The wreck of the Kartli

The west coast of Gigha is a wild place. Southwesterly storms sweep in from the Atlantic, past the Mull of Oa on Islay, and dash their energy on the rocks of this fair isle.

The Kartli was a huge 240 foot Russian fish factory ship. During a storm on December 18th 1991 her wheelhouse was smashed and her engine room and generator flooded by a giant wave off the south of Islay. Four of her crew were killed and 15 were seriously injured. With no power or steerage, she rolled helplessly at the mercy of the wind and seas. Five helicopters were involved in a dramatic and successful rescue of all her surviving crew.



Her abandoned hulk drifted relentlessly downwind to her ultimate resting place on the rocks of Gigha where her plates were pounded asunder.

Even on a calm and sunny day, her rusting hulk remains as a reminder of the transient nature of man's dominion over the seas and the our fleeting existence on this earth.

The sad, sad story of Sammy, the lost and lovesick wandering albatross.

Yesterday the BBC reported the return of Sammy the albatross (other, less imaginative, commentators have called him Albert albatross) to the remote rocky outpost of Sula Sgeir that lies 87 kilometers to the northwest of Cape Wrath which is the most northwesterly point of the Scottish mainland.



Unfortunately his mating display is entirely in vain as the nearest female of his species is 13,000 kilometers away in the Falkland Islands in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sammy first arrived in Scottish waters in 1967 when he looked for a mate on the Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth. He then moved to Shetland but has spent the last three springs on Sula Sgeir. Albatrosses live for about 70 years so he faces a further several decades of fruitless wandering round northern wastes in search of a life partner.

Sometimes life is good, sometimes it's sad, sometimes it's a bitch. The individual does not seem to matter in the great scheme of things. Tonight, shed a tear for Sammy and his ilk.

Collages by Jennifer Wilcox

White Port and the Cow's Snout

One of the great pleasures in sea kayaking is the satisfaction of battling round a headland in challenging conditions to find sanctuary and rest on a sheltered crescent of sand. Nothing was more welcome after rounding Balcary Point (no photos) than finding White Port which nestled in the shelter of Hestan Island and Almorness Point. We had a very pleasant luncheon here but decided we would need to press on rather than detour up the Firth to Kippford and the Anchor Hotel.



Looking east from White Port across the mouth of Rough Firth all looked calm but a roller coaster awaited until we cleared the rock formation called the Cow's Snout.

The Anchor Hotel, Kippford

On our recent trip to the delightful Colvend coast of the Solway, one of our destinations was the Anchor Hotel at Kippford. Way points are an important feature of sea kayak navigation and what could be better than a way point which offers the prospect of liquid sustenance?



The Anchor Hotel is conveniently located by the sea wall which protects Kippford from winter storm surges. There is a handy public slipway about 100m further along the road. To avoid a muddy exit it would be best to time your arrival for about two and a half hours before and after HW.

The Anchor and the Whim Cottage, which is at right angles to the road, date from about 1780 and are the oldest surviving buildings in the village. Kippford was founded on paper making, quarrying, its port and shipbuilding for trade with Newfoundland. The shipwrights received two drams of whisky a day as part of their wages. One of the biggest ships launched in Kippford was the Balcary Lass, built in 1881. Unfortunately she was lost at sea in 1883 while carrying coal to St John's.

The 7 kilometer detour from the mouth of the Rough Firth up to Kippford would have meant we would have missed the favourable flood tide round the next set of headlands to Sandyhills Bay. The Solway has some of the strongest tides in UK waters and once the ebb started, the force 5 wind against tide conditions in the shallow water would have been horrendous. As it was, we found the headlands to be quite rough enough with the tide going with the wind!

So the intrepid test team had to forgo testing the Anchor Hotel straight from the kayak. We visited later, on the shuttle run back to the other car at Abbey Burn Foot. We therefore cannot comment on how the Anchor staff would react to sea kayaking wear but judging by the number of motor bikers, in a variety of colours of leathers, there should be no problem. An excellent array of beers, spirits and soft drinks was available, including my preferred quaff of chilled Guinness.


Tony and Billy examining the trip photos on my notebook.

We chose to sit outside and watch the world go by. Not only were there scores of motor bikers parading on the promenade, it was an open sailing regatta for RS200, Enterprise and National 12 dinghies. It was quite entertaining watching some of the asymmetric RS200 dinghies wobbling up the Firth on a dead run.



The Anchor also serves a variety of food. Where else but Scotland would "salmon fantasy" be on the menu?

All in all, the Anchor Hotel is another highly recommended sea kayaking pub!

The Dundrennan and Colvend coasts of the Solway

The Colvend coast: evening light on the sands revealed by a spring low tide. Hestan Island is in the distance. This steep road leads down to the hamlet of Port o' Warren.



The Dundrennan and Colvend coasts of Galloway on the Solway Firth can offer some challenging paddling conditions. At the weekend we took advantage of a spring flood tide to carry us up the coast from Abbey Burn Foot to Sandyhills. The spring tide set up overfalls at several of the headlands particularly from Lot's wife (a guano covered stack) to Balcary Point and between the monument and Cow's Snout. Shallow seas, clapotis from the sheer cliffs and a force 5 wind all contributed to a bumpy ride and I managed few photos.




Abbey Burn Foot is in the middle of the Dundrennan Range, a weapons firing range. The beach is often closed to visitors but was open this weekend so Tony, Billy and I took advantage.



The launch was a bit rough over boulders.



The weatheronline database recorded a force 5 southerly at the Dundrennan Range weather station.



Sandstone caves below Barlocco Heugh.



Castlehill Point was not as rough as some of the others.



The Needle's Eye arch on the Colvend Coast.



A stunning, remote, sandy cove just before Sandyhills Bay with its bank holiday crowds. We arrived at Sandyhills at high water. If we had been delayed and had to fight against the ebb, it would have been even rougher with breaking seas in the shallow wind against tide conditions.

Return from Gigha

The problem with paddling out to islands off Scotland's west coast is that quite often the forecast force 2 is exceeded, even in the middle of a high pressure system. Tony's flysheet blew off in the middle of the night and leaving the shelter of the lee of Gigha, it was apparent we would have a rough crossing.



Jennifer decided to take the ferry back but Tony and I were looking forward to a bracing crossing in the stiff north easterly.



Jennifer took these photos as we left the north of the island.



We left at 0845am to try try and catch the slack before the northerly flood built up against the NE wind.



Out in the Sound of Gigha steep waves were breaking and we frequently lost sight of each other. It was a very bracing crossing. Both Tony and I employed frequent low braces. It was a satisfying crossing at the end of a fantastic trip.

Gigha sunset

Seen from Gigha, the sunsets behind the Paps of Jura are among the finest anywhere on the west coast of Scotland.



Room with a view.





I do like a bonfire but at this time of year last season's vegetation is tinder dry and you need to be very careful not to set the whole countryside alight like two campers recently did in Galloway. In this case the wind was blowing strongly offshore and we lit the fire below high water mark.



We enjoyed a quiet libation of Ardbeg malt whisky. Its peaty aroma blended perfectly with the smoke from the fire and its amber liquid glowed in the embers of first the sunset and then the fire. It seemed highly appropriate to drink it here under a Hebridean sky. The distillery is only 25km away on Islay across the Sound of Jura.