It's a hard life rearing cormorant chicks.

 It was a beautiful calm June evening and I paddled out to an island...

 ...that was teeming with birds.

As I got closer, I drifted in the tide to avoid startling the birds. I was rewarded with the noise of the cormorant colony and the fishy smell of their guano.

High rocks are favoured sites for their simple nests of sticks...

 ...but the cormorants are under continual harassment by wheeling gulls...

 ...that will swoop in and snatch an egg or a chick in the blink of an eye.

Despite it all, this pair had raised three chicks, which were now of a size to fend off gulls with their sharp beaks.

 This was one proud parent.

These herring gulls didn't have it all their own way. Indeed some of them weren't so smart. These ones made their nests and laid their eggs on the rocks above high water neaps. A week later, high water springs washed their nests away.

Last spring, the weather was much better. I saw a party on sit on top kayaks (without BAs) paddle right up to the colony then start shouting and clapping their hands to see the cormorants fly off. The gulls stayed put and swooped in clearing the rocks of cormorant eggs and chicks. So I was pleased to see so many chicks this year and felt privileged to have spent a little time sharing their world.

Basking shark Code of Conduct.

At this time of year basking sharks frequent the waters of

..the west coast of Scotland such as here in Gunna Sound, between Coll and Tiree. Indeed the Shark Trust  blog has recently reported a flotilla of approximately 52 basking sharks off Hynish on Tiree.

The Shark Trust have just produced a Code of Conduct for kayakers who come across basking sharks. You can download the full size pdf file here.


The Code:

Remain calm and quiet.

Never paddle your kayak directly towards the sharks or allow
several kayaks to surround them, as such actions will probably
frighten them and make them dive or act unpredictably. Stay in
a group, rather than stringing out around the sharks.

Kayakers should not cross the path of the shark so the sharks
can maintain their course without changing direction or speed.

Avoid sudden movements which will disturb the sharks. Never
use your paddle or kayak to touch a shark.

Avoid pairs or large numbers of sharks following each other
closely. This may be courting behaviour and they should not be
disturbed.

Although Basking Sharks are filter-feeders and mostly placid,
they can startle if disturbed, often thrashing their tail with
enormous power. Also be aware that Basking Sharks do breach.

Sharks appear attracted to kayaks and often swim alongside
and below, very close to the hulls. If you stay calm, still, and
observe, there is a good chance they will come to you.

I recently wrote an article for Ocean Paddler magazine entitled "Close encounters... of a marine kind." (This was not my photo! It was taken by Linda Pitkin, a specialist underwater photographer.) I discussed basking sharks and how to avoid disturbing them in the article, which you can download in pdf form here.

The Shark Trust have a basking shark project and would welcome any sighting reports especially when accompanied by photos but remember to switch the flash off, if you use the camera underwater!

Keeping critters out of the cockpit.

When I started sea kayaking I got fitted out by the late Mike Thomson of Scottish Paddler supplies. He advised me to invest in a cockpit cover because: 

"All that wet, sandy, salty gear we inevitably accumulate on a trip. Don't chuck it all in the boot where it immediately sets about rotting your car away. Heave it all in the cockpit and bang on one of these covers.

They also keep the lovely British climate out of your cockpit in transit or on the beach. The Americans add that they "keep dirt and CRITTERS out of the cockpit". Come to think of it, finding a critter crawling up your leg while out at sea would not be the happiest of experiences!!

Until recently I had used the cockpit cover only when the kayak was on the car roof rack to keep fuel consumption down, my kayaks were always well protected from weather and critters in my garage. Unfortunately my knees have not been so good recently and I have been having trouble getting a kayak on and off the car roof. So I have started leaving a kayak down at our weekend retreat on the Solway.

 

I leave it just above the springs high watermark, under the shade of a sessile oak that hangs down over a little beach in Smugglers' Cove. You can see the oak at the right of this photo.

Winter storms had undermined the bank of earth at the back of the beach. I was just pulling my kayak out onto this beach when I spotted this critter among the roots of the tree.

 It is an adder. They have a venomous bite but are usually very retiring in the heat of the day.

This one was trying to warm itself so it wasn't going anywhere fast. I left it well alone, they are a protected species.

We often see adders sunning themselves on the rocks around the Solway shore. Even more common are slow worms, which are not snakes but legless lizards. Slow worms are non venomous and can be distinguished from adders as they are a uniform brown colour with no obvious neck.

In contrast, the adder has an unmistakable diamond pattern and a distinct narrowing at the neck. Adders are widely distributed on the British mainland, and the Inner Hebrides (especially Jura but not Colonsay). They are not found on the Isle of Man, Ireland, the Outer Hebrides, Orkney or Shetland.

I was really pleased my cockpit cover was firmly in place, I shudder to think what might happened if it was sitting in the cockpit when I set off.

Farewell to Ailsa.

 As we left Ailsa Craig, a light wind helped our progress back to the Ayrshire coast.

 By the time we were half way across the wind had begun to drop and...

 ...we completed the crossing in flat calm conditions. Donald had motored on ahead of us as he faced a long slog up the beach with his boat.

 All too soon we were weaving our way through the Lendalfoot skerries...

...and made landfall at the end of another fantastic voyage to Ailsa Craig.

As we completed our packing, we left Ailsa Craig floating on a dreamy sea, with the cries of the birds still ringing in our ears.

Seaside rock: columns of granite at the Trammins, Ailsa Craig.

We had nearly completed our circumnavigation of Ailsa Craig. We passed under the great rock columns of the cliffs called Trammins and arrived...

...below the South Foghorn.

Soon we were back at the eastern spit...

...on which the lighthouse stands.

A farewell look over our shoulders, then we set off on the 15km crossing back to the mainland.

Exploration of the Water Cave, Kennedy's Nags and Little Ailsa.

 We paddled in wonder under wheeling gannets along the west coast of Ailsa Craig towards Stranny Point...

 ...where we came to the Water Cave, which was guarded by nesting fulmars.

 Rounding Stranny Point we came to the magnificent SW cliffs, which are called Kennedy's Nags.

 Phil decided to paddle in closer but...

 ...both he and...

...Little Ailsa were dwarfed by the scale of the cliffs.

A whirling halo of gannets.

Once we paddled round to the NW side of Ailsa Craig we entered the sunshine of the spring afternoon. The West Craigs are home to thousands of pairs of birds. The air was full of the "kittiwake kittiwake" calls of the kittiwakes and the continuous croaking of the gannets. Fulmars swooped down from their ledges in graceful, stiff winged flight and...

...guilliemots and razorbills flopped onto the water, where they congregated in rafts. It was a delight to see puffins whirring through the air with their rapid wing beats.

I decided to paddle out for 500m to get a better view of the NW side of the Craig. I was followed by a crowd of inquisitive wheeling gannets.
  

I was rewarded by a stunning view of Ailsa Craig, complete with a whirling halo of gannets. To give a sense of scale...

...Phil can be seen (just) in the middle of this telephoto photograph.