Between a rock and a contrail on Ardlamont.

I got up on the sixth day of our expedition after having slept very little. The pain in my injured shoulder had steadily worsened making sleep all but impossible. To make matters worse I had finished all my painkillers. Our plan  had been to spend a further two days exploring the Kyles of Bute before returning to Ardrossan on the Ayrshire coast. However, I could not face a further miserable night so I explained the situation to the others and we decided to head directly to Ardrossan some 42km distant. We did consider whether to paddle 33km to Brodick on Arran and then get the ferry to Ardrossan  but it would have put my injured shoulder under too much pressure to get the last ferry.

 The beaches at Ardlamont point are composed of steeply sloping rock shelves. The rock is 600 million years old and is made of sediments which been subjected to considerable metamorphic changes. The great pressures, folding and heat have produced some beautiful patterns in the rock.

In places the rock shelf is covered by beaches of cobbles. Mostly these are of the same metamorphic rock but there are also some sandstone, quartz and granite cobbles mixed in.

 The water looked very inviting for a swim but as my shoulder was so sore I decided not to risk it. Only Jennifer was brave enough to go in as the water in early June was still only 11 degrees Celsius.

We slowly packed the kayaks as the heat of the day began to build. Thankfully there were far fewer midges than the previous evening.

 It felt great to be paddling down the Sound of Bute with Arran on one side and...

 ...the rocky shores and yellow gorse covered banks of Ardlamont on the other.

There was absolutely no wind so the sails remained furled on our decks. My friends accommodated my injury by paddling slowly, much more slowly than...

...the passengers on this Trans-Atlantic jet, which was the only other sign of human activity. Long after the jet had gone, the reflection of its contrail writhed like a snake in the water ahead of us.

Baked potatoes and bandits in Ardlamont.

As dusk fell the wind dropped and unfortunately that was the signal for the arrival of the midges. We soon had a fire going on the beach. We don't light fires on grass and we don't make fire rings with big stones. After the next high tide there is no sign of our passing.

 Baked potatoes in tin foil are an essential addition to any camp fire.

As we and the millions of midges enjoyed the ambience of the evening we were really surprised that we had the place to ourselves, with no other human company.

A peaceful night alone on Ardlamont?

 At long last we arrived at our camp spot on the Ardlamont peninsula. We had travelled for 12 hours since we had left Gigha which lies off the exposed Atlantic west coast of Scotland. We now found ourselves deep within the Firth of Clyde, some 80km from the Mull of Kintyre at the mouth of the Firth.

We looked out over the Sound of Bute to low lying Inchmarnock and Arran. Between them, the distant south Ayrshire coast was out of sight below the horizon. Only the summits of the Galloway hills were just visible some 90km away to the SE.

The beach was backed by a raised beach of cobbles, a legacy of a rising landmass after the retreat of the Ice Age.

 The raised beach provided an ideal base to set up camp. From my tent door I spotted...

...this otter diving for crabs. We could quite clearly hear it crunching the shells. The only building visible on our entire horizon was the small white unoccupied cottage on the Arran shore at Laggan. Unfortunately we would not find ourselves alone for long, this evening...

Saved by a sundowner in Kilbride Bay.

We had been travelling for 40km since we had left Gigha earlier in the day and there were still several kilometers to go. I had torn muscles in my left shoulder (which would require surgical repair) and it was hurting like hell. It was a great relief when a northerly sundowner wind got up and blew us straight out of Kilbride Bay. It is amazing how the Flat Earth sail can take the load of a heavily laden kayak off tired shoulders.

 We soon left the long strand in our wakes and...

...we made the most of the broad reach down the Ardlamont peninsula to our intended camp.

Tired kayakers and concrete sleepers at Kilbride Bay.

From Skate Island we enjoyed a fast reach eastwards along the Ardlamont peninsula, which divides Loch Fyne from the Kyles of Bute. The cool clear air of the north wind and the low evening sun made for a breathtaking view over the Sound of Bute to Arran. We passed dolphins, porpoises, otters, puffins and diving gannets. It was difficult to believe that this glorious wilderness was in the Firth of Clyde, in the catchment area of which, 3/5 of Scotland's population live.

Many sea kayaking visitors to Scotland (and also many Scottish sea kayakers) tend to shun the Firth of Clyde and head north to places like Arisaig and the Summer Isles. Maybe the above photos might cause some wilderness seekers to think again.

The Ardlamont peninsula holds a glorious little visited beach that you can only visit by walking in or by boat. It is Kilbride Bay. It has a huge crescent of sand backed by dunes and machair.

We landed at its western end and had a well earned break while enjoying the view. However, unspoiled though Kilbride Bay appears, it was heavily used in WW2 for army, air force naval training exercises.

                             
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At the east end of the beach, a railway line with concrete sleepers still  runs straight down into the sea...

Paddle sailing away in the clear air at the end of a long day.

Once we left the shelter of East Loch Tarbert we entered the wide mouth of Loch Fyne, which is the longest sea loch in the Firth of Clyde and indeed the whole of Scotland. The view out of the loch across the expanse of the Sound of Bute to the rocky ridges of the Arran mountains was stunning. As we entered open waters a breeze picked up and we hoisted our sails.

We were bound for Skate Island some 6km away across Loch Fyne.

After some exhilarating paddle sailing in the wonderful clear evening light we...

...reassembled by the Skate Island (Sgat Mor) lighthouse.

I think Phil's smile will save any lengthy further description of the crossing!

Lost buoys and a green ferry in East Loch Tarbert.

It was nearly 5pm before we left the cove at Port Ban on the north side of East Loch Tarbert. As we left, two local boys in a boat were scouring the coastline and collecting lost fishing buoys. 

We now paddled out towards the mouth of East Loch Tarbert but had to keep clear of...

...the ferry from Portavadie which was making its way in.The Tarbert to Portavadie route is one of the more recent of the Scottish west coast ferries as it was established in 1994. This is the MV Isle of Cumbrae has been the main vessel on the route since 1999 and she can carry 18 cars at a time. She is due to be replaced by the new MV Lochinvar which was built at Ferguson Shipbuilders at Port Glasgow on the Clyde. The Lochinvar is powered by diesel electric hybrid technology with Lion batteries which will make it one of the most efficient ferries in the fleet..

As we approached the mouth of East Loch Tarbert the mountains of Arran came into view. The air was crystal clear and we prepared for a wonderful crossing.