The great voyage from Cara to Gigha!

We decided to stay for a second night on Cara as we had arrived a day earlier than intended and it was an exceedingly pleasant spot. So it did not take long to get the kayaks loaded for...

 ...the great voyage over leagues of open ocean to...

 Cara's larger neighbour, the Isle of Gigha.

 We explored rocky channels and...

 ...passed delightful sandy coves filled with turquoise crystal clear water before (after what seemed like an age) we...

 ...finally caught sight of the island's main settlement of Ardminish.

The sea front at Ardminish consists of a white shell sand cove backed by a building called the "Boathouse." After our great crossing it was time for luncheon.

The Mull of Cara.

 The summit of the Mull of Cara is a marvellous place to spend a summer morning.

 Far below us...

 ...the Canada geese were looking after their goslings and...

 ...at our feet the moorland was alive with sea campion and...

 ...tormentil.

 In the far distance the Mull of Oa on Islay could be seen on the horizon to the WSW while nearer at hand...

 ...Cara's neighbour Gigha filled much of the view to the north.

It was now time to return to our kayaks.

A tale of goat bhuna, bluebells, albinos and a Brownie.

From Cara House we made our way to the spine of the island and gained a grand view of Gigha and the Paps of Jura to the north and the north west.

 Continuing southwards, we approached the Mull of Cara at the southernmost extremity of the island.

 On the way we passed this beautiful tombolo beach and found ourselves in a sea of bluebells which...

 ....stretched all the way to the Mull of Cara.

On the way we met the resident goat population. When I visited the Punjab, I developed a taste for goat bhuna (though I tended to leave the trotters at the side of the plate as my dental work was too expensive to risk on the enthusiastic crunching I was hearing from my Punjabi friend's mouths). There used to be too many goats on Cara and as a result there were hardly any wild flowers. There were also lots of goat carcasses littered round the island in spring as the island was not big enough to support the population over the winter. On a previous visit the captain of the Gigha  ferry told me that a Yorkshire gentleman, with a chain of Indian restaurants, brought a refrigerated lorry and some Punjabi friends with long guns north to Kintyre. There are now...

...a sensible number of goats and the wild flowers have returned. Salt licks for the goats have been placed round the island so the goats are now being properly managed.The proportion of albino goats has increased since the shooting started, perhaps the recipe for goat bhuna calls for a brown goat.

Anyway on Cara the albino gene frequency is higher in goats than bluebells, I only spotted two albino clusters in this huge...

...field of bluebells, which led all the way to the Mull of Cara and...

...the Brownie's chair from which we enjoyed a view to the distant Mull of Kintyre.

Relationship between sea kayaking and the environment study.

Increasing numbers of participants in sea kayaking may be affecting the environment of the places we visit. There has been special concern raised about "honey pot" areas such as the Sound of Arisaig, which are also much used by commercial operators. For its size, Scotland has an enormous coastline and there should be more than enough space for all. Most sea kayakers think sea kayaking is environmentally friendly but if you see a flight of waders rise when you pass, think of the energy cost to their survival, especially in winter. Then think of the cost when other sea kayaking parties do the same to the same flock of birds time and time again.

A Scottish sea kayaker is doing a masters level study into the relationship between sea kayaking and the environment. Part of this study includes a questionairre that anyone who has paddled in British waters in 2012 can complete and contribute to the research. The questionnaire can be found here.

Mistaken location of St Fionnlugh's chapel, Cara?

Having arrived on Cara a day early we thought we might have a long lie but...

...our new neighbours had other ideas and low flying Canada geese can express their ideas very vocally. They started about 5am...

 The early summer flora was more laid back...

 ...and we set off to explore Cara on a path through the bluebells which...

 ...led to Cara House.

 First we inspected the old building to the NE of the house and found that the mortar that bound its ancient stones together...

 ...had been made from sand from the shore. Sea shells were clearly visible. This building looks very much like the mediaevel chapel of Cara. The chapel was dedicated to St Fionnlugh who was a contemporary of St Columba. The OS map, Hamish Haswell-Smith and Canmore all give the location of the chapel as a pile of stones to the SW of Cara house. However, the photograph in Canmore is quite clearly of this building by the house. Also Old Statistical Account (1793) description (quoted by Haswell-Smith) describes lancet-shaped windows with splayed inshots in the east ends of the side walls, which this building has....

Looking from the entrance in the south wall to the splayed inshot window at the east end of the north wall.

The chapel was also latterly used as a kitchen for Cara house and the pile of stones on the OS map is rather far to be convenient for the house. Also, although the pin on the Canmore map points to the OS "chapel", the 10 digit OS grid given by Canmore points to this building.

The corner of the sheep pen marked on the O map as the chapel.

Haswell-Smith himself says that the the OS "chapel" could easily be mistaken for a sheep pen. I think the stone structure to the SW of Cara House was a sheep pen. It measures some 30 yards by 4.5 yards and according to the OSA the chapel measured some 9yards by 6yards which are the measurements of the building on the NE side of the house. So based on the description of the Old Statistical Account of Scotland, the building close to the NE of the house was the chapel.

Cara House was built in 1733 by the Macdonalds of Largie for their tacksman. It was last used by a resident on Cara in the 1940's when the tennant farmer left.

It is rather grim looking and I am not surprised that the spirit of The Brownie has taken up residence there.

Despite The Brownie's presence Cara House was renovated as a holiday home in the 1990's.

We left Cara House to the hopefully sleeping Brownie and pressed on through the bluebells.

Cara sunset.

 After setting up camp on Cara and cooking an evening meal  on the rocks by the shore...

...we set off...

 ...in various directions to collect...

...firewood for...

...our evening's entertainment centre, which also produced some baked potatoes.

The sands beside us were covered in silverweed.

As sunset approached, I walked along the beach towards a long abandoned cottage.

Low cloud had crept in from the west and it threatened to spoil the sunset...

...however, a little patience was rewarded when, well after sundown, the underside of the clouds lit up in a wonderful crimson glow.

The Brownie of Cara; the correct way to greet him.

 At long last we paddled under...

 ...the steep rocks of the Mull of Cara. In 1756 part of the cliff collapsed and a tidal wave swept right round the island destroying the houses on the north side of the island. Maybe it was an earthquake or maybe it was a meteorite strike no one knows. In the middle of the grassy shelf on the Mull's shoulder we could just make out an isolated block of rock known as "The Brownie's Chair".

 We passed Cara house which has a resident ghost called "The Brownie", he of the eponymous chair. The Brownie is a mischievous spirit and it pays all visitors to stay on his right side.

At long last we pulled into a white, shell sand beach on Cara. We had covered 78 km since leaving Campbeltown just 24 hours previously and now we had arrived in the Hebrides! This might not seem like much to proper sea kayakers but to us, who merely dabble our paddles, it was quite a lot more than we were used to!

 If one lands on Cara (and especially so, if one intends to stay the night) it is a wise sea kayaker who knows the correct protocol for greeting The Brownie. It is vital to do this before doing anything else. One needs to raise one's cap then doff it in a suitably deferential manner while at the same time saying in a clear voice "Good Evening Mr. Brownie". The only acceptable variation to this protocol is to change the greeting to suit the time of day of one's arrival.

Failure to satisfy The Brownie on this matter will result in him interpreting your arrival as a serious diplomatic faux pas. All manner of mischief may then be unleashed upon your party by this unhappy spirit. Campbells need to be particularly careful as The Brownie is the spirit of a MacDonald who was murdered by a Campbell. Best advice would be to never disclose your surname on Cara. If your first name is Campbell then you must use a nickname or visit Gigha instead. The annals of Scottish sea kayaking are full of tales of The Brownie's mischief; kayaks floating away in the night, paddles being hidden in the bramble bushes and much, much worse.

Fortunately our greetings seemed to be acceptable and our camp was established without mishap or incident. But the uninhabited Cara House was just out of sight, over the bluebells and...

...as night fell...a light came on in The Brownie's room...