30 July 2025 – Wednesday – MUSSELS !!!

We had a rolly night in our anchorage by the beach. We held our anchorage spot which was nice sand which is good for anchoring. We left after breakfast for Loch Spelve about 25 miles away. The Ocean Cruising club (one of the cruise participants) had invited us all to a dinner of mussels and pot luck additions at a mussel farm in Loch Spelve. The loch has a narrow entrance opening into a long widening area which is lined with buoys and ropes holding the growing mussels. We arrived in a large basin surrounded by low hills and trees. We realized that we hadn’t seen trees in a while. 

The sun of yesterday was absent. Our trip was chilly, grey and foggy. Once we arrived and anchored, we had plenty of time to relax. The party was several hours away. 

The mussel farm had cleared their docks and their processing center to allow for a dinghy dock and a place for our party on land. The owners of the farm had donated the mussels in exchange for which they asked for donations to the Royal Navy Lifeboat Institute (an all volunteer rescue group for mariners). We raised 700 British pounds! The food was all great and the mussels were particularly excellent. Everyone brought their own plates, glasses, and silverware as well as food for the pot luck. Johanna had made chili which was also delicious. 
We returned to our boat as the sky darkened. The evening was beautiful with fog, boat anchor lights and a blue grey sky. Tomorrow is our last day back at Kerrera with a final party. We have packing and boat cleaning ahead of us before we leave.