all (as far as I know) and afterwards a pub crawl commenced. From the traditional Mishnish, to McGochan's (karaoke!), and back to the Mishnish, I had a wonderful evening with a fantastic group of people. Eventually we found our way back to Silurian and and our bunks......morning comes early (seriously there is only like 4 hours of semi-darkness here!).