Monday, June 11, 2007

The tide last went out 10,000 years ago on the raised beaches of Jura.


These patches of vegetation have taken 10,000 years, since the end of the last Ice Age, to grow to this size.


Tony and I are just back from an amazing weekend sea kayaking round the north of Jura. We paddled 86 kilometers.


The crossing of the Sound of Jura was disturbed only by a flight of razorbills.


The trip also involved a 2 km portage from the Sound of Jura to West Loch Tarbert. It involved 37 metres of ascent over a very rough track. Only one of the three different trolleys survived....


If you click on this photo, you will get the full size panorama. This amazing beach is backed by a freshwater loch and the wave worn cobbles look as if they have just dried in the sun and are waiting for the tide to return. As the Scottish ice sheet melted, the lack of its great weight allowed the land to gradually rise, leaving a series of raised beaches.