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Thursday, September 22, 2011

Seakayaking through the Borrodale Isles.

We left Loch Ailort and entered Loch nan Uamh. At first the head of the loch was obstructed by the dark ridges of the north Ardnish coast...

...but soon we could see the ridge above the loch head illuminated in a shaft of sun. The Prince's Cairn lies just behind Eilean Gobhlach (the dark rocky islet about 1/3 of the way from the left side of the photo). It was here that Bonny Prince Charlie both landed and departed from the Scottish mainland at the time of the 1745 rebellion.

On reaching the north shore of Loch nan Uamh, we turned west and found ourselves exploring the delightful chain of the Borrodale Isles. This one is called Eilean nan Cabar; isle of the timber. It has clearly had trees on it for some time.

The Borrodale Isles have very steep shores with no easy landing spots so we left Eilean nan Cabar in our wakes and continued...

...towards Eilean an Sgurra...

...the isle of the pointed rock...

...where we met a party on a Wilderness Scotland trip.  They were staying in the Glenuig Inn and were clearly enjoying every minute of their holiday. I enjoyed stopping for a chat because it was a distraction from the pain in my bad knee.

It had been a long day and we needed to press on to our intended camp site, which was still about an hour and a half away...


...beyond the mouth of Loch nan Uamh and at the far end of the Sound of Arisaig.

2 comments:

  1. Douglas, I am one of the Wilderness Scotland kayakers you met on Loch nan Uamh (front left in your photo of us). It was a pleasure meeting you, and I've thoroughly enjoyed your blog, particularly your stunning photos. I also kayak with a health issue; I needed a single lung transplant in 2004 due to the rare disease, LAM. I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to get out and about again and adore sea kayaking - it's a wonderful way to celebrate my new life!

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  2. Hello Gill, it was a real pleasure to meet you all. Everyone was so happy and enjoying themselves so much it helped take my mind off my bad knee.

    I am really glad you have done so well after developing LAM. I always carry an organ donor card. One of my relatives needed a liver transplant after developing CAH. There is such a shortage of organs yet they can and do bring new life.

    I hope you enjoyed your stay at the Glenuig Inn. As you will have read, it was a bit too far for me to get to at low tide!

    Do say hello next time we meet.

    :o)

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