In the wake of the dead at dawn through Inner West Loch Tarbert, Jura

HW was at 06:41 and we needed to be in the inner part of West Loch Tarbert as close to HW as possible to avoid a muddy exit and also to be able to paddle through the narrow rocky channel of Cumnann Beag before the spring tide turned against us. There was nothing for it but to rise early and forgo breakfast. We emerged from the bothy at Cruib Lodge, packed the boats in the cold blue predawn light and were...

 ...on the water before sunrise.

 The entrance to the inner loch is very inconspicuous and the flash of low light as the sun broke the horizon...

 ...helped us locate it. We entered the narrows at 06:28 and the tide was still flowing gently in. Although you will hardly see a soul in these waters today, this route (through West Loch Tarbert and across the narrow portage to Tarbert on the east coast of Jura) was once a busy highway from Argyll to Colonsay and Oronsay.

It was used by both pilgrims and by the bereaved carrying their dead for burial on the islands. The route avoided the strong tides of the Corryvreckan to the north and the Sound of Islay to the south.

 It was eerily silent as we paddled through the maze of the inner loch's...

 ...narrow channels and shallow waters.

 Gradually the inner loch...

 ...opened up and as the...

 ...sun rose and...

...day truly broke, we arrived at the head of the loch at 06:56. It was near spring HW and fortunately we stepped out onto grass. As we prepared our trolleys for the portage I noted that the tide continued to rise and did not start to fall until 07:20, almost 40 minutes after HW Oban at 06:41.

No evidence of book burning or obsessive compulsive behaviour at Cruib Lodge, Jura.

 From the great raised beach at the head of outer West Loch Tarbert we set off in a brisk wind...

 ...through the narrows at Cumhann Mor which lead into...

 ...the middle loch. We were in the last hour of the flood so in addition to the wind we had some tidal assistance. This required some care as the narrows are riddled with rocks.

 We took the tidal inside passage behind Eilean Dubh before entering the broader expanse of the middle loch proper.

 Cruib Lodge is easy to miss but I had been before and we turned left after the right headland.

 Cruib Lodge was built in Victorian times as the deer larder for...

 ...the Ruantallain Estate. The right third is a store. The middle third is the MBA bothy with a sleeping platform for two. The left third is an airy bright room which is the former deer larder. The former ventilation vents in its three exterior walls have been replaced by large windows making it possibly the brightest and airiest bothy room in Scotland. There is a sleeping platform for three or four. It is left open outwith the deer shooting season but is locked for use by the estate during the season.

It was a joy to arrive at an empty bothy at HW as we did not even need to pull the boats up the beach.

 One by one...

 ...we rounded the headland until...

 ...all three were on the beach.

The sun was setting fast so we left the identical boats lined up on the beach while we dried our things in the last of the sun. Afterwards we hung our identical dry suits on individual pegs in the lodge and got our meal ready.

We chose to dine outdoors on the freshly painted table and sample some Jura Superstition whisky, which had been distilled a mere 16.47km away over the hills. One thing I like about sea kayaking is that the unpredictable and variable nature of the weather, tides etc. tends not to attract people with an obsessive compulsive personality...

 While we arranged our cutlery this is the view we enjoyed with our meal.

After eating we unloaded the boats of the driftwood we had gathered earlier and sawed it into equal sections for the fire. We had enough to leave for others (no driftwood reaches this middle part of the loch) so we felt justified in using some of the neatly stacked peats our friend Tony had cut and left on his recent visit. The fine library of books above the fire had escaped burning since Tony and I had visited exactly a year before. This is a sign of an appreciative and literate clientele.

As the moon rose into the clear sky the temperature plummeted and we were...

 ...glad to be in a cosy bothy. We planned to paddle through the next narrows to the inner loch the next day and portage over the track from its head to the east coast of Jura. At spring tides the ebb runs out at over 8 knots through a clean rocky channel with no eddies. There was nothing for it but to get up early.

After a final check of the moon and stars we went to bed. The only other sign of life was this yacht lying at anchor. Given the forecast F5-6 winds overnight, I knew her crew would get less sleep than us as they would need to keep an anchor watch and keep checking her position.

Ian and Mike used the large room with the windows but my asthma was bothering me a bit so I slept in the middle room beside the remains of the smouldering peat. I thought the air would be drier. I had forgotten about the bothy mice which kept me awake for a good part of the night.

Raising expectations of the stunning raised beaches of West Loch Tarbert, Jura

We paddled on round the west coast of Jura leaving the Sound of Islay behind and entering West Loch Tarbert which nearly bisects the island.

On our way we passed many more basalt dykes which ran down the hillside into the sea. This one looked like Chief Running Deer of Jura complete with war bonnet.

 At this turquoise lagoon the waters were...

 ...crystal clear and we stopped on its...

 ...sands below...

 ...an incredible raised beach which soared up towards the slopes of Beinn an Oir. We had spotted some well seasoned driftwood which had been cast high above the high watermark.

We gathered arm fulls before returning to the boats. We were bound for Cruib Lodge at the head of West Loch Tarbert and we knew there would be little wood there.

The view of the Paps of Jura gradually changed as we entered  West Loch Tarbert and started paddling east.

 Ben More on Mull rose above the Ruantallain peninsula on the north side of the loch as Hazel Ann CN373, a creel boat from Port Askaig motored out of the loch.

 Glen Batrick, a gap in the hills behind the south shore opened up a view of the Paps of Jura again.

 At the mouth of the glen lies Glenbatrick house.  It is locally pronounced Glenabatrick after the original name Glenabedrig. It belongs to Viscount Astor who is David Cameron's stepfather in law. The Camerons have spent several holiday's here, far from the pressures of Westminster.

 From Glenbatrick we paddle sailed east up the outer loch in an...

 ...increasing NW wind. The combination of wind...

 ...sun and spray made for some incredible paddle sailing conditions but we took a break from the fun at...

 ...Rubha nam Meann (headland of the young goat) to explore one of the most intriguing locations on the British coastline.

The cobbles on this beach rise high above the current HW mark and it is one of the best examples of a raised beach in Britain. I have been here many times before but it was Ian and Mike's first visit. As I had raised their expectations and built the place up, I hoped they would not be disappointed.

As you climb towards the summit...

 ...of the beach you are stepping back in time until you reach the...

 ...summit of the beach where the tide last went out some 10,000 years ago.

It is like a time machine because despite the passage of the millennia, the cobbles are as clean as if the tide had just receded that morning. Since the great weight of ice over the land melted, this part of the Earth's crust under Scotland has been steadily rising from the magma below.

There are so many cobbles here that they have created a dam across the glen behind which retains a fresh water loch, Lochan Maol an t-Sornaich, (lochan of the rounded hill of the boulders). No river flows from the loch. Its waters seep gently to the sea through the spaces between the cobbles.

 Near the summit of the beach the largest cobbles are to be found and on some of the oldest specimins ancient colonies of lichen have formed.

There are only a few patches of vegetation that have become established on the beach and when...

...seen from above (photo by me September 2009) they are situated most harmoniously within the landscape showing that Slartibartfast had a good understanding of the principles of Feng Shui. Indeed he was probably the founder of this ancient art which symbolises the harmony between wind and water. 

 Each of us wandered with our own thoughts in the vastness of this quintessential Jura landscape...

...we realised how privileged we were to be able to visit this special place that few of our countrymen are even aware of.  The "paths" across the cobbles were not made by  the feet of men but are where countless generations of deer have picked their way carefully across the beach.

Reluctantly we left this special place where time has stood still.