SAILING THE FARM

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Grounded Colin Archer refloated

The "Sailing the Farm" which grounded in Lochaber was successfully refloated at high tide and was continuing on its voyage. The crew had to wait around eight hours for the tide to come in after the boat became stuck on rocky ground and tipped over at around 1 p.m. on Sep 22. They attempted to stabilise the craft by attaching ropes and chains to railings along the top of the promenade close to the West End Car Park. The road was closed because it was feared that they were under a lot of tension and could snap. The Fort William Coastguard Rescue Team were on site for the refloating at around 9 p.m. to ensure public safety. A boat of the nearby Underwater Centre had offered to return at high tide, but was not needed. The "Sailing the Farm" appeared not to have been damaged and spent the night moored at the new pontoons in Fort William. It then moved off onto a mooring in Loch Linnhe before going on its way on Sep 23 at 10 a.m. The self-sufficiency community, based near Oslo in Norway, that is hoping to form a floating nomadic trib, was planning to slowly sail the coast of Europe until December 2016 when they intend to cross the Atlantic and sail South America in 2017/18 and the Pacific in 2018/19. Report with photo: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands/1036227/grounded-yacht-goes-on-its-way-after-being-refloated/

A82 closed after Sailing the Farm ran aground nearby

Police closed the northbound carriageway of the A82 in the afternoon of Sep 22, 2016, after the "Sailing the Farm" ran aground on rocks and tipped over at a precarious angle. It had sailed too close to the wall alongside the Inverness to Glasgow road at Fort William at around 1 p.m. Crew members waded into the water to investigate the problem. They also attached ropes and chains from the yacht to the railings along the top of the promenade close to the West End Car Park in an attempt to hold it steady. A work boat from the nearby Underwater Centre went to their assistance, but it became clear that the yacht would have to stay put until the tide came in last night. The road was closed due to fears that the ropes and chains were under a lot of tension and could snap. The local Coastguard rescue team had been on scene to advise and said they would return at high tide at about 9 p.m. when another attempt would be made to refloat it. Reports with photos: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands/1035436/a82-closed-following-discovery-stranded-yacht/ https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands/1035436/a82-closed-following-discovery-stranded-yacht/