Friends reunited at a coo palace.

I had been unwell since the summer and had not been on the water. Neither had my beloved Nordkapp LV as she had developed a leak in the rear compartment. Mike Thomson from Scottish Paddler Supplies whisked her off to Valley for repair. She was only away for three days but ill health kept us apart till this lovely October day on the Solway Firth. I went for a solo paddle out across Fleet Bay and past Murray's Isles then Ardwall Island.



The sands of Barlocco beach made a welcome landfall. Mine were the only footprints on the pristine sands. I sat by the old fort and watched the low October sun sink towards the horizon. The fort is actually a folly or a "coo (cow) palace" in Gallovidian vernacular.



Life is very, very good I thought to myself. There was no point in saying it out loud as I was completely alone. As I departed, the flood tide erased all trace of my steps and transitory prescence. I paddled home in the gathering chill of dusk, feeling at one with the Nordkapp LV....and the sea.

It is good to be back on the water.