Some coming and going and hands deep in pockets at Cock

The roadless and remote coast of the Cock of Arran proved to be surprisingly busy with a great variety of vessels coming and going in the Sound of Bute, which separates Arran from Bute. In addition to a large number of yachts, FV Kathleen TT5 from Campbeltown and...

  ...FV Kimberly OB345 from North Arran not to mention...

...the paddle steamer Waverley complete with...

...rainbow and the pocket...

...cruise liner MV Silver Explorer all came and went. Silver Explorer was heading to Greenock after a cruise up the west coast of the British Isles from Portsmouth. From Greenock her next cruise was to Bergen. If you fancy a cruise on Silver Explorer you will need to put your hand deep in your pocket for about £5,000 per week. Mind you drinks are included but so they were on our little cruise which was not quite so expensive!

 An approaching squall cloud caused us to retreat to the tents.

The rain battered down for about an hour before the sun came out again so we enjoyed a nap before...

 ...embarking on the wood gathering expedition.

 Soon the sun was shining with wonderful clouds and...

 ...reflections on the Sound of Bute.

Back at the camp the stoves roared into life and our evening meal was cooked

 Then it was time for the bonfire, baked potatoes and 15 year old Dalwhinnie while...

 ...away to the NNW Loch Fyne took a pasting as the sun went down.

Dangerous shafts at Cock.

 

Once we got our camp established at the north end of Arran, it was time to explore. Nearby we came to the ruins of the old settlement of Cock. It existed because of deposits of lignite a low grade coal which was used for a relatively short period of time (1710 to 1735) to fire salt pans for the local herring industry. You can read more about it in this previous post "The taxman's hand on the Cock of Arran."

Nowadays the shafts of the coal pits are flooded. I would not care to wander round here in a dark night.

Despite its industrial past, Cock is now a beautiful place. The area has returned to nature and is surrounded by mixed deciduous woodland filled with birdsong.

Crystal clear burns tumble down from the high hills and wild flowers such as primroses and...

...thrift were in full bloom in the woods and along the shore.

Weather cocking at the Cock.

 As we left Loch Ranza thunder was rumbling round the glens high above us.the yachts were all weather-cocking on their moorings as the cold gusts swung down from different glens

The rain battered down noisily on our hoods but we were surprisingly insulated from the elements in our kayaks and gear. At least we were doing it for pleasure unlike...

 ...these fishermen on FV Stella Maris TT183 who need to work in all weathers.

We had been slightly concerned about what the sea state might be like as we rounded the Cock of Arran (which was fully exposed to the north east wind) but conditions were benign as the rain flattened the seas.

Then rather miraculously, the wind began to drop and a glimmer of sunlight appeared on the horizon. Then... and...

 ...the skies cleared as we reached our camp site. The temperature built very quickly to 22C and...

...we were perspiring by the time we got the tents up. The warm sun did a great job...

...of drying our wet and damp gear. The weather in Scotland is always unpredictable and variable but even us hardy kayakers were surprised by the rapidity of the change. F5 NE wind, torrential rain and air temp. of 7C changed to F0, full sun and air temp. of 22C in just under two hours...quite remarkable!

Dark clouds over (but a warm welcome in) Lochranza.

From the shelter of Catacol Bay it was out into the wind again as we paddled round towards Loch Ranza. The entrance to the loch was still hidden beyond a headland but the line of the ferry heading over to Kintyre showed us how far we still had to go.

 It was great to get shelter in Loch Ranza but we did not waste any time exploring the castle, oh no..

 ...we landed immediately below the Lochranza Hotel and made our way straight to the public bar. Despite being in wet kayaking gear we were warmly welcomed and shown to a table.

Our starters were delicious sweet roll mop herring and very fresh salad and...

...for main course we chose scampi and chips and salmon steak and chips. The portions were huge but we soon polished them off and washed the lot down with some Guinness and filtered coffee. All in all the Lochranza Hotel proved to be an excellent sea kayaking pub.We thoroughly recommend a stop here.

Before leaving one of the visiting yachtsmen came over for a chat. He asked where we were headed and we told him we were going round the Cock of Arran. He warned us that it was rough even in his 38 foot yacht/ After such sage advice, leaving the cosy bar was rather hard. A big squall was approaching and the air temperature had dropped like a stone. Although it was still bright out to sea, that would not last long. A huge dark cloud was rushing down from the mountains above Loch Ranza. Large raindrops began to fall as we put our dry suit tops on. The rigging in the yachts started clanging and those on moorings swung round to face the approaching squall.

The Twelve Apostles and the savage horde of voracious midges of Catacol.

 We continued north from Pirnmill on Arran's west coast towards...

 ...the great sweep of Catacol Bay.

It was not just the NE wind that was coming down from the mountains. The burns tumbling down from the mountains were full of the previous night's rain.

 The wind accelerated down Glen Catacol and hit the sea in great cat's paws but as we...

 ...approached the head of the bay...

 ...the wind eased off as we...

....paddled into a tidal lagoon.

As we unloaded our boats (for third breakfast) the wind dropped completely and we were attacked by a savage horde of voracious Catacol midges. There is a National Nature Reserve in Glen Catacol to protect three species of rare whitebeam trees. The majority of the World's population of each live in this one glen. I do hope that there is never a nature reserve for midges. There is a fundamental difference between whitebeams and midges. Whitebeams do not bite.

 There was nothing for it but to get back on the water and soon we were passing the...

Twelve Apostles of Catacol. These were built in the mid 19th century to rehouse crofters who were cleared from Glen Catacol to create a deer estate. The cottages had no land and the intention was that the crofters would take up fishing. However, they are situated on an inhospitable shore which is exposed to the prevailing westerly winds and a fishing industry was never established here. Each of the upper windows is a different shape and legend has it that when a fisherman saw a lighted candle in a window he could tell if it was his wife who was signalling.

Heads down at Whitefarland.

 During the night the wind and rain lashed our camp site at Imachar Point.

 Low clouds were scudding across the hills behind Carradale on ther far side of the Kilbrannan Sound.

 We were on the water shortly after 7am as we knew it would be a long day against the wind.

 As soon as we rounded Imachar Point...

 ...we were exposed to the full strength of the wind.

As we approached Whitefarland Point we passed this old cemetery which was built on the foreshore due to shortage of land. It dates from 1709 as predates the early 19th Century Arran Clearances when crofters were cleared from the glens and either transported to Ayrshire or Canada or moved to infertile coastal ground.

There is now a short intermission from photography as paddling took my full attention. Off Whitefarland Point lie the Erins and the Whitefarland Banks. The Admiralty Pilot warns of heavy overfalls here. These banks shoal from 150m to 10m in a very short distance and generate overfalls which extend to the north on the north going flood and vice versa in the ebb. The tide was flooding north against a north wind so conditions were a little lively.

 Fortunately the seas calmed as we left Whitefarland in our wakes but...

 ...the strong head wind meant we made slow progress.

Amazingly a blink of sun broke through the dense cloud and a rainbow momentarily graced the otherwise grey Kilbrannan Sound. By now we were getting pretty tired so...

 ...it was a relief when the village of Pirnmill came in sight. Pirnmill takes its name from the water mill that was here from 1780 until 1840. It made pirns and bobbins for the mills of Paisley. (Pirns are wooden rods used in weaving machines.) The mill closed when all the local trees were cut down  and the village turned to tourism and built a pier (with what was left of the wood) so that Clyde steamers could stop.Steamers ran during the summer from Gourock, Fairlie and Wemyss Bay to Pirnmill Pier. The pier has long gone.

...on the sands of Rubha Ban for a quick second breakfast in the shelter of the point.. There is an excellent place to eat at Pirnmill called the Lighthouse but it was still not quite 9:30am so we made do with our own supplies..