The trip almost didn’t happen today as there was so much snow yesterday I thought I would have to cancel it, however, the forecast for today promised mild, dry weather with even some sun, so we decided to risk it and luckily we were blessed with a beautiful day!
The Awe turned out to be on a slightly bigger release than usual but still okay for us to run, and Chris and Iain took it in their stride. The water was more powerful and eddying out challenging, but the rocks were less exposed making the rapids less technical.
The Magnetic Rock rapid was particularly big and bouncy and Chris and Iain made the most of it by coming down twice!
The photos were taken towards the end of the river when we were able to relax and paddle gently into Loch Etive.
Paddlers: Al, Colin, Damien, Edward, Geoff, Seb, Stephen H
Conditions: Light Southerly breeze veering to stiff westerly F3-4.
Distance: 16km
Even after a couple of dropouts a big turnout – 11 of us altogether, necessitating some assistant leaders. We set of from Helensburgh Pier in almost still, misty (or atmospheric) conditions and paddled a little way up the Gareloch to minimise crossing distances and then followed shore round to just West of Kilchreggan Pier for lunch. The sun duly came out but the wind also veered to Westerly and picked up – the crossing over to Royal West at Greenock was quite lumpy. Deciding discretion was the better part of valour we headed back across to Kilchreggan peninsula to get some shelter rather than returning via the sugar ship as originally intended.
Quite a few eider ducks and a couple of seals poking their heads up but generally not much wild life seen. The Hebridean Princess crossed in front of us as we were crossing back to Rosneath Peninsular and surprised us by heading up into the Gareloch and anchoring off Rhu Marina.
As a grand finale, we were treated to a demonstration of Paddy’s fish roll – ask him about it!
Participants: Steve Wheaton, Gordon Smith, Stewart McCartney
The bothy was booked in January with the hope that the weather would be fair and that members with all abilities could attend. Instead, we had a yellow then amber Met Office Weather Warning and the first named storm of the year – Ashley.
Friday 18th F8 from south-east through day dropping F4 – 3 in evening
From the 10 members initially showing interest in the trip 3 of us travelled up in Gordon’s smart new electric car. After a short stop for food at Fort William and a boost for the car we arrived at Glenuig to see a flattish sea but with spray lifting offshore. As forecast, this subsided and we departed from inside Samalaman Island east along the coast to Roshven before heading north to Peanmeanach. A clearing western sky heralded a calmer day for tomorrow.
Peanmeanach Bothy has been taken back into management by the Ardnish Estate and is only available by prior booking. It is a popular place as testified by the website booking calendar and deservedly so. We enjoyed a pleasant evening warmed by the wood burning stove until the early hours.
Saturday 19th F3 from south-east
Relieved to see the forecast was accurate we decided to explore loch Ailort. Alerted to the prospect of seeing sea eagles by a couple scallop farmers off Eilean nan Trom one immediately came into view overhead quartering the hills. Slack water saw us easily passing through the narrows and on to Eilean Dubh near the head of the loch. After lunch taken on the south shore we headed back west against the tide which was only noticeable in the narrows. We stopped on Eilean nan Gobhar and climbed to the ruins of a fort for views all around.
Drizzle then rain, a portent of the coming gale saw us return to Samalaman Island.
We had planned a second night in the bothy but though the forecast showed a two-hour gap in Sunday’s gales those with day jobs on Monday wisely considered it too risky.
The electric car got us home in great style via a short re charge and fish and chips for us in Fort William.
This was Iain’s first white water trip and the Teith was an ideal venue to start learning river running skills. There are also plenty of opportunities to try out more challenging moves, so Chris was kept busy too!
The weather was unexpectedly better than forecast and a combination of fun and a good core workout was had by all!
HCC 4 day expedition down the River Spey from Aviemore to Spey Bay
03 – 06 Oct 24
Tom Ridsdill Leader
Stewart McCarthey
Steven McKeown
Day 1. ( 13.8 miles, 22.2 Km.) With the club trailer in tow we departed Helensburgh in the early hours of Thursday and arrived up in Aviemore to drop the boats and kit off and sort the shuttle.
By 1400 we were ready to set off from the Old Bridge Inn beach and began our 4 day expedition. Right from the get go we came across tree debris and strainers on each bend. This would have been quite a tricky first exposure to white water canoeing for a novice. Steve was not a novice on white water but this was, however, the first time he had been down a river in a canoe. To say he did well would be an understatement. He impressed Stewart and me with his control and choice of line and it only took a few kms to achieve this.
With the Cairngorm mountains in our rear view mirror we paddled north east and began to question our choice of attire. Dry suits were starting to get roasty toasty. There was no wind and the sun was out. But so were the Herons, Buzzards, Dippers, King fishers, and ducks. The salmon were leaping too.
Boat of Balliefurth farm was our abode for the night. A £5er each meant we could set up camp, have a fire and have the use of a toilet. Not bad. The field was large enough to share with a large armada of Edinburgh Uni students, most of whom seemed to come from the USA. They certainly enjoyed their night.
Day 2 (32 miles, 51.5 Km)
Reveille was at 0800 and by 10 we were back afloat and keen to put a dent into the total milage. The morning started with rain but this was only so that we had to pack up wet camping gear. The wind turned up too. It was a shame we didn’t have sails as it was blowing SSW and would have been ideal. We soon overtook the Edinburgh Armada and enjoyed the ever increasing frequency of rapids. We also had a fleeting glimpse of an otter as it dived below the surface. The frequency of Salmon leaping increased which was awesome. Sadly, none of them decided to leap into our boats!
The last rapid of the day was the famous “Washing Machine” of Blacksboat. Shortly thereafter, at around 1630, we decided to stop for the day and found ourselves a great spot to wild camp. A further 30ish km in the bag. I thought pimping my bivi would be a great addition to our camp. But so did all the midges, moths and mosquitoes!! (Last time I do that)
Day 3 (47 Miles, 75.6 Km)
Knockando came a knocking. Day 3 was the main grade 2 rapid section but with low water levels it was a tad more technical than normal. It was a joy and a lot of fun for all three of us working out the lines and manoeuvring the boats around the plethora of rocks, “stealth rocks” and tree debris. (Stealth rocks was the term we gave to the ones that just appeared.). By this point Steven was a wiz at controlling his canoe.
The rapids just kept coming and by 1400 we arrived at Charlestown of Aberlour. This was perhaps the only negative of the whole journey. The high hopes for a nice coffee in fant of the picture perfect village green was dashed by the foul taste of Kenco instant! (not a fan at the worst of times).
However, we soon set off in search of our next camping spot which emerged on the outskirts of Rothes. Another fine island with decent camping spots was marred by the loud noise of the combines and tractors on one side of the island and the factory and sewages works on the other. It was still incredibly pleasant and a third evening around a fire was enjoyed.
The amount of invasive plant species started to increase. This was very evident on the last day but, after a further 25km we settled in for the night.
Day 4 61 miles, 98.1 Km
The morning threatened more rain and just before camp was struck the rain tried. Well, enough of it came to ensure our tents and bivis were damp before packing. This last part was deceptive. We knew this though and ensured we remained on guard round all the bends right through to the sea.
The landscape throughout the journey varied immensely but, in my opinion, not as much as on this last day. The hill abruptly stopped and the landscape became more of an open low lands of farming and marsh. The river meandered all the way and on many bends we were faced with low shingle rapids flowing right into the path of nasty strainers in the form of tree roots and branches. The Spey certainly made us work right through to the end. However, on both sides of the river was Himalayan Balsam and huge numbers of Japanese knotweed. Such a shame but it also meant we needed to make doubly sure we clean our gear thoroughly before venturing on further river systems.
The final part before the drive back to Aviemore was to enjoy a late lunch at Spey Bay Golf Club. They were very kind enough to allow us to park a car and trailer there over the 4 days and asked for nothing in return. The least we could do was to have a brew there. However, the menu looked too tempting and, I must say, the beef, haggis and smoked hickory cheese burger was deeeelicious.
Thank you to Steve and Stewart for allowing me to lead them both down the Spey. It was a pleasure and till next time.
Participants: Steve Wheaton, Stewart McCartney, Andy Bignall, Elspeth Mckechan
This trip was planned for last year on two weekends but thwarted on both by high winds. This year the winds were just ok but blowing from the NE as they had been for the previous week. Tides were at full springs and being the autumn equinox another 20% over average.
Sat Sept 21st NE F4 and mist
Originally we had planned to start from Coldingham beach. A local surfing competition was in full progress which was a good clue that despite being great for youngsters and derring-do feats our fully laden sea kayaks would be more easily launched from the nearby St. Abbs Harbour.
We used the car park at the harbour for two vehicles and a trailer (£20 per vehicle), finding a gap for the trailer behind a skip avoiding an extra charge.
An easy exit from the harbour, then around St. Abbs Head into quite a lumpy sea with a cross swell that had clearly developed over the previous week. Some respite after Pettico Wick but the swell required vigilance.
This section of coast has limited egress points, particularly in an onshore wind. Two stops were managed the first at Heather Carr and then at Hirst Rocks. Checked Pease Bay for camping spots but little scope seen and moved up to Cove Harbour. Just enough room for our tents on the beach. The harbour is privately owned having been purchased to avoid development. It is though very small and where would have ordinarily picked a remote wild camp, given the swell and surf it was most welcome. Cove Harbour Conservation Ltd. have responsibility for it’s upkeep and maintenance and we made a donation in reparation for our unannounced stay.
Sun Sept 22nd NE F3 cloudy
Still plenty of cross swell to contend with. Two of the party decided to shorten their trip just south of Torness at Thorntonloch. Three of us continued to White Sands stopping for lunch and a coffee from a local mobile café. The remainder of the trip has a less dramatic coastline though Old Dunbar from the sea is spectacular. We had planned to enter the harbour though in the event electing to make straight for Belhaven Beach and pick up our pals from Thorntonloch.
So good to have finally made it over to this part of the east with enough interesting coast seen but not fully explored due to conditions to hopefully make another trip over in better weather.
Non-Paddlers: Mark, Sue (&Vonna of course) plus Colin earlier
Weather: Wind SW Top end of Force 4 with squalls up to F6. Rain and Mist
Report: The atrocious weather (wind and rain) was the dominant factor on this short paddle between Finnart and Carrick (and v.v.). We launched at Finnart at high tide and were surprised that the wind was light given the forecast and the experience at Craigendoran.
We crossed to the west bank of Loch Long and followed that south into the wind. As we rounded the point, the wind and sea became serious. A strenuous 40 minutes directly into a very strong wind then followed, lightened only for a relief stop on the beach beneath Corran Cottage. Amazingly three other kayakers were also sheltering on the beach.
Strong winds at the mouth of the Goil are far from unknown. The wind tends to find its own route through and around the hills and can turn a South Westerly into a North Westerly as shown in Fig 1
Fig 1: Winds at the mouth of Loch Goil on Saturday
Still, we thought, it will be an easy paddle back.
After an excellent evening socialising in the barn and a rather wet night in a tent, 9am saw us back on the beach at Carrick for the short paddle back to Finnart. To our increasing amazement, the westerly we had battled on Saturday had apparently turned 180 degrees and been transformed into a strong easterly as shown in Fig 2. It was raining heavily.
Fig 2 Wind at the mouth of Loch Goil, Sunday
After the point was rounded, the paddle up Loch Long in the strong following wind was not always comfortable and was not helped by the cold on the hands from the wind. But it was soon over, reaching Finnart at almost exactly the same time as the three kayakers we met on Saturday.
It would be very difficult to explain why paddling in these conditions (strong wind and heavy rain) was so enjoyable, but it was. Coupled with the barbeque, the companionship of other paddlers from Toward and West Coast Rollers and a fond goodbye to Vonna and Jai, it proved to be a really good weekend trip.
First time on the Tay for Jessi and Chris. It’s a step up from the Teith, and even the Awe, and they paddled very well!
The most notable moment however was the most unusual self-rescue I’ve ever seen on the river, successfully performed by Andy.
The day was rounded off with Andy introducing us to the Stewart Tower Dairy, only a short drive from the river, where we had the most amazing homemade ice cream. There were even several vegan fruit sorbets for me to choose from.
Original plan for today was the River Awe but it turned out it was going to be on full release this weekend which would have been rather too much ‘fun’!
Instead we had another enjoyable on trip the Teith which was at a perfect medium level.
Great paddling again from Adele and Stuart but unfortunately no photos on this occasion!
Participants: Steve Wheaton, Paddy Muir, Seb Layburn, Stephen Hearns.
Sat 10th F4 from west south west
Met at Arduaine at 1400. Due to strong winds discussed options of; a. just go, b. waiting for wind to decrease as forecast later or C. drive round to Balvicar. Decided on option a. but route modified to get as much shelter from Shuna as possible before striking north. After a couple of short stops and heading north from Shuna plus a dropping wind we enjoyed a lovely paddle up the sound to Tigh an Truish. The pub was hosting its annual music festival which we signed up for and enjoyed burgers and music. Continued through the Clachan Sound to our camp at Puilladobhrain. Hoping to catch some more of the music festival we walked over the hill back to Tigh an Truish. By the time of our arrival the live band had finished and the evening given over to the DJ. Had a couple of very enjoyable pints and returned to camp in the dark.
Sunday 11th F1-2 from south west
The day emerged bright, sunny & cheerful, unlike I suspected, how a few of the party goers from last night would be feeling a few fields away at Tigh an Truish!
Seb made an heroic swim through the channel with Eilean Buidhe, and back into the bay to our west.
10:00 set off west then south-west down the east coast in perfect conditions. Met some other paddlers up from Ayrshire all of us grateful for this gap in the recent windy weather. Stopped at Easdale for a coffee and some refresher guidance for one of the group on paddling into and out of tidal streams. On down into the Cuan Sound and Kayakers Cove for some play in the stream and eddies.
Carried on down though the gap between Torsa and Luing before heading back to Arduain.
In just 24 hours; paddling in open water, narrow sounds and tidal streams, plus a music festival, and wild camp – marvellous.
