West Highland Week 2026

Thanks to Roger Chamberlain for this entertaining log of Adelante’s adventures at this year’s West Highland Week.

Dark and Stormy Syndicate
Hugh and Rosie; Richard and Sharon; Fiona and Roger; Gordy, Leah and Lianne
Delivery Crew – Gareth

Adelante’s trip to West Highland Week proved to be another excellent nine days of sailing, racing and the usual adventures that come with taking a boat to the west coast of Scotland.

We left Bangor on Thursday morning, timing our departure to catch the tide at the Mull, and arrived in Gigha at around 3pm. We managed to get onto the pontoon and enjoyed a great meal, as ever, in the Boathouse that evening.

Feeder Race to Craobh Haven

Our first race was the feeder to Craobh Haven, which we had won last year. A few teething problems with our new mainsail resulted in some head-scratching between Gordy and myself and a slightly late start. We then found a sizeable hole in the wind in the Sound of Jura and never quite managed to catch Elixir, but held off Magdalene to finish second in class.

Adelante and Elixir

Craobh Haven Racing

The following day brought three lively races around Craobh Haven in around 20 knots of breeze.

The most memorable moment came while rounding one of the small rocky outcrops near Shuna Island. A fairly dramatic slam gybe resulted in me falling and being unable to release the main, leaving Adelante heading rather alarmingly towards the rocks.

Gumshields were definitely required! We managed to free the mainsheet and Richard bore away just in time. I reckon we missed the island by about one boat length.

The remaining races were equally lively, with the usual debate over whether or not the kite should go up. Sometimes it did; sometimes discretion won.

Craobh Haven to Oban

The passage race from Craobh Haven to Oban went rather better. We had a good start and finished second overall in Class 1, with Elixir winning and Sunrise also very much in the mix.

By this stage it was becoming clear that the main Class 1 competition was between Sunrise, Elixir and ourselves, and we were pleased to be right in amongst it.

This was also the first year the Scottish boats had been sailing under YTC, and there was a feeling that some of the advantage they might have enjoyed against us in previous years had been reduced. From Adelante’s point of view, we were certainly pleased to be competing strongly at the front of the class.

Oban – or Golf?

Conditions in Oban were pretty breezy and the organisers announced a two-hour postponement.

At this stage we took a poll of Adelante’s increasingly mature crew – average age now somewhere around 65 – and collectively decided that nine holes of golf on Seil Island sounded like a much better idea.

Halfway around the course, playing in the rain and fairly blustery conditions, we heard that racing had been cancelled for the day. For once, our tactical decision-making had been impeccable.

Golfing on Seil Island

Oban to Tobermory – A Good Day

The passage race from Oban to Tobermory started with reasonable breeze before, as so often happens in the Sound of Mull, the wind gradually disappeared.

Somehow Adelante found a small patch of breeze, worked her way through the fleet and reached the new wind coming down from Tobermory ahead of most of the boats around us.

We finished second boat across the line and first overall in Class 1.

Better still, we subsequently discovered that we had won the Angus Meldrum Trophy for the best corrected time across the entire fleet – a result which deserved a few Dark ’n’ Stormys in celebration.

Tobermory was, as always, beautiful and wonderfully sheltered. We had an excellent evening in the Mishnish, where the Mad Ferrets were playing a great selection of Scottish – and, even better from our point of view, Irish – songs. Great craic.

Tobermory Racing

The following day was breezy again and racing was delayed for a couple of hours before we eventually headed out.

It wasn’t our finest outing. We lost the clew from one kite and, having put up the second, promptly lost its halyard. That put an end to our spinnaker sailing and resulted in our worst finish of the week – I think a sixth.

Given the conditions, the organisers sensibly called it a day after one race.

Halyard retrieval!

Tobermory to Oban – The Battle for Second

The final passage race back to Oban became a battle with Elixir for second place overall, with Sunrise by then having first pretty much in the bag.

Once again, the wind disappeared in the Sound of Mull. Elixir had a very good middle section and things weren’t looking particularly promising for us, but towards the finish Adelante somehow found another lovely little patch of breeze.

We managed to sail past Elixir and finish second overall in the race, which was enough to secure second overall in Class 1 for West Highland Week.

We were absolutely delighted.

The Journey Home

We left almost immediately after finishing, departing at around 4pm on Friday and reaching Gigha around midnight. After roughly three hours’ sleep we set off again for the long sail home.

We made it as far as Ardglass, having just missed the tide for Strangford Lough, so that became our final overnight stop before returning home.

Overall, West Highland Week was another fantastic trip. Nine days is a substantial commitment, but it is a very friendly, family-orientated event with a great mixture of competitive sailing and social activity.

I would certainly recommend it to anyone in SLYC who fancies taking on something a little different.

For Adelante, coming home with second overall in Class 1 and the Angus Meldrum Trophy made a memorable week even better.