The P&H Aries 155 as a beginner's kayak.

The Aries 155 is rapidly becoming my favourite kayak. Its versatility gives it appeal to experts in the surf and for those that like paddle sailing, it is unsurpassed by any of the kayaks I have tried. It is also good for beginners, though I should point out that this is my own opinion and I have no coaching qualifications. I am aware that some coaches think the Delphin and Aries are not suitable for beginners.

Anyway David is 74 years old and this is his first kayak lesson. His only previous experience in a canoe was 50 years ago and lasted for 15 minutes until he fell out.  He soon mastered turning and bracing using the paddle alone and within 20 minutes of being on the water had the sail up. He soon had the hang of threading through the gaps between old salmon net poles.

 Then he moved on to close reaching and...

broad reaching. He even managed an occasional plane in the small waves. In all he covered 6km in his first lesson.

Not only is the Aries a great kayak for beginners, this also demonstrates how accessible paddle sailing is with the Flat Earth kayak sail.

Quite remarkable....

Luncheon at Shoe Bay.

 Ian and I paddled across the south mouth of Loch Moidart towards Eilean Shona and a little inlet....

 ...which lies hidden at the back of...

 ...a cleft of...

 ...turquoise water...

 ...that runs deep into the grey rocks of Moidart.

The silvery sands of Shoe Bay are very soft...

 ...and have claimed very many shoes over the years.

 We climbed to a knoll above the sands where we enjoyed a view...

 ...of the Ardnamurchan peninsula along which we had recently paddled.

We enjoyed a first luncheon washed down by a dram of The Singleton. We found a cork from a bottle of Bollinger, which suggested that suggested that silver slippers and not just Lomo boots may have been lost in the soft sands of Shoe Bay.

Peaceful Ardtoe reverie shattered by sudden sufacing of Sammy the Otter.

 Ian and I paddled round Eilean Dubh in Kentra Bay. This small isle is split by...

 ...numerous channels through which....

 ...the strengthening ebb tide propelled us steadily...

 ...past the birchwoods at the narrow entrance and...

 towards the open sea.

We paddled north towards the vegetation capped Sgeir an Eididh, which in Gaelic means clothed reef. In the distance beyond the dark outline of Eigg, the Rum Cuillin were capped in snow.

We had now left the birch woods of Ardtoe behind and were paddling along the barren rocky peninsula of Rubha  na Caillich in Moidart...Point of the Old Woman.

 Our peaceful reverie was shattered by the sudden surfacing of our old friend Sammy the Otter who seemed...

...quite unconcerned by our presence.

Better days in Kentra Bay.

After a good breakfast at Glenuig Inn, Ian and I launched in the small sandy cove of Ardtoe. It is situated at the root of the great peninsula of Ardnamurchan. It was just after high water, so we decided to start our day by exploring the tidal inlet of Kentra Bay.

As we approached the narrow entrance, the coast to our left was composed of grey rocks interspersed with white sand beaches and on our right...

 ...lay the Small Isles and...

 ...the snow covered Cuillin of Skye.

 We paddled into Kentra Bay under a leaden sky and upon a glassy sea.

 Wild wooded slopes tumbled steeply to the shores and...

 ...the ebb tide was already streaming through...

 ....the gaps between the rocky islets.

 We passed an old boathouse and a carefully...

 ...moored old Nordkapp.

Although it was March, the birch woods were still in the grip of winter. Maybe the trees were expecting the coming snows...

 This moored dinghy had seen better days but...

 ...the old Ardtoe pier is made of sterner stuff, its great stones have weathered many storms.

Nearby houses perched on the cliffs, while their boat houses clung to rocks by the shore.

Solar pyrotechnics at Loch Ailort

Back in March, my joints were doing better than now so I took a long drive from Glasgow on the Road to the Isles. I was due to meet Ian for a sea kayaking trip in a brief weather window before the worst snows of the year arrived. When I reached Loch Ailort, the sun dropped beneath the veil of cloud that had hid it from sight on the long road north. I could not help...

 ...but stop the car beneath the steep slopes of Rois-Beinn and get the camera out.

I had only just restarted the car when I had to stop again. This time it was the unmistakable silhouette of Eigg and Rum over the Sound of Arisaig.

To the east the lower slopes of Rois-Beinn were illuminated by the low sun but the upper slopes were in the shadow of the low clouds.

 The sunset was really building up...

 ...beyond the Small Isles.

 The dying sun put up an incredible display and I had to force myself to turn round...

 ...to appreciate the golden light that was illuminating the far shore of...

 ...Loch Ailort.

At last the sun went down and I continued to the welcoming lights of the Glenuig Inn where I arrived just a few minutes before Ian. We were already looking forward to large plates of Mallaig prawns.0

Paddle sailing and planing in P&H Aries 155 sea kayak and Flat Earth Code Zero 0.8sqm kayak sail.

The blog has been rather quiet recently as I have run into continuing joint problems and am now seeing a shoulder surgeon in addition to a knee surgeon! I gave up mountaineering when my knees packed in now I am worried about sea kayaking as my shoulder problems worsen. I have not been on any expeditions since early March and unfortunately I had to pull out of the Skye Sea Kayak Symposium (at which I was going to demonstrate kayak sailing). This was a great pity as it was the first Skye or Jersey sea kayak symposium that I have missed in many years. I hope everyone is having a really good time at the symposium.

Yesterday Phil and Andrew wondered if I would like to join them on a trip to Ailsa Craig. Unfortunately I had to decline this too as I could not get my sea kayak onto the car roof (even with the Karitek easy load roof rack). Nor could I drive that distance and I certainly could not guarantee that my shoulder would last the 34km round trip.

Instead I thought I would review some of the recent testing of the P&H Aries 155.

Despite its short length the Aries (and Delphin) shows a remarkable ability to plane in following seas. Add a sail and even relatively light winds give you the ...

 ...ability to  enjoy continuous planing over considerable distances. Many people stop paddling (and trail their paddle in an extended low brace) when there is enough wind for the sail to drive a kayak at its displacement speed. However, as can be seen here ,kayaks like the Aries and Delphin will rise onto the plane, then considerably exceed their theoretical maximum displacement speed. Therefore not only should you continue paddling but in marginal planing conditions you should paddle as hard as you can to pop the kayak up onto the plane and keep it there. In stronger winds you will also find that travelling fast downwind reduces the apparent wind on the sail and this paradoxically means travelling fast makes it easier to survive and enjoy difficult conditions.

Here David has overtaken the wave in front and has climbed up the wave back. He has reached the critical point, where his body has nearly crossed the crest of the wave but the kayak has dropped off the plane. At this point the apparent wind in the sail increases as the boat slows. This increases the drive in the sail but is also the time you need to paddle as hard as possible. If I had been David, I would also have leaned forward as far as I could (but as David has a bad back and in a few months will enter his eighth decade, he has a partial excuse).

Two stiff strokes sees David break through the crest of the wave in front and start planing again. Yee Haa!

Although, in my previous posts on the Aries 155, I have said it is a wonderful kayak to paddle with a Greenland paddle, I would not recommend a GP when trying to drive a kayak onto the plane in marginal conditions like these as you simply don't get the same explosive power. Here David is using a wing paddle.

One of the beauties of the Flat Earth kayak sail is that it allows you to continue to paddle with no hindrance when the sail is hoisted.

Don't expect paddle sailing to be a relaxing easy option. Paddle sailing a kayak is hard work. The idea is to maximise planing time as this is such fun.