Another evening by the Corryvreckan.

On our trip through the Corryvreckan we set up camp on the wild isle of Scarba. Its rough crags tumble straight into restless waters of the tidal gulf below. After setting up camp, we trekked into the hills by following the valley of this little burn.


Even from the heights we could hear the roar of the east going tide.


We contoured along the edge of some cliffs until we could see right through the Gulf of Corryvreckan to the Atlantic beyond.


One by one, the grey hills and ridges of Jura receded until they were lost in the distant mists of the horizon. We looked down on the waters of the Corryvreckan by which we had come. These are what pull us back here, time after time. This is world class sea kayaking, it's on our doorstep and we had it to ourselves.


It was twilight by the time we made our way through tick infested brascken back to the shore and got the fire going. A sleeping seal snored, coughed and grunted in the bay. The fire crackled and sparked in the cool breeze. Some Guinness and Isle of Jura malt whisky saw the night steal around us as we recounted this year's fantastic adventures and plotted those yet to come....

I am grateful to Rebecca from My Kayaking Buddies blog for linking to this post and being inspired to write her own piece on thewonderful Corryvreckan.

30/08/2008

Lonely Loch Einich

As we made our way further up Gleann Einich we came across the Alt Ruigh na Sroine, the first of many streams to ford.


Later on the Beanaidh Bheag river was to prove far tougher and necessitated a change of socks.


As we gained height the mountain landscape became more dramatic.


Under wild skies the granite ridges were dusted with the first snows of winter.


The air was filled with the sound of burns tumbling down from high corries and rattling the boulders in their beds.


At last we breasted a moraine and below us lay lonely Loch Einich.


We were dwarfed by the scale of the landscape.


Loch Einich lies at a height of 598m. It is seldom visited, even in summer. On the 9th of September this year, Rothiemurchus Estate's head stalker, Peter Ferguson made a very sad discovery. He found a dead body inside a tent which had obviously been pitched for several weeks. The man had been a writer and photographer. I hope his death was peaceful as he was so far away from help and his family.


We started the long descent to Glen More as the clouds lowered from the high corries.


In the valleys it was still autumn and bright October sunshine had yet to give way to winter.


This little lochan reflected the beauty and tranquility of this wonderful place. By 16:30 we were a world away, back in Glasgow.

05/08/2008

A residence on Scarba

After our exertions we were ready for a rest. We came across an old keeper's cottage high above a bay of slippery cobbles on Scarba's southern coast.


Despite having a sound roof with recent double glazing to the south, it was dusty and damp. Tony and I didn't find the atmosphere within conducive to a good night's sleep.


So we retreated to the shore where we pitched our tents. The souls of lost sailors are reputed to roam the coast of Scarba at night. Well it wasn't lost souls that bothered us. It was the double whammy of midges and ticks.

30/08/2008

The Great Race of Corryvreckan

We paddled down the exposed west side of Scarba.


Jura lay far to the south.


As we approached the Corryvreckan, plan A did not seem quite such a good idea. Plan A involved sticking close to the Scarba shore and using an eddy to carry us into the Corryvreckan against the full force of the flood tide. As you can see, a slight swell made the edge somewhat rougher than we (fair weather paddlers) choose to paddle in.


We entered the Corryvreckan on Saturday at 1552. Although it was the last hour of the flood, the flow was still running at full belt! The rule of thirds does not apply here!


We found ourselves in a patch of calm water between the eddy and the Great Race of the Corryvreckan. The Great Race extends for 5 nautical miles out to sea. It is not a place to get into trouble.


It was with some pleasure and dry mouths that we found ourselves paddling into the shelter of the Great Gulf of Corryvreckan.

30/08/2008

A sudden tidal surge on Scarba

When we left Guirasdeal we went into the Grey Dogs tide race (against the tide) for a little fun.


Somewhat scared witless, we proceeded down the NW coast of Scarba.


The photo above shows the nice calm conditions which we found there, after the mayhem of the Dogs.


We landed for a short break and carried the boats well up the beach (about 3 boat lengths on a steep beach).

We only turned our backs for a minute while I attempted to get a weather forecast on my mobile phone. (The coastguard were not broadcasting the forecasts due to industrial action.)

In that moment a tidal surge came in and carried the boats off the beach where they were bashing around the rocks. The strong offshore wind threatened to take them to the Garvellachs. We leaped into the sea and recovered them just in time.

We knew about these surges in this complex tidal area but had not been careful enough. Be warned and carry your kayaks above the high water mark on even a short stop.



Despite our apprehension of what conditions would be like in the Corryvreckan, we left the storm beach on Scarba wiser and somewhat relieved!

30/08/2008

Sea Kayakphoto.com trip index 2008

I have been posting little snippets of various trips concurrently. For those who would like to follow the thread of a single trip, I hope this index will be useful.

Less is more round Lismore!
27/12/08

What a carry on round the Mull!
15/12/08 The Mull of Galloway

Another West coast sunset! Firth of Clyde
14/12/08 Bute from Portencross,

Dunure from Maidens, Firth of Clyde
06/12/08

The Four Castles of Carrick, Firth of Clyde.
02/11/08 Turnberry to Ayr

The River Fleet from Fleet Bay
17/10/08

Loch nan Ceall and the Sound of Arisaig
13/09/08
14/09/08

To the Corryvreckan
30/08/08 Seil to Scarba via the Corryvreckan
31/08/08 Scarba to Seil via the Grey Dogs and the Cuan Sound

The Mull of Kintyre
26/07/08 Macrihanish to Sanda via the Mull
27/07/08 Sanda to Davaar Island

To Islay
12/07/08 Claggain Bay
13/07/08 Traigh Bhan
14/07/08 An Claddach
15/07/08 Port Askaig

To St Kilda
30/05/08 Loch Roag
31/05/08 Taransay
01/06/08 Monach Islands
02/06/08 Hirta and Dun
03/06/08 am Village Bay, Hirta
03/06/08 pm Boreray and the stacks
04/06/08 Loch Reasort to Scarp
05/06/08 Pabaigh Mor and Bhacsaigh

To the Garvellachs
10/05/08 Seil to the Grey Dogs via the Corryvreckan
11/05/08 Grey Dogs to the Garvellachs and Seil

Lady Isle
08/05/08 A busy night at Troon

Ailsa Craig
05/05/08 Gannets and granite

Fleet Bay
02/05/08 Solway sunshine

A misty Firth of Clyde
27/04/08 Maidens to Ayr

Arran
18/03/08 Portencross to Brodick via the Wee Cumbrae, Bute and Glen Sannox

Mull of Galloway
17/02/08 Ardwell Bay to East Tarbet

Dorus Mor
12/02/08 Craignish through the Dorus Mor to Crinan and Loch Craignish then back through the Dorus Mor as the sun set.

The four maritime castles of Carrick
20/01/08 Turnberry to Ayr.

The Cumbraes and Bute
12/01/2008 A day trip in the Clyde from Largs

Fair Guirasdeal

From most angles it looks like Guirasdeal is impossible to land on but there is one chink in its armour through which we made our way to this stony beach below its rocky tower.


There are no sheep on Guirasdeal so we found this meadow of delightful wildflowers.


From the top, looking SE we caught sight of the Grey dogs tide race between Lunga and Scarba.


Turning to the SW we saw distant Jura beyond Scarba. The Great Race of the Corryvreckan lies between.


To the north we had a wonderful panorama of the Slate Islands.


We set off for the Grey Dogs as dark clouds closed in cutting off the only blink of sun we were to see that day.

30/08/2008

By Lunga to Guirasdeal

From Fladda we headed for Rubha Fiola, a tidal islet at the north end of Lunga. This is at slack water. On the full ebb you can find a swirling whirlpool here.


We then followed the west coast of Lunga. The summit of distant Scarba was lost in glowering clouds.


At last, after battling into the wind, we caught sight of our next destination; the fair isle of Guirasdeal.


Guirasdeal is one of the smallest of the Slate Islands but its rocky little summit is 32m high and makes one of the finest viewpoints in the area. Not only that, it was time for lunch!

30/08/2008

Fladda lighthouse

Fladda is one of the Slate Islands in the Sound of Luing. It is a considerable hazard to navigation as it sits right in the middle of the fairway and is surrounded by swirling tides.

The lighthouse was built by David and Thomas Stevenson in 1860. The light flashes every 9 seconds. To the east the light flashes white but is unlit to the west.

30/08/2008

Hot Dogs in the Grey Dogs

Before we ventured near the Gulf of Corryvreckan, Tony and I thought we had better go for a warm up in the gentler waters of the Grey Dogs at the north end of Scarba. To ensure most benefit of this exercise, we timed our arrival for full spring flood conditions. It has to be said that we were not disappointed. There were a few standing waves in the fairway of the Grey Dogs.


We had been here before but we were quite impressed by the size of the waves in the race. We were headed for the west coast of Scarba which is round the headland on the right, on the far side of the wave train.


Our GPS track of the weekend shows some exploration of the various tidal bits of this most interesting area, the Sound of Luing, the Cuan Sound, the Grey Dogs and of course the Daddy of them all, the Great Gulf of Corryvreckan.

30/08/2008

The bittersweet taste of salt and adrenaline.

We went for a pleasant bimble round the coast at the weekend.

Salt and adrenaline is a heady and addictive mixture.

30/08/2008