Stags on the high tops joined us in roars of approval.

Just as we arrived at Glenaladale, the estate boat Fionn Aladail (Fair Aladale) left the rickety wooden jetty with a shooting party aboard. Her helmsman courteously kept the engine revs down until they were well past us. We were right in the middle of the Glenaladale red deer stag shooting season.

As we paddled past the delta of the Aladale river the glen stretched away into the distance then above...

...the steep slopes of Croit Bheinn 661m (the hunchbacked hill), we caught sight of a magnificent golden eagle soaring in the updraft above the mountain side.

South of Glenaladale the woodland became even denser with trees clinging to the steep slopes from shore level up to the crags high above us.

 

As we neared Gaskan we came across a delightful...

...wooded isle called Eileen Comhlach.

Its name could be isle of the meeting place, fellow warrior or suckling pig.  Several lochs have islands where warring chieftans met without fear of being ambushed by each other's men.

We drifted for some time in the lee of the little isle hoping that it would be highlighted against the dark hills behind by a blink of low sunshine.

Our patience was rewarded.

This little tree will need to have much patience to grow tall as its roots clutch only bare rock on the loch shore.

By now the sun was sinking fast and the shadows were lengthening. We had an idea of where to camp based on a previous trip but we had met a couple of open canoeists who had camped there the previous evening and found their night disturbed by a herd of cattle.

I had in mind an alternative but had never landed there. We decided to detour to my back-up but knew that if it was not suitable we would be setting up tents in the dark at our original destination.

As the sun sank below the clouds we were bathed in a beautiful light.

Although we had a fair way to go...

...we could not help but stop and savour the beauty of Loch Shiel at Sunset.

The low sun really turned up the vibrance of the autumn colours.

But we needed to press on, light was fading fast we were now committed to camp "B". By now the landscape ahead was of low gently rolling hills and...

...we soon left the high mountains...

...in our wakes.

We arrived at our destination, camp "B", at sunset. After a quick check we decided it would be ideal. I went for a quick swim to freshen up before the warming rays sank below the horizon.

After getting the tents up we quickly gathered some firewood before darkness fell.

We cooked our meal by our fire's flickering flames then afterwards baked potatoes for afters which we enjoyed with butter and salt.

Then Ian surprised us with poached pears in brandy for second afters. It seemed that the stags on the high tops joined us in roars of approval. 

For the full stereovision experience read Ian's account here...

So many views in Loch Shiel, you had better take a seat!

As we paddled SW down Loch Shiel, the sun began to...

 ...occasionally break through the cloud creating ever changing patterns of light and shade on the crags above and...

 ...the forests below.

 Although there are many attractive shingle beaches the camping behind some of them is difficult due to bog and tussocky grass and we intended getting well down the loch before being stopped by nightfall about 6pm.

Glenfinnan was now well behind us and we...

 ...entered a great amphitheatre in the mountains which became...

 ...wilder and wilder. The roaring of rutting red deer stags echoed round the high glens a sound truly evocative of autumn in Scotland.

The only sign of the hand of man was a lumber track which wound its way round the headlands on the SE shore but there was no sign of vehicles or people.

We enjoyed each other's company as...

 ...we shared this magnificent...

 ...wilderness of rocky summits which...

 ...tumbled down to deciduous forests which...

 ...clothed the north west shore in...

...superb autumn colours.

 Every so often we would stop and turn to look...

 ...back the way we had come.

Shadows from the clouds were racing across the hillsides, driven by the increasing wind.

As we approached the wild delta at the mouth of the river which flows into Loch Shiel from Glen Aladale, we found this somewhat incongruously but gloriously situated chair. 

For the full stereo vision experience read Ian's account here...

Progress down Loch Shiel was impeded by frequent photo opportunities.

 As we made our way SW down Loch Shiel the sun broke though and despite it being mid October the temperature soared.

 Due to glaciation the west coast of Scotland is riven by many U shaped valleys which were cut by glaciers moving to the SW where the melted into the sea. Some of these valleys are flooded by sea water and some by fresh water but the bodies of water are both called lochs.

 So though our progress was slow, not only were we following the route of a long gone glacier we were making considerably faster progress than it had done.

The scenery in Loch Shiel is truly stunning.

The sunlight enhanced the shades of autumn and our progress was frequently impeded by...

 ...photographic opportunities or...

 ...by stunning shingle beaches where we stopped to...

 ...sit on a log under the shade of a great Scots pine and admired the dramatic mountains...

...which towered far above. I even went in for a swim but the water molecules had clearly retained a memory of the Ice Age.

For the full stereo vision experience read Ian's account here...

A low point on the horizon but not in our spirits on Loch Shiel.

I have not updated the blog for some time due to ill health but I do make more regular posts on my Facebook page. Ian has started to post on his blog about a great trip we made back in October 2016 and this has prompted me to help create another of our stereovision adventures.

Mike and I travelled from SW Scotland and Ian and Lorna travelled from the NE. Sadly Lorna's husband Allan was not feeling 100% and didn't make it. This put a damper on our spirits  but what a great excuse to do this marvellous trip again, with Allan! 

We met at the Glenfinnan House Hotel where we had arranged to leave one car and launch from the hotel grounds into the fresh waters of Loch Shiel. Mike and I ran a shuttle car round to Samalaman Bay on the south side of the Sound of Arisaig.

Once on the water, we soon left the Glenfinnan Monument, which commemorates the fallen during the ill fated 1745 Jacobite rebellion.

We passed the Loch Shiel ferry, the MV Sileas. 

There is no public road along the length of Loch Shiel, so for most people a trip on the Sileas is the only way of seeing the isolated beauty of this Loch.

The hills on the SE shore are rugged and bare and...

...tumbled steeply into the silvery waters of the loch under dark grey skies.

Soon we were out in the middle of the loch where our bows naturally turned to the low point on the horizon. Somewhere beyond lay the sea, some 30km away.

From the middle of the loch we caught a better view of the marvellous mixed woodland of native deciduous and Scots Pine that has survived on the NW shore since the last Ice Age. A flash of brightness...

 ...attracted our attention to a marvellous golden leaved aspen whose leaves were shimmering in the light breeze.

Gradually the equinoctial grey skies brightened, a patch of blue sky appeared and our spirits soared....

For the full stereovision experience see Ian's account here...

Pyranha Octane PE surfski

This is the new Pyranha polyethylene surfski called the Octane. It will be available shortly at £1095. It is based on a Think composite surfski design. I had a good look at these in the GoKayaking store in Perth back in January. They look like fantastic boats and I had a good chat with Cam Allan about them.

A lot of my friends are interested in surfskis but the thought of spending north of £2,000 on a composite surfski is putting them off. That is why I am delighted to hear of  the PE Octane which will provide an affordable intro to the world of surfskis. It will shortly be available in Corelite PE and I do hope it will be available in the new stiff light CoreLiteX PE construction later on. I got an email from Graham Mackereth MD of Pyranha confirming that it would also be available with a sail. Whoohoo! Even better I have just heard from Mathew Wilkinson from Pyranha/P&H marketing dept. that just possibly one might just find its way in my general direction for a test. Whoohoo! :o)

Sunset at Fidden: episode two.

 Although Fidden on the Ross of Mull is a commercial campsite, in many ways it really is like a a wild camp site with showers. After a nice warm shower we returned to the tents to discover that the wind had dropped and the midges had come out. Ian and I set up our chairs on a little knoll to eat our meal. A little breeze up there mitigated the midges somewhat and the view was excellent.

 After dining we set up a small fire (we had brought logs) below HW mark. While Ian and I opened cans of our favoured Irish sports recovery drink, Alan and Donald were already checking through their numerous sunset photos!!

 Not to be out done, Ian and I soon got snapping too.

As the sun dipped to the horizon it took on first an...

 ...orange glow before turning...

 pinkish red.

Of course living so far from the equator has its advantages. Very often the twilight after sunset is even better than sunset itself and so...

 ...it proved. This was an hour and a half after sunset.

Behind us the white buildings of Fidden were still illuminated with a delicate warm glow and were standing out against the inky black night sky behind.