Return to the Sound of Arisaig.

On the 6th of February, Alison and I drove north to meet Ian and Allan at the Glenuig Inn. We stopped for a break in some late afternoon winter sunshine on the shore of Loch Linnhe at Fort William.

There was not a breath of wind and FV Holly Rose OB158 was lying at her mooring perfectly motionless.

We arrived at the excellent Glenuig Inn just before dark but by the time we walked the dogs the sun was well set. We returned to the welcoming lights of the inn and enjoyed a tasty meal with Ian and Alan.

 The following morning we left Alison with my car and the dogs then drove for a short distance through the morning rush hour to...

...Samalaman Bay on the south shore of the Sound of Arisaig. It was not long after HW and the beautiful...

 ...white shell sands were not yet fully exposed.

A light smirr of rain was falling, the sort that soaks everything despite the small size of its droplets. To the NW there was a little brightness on the horizon but to the..

 ...east the clouds were well down on the hills. The branches and lichens on the sessile oak trees were dripping wet.

Then a remarkable thing happened. Alan and I had just set off when a gap appeared in the clouds...

 ...and we got a great view across to Eigg and...

...the snow streaked mountains of Rum behind.

 
 The north side of the Sound of Arisaig was still hidden by low cloud but...

 ..ever so gradually the clouds began to lift. As we approached...

 ...Rubha Ghead a' Leighe, the headland at the southern entrance to the Sound of Aisaig, the wind and swell..

 ...began to pick up and we enjoyed some fun in close proximity to the rocks by Ian's Inlet.

Having said that we did not inspect the rocks quite so closely as Ian had done on one of our previous visits and we all remained relatively dry!

Heavy industry and some calcareous considerations on Lismore, Loch Linnhe.

From Eilean nan Caorach we paddled to the NE point of Lismore at Rubh' Aird Ghainimh and entered the sheltered waters....

 ...of Port Ramsay as...

...the "Lady Fiona" (fast ferry for the workforce of Glensanda superquarry) slowed down to pass us then sped off across Loch Linnhe.

Lismore means "big garden" and it is a very fertile island due to the prescence of limestone. At the NE end it plunges steeply into the sea. This sea urchin had been left exposed by low tide. Earlier we had seen another carried off in the large beak of a great black backed gull. Its spiny calcareous shell would be no protection from being dropped onto rocks by a flying gull.

Above the tide line, the calcareous rock itself was interesting here. This is limestone tufa, a type of calcareous sinter. It is formed as carbonate minerals precipitate from water oozing out of the limestone rocks above.

We now paddled deep into the natural harbour of Port Ramsay and approached...

...the eponymous village, which is the main settlement on Lismore. It was established in the early 19th century to house workers for the lime kiln industry.

As we drifted between the islands that shelter Port Ramsay we spotted numerous divers.

By now it was well past time for second luncheon so we landed on Eilean Trenach where...

...enjoyed a wonderful view to the north while enjoying home made soup and a dram of 15y old Dalmore.

The air was wonderfully clear the snow covered Appin hills stood out against the wintry sky. It was hard to imagine that, for well over a century, this landscape would have been hidden behind black smoke and fumes belching from the numerous lime kilns scattered round the islands. Of course there is still heavy industry here. One of the World's biggest quarries, Glensanda, is just 6km away on the other side of Loch Linnhe. We visited Glensanda in 2010.

The quicklime industry on Eilean nan Caorach.

We paddled down the east coast of  Eilean nan Caorach (Sheep Island) and arrived at a beach backed by a cottage, a store house, an...

 ...old pier and three lime kilns. Limestone from the hillside behind the kilns has been quarried away.  The industry lasted for over a hundred years from about 1800.

 The islands in this part of the Firth of Lorn are rich in Dalriadan limestone and this was roasted in the kilns to produce quicklime which was stored...

...in the roofed building on the left of this photo, before being taken away in boats.

The whole operation was run by two families who lived in these cottages.

The  building with the blue doors (behind the quicklime store) was a smithy.

The oldest kiln is now in a pretty unstable state.

A ramp leads up to the top and limestone rubble was dropped into the kiln from...

...above onto a grate below which the coals were lit and then roasted for several days.

The coal was stored in this open walled enclosure behind the quicklime store.

The jetty was used to bring in coal for the kilns and take the quicklime out for agricultural and building purposes. The reef in the middle of this photo is actually a ballast bank where boats dumped ballast before taking on quicklime. At one time there were 24 locally owned smacks which carried coal, limestone and slate. The last was the "Mary and Effie" which was owned by Captain Alan MacFadyen who traded these waters in her until the late 1940's.

The two newer kilns are lined by brick rather than rough stone.

This rowan tree presumably had a sheltered start to life.

This is the view from the top of the kilns to the north towards Shuna and the Appin hills.

This is the view to the south  The island just beyond the ballast bank is called Inn Island. Many people think that there was once an inn there but it is called this because it was leased together with the Port Appin Inn which can be seen at the foot of the wooded slope on the mainland. InnIsland was originally shown as Island Imachar on the Appin Estate map. The Garvellachs can just be seen on the horizon to the right of centre.

We returned to the base of the Kilns. The largest  is still in pretty good condition and Ian and I crouched down to make our way inside to...

...the main brick lined kiln chamber.

The coal store now shelters an old Mirror dinghy, a kayak and a deflated inflatable all of which have seen better days.

Is it worth paddle sailing up wind and up tide across the Lynn of Lorn?

It was now time to leave the north of Shuna. The flood tide had already reached the boats.

We managed to get the sails up for a short paddle across the north end of the island but...

...as soon as we turned south down the Sound of Shuna we faced a head wind and the north going tide.

The mooring for the Shuna farm work boats is on the east of Shuna.

As we progressed down the Sound of Shuna there were some bursts of sunlight and...

...to the south the Sgeir Buidhe lighthouse and Eilean Dubh stood out against the glowing sky above the Lynn of Lorn.

From the south end of Shuna it is 1.75km across the north end of the Lynn of Lorn to Eilean nan Caorach (sheep island) which lies off the NE tip of Lismore. The offshore wind was gusting quite badly so Mike and Ian decided to paddle and I stuck my sail up. Although I started on a beam reach, our route took us across a tide that was running at 2 knots. Even maintaining a high ferry angle I ended up paddle sailing close hauled.

This is on Eilean nan Caorach looking back at Shuna.  First of all, note how far down tide (to the left) Ian and Mike have been carried, we set off from the south end of Shuna which is out of picture to the right. Secondly, many people say it is not worth paddle sailing close hauled as the kayak will not plane to windward. However, I beg to differ. I paddle sailed the crossing and arrived 4 minutes and 35 seconds before Ian and Mike arrived by paddling alone.


As you can see, they were in the tide a lot longer and got carried well down tide.

This seal was so busy looking at me he did not notice Ian's approach. It disappeared with a huge splash as...

...Ian passed and finally arrived on Sheep Island. I rest my case m'lud!