July 2016
The past few days have been busy ones for young sailor Natasha Lambert on her Sea and Summit Scotland challenge.
On Friday the team arrived at the sea lock adjacent to the start of the Crinan Canal, in Argyll and Bute, after a day’s sail from Oban. The weather was finally kind and Natasha was able to enjoy some excellent sailing down the Firth of Lorn and the Sound of Jura. This was followed by some tricky navigation decisions by Natasha to ensure that the yacht made it safely through the Sound of Luing.
Whilst for many sailors the relatively calm seas on the passage would have provided a chance to sit back and relax this is not possible for Natasha. She is strapped into an adapted seat which constricts her movement. So any passage is a real challenge. At the end of each sailing day it takes many hours for Natasha to stretch out and feel comfortable
On Saturday the challenge took a fascinating diversion along the Crinan Canal, allowing Natasha to add “working” a series of locks to her maritime CV.
Natasha was initially on board to supervise the passage through the nine mile man-made short cut across the Kintyre peninsula.
She then swapped her yacht for her walker, allowing her to join the team opening and closing the gates on a number of the fifteen locks on the canal. Sister Rachel also joined in the work.
Once through the canal the Miss Isle Team will be ready to enter Loch Fyne and the sail towards Clyde Marina where the challenge will end.
