Better Days in the Sound of Islay!

We thought we were super fit kayakers, flying along as the coast of Islay slipped astern at 14km/hr. It was only when the lobster boat Calon Mor zipped past us that we realised that the tide was doing almost all the work. PE91, Calon Mor was built in Poole in 1983. She is a wooden boat 11.8m long and she used to have a forward wheelhouse when used as a trawler in England then Wales. She is currently owned by Kenneth Woodrow from Bruichladdich, Islay.

Then, beyond the shipshape Calon Mor, we noticed something lying at an odd angle on the shore of Rubha a'Mhill, just south of Bunnahabhain.


It was the wreck of the 328 ton Fleetwood trawler Wyre Majestic. On the night of October the 18th 1974 she was steaming in the company of her sister ship the Wyre Defence to Fleetwood. There was no berth to offload their fish at Oban and they were obviously in a hurry to get their catch to a market.


She was making 10 knots and with a spring tide of 8 knots, she hit the rocks at a combined speed of 18 knots. Fortunately there was no loss of life. At the time of the collision her skipper was below decks and her bosun who was at the wheel admitted he was under the influence of drink. Her skipper and two crew stayed aboard for 10 days, until the next spring tides, in an attempt to refloat her. She stayed firmly stuck on the rocks despite attempts by her sister ship, a tug and the Port Askaig lifeboat to tow her off.


Her bow and bridge have now broken away, leaving only the sad and rusting remains of her stern and midships. She serves as a warning to all mariners to treat the Sound of Islay with the greatest of respect.

An interesting footnote is that the Wyre Majestic was built by Cochranes of Selby in Yorkshire, the same yard, which built the main Islay ferry, the MV Hebridean Isles.

Caol Isla: whisky, puffers and paps!

Leaving Port Askaig, the flood tide was racing north up the Sound of Islay at 16km/hr so there was really little choice involved in deciding where to go. Just round the corner from Port Askaig, the NW wind proved to be one of the sweetest winds on the west coast. It was carrying the "Angels' Share" over the water from the Caol Ila distillery. The name means Kyles of Islay (or Narrows of Islay).

The distillery was founded in 1846. From the 1920's until 1972 the distillery was served by its own puffer service, the first, Pibroch was built in 1922, her successor, also called Pibroch, was built in 1957. They sailed from the distillery pier to Glasgow via the Mull of Kintyre. The distillery was expanded and rebuilt in 1974 but now barley comes in and whisky goes out via lorries and the Calmac ferry.


From out in the Sound of Islay we caught sight of the Rhuvaal lighthouse, still some 9km distant.


Although the water of the Sound was calm, we were still proceeding at 14km/hr with little paddling effort.


The summits of the Paps of Jura were decently wreathed in puffs of light cloud.

Return to Islay

It had been too long since our kayaks had explored the waters of the magnificent isle of Islay in the Inner Hebrides. We found ourselves waiting to board MV Hebridean Isles at Kennacraig on the Kintyre peninsula.


Our excitement was palpable as the ferry crossed the broad Sound of Jura and approached the narrow Sound of Islay. The latter separates Islay to the south from Jura to the north. Islay is an incredibly beautiful island and has two really excellent blogs devoted to island life: IslayBlog and Islay Weblog.


We unloaded our kayaks at Port Askaig on the Islay side of the Sound of Islay. Port Askaig is a tiny inlet, sheltered from the strong tides of the Sound. We got ourselves ready at the slipway which leads into the little inner harbour where the local lobster boats were berthed.


It is always a pleasure watching the ferries break in and out of the tide, as they berth at their jetties. However, we wasted no time and were on the water before the Hebridean Isles disappeared back to Kennacraig.

Where would we get to this time?

Where east meets west.

The Kyles of Bute, which seperate the Cowal peninsula from the Island of Bute in the Firth of Clyde, are one of my favourite places to paddle. Although far from the open sea and in a sheltered location, strong tides swirl round the Kyles creating interest. For those kayakers who have yet to experience moving water, this is a great location. At the Burnt Isles the tides sweep through at up to 5 knots. The west going stream starts about -0220 HW Greenock and the east going stream about +0440 HW Greenock.


This is looking down the East Kyle with the Ayrshire coast in the distance. The Burnt Isles are in the narrows and just beyond you can see the Bute ferry on the right just about to depart for Colintraive on the Mainland.


This is looking up the West Kyles from Tignabruaich. Despite the proximity to the mountains, palm trees flourish due to the shelter from the wind and the mild sea water which is warmed from the Gulf Stream.

Banking on the recession

This massive billboard advert caught my eye. The Royal Bank of Scotland was a major casualty of the World recession, after it had over invested in the US subprime mortgage market. The bank is trying to recover by concentrating on its home market and this billboard is part of its campaign to rebuild its image with Scottish customers. I hope they are not thinking they will recoup £2 billion or so from some of the remote communities featured in the adverts. When I first saw the incredibly beautiful TV advert, I thought it was for Visit Scotland, the tourist board. The above photo was taken on the island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides and is pretty much the view we recently enjoyed when approaching Scarinish harbour.


This is lovely Loch Striven. It deeply bisects the beautiful Cowal peninsula, which protrudes into the head of the Firth of Clyde. It is a an interesting place to paddle and is in complete contrast to the exposed isle of Tiree. So what is the link, I hear you ask? Well it is to do with the World recession.


Moored within the Loch are five huge container ships from the Maersk Line. One is the Maersk Beaumont and I reported her arrival in the Clyde on the 2nd of May this year.


These great ships, which normally carry the World's trade, are weathering out the worst of the recession, here in the sheltered recesses of Loch Striven. Despite its apparent isolation, Loch Striven has played its part in the World economy on many occasions in the past. I sailed in the loch in May 1974 and there were 10 giant oil tankers moored right along the length of the loch.there. They were laid up as a result of the '73/'74 oil crises. Then in '76 and '77 two giant LPG carriers, which had just been built in Belfast, were mothballed until '92 and '99 in Loch Striven because the discovery of North Sea gas had made them redundant.


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At the mouth of Loch Striven an inconspicuous jetty is actually a NATO fuelling point for warships. A huge series of oil tanks are hidden in the hills above.


Today on the 6th September 2009 ShipAIS shows that the Nord Mermaid is unloading fuel oil.


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Ardyne Point at the mouth of Loch Striven has another connection with oil.


I took this photo off Ardyne Point from a yacht in May 1978. It shows the concrete Cormorant Alpha oil production platform nearing completion in the Ardyne construction yard, before being transferred to a Norwegian yard for completion. There is an interesting story about this rig told in the Dunoon Observer.


Oil tankers are not the only things to be mothballed on the Clyde. Just a few miles from the mouth of Loch Striven, on the east coast of the Firth of Clyde lies Inverkip oil fired power station. This was opened in the early 1970's just when the oil crises made it uneconomic to generate elictricity from oil. It was only used intermittently and was mothballed in 1988. Its huge chimney of 236m is Scotland's tallest structure and is a landmark for miles around. It is due to be demolished this year.

All in all, Loch Striven is a fantastic sea kayaking destination and despite its proximity to Glasgow, is little known except to local Cowal sea kayakers such as Pam.

Brave rescue at Ardwall Island

Last week, I posted about a delightful spring time trip to Ardwall Island in Fleet Bay on the Solway Firth. It is a truly delightful spot and as you can see, it lies just off shore from a public access point at Carrick shore. It is even possible to walk to it at low tide. It is a wonderful place to visit in settled weather.


Unfortunately the Solway can be very rough, with a combination of wind, swell, shallow water and strong tides all contributing to sometimes treacherous conditions. This recent photo was taken on the 23rd of August 2009, in the peak of the Scottish summer season!

I was very sorry to hear of the news that 4 people's holiday had come to an end when they were marooned on Ardwall Island last Thursday night. They were marooned on the island after they could not relaunch their dinghy when conditions deteriorated. Winds gusted up to 31 knots as a low pressure system swept across SW Scotland.

Thank goodness the Kircudbright Coastguard, the Mossyard inshore rescue boat and a Sea King helicopter from RAF Valley in Wales managed to locate and rescue all four people, in a stormy dark night.

Thanks to our professional and volunteer rescue services for going out in such an atrocious conditions.

Homecoming to St Kilda

2009 is the year of the Homecoming when Scotland encourages its diaspora to visit their homeland. Few visits can be as poignant as that of Mr Norman John Gillies who is the last living survivor of the community on St Kilda, which was evacuated in 1930.


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Norman is a sprightly 84 year old who was 5 years old when St Kilda was evacuated.


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His mother Mary Gillies developed appendicitis while she was pregnant and was taken to Glasgow by boat. Norman can still remember standing on the jetty and watching as his mother waved to him from the boat. It was the last time he saw her. By the time the boat got her to Glasgow she was so ill that she died. The final decision to evacuate St Kilda, was hastened by her death.


Norman John's return to his grandfather's cottage, No 10 St Kilda, will feature in a film which will be broadcast as part of a series of documentaries about St Kilda on BBC Alba tomorrow.