Sail the highland seas with Highland Hospice

Highland Hospice is offering the chance of a lifetime in 2010 for sailing enthusiasts © Highland Hospice

Highland Hospice is offering the chance of a lifetime in 2010 for sailing enthusiasts © Highland Hospice

Highland Hospice is offering the chance of a lifetime in 2010 for sailing enthusiasts. They are launching a unique sailing adventure which also supports a great cause, the only hospice serving adults with life limiting illnesses in the Highlands of Scotland. By booking a space on either the 100 year old Bristol Pilot Cutter “Mascotte” or the modern and sleek “Gael Force” you can enjoy an adventurous holiday away and support a charity which requires to raise £42,000 each week.

It’s not just a sailing holiday the Hospice are offering. Each week there will be a ceilidh featuring renowned bands. We can assure guests of magnificent scenery and outstanding wildlife along with excellent cuisine. Sailing the boats is part of the experience and guests are guaranteed to leave with memories which will last a lifetime.

The cruises will last for one week each. The first leaves Oban on 29th May, the second cruise leaves Portree on 5th of June, the third leaves June 12th from Ullapool and the final tour departs from Mallaig on the 19th of June.

The Director of Fundraising and Communications for Highland Hospice, David Welch is looking forward to this one of a kind event to raise funds for the organisation which has recently expanded it’s services on the west coast of Scotland. “This is a sailing holiday with a difference,” he says, “not only will participants be treated to the magnificent scenery and outstanding wildlife so unique to the west coast of Scotland, but they will be treated to a superb ceilidh with renowned bands, and an array of other special events staged just for the participants. Most importantly of all, this event will help to reach our fundraising targets which are over £2.1 million each year. This event is particularly special as earlier in 2009 we launched additional palliative care services on the Isle of Skye which consists of an Outreach Team, taking the Day Hospice concept provided in Inverness to the community of Skye in hopes of improving quality of life for those with terminal illness.”

This fantastic fundraising opportunity for Highland Hospice is made possible thanks to the extreme generosity of the owners of the boats.

More information on the Highland Hospice website.

Sailing Dates and Routes:

Week one: 29th May - 5th June, Oban to Portree
Week two: 5th – 12th June, Portree – Ullapool
Week three: 12th – 19th June, Ullapool – Mallaig
Week four: 19th – 26th June, Mallaig – Oban

Costs: (minimum donation)

Mascotte: 2 doubles + 3 singles
Price per person per week £750
Boat per week, up to 7 places £5,000

Gael Force: 2/3 doubles
Price per person per week £700
Boat per week, up to 6 places £3,500

About Highland Hospice

Highland Hospice is the only hospice serving adults with incurable life limiting disease in the Highlands of Scotland and is acknowledged as the centre of specialist palliative care expertise in the region. A full multidisciplinary team is employed to provide true holistic care and comprises medical and nursing staff, occupational, physio and complementary therapists, a chaplain and family support workers. The Hospice currently provides a 10 bed In Patient Unit in Inverness and a Day Hospice on the same site. Medical staff, working closely with NHS colleagues, provide a consultancy service within Raigmore and community hospitals as well as visiting patients at home throughout the Highlands.

The Hospice also provides bereavement counselling for relatives, a 24 hour telephone helpline and education and training for other healthcare professionals to enhance their ability to provide palliative care in their own communities.

While the majority of the referred patients have cancer, the Hospice services are open to those with other incurable life-limiting diseases including, for example, lung, kidney or heart disease and neurological conditions.

The area covered by the Hospice stretches from Dalwhinnie in the south, east to Forres, west to Ardnamurchan, Lochalsh and Skye and north to John O’Groats and Cape Wrath. This area is 10,000 square miles. Highland Hospice relies on the generosity of the Highland community to raise the more than £42,000 that is required every week to keep the services going and to ensure that an exceptional quality of care continues to be provided.