Moray Firth Clubs come out in force to support the Buckie Rotary Club’s 6 Harbour’s Walk
If the weather conditions allow, Sunday 30 th April will see the largest non competitive gathering of St Ayles Skiffs on the Moray Firth. There has been interest from all the active clubs between Stonehaven and the Black Isle and 15 skiffs are expected to row the 15 miles between Portsoy and Buckie, calling in at Cullen, Portknockie and Findochty en route.
Scottish Coastal Rowing has become a fun, cheap and ‘accessible to all’ sport since it was first introduced to this region in Portsoy in March 2013 with the launch of the very pink Soy Quine! At that time, the nearest club was Ullapool! Now there are clubs at Catterline, Collieston, Whitehills, Portsoy, Cullen, Findochty, Lossiemouth, Burghead, Findhorn, Nairn and Avoch – and their brightly coloured skiffs, all hand made by members of their community, will assemble in Portsoy around 9am on Sunday 30 th to row in company to Buckie and stop to eat cake and socialise in the pretty harbours en route!
The row will of course only take place if it is safe to do so. We will access the weather conditions and prevailing currents on the Friday or Saturday just prior to the event and if necessary reverse the direction of the row (although we would prefer to go in the same direction as the walkers) or cancel the event altogether.
If you are able to climb in and out of the boat, rowing could be the sport for you! We have rowers of all ages, with under 18’s from Lossiemouth Juniors, to some over 70 year olds – all ready to raise money for the Rotary Club and our local charities! If you fancy having a try, all the clubs are happy to encourage new members and will offer a choice of outings, either during the day, evenings or weekends. Most can be found on Facebook or on the Scottish Coastal Rowing Association’s website:https://scottishcoastalrowing.org/. Please come out and support us or stop in a harbour for a chat!
Image 1: 4 skiffs rowed the 6 Harbours Walk last year – here seen at Cullen harbour
Image 2: 4 skiffs rowed the 6 Harbours Walk last year – here seen at Cullen harbour
Image 3, Burghead skiff Tarbh Uisge on last year’s 6 Harbours event
Image 4: A gathering of skiffs at last year's SkiffieWorlds event in Kortgene, the Netherlands
Image 5: one of Cullen’s skiffs (and a paddleboarder!) at the Bow Fiddle Rock
Image 6: the two Findochty skiffs Morag and Morvern on a bonny sunny day
Image 7: Skiffs at the Bow Fiddle Rock
