Helensburgh CC

Paddlers: Hugh, Geoff, Jamie

Weather: Bright with lots of sun and almost flat calm. The threat of high winds and torrential rain on Thursday after 4pm was an ever present and rather dictated where we went.

Day 1: Morar to Point of Sleat (Skye) 14km (8mi). Point of Sleat to North of Armadale 16km (10mi)

From our put in, the River Morar was very shallow  between extensive sand banks. There was a bit of scraping before embarking on the 8 mile crossing to Skye. This proved easy if lengthy.

Instead we headed up north along the Skye coast past Armadale and the Gaelic college eventually camping on a fairly rough site. However the supply of wood was excellent and a brisk north easterly kept the dreaded Skye midge away. A good evening.

Day 2: Skye to Doune (Knoydart) 6.5km (4mi). Doune to North Morar 11km (7mi) to Inverie via Kyles of   Nevis 22km  (14mi)

The wind dropped overnight and our winged friends made breakfast a limited pleasure.

We had a break at Doune on Knoydart then pushed on to Loch Nevis.

Given that it is totally isolated, there is a surprisingly large and active community around Tarbet and the Kyles leading into the upper loch. The tide flows through the Kyles at 5 knots; too fast to paddle against. We arrived just as the tide turned and started flowing in. The result is that if we went on we could not get out again for 6 hours. Given our schedule we had to turn. Even then it was a struggle to do the few hundred metres against the incoming tide.

Back up at Inverie we began the search for a campsite. The dominant factor was midges and the need for a good fire to keep them at bay. The choice between the established site in Inverie and a rough site a km further back was won by the rough site, which in retrospect was probably a mistake. A night paddle was as much an escape from midges as a trip to the pub.

Day 3: Inverie-Mallaig 10km (7mi) Mallaig -Morar 6km (4mi)

A quick paddle to Inverie for an ice cream. Knoydart is an excellent example  of a community buy out. The struggling village of 25 years ago is now  busy, thriving and beautiful.

A wonderful morning and a gentle paddle to a beach just short of Mallaig.

AsA short visit to Mallaig, where two other kayak groups were parked up on the beach, and then on to Morar arriving just as the weather broke at 4pm. Another excellent trip.

Paddlers: Stewart, Anne, Geoff, Fraser and Jamie

Weather: Damp/Wet and Breezy.

Report: This was a day when any other outdoor activity (cycling, climbing, walking, skiing) would have been miserable in the extreme. Instead we had an excellent day.

The wind was surprisingly strong (Force 4) blowing directly up the loch  giving a tough paddle into it and a bouncy ride across. Dorus Mor offered a strong tidal flow (up to 8 knots) that did not slacken until around 4pm and a passage through and back was clearly never a realistic proposition. The decision was confirmed by a sea of white horses even with wind and tide flowing together.

Parking was problematic and instead of turning round as soon as we left Ardfern we pushed on to a beach at a ruined township called Kington. The paddle from here was back up the loch and then round and along the large islands on the  east of the loch towards Crinan.

A break on Eilean Righ proved interesting and then on out to a small island at the mouth of the loch (Liath-sgeir Mor) for a late lunch. The paddle across the loch proved enjoyable if a little stressful for some and then a fast wind assisted paddle/surf back to the beach.

Finally Fraser entertained the troops by showing he still cannot role on his left side

A good day.

Paddlers: Miriam, Lena, Hugh, Mel, Geoff, Derek, Euan (C-M), Callum, David, Jamie, Myles

Weather: Flat Calm, Hazy Sun (Perfect)

Route: Craigendoran, Sugar Boat, Estuary Control (Greenock), Royal West (Gourock), Peninsular near point, Craigendoran

Report: The trip was targeted at novices and proved to be a gentle and extremely pleasant afternoon on the water.

Paddlers: Ruth, Alan, Sue, Hugh, Geoff

Weather: Very breezy and Cold. Dull Saturday, Bright (some Sun) on Sunday. Rain and Snow overnight.

Saturday: We met John Campbell at Taynuilt Pier to collect Bothy key shortly after 10.30. Paddled up East of Loch making excellent progress in strong southerly breeze.  

Our original intention was to explore rivers but that was thwarted by sandbanks.  As day progressed squalls developed and loch turned white.  One was so strong that it lifted and drove the spume along the loch. Wind speed well in excess of 30mph but too busy to calculate! Any of us could have had a cold bath.  After that the next time we heard the roar of the next squall  we rafted up. Eventually made a surf landing at Barrs just after 2pm.

The Barrs Bothy is owned by Argyll Scouts and is almost completely hidden. It provided excellent shelter on a wet and windy evening.

After trailing the gear up to the bothy and lighting a reluctant fire, there followed a good walk till dusk, a good meal and an evening of excellent conversation and libation (whisky and drambuie, whisky and honey, cointreu, whisky and whisky). Sleep followed (and apparently some snoring but I never heard any).

Morning broke bright with snow on the hills.

A leisurely breakfast, clean up and wood store replenishment led to a lateish departure heading south.

We had a brief stop to inspect the MBA bothy (excellent) which was occupied by 3 youngsters cooking breakfast over the open fire. A stiff southerly breeze slowed progress but periodically the sun emerged and all was well in the world.

We arrived back for lunch just after 2pm.

The loch is one of the wildest and most beautiful areas of Scotland and a wonderful paddle on a breezy winters weekend. Barrs proved an excellent refuge and the beach is an excellent camp site in summer. Thoroughly recommend the trip.