My first summer on Escapade ( Caledonian Canal )

Caledonian Canal

 I was excited about my first living on board experience. Although I have been sailing in the past and have lived on boats before , it was usually for a week or two and mainly for sailing holidays .

So, this would be my first experience to actually live on board as well as cruising for the whole summer. I must admit I was not sure if I could really do this. Well, let's see how it all went after all...

I arrived at Inverness on May 11^th 2010, after a long flight from Canada and Sean has already moored Escapade at Inverness Seaport Marina after sailing down from Orkney a week before my arrival. Our plan was to sail the West Coast of Scotland for the summer.

First of all, it was nice to be on Escapade again  ( I have seen Escapade for the first time at a boatyard in Plymouth in May 2009, where it was standing on a cradle for maintenance before launched again at sea. I will tell more about this later ). 

After a day of rest and some grocery shopping, we started sailing through Caledonian Canal, heading towards the west coast.

Caledonian Canal :  

Sailing through the canal was so beautiful ! ( my journal has been full of this statement ! whereever we have been sailing in Scotland this summer,  all were incredibly beautiful ! )

 

Handling the ropes and changing levels in the canal locks were interesting experiences :

 

Unfortunately, a swelling on my face along with a tooth ache started during the first days ! Sean had to start the engine and rushed along Loch Ness to get to a center to find a dentist. With the help of a lady in the canal tourist centre at Fort Augustus, we learned about a dental centre in Fort William. So, we ended up spending a couple of extra days in the Canal for my dental treatment. 

However, this gave us a chance to see Fort William and surroundings a little further.  

It was lovely to hear and see the steam train as in Harry Potter films :

Another nice surprise was to see the Canadian flag at Fort William Office building, where I learned about twin canals : Caledonian Canal in Scotland and Rideau Canal in Canada !