Fair birlin' doon the loch to Castle Tioram.

We left Shoe Bay and set off up the South channel of Loch Moidart with both a fair wind and a flood  tide behind us. We were soon birlin' doon the loch at a most respectable rate of knots.

As we paddled deep inland, the loch narrowed and the wind dropped. To the south the land was relatively low lying and is where the outflow of River Sheil carries the fresh water from Loch Sheil into the salt water of Loch Moidart.

 To the north we were hemmed in by the rough slopes of Eilean Shona which fell steeply into the sea.

 Ahead and to the east, lay our next objective...

...Castle Tiorum (pron. Cheerum) whose ancient grey walls rise from the grey rocks of...

 ...the tidal island upon which it stands. On its NW side there is a sheltered cove, which at one time would have had...

 ...wooden birlinns, like this modern reconstruction, drawn up on its sands. Many think the Celtic birlinns were developed from Viking longships but it was actually the other way round. The Celts were using birlinns some 800 years before the time of the longships. Indeed, in his third book of the Gallic Wars, Julius Caesar describes them in detail and how they were superior to the Roman galleys.

 Today it was kayaks and an F-RIB rather than birlinns that drew up on the sands  below...

 ...the castle walls. Long gone castle defenders might have viewed our approach with some suspicion but we were intent on nothing more than...

 ...stopping for our fourth luncheon....

Setting off hell for leather to Shoe Bay.

Donald quickly disappeared over the horizon towards the mouth of the South Channel of Loch Moidart.  We had arranged to meet at Shoe Bay for our third luncheon. We fully expected he would be there long before us.

Unfortunately for Donald, the various entrances to this delightful spot are not at all easy to spot from the sea and when...

...we arrived at the inner recesses of Shoe Bay there was no sign of him. A quick call on the VHF ascertained that he had explored most of the southern coast of Eilean Shona without success and was nearly at Castle Tioram. A quick turn around and...

..the hare sheepishly rowed the final few meters into the delightful turquoise waters of Shoe Bay.

Shoe  Bay makes an excellent spot for third luncheon, if you can find it, but watch out for the soft sand or you might find out why it is called Shoe Bay!

Paradise lost and found and a miserable rock at Cul na Croise (Eden).

 We  had just set off from Camas an Leige on the north Ardnamurchan coast when Donald appeared from the west. He had very nearly made it round Ardnamurchan Point but wisely turned back due to increasing swell.

We could not resist landing again and this time Cul na Croise was peaceful as the helicopter had departed. After catching up and after Donald stretched his legs he...

...set off towards our next rendezvous on Eilean Shona.

 We set off more leisurely, enjoying the last moments on Cul na Croise.

Either the swell had got up or Donald's little 6HP motor produced more wake than we were expecting.

As we paddled along the strand, just beyond the surf line, we came across two sculptures which had been...

 ...left behind by the participants in the Eden reality TV show. I know the participants did not find the paradise that they had been hoping to find here but what they had lost, we had found.

We turned our bows to the north and paddled inside the lonely islet of Sgeir an Eididh (loosely translated: miserable rock), we did not stop.

We made landfall at Rubha na Caillich north of Ardtoe. Our next destination was another...

...piece of paradise: turquoise waters leading to a dazzling shell sand beach on the north side of the South Channel of Loch Moidart.

A little west of Eden.

26/03/2017

 From Smirisary we paddled south along the rugged coast of Moidart which...

...is split asunder by the straight and narrow north channel of Loch Moidart. The view through the channel to the SE leads to the summit of Garbh Bheinn (885m, "rough mountain") in Ardgour, some 30km distant.

To seaward the Sgurr of Eigg and the Rum Cuillin created a...

 ...jagged horizon between the calm blue Sea of the Hebrides and the clear blue sky.

 The western side of Eilean Shona completed the rugged landscape that contrasted with...

 ...the almost surreal and unseasonal calmness of the sea.

As we continued our passage south, the angle  between the Sgurr of Eigg and the more distant Rum Cuillin gradually reduced until our further progress was...

 ...blocked by our arrival at the the Ardnamurchan peninsula.

Our eyes had been drawn to the magnificent beach of Cul na Croise, which had been a live practice ground for the D-Day landings in WW2. At first it sounded like they were still practicing...

...as a helicopter flew back and forward overhead ferrying loads of gear out of the forest behind the dunes.  Until just 6 days before our arrival, this had been the site of Channel 4's ill fated reality TV show Eden. New Yorker magazine described it as "reality TV's wildest disaster". It makes interesting reading. It turned into something pretty dark, nearer Lord of the Flies than Big Brother.

For some peace and quiet we decided to head further west towards Camas an Lighe and on the way...

...found a quieter corner with an incredible view...

....to the Small Isles and...

...their jagged mountains which made a stunning location for...

...second luncheon, albeit a little west of Eden.

A lazy first luncheon at Smirisary.

26/3/2017

 When we emerged from the Sound of Arisaig we turned south along the rough coast of Moidart  and the ancient hamlet of Smirisary.

It was low water and we passed to the inside of many of the reefs that create notorious boomers at high water.

Amongst the dark rocks which tumbled from the steep mountains, we spotted a flash of white shell sand..

 Donald in the F-Rib had already arrived...

 ...by the time we slid over turquoise channels of water...

...between dark beds of kelp and...

 ...landed on the white sands.

First luncheon was a lazy affair...

...which gave plenty of time to enjoy the view...

...before setting off to...

...explore the machair...

...backed beaches of Smirisary.