Return to Largs via the Midshipmen's Memorial, Great Cumbrae.

 The wind picked up again as we made our way up...

 ....the west coast of the Great Cumbrae.

At Tomont End at the north end of great Cumbrae we passed under the Midshipmen's Memorial. It's inscription reads:

"IN MEMORY OF MR. CHARLES D. CAYLEY AGED 17 YEARS AND MR. WILLIAM N. JEWELL AGED 19 YEARS MIDSHIPMEN OF H.M.S. SHEARWATER

TWO PROMISING YOUNG OFFICERS DROWNED BY THE UPSETTING OF THEIR BOAT NEAR THIS PLACE 17TH MAY 1844

THIS MONUMENT IS ERECTED IN TOKEN OF THEIR WORTH BY CAPTAIN ROBINSON AND OFFICERS OF THE ABOVE VESSEL"

Leaving Great Cumbrae we enjoyed a favourable wind as we crossed the channel to the AQyrshire mainland. In the distance, at Hunterston, we could see the coal terminal, the nuclear power station and the giant windmills. As is often the case when there is a wind, the windmills here and on the hills above Largs were not turning.

We landed at Largs marina almost exactly 24 hours after we had left. As always it seemed like we had been away several days. An overnight expedition to Inchmarnock is always a treat, especially when you have a tail wind all the way back!

Like a bat out of hell on the Clyde.

 We left Glencallum Bay on Bute with a view of four lighthouses. The nearest was Rubh' an Eun but we could also see three lighthouses on Little Cumbrae on the other side of the channel. The one on the summit is the oldest. Lower down, the one which is immediately to the right of the sail, is the eighteenth century Stevenson light and the one further to the right is the current 20th century light.

 Rubh' an Eun is effectively the Garroch Head lighthouse which guards the entrance to...

... the inner Firth of Clyde which stretched away northwards to the Arrochar Alps on the horizon.

On the crossing we kept clear of the prawn trawler Eilidh Ann GK2 was chugging down the channel while towing her trawl.

 Soon Garroch Head on Bute lay far behind us as we approached...

 ...the west coast of the Great Cumbrae. We were pleased to get across the main channel  before this...

 ...submarine and her three escort vessels came down the Clyde from the nuclear submarine base at Faslane. I think she is a Trafalgar class attack submarine.

Their escort duties over, the two RHIB's raced back to Faslane with Meatloaf's "Bat Out of Hell" blaring from their Tannoy system.

After all the excitement, it was a relief to land on Fintray Bay on the Great Cumbrae for a leisurely second luncheon.

Sea kayaking desktop wallpaper calendar 2015.

Welcome to the 11th annual sea kayaking desktop calendar from seakayakphoto.com! Like 2013, my 2014 has had somewhat restricted paddling. Recovering from several major health problems, caring for my mother in her final illness and then being executor to her estate have all taken their toll on my paddling time. However, what paddling I was able to do was of the finest order and with the best of friends and so quality has made up for quantity. This year all the photos are taken in local waters, all a short drive from home. You can follow the links to Dropbox and download  high resolution photos for your computer or tablet desktop wallpaper in either 4x3 or 8x5 format.

January.

Leaving Portencross Castle before mid winter dawn. Short winter days in Scotland mean an early start and we often launch and land in the dark. From Portencross, we have set off for the islands of the Firth of Clyde: the Great and Little Cumbraes, Bute, Inchmarnock and Arran. Each is a unique adventure.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.
Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

February.

Paddle sailing on a winter crossing to Arran. Our 30km route took us via Garroch Head on Bute then on this fabulous 11 km crossing to Sannox at the north end of Arran. This must be one of the most scenic rossings in Scotland. In winter we arrive in Brodick after sunset then get the ferry back to Ardrossan.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.
Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

March.

Setting off from the reefs of Lendalfoot on the 14km crossing to the isolated and uninhabited granite island of Ailsa Craig. It lies in an exposed position and the nearest point of land is Lendalfoot. Weather conditions can change rapidly here and we had wind against tide conditions on our return. I capsized while paddle sailing across the Bennane Head tide race about a kilometre offshore. Even though it was sunny and I was back paddle sailing in only a few minutes, I was glad I was wearing a dry suit as the water temperature was only 9C. Anyway it did not put me off returning to Ailsa Craig a further two times (three times in all) in 2014.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

April.

We set off across the Kilbrannan Sound from Kintyre to Arran in thick, gloomy fog. It unexpectedly began to clear when we were about 3/4 of the way across. It was like paddling between a day of two halves.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

May.

Pinks and plantains at Pladda. The delightful island of Pladda lies off the southern tip of its much larger neighbour Arran. It is protected by swirling tides but with its Stevenson lighthouse and teeming bird life, is a joy to visit. There are so many nesting birds covering the ground (and the lighthouse cottages are a private residence) that it would not be easy to camp there in the nesting season. We usually camp at nearby Kildonan on Arran

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

June.

The heather growing on Brown Head on Arran means that it is indeed usually brown. However, in early summer, fresh fronds of bracken add a splash of green. The waters are delightfully clear and on this June day warm enough for swimming in a little bay beyond the head. We passed this way twice this year. Once on a clockwise circumnavigation of Arran in March and once en route from Kintyre to Ailsa Craig in June.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

July.

Ailsa Craig is a haven for breeding birds the SW and W cliffs soar steeply from the sea and their high ledges are host to tens of thousands of gannets, guillemots, razorbills, kittiwakes and fulmars. Lower down there are colonies of puffins, shags and cormorants. This congregation of cormorants had gathered at Ashydoo Church. No visitor to Ailsa Craig should forget to bring a broad brimmed hat.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

August.

Cleats Shore on Arran enjoys some fine views like this one to Ailsa Craig, some 23 km to the SE. It is also one of the few naturist beaches in Scotland. There was no one there on our visit so Ailsa got our full and undivided attention.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

September.

We often see the PS Waveley on our travels. She was built in Glasgow in 1947 for the Craigendorran to Arrochar run but was retired in 1974. Since 1975 she has been operated as a tourist attraction and is now the last sea going paddle steamer in the World. We saw her to the north of Arran in the Sound of Bute in the evening calm that followed a very windy and wet paddle up the Kilbrannan Sound. She is one of our larger fellow paddlers!

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

October.

Back in October I paddled out into Wigtown Bay beyond the Islands of Fleet. The wind steadily dropped to nothing but these strange clouds bubbled up from the Machars peninsula and drifted over distant Burrow Head at the mouth of the Bay.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

November.

Paddle sailing is a whole heap of fun. This is going through the tide race off the south end of Pladda. If you only make one sea kayaking resolution in 2015, it should be to give paddle sailing a try!

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

December.

As the winter sun set behind Great Cumbrae and Arran, Duncan Winning and I enjoyed a long chat about kayaking history. At last we went our separate ways as darkness fell. In 1964 Duncan made the first accurate drawings of the kayak Ken Taylor brought to Scotland in 1960 from Illorsuit in West Greenland. This kayak which was made by Emanuele Korniliussen in 1959 is now in the Kelvingrove museum in Glasgow, Scotland. Duncan's drawings were used to create the Anas Acuta, which was a great influence in what was to become the British style of recreational touring sea kayak.

Link to 8:5 desktop 1920 x 1200.

Link to 4:3 desktop 2048 x 1540.

I wish all readers of seakayakphoto.com a great paddling year in 2015 and thank you for visiting.
Douglas Wilcox.

It was not so much elbow grease that was required... more a dose of rollock grease.

We regrouped for third luncheon in the shelter of the Eileans in the middle of Millport Bay. We were joined by Matt from the east coast. He had spent the day on a solo exploration of Wee Cumbrae and its three lighthouses.

 As we enjoyed a convivial chat, our attention was drawn to the loud creak of oars. It was the Cumbrae coastal rowing club out in their beautiful St Ayles skiff "Cumbrae"

As they creaked off round the Eileans it occurred to me that it was not so much elbow grease that was required... more a dose of rollock grease.

 We set off again from the Eileans round...

 ...Farland Point at the south end of Great Cumbrae and entered...

 ...the Hunterston Channel where we passed the 292m bulk carrier Genco London. She was offloading a cargo of coal and making almost as much noise as the skiffie "Cumbrae's" creacky rowlocks.. When empty, she was due to travel to Narvick to load a cargo of Swedish iron ore.

Andrew stopped to look back and this...

 was what he saw. The sun was setting over the Little and Great Cumbraes and the mountains of Arran beyond.

A marvellous winter crossing in the Firth of Clyde.

We set off from the south end of Bute with the towering mountains of Arran rising through the sea mist beyond.

Amazingly the ebb was still running despite being 2 hours after "slack" at low water. Run off from heavy rainfall in the extensive mountainous catchment area of the Firth of Clyde can overcome the flood tide.

A little breeze got up and...

...Phil and I quickly hoisted the sails.

It was a beautiful day to be on the water so late in the year. We slipped into the Tan which separates the Great and the Little Cumbraes then...

...entered the confines of Millport Bay. It was time for third luncheon.

For richer and poorer in the Hunterston Channel.

I have not paddled on the Clyde since my mother died in July and as Sunday 16th November was forecast to be such a beautiful day I decided it was time to get back out. A trip to Little Cumbrae, Bute and The Eileans from Largs seemed in order so after a few texts I met up with regular paddling buddy Phil but also Andrew, Colin McM, Colin R and Maurice, all from my old home town of Ayr.

 We used the ebb to head down the the Hunterston channel past...

the Hun 5 starboard channel buoy,...

 ...the coal and ore terminal and...

 ...the "robbing the poor to pay the rich" offshore wind turbine test bed. This so called green scheme is funded by a tax on every citizen's power bill and subsidises multinational companies and land owners to build these expensive, inefficient and resource greedy monsters. There is nothing renewable about this industry which damages the environment and the sea bed during both construction, running not to mention disposal after their short working lives have expired.

As we drove into Largs, the Kelburn and West Kilbride windmills were all turning. Do you notice how much wind there was? They were being turned by electricity generated by the Hunterston B nuclear power station, which is just to the right of this photo. It is a common public relations stunt when it's calm. Then when it is windy they don't turn because they break or go on fire like this one at West Kilbride. What is needed is another nuclear power station station but we are unlikely to get one in Scotland while the Nationalists hold power in Edinburgh, as they are in bed with the Greens. Anyway, back to the test bed, these monster turbines are prototypes for thousands which are planned for off the west coast of the Hebrides. I really doubt the politicians and the industrialists have a clue about how much it will cost to build and maintain them in the harsh conditions out there...

Land based wind factories also have problems. They are destroying the wilderness across Scotland and developers and land owners are getting away with it because most politicians and "green" city dwellers (who all leave their lights and chargers on) don't give a monkey's cuss about the countryside.

Wind farms represent the biggest redistribution of wealth from the poor to the rich in this country since the Norman invasion of 1066. (Even that proto-nationalist, Robert the Bruce, was a Norman!)

Talking of the rich, this lovely little ship, the MV Hebridean Princess, was anchored in Millport Bay. She was built in 1964 in Aberdeen and as MV Columba served as a ferry on the Inner and Outer Hebrides for what would become Calmac. When she was retired  in 1988 she was the last Calmac ferry to load cars with a hoist. She was bought by Hebridean Island Cruises who operate her as a luxury cruise  ship for 50 passengers. A double cabin in peak season will cost you well over £1000 per night. Since the Royal Yacht Britannia was retired, the Queen has chartered the Hebridean Princess several times for Royal cruise parties. I would love to go on a week's cruise on her but don't have the spare cash. I had better go and switch the heating off and start saving.

We may have left the shelter of the Eileans in Millport Bay on a millpond but...

We left the shelter of The Eileans in Millport Bay on a millpond to find somewhat different conditions off...

 ...Farland Point where the wind was at the top end of F4 against an ebb spring tide in its third hour.

 These photos can only give an inkling...

 ...of the fun conditions we experienced.

Once round the point we entered the main tide race with the wind behind us.

There were some great waves to catch and the combination of the Flat Earth kayak sail and paddling very hard (I do like these VE paddles) meant we could get onto the plane (in fully loaded sea kayaks!) and overtake the waves in front.

 It is a great feeling accelerating down a wave face then breaking...

....through the wave in front then resurfacing with spray flying everywhere.

I hope this video will give some idea of the speed and fun.

Unfortunately not everyone was having fun. As we paddled into the shelter of Largs the VHF radio traffic was busy with calls as the Largs inshore lifeboat and a Sea King helicopter from HMS Gannet were called to assist a small motor boat that had got swamped south of the Great Cumbrae.

All in all our overnight trip to Inchmarnock had proved a wonderful experience. Camping, bonfire, good company, a swim, a pilgrimage to Saint Blane's monastery and some wind over  tide race fun all made it unforgettable.