Cailean Macleod, authors notes on this work in progress
The traffic warning sign before the Skye Road Bridge sums up the reality perfectly.
Today’s inshore forecast: S-SW 4 - 5 increasing 6 - 7 occ. gale 8
24hr outlook: S 6-7 occ. gale 8
So an attempt to circumnavigate the ‘Misty Isle’ with friends was thwarted. My annual leave is finite and was booked months ago. I’m slightly annoyed with the weather gods tonight. Perhaps the weather gods are telling me to spend a few days at my computer tapping out a few more chapters.
As the sun set, what we had managed to achieve began to sink in. We had done the ‘Cape’. The weather hadn’t been perfect and it certainly had challenged us but we had managed and we all had that pleasant feeling of tiredness mixed with satisfaction.
The sound of surf pounding the beach isn’t the sound you want to hear when you wake up, especially knowing that you have to get through it and paddle another 20km to the take out. However once Andy woke me properly and I actually stuck my head out of the tent door, I realised the surf wasn’t that big; only 2 foot and dumping.
Once afloat the down-drafts returned and we skated around the sea stack of Am Buachaille in gusty conditions. The coastline South of Sandwood bay didn’t disappoint us with a variety of cliffs, stacks and bays to explore and view. The cursed wind finally dropped and we had dolphins cruise past us along with a local fishing boat - the first human we had seen since we had set off from Durness.
We turned in towards Kinlochbervie and stopped at the Caribbean like beach of Polin. Around the village of Oldshoremore the beaches are as good as you get in the Hebrides or Arisaig but with the bonus that they won’t be overrun with other sea kayakers.
Once ashore at Kinlochbervie, all that was left to do was the shuttle back to Durness and reflect on the trip; the highs, the lows, the challenges, the scenery and that feeling of satisfaction.
It was a major ‘tick’ on the remaining ‘to do’ list. The weather window appeared last week and my friends Karen and Andy had a couple of days off as did I. So we went for it and the Cape certainly didn’t disappoint and gave us two challenging days of paddling.
We launched from Balnakeil Bay near Durness after breakfast in the Kinlochbervie Hotel and leaving my van at the harbour. Once afloat the promised sunshine didn’t appear and sea conditions quickly became sloppy in the Force 3 winds.
Garvie Island rapidly appeared off our bows and this island’s sole purpose is for the Royal Air Force drop live 1000 pound bombs onto it and the Royal Navy to pound it with it’s cannons. Nothing appears to live on the island and it’s slowing being pummelled into oblivion. Just as well it’s made from Lewisian Gneiss, a very hardwearing rock otherwise it would have disappeared years ago.
The cliffs of Clo Mor at almost 200 metres high were certainly a sight to behold along with the thousands of sea birds scattered across them in nooks and crannies. Stack Clo Kearvaig marked the end of the cliffs and the delightful sands of Kearvaig bay beckoned us. However the surf was rolling onto the beach so we opted for a sandy cove with a different aspect and no surf!
Once fuelled up we launched and quickly arrived at the Cape itself. Mentally this is a ‘big place’ as there isn’t any escape routes and it’s extremely exposed; with up to 5 knots of tide running off the Cape and omi-present swell from the Atlantic or Arctic Oceans. The next stop from the Cape is either Iceland, Greenland or Nova Scotia.
The section of cliffs running South from the Lighthouse whilst not as high as the Clo Mor cliffs challenged us with heinous down-drafts which cuased a few issues at times.
Sandwood bay was like an oasis for us after 15km of dealing with gusty Force 4 -5 down-drafts. Just the small matter of a surf landing to contend with. We did all end up on the beach some more damp than others. After a dragging session up into the dunes we found a grassy campsite, called the coastguard to let them know we were safe and tucked into our long awaited meals.
Part 2 of this blog entry tomorrow!
‘Use it or lose it’ is a very true expression. British Telecom has started a consultation process which might lead to 194 telephone boxes disappearing from the Highlands this year. The number of calls being made from phones on the hit list has dropped by over 50% in the past 3 years due to the continued growth in the usage of mobile phones.
It probably makes sense on a commerical basis to get rid of the phone boxes however mobile phone coverage in the Highlands isn’t complete and is still very patchy in some outlying areas. I had included the location of the nearest telephone box for trips in the guidebook where the launching / landing location doesn’t have great mobile phone reception so you could make a quick call to your loved one / shore contact / Coastguard. However a quick glance at the list relieves most of the coastal telephone boxes in the NW Highlands are very likely to disappear.
Recent Comments