The folly of not bringing a trolley to Barlocco.

 Well laden with wood, we paddled out of Castle Haven under...

 ...the watchful yellow eye of the local heron.

 The sun was sinking fast, almost as fast as the sea level and...

 ...despite our best efforts the bar which connects Barlocco Isle to the mainland had dried. Our destination at Barlocco beach (the one with the fort folly) was 320m away on the other side. We could paddle 2.5km round Barlocco but the carry would still be 250m. A trolley would have been most beneficial but as I already knew there was little fire wood on the beaches, I had advised Ian and Mike to leave the trolleys and bring wood instead. In retrospect we should have brought one trolley and only two of us should have brought logs.

Anyway the retrospectoscope is a very powerful instrument so we had no choice but to get on with it. We left our bags of wood at the bar and carried the three kayaks up the beach. That was 1km of walking and 1km of carrying! We discovered that burning logs is not the only way to get warm. We just managed to beat...

 ...the sunset which was truly magnificent.

 The Solway skies really are wonderful whatever time of day...

...but this sunset was something special to behold.

My knees were absolutely killing me after the carry so I dropped my things and set up my tent just at the top of the beach beside the folly. The ground was not exactly level but my knees were done and I didn't care.

Ian and Mike found a much better camp site just 150m further on. Ian then very generously went back to recover the logs during the best bit of the sunset. I was particularly pleased about this as I just could not face a fourth trip back down the beach and back.

 While Ian was doing this I took some more photos with...

 ...his camera so that he would not miss out on photographs to help remember the wonderful Solway sunset by.

On his travels Ian had also found two very large logs which he rolled into place. One provided a back for the fire the other provided a seat. I used one of our ignition aids (bag of barbeque coals) and got the fire going with one match.

 As the giant star Arcturus slowly set in the west behind the Sun, we roasted sweet potatoes and Ian rushed off to replenish the supplies of Jura, which had run perilously low. My knees began to feel better and we chatted long into the night. On the far side of Wigton Bay the lights of the Machar's villages twinkled as meteors streaked and satellites cruised through the myriad of stars in the Milky Way above.

Setting off with a fair wind and tide on the Solway Firth.

The day dawned fair on Fleet Bay in the Solway Firth and as the line of clouds drew back to the SE we enjoyed some warm October sunshine.

Ian, Mike and I soon had our kayaks packed and at the water's edge. It had been our intention to paddle east to Sandyhills stopping at Little Ross Island and Hestan Island on the way. Unfortunately the firing range at Dundrennan was in use so we would not be able to pass. So we intended to do a there and back paddle as far as Kirkcudbright.

 It was a most marvellous start with a fresh tailwind and paddling...

 ...straight into the sun.

 The ebb tide was also with us and it seemed like no time at all until...

 ...we landed on Ardwall Isle for first luncheon.

We decided to climb to the top by way of the farm track which leads up from the beach. The farmer drives over from the mainland at low tide several times a year to cut the grass and bale it.

As we gained height we enjoyed a great view over the recently cut meadow to Murray's Isles Ravenshall Point and to Wigtown on the far side of Wigtown bay.

 There were plenty of brambles but almost no sloes.

From the summit we had a clear view back across Fleet Bay to where we had come from, the cluster of caravans under Ben John.

 The simple cairn at the summit of Ardwall Isle overlooks the grand...

 ...house at Knockbrex with its fields extending down to a little harbour.

Beyond Barlocco reef our way lay away to the SE, beyond distant Ringdoo Point.

For the full kayak stereovision experience follow Ian's blog which starts here.

Sea kayaking desktop wallpaper calendar 2014.

I wish a very Happy New Year and a great 2014 paddling season to all visitors to seakayakphoto.com. As way of a celebration of the last year and in anticipation of sea kayaking adventures yet to come, here is the 10th annual sea kayaking desktop wallpaper calendar from seakayakphoto.com. I apologise for its late arrival. Neither my computer nor myself have been in the best of health.

As in past calendars, all the photos were taken during the previous year (2013). Unfortunately I have not been paddling over the last 6 months so the choice of photos has been more limited than previous years. Nevertheless I have been able to choose photos from north and south of Ardnamurchan Point, the Inner Hebrides, the North Channel, the Firth of Clyde and the Solway Firth.

January.

The Little Cumbrae lighthouse in the Firth of Clyde proved surprisingly popular despite being in the depths of winter. We met friends from the Drumchapel and Clydebank Kayak Club there.

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February.

Rubha Carrach is on the exposed northern coast of Ardnamurchan. This coast is not paddled as often as it should be. Most circumnavigators of the British mainland cross to Eigg or Rubh' Arisaig on their headlong dash north. Paddlers staying in the area are faced with a circumnavigation of the whole Ardnamurchan peninsula if they only have one car, or a very long shuttle (over very slow single track) if they have two cars.

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March.

Glenuig Bay opens into the Sound of Arisaig and views extend along the Ardnamurchan peninsula and to Muck and the other Small Isles. One of the great joys of winter paddling is returning in the dark!

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April.

The north coast of Rum in the Sea of the Hebrides is a wild place. This is the sad wreck of the Jack Abry II, a French trawler that ran on to the rocks here just before midnight on the 31st January 2011. Fortunately, despite a gale and the surrounding cliffs and mountains, all 14 men on board were airlifted to safety by the Stornoway coastguard helicopter.

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May.

The Mull of Kintyre is a rather committing paddle. The tide was moving at  6 knots and even in benign conditions there was no landing for 25km. It sticks out into the North Channel which separates Scotland from Ireland. On this misty day there was no sign of Ireland and we felt like we were paddling round the edge of the World.

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June.

Kylie the dolphin can often be found near Ardlamont buoy at the

mouth of the the Kyles of Bute.

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July.

Murray's Isles lie in the mouth of Fleet Bay on the Solway Firth. In early summer they host noisy colonies of cormorants and gulls. The cormorants need to keep a watchful eye on their eggs and chicks as the gulls swoop down on any unguarded nest. It is a wonderful experience to drift in the tide past the colonies in kakak and watch, hear and smell the constant activity.

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August.

Nothing can be finer than paddling across the mouth of Loch Fyne on a summer evening.

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September.

The surf beach at Machrihanish is exposed to the North Atlantic swell and extends for over 6 kilometers. It is probably wise not to surf a fully laden sea kayak in amongst the surfers. The dune system behind the beach is one of the largest in Scotland.

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October.

Shoe Bay is easily missed as it is hidden in the skerries at the mouth of Loch Moidart. The name comes from the very soft sand which swallows footwear!

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November.

The dramatic outline of An Sgurr is the highest point of Eigg in the Sea of the Hebrides.

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December.

This is the view to the Small Isles from the silver sands of Morar Bay.  The bay is shallow and tidal and in a westerly wind, steep breaking waves build up as the ebb tide rushes over sandbars. On this trip the wind was from the east and all was calm.

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Beady eyes and incontinent cormorants on the Murray's Isles.

 I was bound for the Murray's Isles which house a cormorant colony on their rocky crest.

From their lofty perch the cormorants can watch for...

...passing shoals of fish.

 Then a leisurely flap of ...

 ..their wings and they are off on a fishing trip...

 ...to feed their hungry chicks.  However, one adult always remains at the nest to protect the chicks as hungry herring gulls also nest in close proximity to the cormorants and are quick to swoop down on an undefended egg or chick. The cormorants' prime nest sites sit atop rocky pillars and by late summer...

 ...the rocks are caked in their white guano. Photographs can neither capture the sounds or the smell of a sea bird colony. The cormorants are bigger than the...

 ...the gulls but the gulls are patient, waiting for any opportunity to raid...

...a cormorant's nest.

 The gulls are also breeding  and...

 ...their chicks hop about the rocks in large groups before...

 ...they are fledged and take their...

 ...first flight down to the sea where they bob about in perfect camouflage.

This adult was keeping her beady eye on her chick and saw me off the premises.