A Russian sailor who died when his yacht capsized off the coast of Lochinver documented his dramatic arrival into Ullapool just two years earlier.
Roman Titov was last seen aboard the vessel as he set sail from Ullapool on December 13.
Tragically, his body was found washed up at a beach at Achmelvich yesterday.
Police say there are no suspicious circumstances.
The experienced sailor was attempting to reach Istanbul within 40 days to reunite with his wife and children.
Daniel Johnson, co-owner of Johnson and Loftus Boatbuilders, waved the sailor off despite numerous attempts to persuade him to call off his voyage as forecasters warned of adverse weather.
Three weeks later, rescue teams launched a major search after debris believed to be from his boat washed up at Strathan Bay.
Police divers combed the scene where the mast and rigging were recovered, but his body wasn’t located until more than two months later.
Russian sailor documented days stranded at sea in YouTube clip
Mr Titov unexpectedly arrived in Ullapool nearly two years ago.
The experienced sailor had originally set off from Norway with hopes of clocking up enough miles to join the Golden Globe race – a solo race around the world without stops or any outside assistance.
In January 2022, he was caught in a violent storm near Rockall in the North Atlantic Ocean, forcing him overboard and causing significant damage to his vessel.
With no communications and a broken mast, Mr Titov spent more than two weeks adrift in strange waters ahead of his arrival into the west coast village.
His terrifying ordeal appeared online in a series of YouTube videos uploaded by Mr Titov; just seven months before his tragic death.
In a video posted on May 18 last year – titled The Hardest Day – he speaks about how his boat suffered a 360-degree turn amidst the storm, causing his mast to break and 3.5 tonnes of water to pour into the vessel.
Despite suffering from the water and the cold, the sailor ploughed on.
Eight days later he uploaded a second video, capturing the moment he arrived at Ullapool Harbour.
Mr Titov also shows viewers the scale of damage caused to his boat during the storm; in particular, the loss of his mast.
In the video’s description, he described the severity of the situation, including sailing for 17 days with no communication.
Translated from Russian, he wrote: “Chapter 18, 17th day of emergency navigation. The yacht runs on diesel. Electrical equipment could not be restored; No connection.
“Because of the lack of a map, the rocks and islands “grow” at night. Entrance to the bay and access to Ullapool harbour without a card. Self-contained mooring.”
The videos were posted ahead of his return to Ullapool in late October, where he spent time repairing his yacht in preparation for his upcoming voyage.
Large sections of his vessel have been found scattered along the shoreline from Strathan to Stoer.
Ullapool Harbour thanked rescue teams for their diligent work in trying to locate the missing sailor.
They wrote: “Large sections of his yacht Forvard have been identified along the shores from Strathan to Stoer.
“Many thanks are due to the emergency services and local coastguard units for completing countless hours of searching the shorelines.”
They added: “His determination to proceed is to be admired but sadly it seems the relentless stormy weather in December proved too much.”
A police spokesperson said: “Around 3.30pm on Tuesday, 6 February, 2024, the body of a man was discovered at a beach at Achmelvich near Lochinver.
“Formal identification has yet to take place, however the family of a man reported missing from a yacht that left Ullapool on Wednesday, 13 December, 2023, have been informed.
“There are no apparent suspicious circumstances.”
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