Return to Islay

It had been too long since our kayaks had explored the waters of the magnificent isle of Islay in the Inner Hebrides. We found ourselves waiting to board MV Hebridean Isles at Kennacraig on the Kintyre peninsula.


Our excitement was palpable as the ferry crossed the broad Sound of Jura and approached the narrow Sound of Islay. The latter separates Islay to the south from Jura to the north. Islay is an incredibly beautiful island and has two really excellent blogs devoted to island life: IslayBlog and Islay Weblog.


We unloaded our kayaks at Port Askaig on the Islay side of the Sound of Islay. Port Askaig is a tiny inlet, sheltered from the strong tides of the Sound. We got ourselves ready at the slipway which leads into the little inner harbour where the local lobster boats were berthed.


It is always a pleasure watching the ferries break in and out of the tide, as they berth at their jetties. However, we wasted no time and were on the water before the Hebridean Isles disappeared back to Kennacraig.

Where would we get to this time?

Where east meets west.

The Kyles of Bute, which seperate the Cowal peninsula from the Island of Bute in the Firth of Clyde, are one of my favourite places to paddle. Although far from the open sea and in a sheltered location, strong tides swirl round the Kyles creating interest. For those kayakers who have yet to experience moving water, this is a great location. At the Burnt Isles the tides sweep through at up to 5 knots. The west going stream starts about -0220 HW Greenock and the east going stream about +0440 HW Greenock.


This is looking down the East Kyle with the Ayrshire coast in the distance. The Burnt Isles are in the narrows and just beyond you can see the Bute ferry on the right just about to depart for Colintraive on the Mainland.


This is looking up the West Kyles from Tignabruaich. Despite the proximity to the mountains, palm trees flourish due to the shelter from the wind and the mild sea water which is warmed from the Gulf Stream.

Banking on the recession

This massive billboard advert caught my eye. The Royal Bank of Scotland was a major casualty of the World recession, after it had over invested in the US subprime mortgage market. The bank is trying to recover by concentrating on its home market and this billboard is part of its campaign to rebuild its image with Scottish customers. I hope they are not thinking they will recoup £2 billion or so from some of the remote communities featured in the adverts. When I first saw the incredibly beautiful TV advert, I thought it was for Visit Scotland, the tourist board. The above photo was taken on the island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides and is pretty much the view we recently enjoyed when approaching Scarinish harbour.


This is lovely Loch Striven. It deeply bisects the beautiful Cowal peninsula, which protrudes into the head of the Firth of Clyde. It is a an interesting place to paddle and is in complete contrast to the exposed isle of Tiree. So what is the link, I hear you ask? Well it is to do with the World recession.


Moored within the Loch are five huge container ships from the Maersk Line. One is the Maersk Beaumont and I reported her arrival in the Clyde on the 2nd of May this year.


These great ships, which normally carry the World's trade, are weathering out the worst of the recession, here in the sheltered recesses of Loch Striven. Despite its apparent isolation, Loch Striven has played its part in the World economy on many occasions in the past. I sailed in the loch in May 1974 and there were 10 giant oil tankers moored right along the length of the loch.there. They were laid up as a result of the '73/'74 oil crises. Then in '76 and '77 two giant LPG carriers, which had just been built in Belfast, were mothballed until '92 and '99 in Loch Striven because the discovery of North Sea gas had made them redundant.


View Larger Map
At the mouth of Loch Striven an inconspicuous jetty is actually a NATO fuelling point for warships. A huge series of oil tanks are hidden in the hills above.


Today on the 6th September 2009 ShipAIS shows that the Nord Mermaid is unloading fuel oil.


View Larger Map
Ardyne Point at the mouth of Loch Striven has another connection with oil.


I took this photo off Ardyne Point from a yacht in May 1978. It shows the concrete Cormorant Alpha oil production platform nearing completion in the Ardyne construction yard, before being transferred to a Norwegian yard for completion. There is an interesting story about this rig told in the Dunoon Observer.


Oil tankers are not the only things to be mothballed on the Clyde. Just a few miles from the mouth of Loch Striven, on the east coast of the Firth of Clyde lies Inverkip oil fired power station. This was opened in the early 1970's just when the oil crises made it uneconomic to generate elictricity from oil. It was only used intermittently and was mothballed in 1988. Its huge chimney of 236m is Scotland's tallest structure and is a landmark for miles around. It is due to be demolished this year.

All in all, Loch Striven is a fantastic sea kayaking destination and despite its proximity to Glasgow, is little known except to local Cowal sea kayakers such as Pam.

Brave rescue at Ardwall Island

Last week, I posted about a delightful spring time trip to Ardwall Island in Fleet Bay on the Solway Firth. It is a truly delightful spot and as you can see, it lies just off shore from a public access point at Carrick shore. It is even possible to walk to it at low tide. It is a wonderful place to visit in settled weather.


Unfortunately the Solway can be very rough, with a combination of wind, swell, shallow water and strong tides all contributing to sometimes treacherous conditions. This recent photo was taken on the 23rd of August 2009, in the peak of the Scottish summer season!

I was very sorry to hear of the news that 4 people's holiday had come to an end when they were marooned on Ardwall Island last Thursday night. They were marooned on the island after they could not relaunch their dinghy when conditions deteriorated. Winds gusted up to 31 knots as a low pressure system swept across SW Scotland.

Thank goodness the Kircudbright Coastguard, the Mossyard inshore rescue boat and a Sea King helicopter from RAF Valley in Wales managed to locate and rescue all four people, in a stormy dark night.

Thanks to our professional and volunteer rescue services for going out in such an atrocious conditions.