It had been too long since our kayaks had explored the waters of the magnificent isle of Islay in the Inner Hebrides. We found ourselves waiting to board MV Hebridean Isles at Kennacraig on the Kintyre peninsula.
Our excitement was palpable as the ferry crossed the broad Sound of Jura and approached the narrow Sound of Islay. The latter separates Islay to the south from Jura to the north. Islay is an incredibly beautiful island and has two really excellent blogs devoted to island life: IslayBlog and Islay Weblog.
We unloaded our kayaks at Port Askaig on the Islay side of the Sound of Islay. Port Askaig is a tiny inlet, sheltered from the strong tides of the Sound. We got ourselves ready at the slipway which leads into the little inner harbour where the local lobster boats were berthed.
It is always a pleasure watching the ferries break in and out of the tide, as they berth at their jetties. However, we wasted no time and were on the water before the Hebridean Isles disappeared back to Kennacraig.
Where would we get to this time?