56.9 degrees North, the coral sands and the green lagoon of Arisaig.

We now entered the calm water inside the Arisaig skerries. The flood tide was now pushing us in augmenting the pull of the sails.

We decided to stop for third luncheon on a little tidal beach of coral sand on Eilean an Fhraoich Beag, which had a view over...

 ...the lagoon to Luinga Mhor.

The coral is made up of the  bleached skeletons of the red algae, Lithothamnium calcareum.

It did not take long to get the stoves and flasks out.

 Then we were off  again, threading through the maze of skerries and the...

...crystal clear, green waters of the Arisaig lagoon.

A cold, grey winter day round the Arisaig skerries.

After hugging the Arisaig shore to get out of the cold SE wind we  paddled out round...

...Eilean Ighe before...

...crossing the North Channel of Loch Nan Ceall. We passed Fraoch Geal (White Heather) CY67 as she was lifting her pots.

We now entered the maze of the Arisaig skerries and promptly stopped on a white shell sand beach on Luinga Beag for a quick second luncheon before paddling on...

...past basking seals towards the...

...open sea through a narrow channel on Luinga Mhor.

We now enjoyed a bouncy ride round the outside of Luinga Mhor. The 5D mk3 stayed firmly in its bag! The extreme wide angle of the GoPro camera tends to flatten the sea. Fortunately Ian (in the kayak behind me) managed to...

Photo by Ian Johnstone

...get this shot which gives a better idea of the conditions!

The plight of the sand bees on the machair at Port nam Murrach.

From the south channel at the entrance to Loch nan Ceall I thought it would be a good idea to head south along the headland of Rubh Arisaig  towards the Sound of Arisaig. Donald checked his map for suitable landing spots and reefs on the way.

I was able to nip inside the various reefs in my sea kayak but Donald had to take a wider line.

We had arranged to rendezvous at Port nan Murrach on the Arisaig peninsula.

It wasn't long before Donald joined me in this delightful cove...

 ...with white sand and crystal clear waters.

Squalls of wind and rain were blasting down from the north but fortunately this one missed us and plastered Eigg instead.

Donald scrambled up the rocks of the surrounding ridges to see what the wind was doing...

 ...away to the north.

Meanwhile I reaquainted myself with the colony of the  rare northern colletes mining bees. These are a solitary species but they make their single burrows in aggregates in the sandy machair. They are a threatened species and there are only a handful of locations on the Scottish mainland where they can still be found.

I was distressed to discover some recent visitors had built a fire right on top of the colony. I hope it was not a group of sea kayakers, most kayakers know to build fires below the high water mark.

While Donald continued to explore the ridges and other beaches in the area, I was content to sit on the rocks with a cup of coffee, admire the view and...

...the marvellous white shell sand. I am so grateful for sea kayaking. I could not have walked to such a wonderful spot.

It was clear Donald's boat handling skills and confidence had grown, so when he returned, I suggested we move on and cross the mouth of the Sound of Arisaig to another white shell sand beach in the distance. I did warn him it might get a bit bumpy, once we were out of the lee of Rubh Arisaig...

sea kayak photo delphin

Even when the sun is not shining, the Arisaig skerries at the mouth of Loch nan Ceall is a remarkable place. The dark rocks and seaweed are...

...interspersed with dazzling shell sand beaches. At low tide the skerries are high above the narrow channels and lagoons but even so...

...the peaks of the Rum Cuillin and...

...the Sgurr of Eigg dominate the scene.

The skerries are also home to large colonies of both common and grey seals. Interestingly Donald's motor boat got right up to them and I could sail very close but as soon as I started to paddle, they would slide into the water...

...and follow me, as seen in this photo from Donald's blog.

The ejaculating spoots of Arisaig.

Donald and I first went on an expedition together to the Skye Cuillin nearly 40 years ago. Sadly the passage of years has not been kind to my knees and the Cuillin receded on the horizon behind us as we rounded Eilean Ighe in small boat and kayak.  The sea was still rough after the fresh  early morning winds. I cut through the clapotis by the reefs but Donald in his boat had to take a wider line till we entered the quiet waters of Arisaig North Channel at low water springs.

Inside the Arisaig skerries we entered a strange new world, which contrasted with the Rum Cuillin mountains on the horizon. The tidal lagoons inside the reefs had nearly emptied, exposing acres of sands that are usually still covered at most low tides.

We were surprised to see many small boats pulled up on the sand banks and the skerries seemed almost thronged with people. Many were carrying buckets and others seemed to be intently studying the sand at their feet.

Then as we drew closer we saw the most amazing sight. Mysterious jets of water were spouting high in the air all over the sands.

The water spouts come from razor clams (spoots in local parlance), which live deep in the sands. The locals watch for the water jets then sprinkle salt round the small hole through which they come. A few seconds later the spoot pops up through the hole and is easily caught. They are delicious.

Eigg1 has produced an amazing video of catching spoots on the nearby island of Eigg!

Thank goodness for sea kayaking!

In the summer holidays of 2010 my brother Donald joined Phil, Jennifer and I for a paddle round Gigha. At the time I was recovering from my knee operation and had great hopes I might be mountaineering again in 2011. So I said to him "next year we will go to the Cuillins". Sadly my optimism has not been matched by reality. So when he phoned from Arisaig, back in this year's August holidays,  I had to decline a mountain trip. Even the little Sgurr of Eigg at 393m was now beyond me. Fortunately sea kayaking is ideal for someone with a lower limb disability, so we decided to go for a boating trip from Portnadoran camp site instead. This photo shows the view from Portnadoran beach to the Skye Cuillin mountains rising into the clouds.

My little kayak on its trolley was easy to get down to the shore. Donald had a much tougher job as the boat and outboards was too heavy and the trailer sunk into the sand. He had to leave the outboards at the road end and then...

...go back to carry them down one by one. I couldn't help him so he was pretty worn out...

...by the time we got both boats to the water's edge.

At last we were ready to go. We were setting off for either one or two day's wild camping. The owner of the Portnadoran camp site was very helpful. He told Donald that if we got stuck anywhere, we could give him a ring and he would come and collect us. This was a very kind offer but we reassured him we hoped not to take advantage of his generous spirit.

At last we felt the freedom of the open sea, with the magnificent Rum Cuillin mountains on the horizon. I might not be climbing the Cuillin anymore, so thank goodness for sea kayaking!

The coral island of Loch nan Ceall, Arisaig

We continued on our way through the skerries of Loch nan Ceall as the wind began to pick up.


We came across another island and took a further break.


Photo JLW

The whole beach was composed of coral sand.


The "coral" is actually the bleached skeletons of the red algae, Lithothamnium calcareum.

14/09/2008

Eigg shells at Arisaig

We returned to the reefs that guard the mouth of Loch nan Ceall at Arisaig.


The sentinel Sgurr of Eigg acted as a reference point as we lost ourselves in the maze of channels.


Huge expanses of shell sand were exposed by the spring low tide.


We lost ourselves looking for shells.


The beaches here are composed of the fragments of shells of billions of sea creatures that have lived here. The odd shapes in the bottom left are Scottish "coral". The "coral" is actually the bleached skeletons of the red algae, Lithothamnium calcareum.

14/09/2008