First Paddle of the Year

With the sun out, the temperature working its way into the low twenties, and the sea like glass, it seemed an appropriate morning to take to the water. We keep our kayaks at the back of the beach in the bay below the house, so launching takes moments. The picture shows the western end of Ormsaigbeg and the hill called Maol Buidhe.

First stop was the pole which marks the reef that bars the entrance to Kilchoan Bay. The reef is in a dangerous place, right in the middle of the entrance to the bay where anyone without a chart would think the approach was safest because the water would be at its deepest. So members of the boating fraternity on West Ardnamurchan have maintained this marker as a service to the public. During the winter it fell, either in a storm or, as has happened before, knocked over by a passing boat.

Further west along the coast the local wildlife began to appear, an otter first, close against these rocks, but he was quicker than the camera. Two seals followed, both curious but unwilling to allow an approach. There were also some flurries of bait fish so, with the sea warming quickly in this weather, the mackerel should be running soon.

It's a coastline of high cliffs and sheltered beaches, a paradise for anyone interested in the geology of the area as it is spectacularly exposed in the cliffs, and a home to gulls, divers, cormorants, oystercatchers and many other seabirds. The joy of a kayak is that one can explore every contour of the coastline, and land on the smallest and most inaccessible beaches.

The low tide had exposed this sea urchin, Echinus esculentus - more about the species here. Quite why he had allowed himself to be left high and dry was a bit of a mystery, as there were several other urchins on the rock, all sensibly below water level.

Coming in after almost two hours gentle paddling we passed Trevor Potts, the owner of Ardnamurchan Campsite, who was setting out to do some fishing but was having trouble starting his outboard. Offers of a tow or the loan of a paddle were politely declined.

The Ardnamurchan Campsite's smart new website is here.