Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Weather cocking at the Cock.

 As we left Loch Ranza thunder was rumbling round the glens high above us.the yachts were all weather-cocking on their moorings as the cold gusts swung down from different glens

The rain battered down noisily on our hoods but we were surprisingly insulated from the elements in our kayaks and gear. At least we were doing it for pleasure unlike...

 ...these fishermen on FV Stella Maris TT183 who need to work in all weathers.

We had been slightly concerned about what the sea state might be like as we rounded the Cock of Arran (which was fully exposed to the north east wind) but conditions were benign as the rain flattened the seas.

Then rather miraculously, the wind began to drop and a glimmer of sunlight appeared on the horizon. Then... and...

 ...the skies cleared as we reached our camp site. The temperature built very quickly to 22C and...

...we were perspiring by the time we got the tents up. The warm sun did a great job...

...of drying our wet and damp gear. The weather in Scotland is always unpredictable and variable but even us hardy kayakers were surprised by the rapidity of the change. F5 NE wind, torrential rain and air temp. of 7C changed to F0, full sun and air temp. of 22C in just under two hours...quite remarkable!