Departure gate, Port Mor terminal 1.

 Ian and I still had some time before the ferry arrived to take us back from Muck to Mallaig via Eigg. We decided to take the short walk across to the north side of the island. Ahead of us the brooding Cuillin of Rum slowly emerged from...

 ...the cloud that was enveloping the island..

 As we started the descent to the north shore Horse Island dominated the view to the north west of Muck.

 We soon passed Camas na Cairidh, where we had made landfall on Muck less than 24 hours before.

 Gallanach Lodge is the new hotel on Muck and will open at the end of May 2013.

 A few moments after passing the Lodge we arrived at the beautiful Gallanach sands.

 Though tourists would need to be prepared to share the beach with the local residents at the west end of the beach. Mr MacEwen the farmer and owner of Muck gave us a welcoming wave as he passed on his quad bike. Unlike nearby Rum, which was closed to visitors, Muck has welcomed visitors and offered them free access for decades before the Scottish Land Reform Act guaranteed access to Scottish wild land for responsible visitors.

 Just past the bay and farm we came to Gallanach Cottage which is available to rent.

Ian and I then took a short walk to the north end of Muck. I found the ground to be too rough along the coast so...

...we walked along the short turf on the crest of the ridge where we came across some gravestones.

There are a number of idyllic beaches here but we did not scramble down to them as my knees were really sore and we still had to get back to Port Mor...

 ...Terminal 1 where the crowds were already gathering for the arrival...

 of the ferry.

 The MV Loch Nevis reversed in and we pulled our kayaks up her stern loading ramp. The crew were most interested to hear how we had got on particularly as we were the first sea kayakers of the season.

The MV Loch Nevis called in at the new ferry terminal on Eigg after passing through the narrow channel between Eilean Chathastail and the mainland of Eigg.

The old tidal  harbour can still be entered behind the new jetty though the channel between the perches is neither wide nor deep.

As we left Eigg the low winter sun briefly lit the wonderful landscape before the clouds gathered round...

 ...the Sgurr of Eigg and sea fog rolled round...

...the north end of the island. With a chill in the air we went below to...

...enjoy a huge plate of scampi and chips.

All too soon our Small Isles trip was over. The crew kindly helped us pull the kayaks up the steep ramp then we loaded the kayaks onto the cars, which we had left at Mallaig sea front.

Ian and I had both enjoyed this trip immensely.  Neither of us is goal orientated. We just went paddling for an enjoyable kayaking exploration. Amazingly however, we had paddled between all four of the Small Isles and spent a night on each on a winter trip. A key element in this was flexible planning, we changed plans several times to take account of changing conditions. It would be fair to say that some of the options we had changed to, had been considered at the planning stages before we set off.

We had met many interesting and genuinely nice people. It was fascinating to hear how each island community was working for its development and future. We had faced everything from flat calm and fog to some of the roughest wind against tide conditions you would care to spend any time in, in a remote place in winter. Ian and I were also fortunate in that we shared such a similar attitude to trip planning and risk assessment. Ultimately the trip was all the richer for each of us, as it was a shared experience.

It is always good to follow a story from more than one perspective. Ian's story can be followed fom here to here.

As we drove home on the Road to the Isles, the sun set behind Muck and we knew we would return soon.

Taking a gander along the north coast of Muck

As we left Camas na Cairidh on the north coast of Muck the Sea of the Hebrides was glassy calm and in the clear air the mountains of Rum were dappled by broken sunlight which broke through the low clouds.

 We left Eigg far in our wakes as we paddled along the north shore of Muck.

We arrived at Gallanach Bay where a significant new building is taking place. It is Gallanach Lodge and will replace the island's existing hotel at Port Mor when it opens on 27th May 2013.

A little further west and we arrived at Gallanach Farm. The four Small Isles have very different ownership arrangements. Canna is owned by the National Trust for Scotland (a charity), Rum by Scottish Natural Heritage (government funded agency), Eigg by a community buyout and Muck is currently privately owned by the MacEwen family whose predecessors have owned it since 1897.

It is very interesting to compare how these very different owners have managed the development of each island.

 As we left the bay in front of the farm, the clouds cleared but the air filled with hundreds of...

 ...geese which flew off in...

 ...the direction of Rum. This is the lovely view which will be enjoyed by visitors to the new Gallanach Lodge.

Ian and I had booked a couple of rooms in the somewhat less grand Muck Bunkhouse so we still had some way to go. As we looked for a gap between Muck and the island of Eilean nan Each the clouds opened a a front stretched away as far as the eye could see.

Unfortunately the gap shown on the ordnance survey 1:50,000 and 1:25,000 maps is no longer present at low tide. It is filled by a great bank of cobbles washed up by storms. We now set off to add a Eilean nan Each to our circumnavigation of Muck.

Mucked about by the tidal information in the Sound of Eigg.

As Ian and I set across the Sound of Eigg towards Muck the ebb tide was already running like a river in the channel between between Eigg and Eilean Chathastail. We knew (from the Admiralty West Coast Pilot) that we would be in mid channel at the peak of a big spring tide that would be travelling at 3 knots to the SE, increasing to 4 knots as we approached the west coast of Muck. As a result we set off on a high ferry angle to the north but when we stopped in mid channel, the tide was only running at 0.6 knots!

 The marbled sky was reflected in a mirror sea. Between the two the Ardnamurchan peninsula stretched away as far as the eye could see. It was only 12 days previously that we had paddled that coast with Mike but it seemed such a long time ago.

 Gradually we cleared Eigg and the Rum Cuillin were revealed.

 In the distance Canna could be seen to the lefdt of Rum, some 30km to the NW.

 As we crossed the Sound of Eigg we slowly began to make out the Arnamurchan lighthouse at the end of the peninsula. It was silhouetted against Mull by a fog bank which was lying in the Sound of Mull.

 To port, Ben More on Mull rose above the lower Ardnamurchan Hills.

 To starboard the complete profile of Rum could be seen as we left Eigg behind.

 As we approached the west coast of Muck, we still expected to meet a significant tide but it never materialised. To the south the MV Loch Nevis was heading for the jetty at Port Mor on the south side of Muck.

 Given the highly favourable conditions (it was winter!) we decided to leave Port Mor till later and circumnavigate Muck in an anti clockwise direction..

...but first it was time to take first luncheon in the delightful bay of Camas na Cairidh, we had arrived on Muck. The machair to the right of the beach has a permanent composting toilet and in summer a yurt is erected, which can be rented from Isle of Muck farms. The tide was still ebbing and as it fell (leaving our kayaks high and dry) it revealed an old fish trap that had been built from a stone wall between rocky outcrops. Camas na Cairidh in Gaelic means "bay of the weir".

We enjoyed a superb view of Rum from our chosen luncheon spot. After warming homemade soup and bread, washed down by some 10 year old Jura or 12 year old The Singleton (I can't remember which, maybe it was both) it was time to make our way back down the rocks. There was just time to float the kayaks over the fish trap. As we waded through the pool behind the wall it was obvious that there was not a single trapped fish. Maybe it was because it was winter, maybe the seas are empty. Fish traps like this have been used for thousands of of years and in the past the seas were full of shoals of herring.