Loch Sunart.

I've really enjoyed attending various different OCSG meets over the last year or so and wanted to try to do something in return so I decided to organise a local meet based at Resipole campsite on the shore of Loch Sunart. Loch Sunart is a nineteen mile long sea loch situated just south of Ardnamurchan, it runs roughly west to east and ranges from being well sheltered at it's eastern (inland) end to being more wild and exposed at the western end which emerges next to the Sound of Mull. It also has another loch (Loch Teacuis) branching off to the south and many islands both small and large.
I decided on the last weekend in April for the date of the meet as it was before the midge season starts but hopefully late enough to have some chance of decent weather. It was also a weekend that didn't clash with any other OCSG events.
I contacted the campsite who were very helpful and were well used to hosting meets by diving and kayak clubs and who agreed to give us our own section of the site as close to their slipway as possible. This would make for a nice sociable setting and easy access for launching and landing our canoes.
For various reasons I left home at around 9pm on the Thursday evening before the meet and drove up as far as Glencoe before finding a peaceful layby at the end of the Glen Etive road to bed down in the back of the van. It was a really nice quiet spot and I was asleep before midnight. Friday morning saw me up early and revealed the spectacular setting I'd chosen for my overnight stop (not entirely by accident I have to say). Buachaille Etive Mor isn't the most photographed mountain in Scotland for no reason!

 Not a bad place for an overnighter I'm sure you'll agree!

 I didn't bother with any breakfast preferring instead to get on the road to Resipole. I knew that Adam (who'd driven all the way up from London for the weekend) would already be there and that the others wouldn't be far behind me either. Driving down Glencoe is always a treat and the prospect of a great weekend ahead only enriched the experience further. Before long I was waiting for the ferry at Corran.

Once I'd crossed on the ferry it was around fifteen miles to the head of Loch Sunart and then a further few miles on single track road to Resipole. I arrived at the campsite by about 9:30am and after booking in went and said hello to Adam who was busy working on his canoe. After chatting for a little while I set up the awning for my van and got my canoe off the roof then made myself a brew. Soon after Graham, Andy (and Nora the dog), Dave and Tom arrived as well and pitched their respective tents then we set about tinkering with our canoes and some of us fitted the various Solway Dory goodies that Dave had kindly brought with him. For me this was a braced mast thwart to try and reduce the amount my canoe flexes in stronger winds and Adam and Tom both had new outriggers to add.

By late morning we were approaching some kind of readiness to get out for a sail so we held a quick meeting to formulate some plans for the weekends activities and settled on going for a local sail after lunch (possibly heading to Salen) and then trying to reach Loch Teacuis on Saturday when we'd have all day available. The wind was reasonably strong and promised decent sailing conditions at least for Friday.
After a bite to eat we headed out onto the water and got a feel for the conditions.

Adam forgot to put his buoyancy aid on and couldn't manage to get it over the zip on his new drysuit on the water so had to land briefly to sort it out. Once we'd all had a sail about we set off west down the loch as a group, the wind was probably blowing up to a F4 and despite the fact that it was coming from the north the water was a little choppy and bailing was necessary on occasion.

We were all sailing with a reef in (apart from Tom who didn't have the option but seemed to be enjoying himself regardless).

 After Dave and I had a close encounter with a rock (both bashing our leeboards off the same one) we rounded the point at Rubha Aird Earnaich and had a quick discussion and decided to push on across the loch to Salen.

The wind was blowing down Salen Bay and across the loch and was stronger at times as we sailed almost directly upwind.

 Adam and his new outriggers.

Andy and Nora work their way upwind into Salen Bay.

Graham, Andy and Dave nearing the head of the bay. Once we'd all beached and arranged some form of anchor to secure the canoes against the rising tide we strolled the few hundred yards up the road to the Salen Hotel.

It was tempting to linger at the hotel for a second round of beers but time was getting on so after booking ourselves a table for dinner for the following night we strolled down the road in the evening sunshine back to the canoes (which were just starting to float on the incoming tide).
We all became a little split up as we left Salen Bay for the short sail back to Resipole. There was a short rain shower just as Andy and I sailed out into the main loch and Andy and Nora were framed by a rainbow.

Myself and Andy had just acquired marine VHF radios (Adam and Dave already owned a set each) and we'd agreed to try these out on the return journey so radio test calls were made successfully as we sailed back.

Graham with Ben Resipole and the campsite behind. The sail back was uneventful other than Nora deciding to see if she could walk on water and needing to be rescued by Andy!

 By the time we all arrived back the sun had dipped below the hills and the temperature was starting to plummet so everyone disappeared into their individual tents to make some dinner. After having some food the whole party gathered in my awning for an evening of drinks, chatting and laughter (and shivering in Dave's case!) I'd taken an electric fan heater with me and used this to make the awning a little more cosy (which it did, making a cold evening bearable). We eventually called it a night around midnight and hit the sack.
 Saturday dawned without a cloud in the sky (although there was a heavy ground frost). Tom's cousin David arrived early on, he owns a Solway Dory Osprey trimaran which he'd brought with him. Unfortunately one of the outrigger beams had bounced out the canoe during the journey to Resipole rendering the whole set up unusable. Graham saved the day by offering David the use of his new sea kayak for the day and it turned out that David was an experienced paddler into the bargain. The scene was set for our quest to reach Loch Teacuis but first it was breakfast!
We formed up on the water at about 10am ready to head west. The wind was lighter than it had been on Friday but there was enough to ensure we didn't have to paddle. The sail westwards along the loch was downwind so we made good progress in the glorious morning sunshine.

 It was an impressive fleet that made it's way along the loch past Salen Bay.

Dave and Adam disagreeing on which tack they should be on.

Once again we ended up scattered over a fairly large expanse of water but in such benign conditions it didn't matter. Graham was fishing as he sailed and he and I ended up at the back as we approached Port Nan Gall.

Just beyond this point David had a recurrence of some problems with his legs cramping and felt that he wanted to turn back for the campsite, others took advantage of the quick stop and landed for a comfort break.

After the break we set off again sailing towards the island of Carna which lies at the entrance of Loch Teacuis.

We had hoped to sail as far as Oronsay island to visit an area that Dave and Andy had been to before but it became clear that due to the light winds we'd not be able to get that far so an alternative plan was hatched to sail around the western side of Carna and enter Loch Teacuis to find a landing site for lunch.
Andy and Nora cruising up the western side of Carna.

On this stretch we sailed past a sizable seal colony, unfortunately I didn't get any pictures. The wind on this side of Carna was really light and flukey necessitating bouts of paddle sailing at times as we worked our way through the narrow western entrance channel.
The fleet about to enter Loch Teacuis.

..............and we're in!

We struggled just around the corner on the left of the picture and made for a shingle beach on the eastern shore for a lunch stop. Adam couldn't wait to catch up on his stocks and shares (okay I admit I set the photo up a bit)!

Lunchtime was an opportunity for us to lounge in the sun and for Nora to burn off some energy fetching her Kong after being patient in Andy's canoe all morning.

After lunch it was time to start beating back upwind. We exited Loch Teacuis by the eastern channel which by that time had the tide running out through it quite fast causing some little tidal ripples and waves.
The buildings on the left in this picture are on Carna.

Once back into Loch Sunart it was a matter of working our way back towards Resipole. This proved to be slow going for periods of time when the wind disappeared completely forcing us to paddle, at other times it would blow again allowing us to sail.
Andy and Nora sailing in relax mode with Ben Resipole in the distance.

 Eventually we all made it back safely to be reunited with David at the campsite. There was just time for a quick shower before we drove to the Salen Hotel for dinner and a few drinks. After an enjoyable meal we arrived back at the campsite and everyone decided an early night was in order after the exertions of the day. I was in bed by 10:30pm and asleep shortly afterwards.
I was woken by my alarm at 7:30am and emerged from the van to another beautiful morning.

My plan for the day was to pack the awning away in the dry then have a quick sail later if the wind picked up. Dave decided not to sail as he had a sore neck from paddling on Saturday, Andy opted to climb Ben Resipole to give Nora a good walk and Graham, Adam, Tom and David decided to explore eastwards up the loch.
While everyone set off on their trips I set about packing up and on completion Dave and I sat in the sun chatting for quite a while before he decided to head for home. After eating a quick lunch I set off onto the water, I called up Adam on the radio to see where the others had got too. They'd reached the narrows towards the eastern end of the loch but were now on their way back so I set off to meet up with them.

Adam soon appeared with Graham in the far distance, Tom was on the southern side of the loch.

We sailed back to Resipole in inconsistent winds where the guys landed. I went back out for a final play and the wind picked up a lot giving fantastic sailing conditions. After about half an hour I packed up as well and headed back to the campsite.
Those of us who were going home packed up our boats and said our farewells. It had been a fantastic weekend blessed with great weather (while most of England was lashed by heavy rain and gales).
I can't thank the guys enough for supporting my meet and being such great company, I don't think it'll be long before I start organising another meet (maybe camping from the boats next time).

Solway Dory's new Expedition Bermudan Rig.

I've been sailing with Solway Dory's excellent 35 sq ft Expedition Lugsail for the last year now and have been delighted and surprised by how much sailing performance it has given so when Dave Stubbs from Solway Dory got in touch and asked me if I wanted one of the first of their new Expedition Bermudan Rigs I jumped at the opportunity. The Expedition Bermudan marks a bit of a new direction for the Expedition Rigs as the previous versions have all been Lugsails. The Lugsail configuration allowed the sail to set on a short mast and spars and meant that the rig packed up into a compact bundle for carrying in the canoe if there was no wind and this was central to the Expedition Rig concept. Bermudan rigs offer several advantages over Lugsails though, they sail more efficiently and will point higher while beating upwind. The sail can also be roller reefed around the mast (which is quick and easy to do) and allows you to reef in a lot of small stages and reduce the sail area in small increments down to a tiny size. This is important on any sailing boat but especially so on a narrow canoe equipped with minimal adaptations for sailing. The disadvantage of a Bermudan over a Lugsail is that the Bermudan requires a relatively tall mast which makes storing the rig while paddling more intrusive. Solway Dory have got round this problem by equipping the Expedition Bermudan with a two piece take apart mast that allows the rig to be packed down to a comparable size to the 35 sq ft Lugsail.
Anyway enough of the theory, as soon as I received the new rig I was keen to try it out so on the first decent day I headed for Duck Bay on Loch Lomond.

 When the two rigs are laid out side by side the lack of difference in size is clear. The Lugsail is on the right, the new Bermudan on the left.

Comparisons out the way I laid out the sail and two sections of the mast ready to slot together.

 

Once the mast is assembled it slides up the luff sleeve on the sail and is tied off at the mast head. 

 

Next the downhaul is cleated off which holds the whole lot together. The sail and mast can then be moved about at will and slides into the mast thwart in the canoe ready to have the boom attached. The whole process is quick and easy taking only slightly longer than the lugsail to set up (with practice I'm sure it'll be just as quick).

The canoe all set up and ready to sail.

The wind was blowing offshore at Duck Bay so the water was deceptively calm close in but from experience I knew that as soon as I ventured further out it would be choppy. I set off with the full sail out and was immediately struck by how much higher this rig would point upwind than the Lugsail (not that it's bad in this respect either). Being offshore the wind was quite gusty as well and the stronger gusts were pretty strong. I sailed about for a while then decided to land and try reefing the sail (I could have done this on the water but as it was my first attempt thought it'd be safer to do it on the beach). I just took a couple of turns of sail in to try it and see what the difference was. 

 It was really easy to reef, just unhook the kicker, slacken the outhaul and rotate the mast to wind the sail in, reconnect the kicker, adjust the outhaul as necessary and I was ready to go again. 

This time I decided to sail a bit further so I set off beating just to the west of Inchmurrin island. 

As I'd suspected it was pretty splashy further out and at times it was like sailing while having buckets of water thrown over me! The eagle eyed amongst you may notice in the picture above how much the mastfoot is causing the canoe hull to deflect under pressure from the rig. This also used to happen with my Lugsail and was an issue I was already aware of (and another reason I chose to reef the sail a bit). It's caused by the lightweight construction of my particular canoe and isn't so noticeable on heavier boats. Whilst it's not caused any problems while sailing (other than being inefficient) I've decided to do something about it now and Dave has kindly agreed to make me a braced mast thwart to dissipate the forces more away from the mastfoot and stiffen things up a bit. Hopefully I'll have the new thwart to try at the end of April.

I sailed across past Inchmurrin close hauled then decided to try bearing away across the wind to a beach near the Carrick golf course where I could get out for a stretch of the legs and bail all the water out of the canoe.

 After bailing for a few minutes (there was quite a lot of water in the canoe) I set off back on a beam reach towards Duck Bay. It was fast and fun surfing the swell that I'd been pounding through on the way out.

 This short video clip gives an idea of what it was like.

 Pretty soon I was back at Duck Bay so I unfurled the full sail area again and sailed about nearby for a while before landing to start packing up for the day.

I feel a little unfaithful to my Lugsail saying it but this new rig really does move things on another step in terms of performance. Whilst it's not quite so convenient to pack away totally inside the canoe as the other Expedition Rigs the performance gains combined with the easy reefing make the Bermudan a real winner. I've always thought that the 35 ft Lugsail offered the best of both worlds (allowing you to buy the rig and use it as an expedition rig steering with your paddle initially whilst having sufficient performance to make upgrading to a rudder worthwhile later on if you get the sailing bug) but this rig takes it a step further. You could easily combine the Expedition Bermudan with a 14 sq ft Bermudan mizzen later to give enough power to sail on equal terms in the company of Solway Dory's bigger Bermudan rigs. It's a great way into canoe sailing combining great paddle sailing capabilities with scope for future development if required.
 I can't wait to get it out in some more far flung places and explore it's potential further.

Canoe sailing on Loch Sween.

Loch Sween and the Faery Isles.

Graham and I had been planning to do a trip on the northern part of Loch Lomond however as the time approached it became increasingly obvious that the weather forecast wasn't looking well suited to that particular trip. Although it was to be fine the winds were to be light or non-existent so at the last minute we decided to change venues.
Late on Friday afternoon I met Graham in a lay by just south of Luss on Loch Lomondside and we drove west through Inveraray and down to Lochgilphead. Here we stopped and after a little searching managed to find a chippy that was open. We bought dinner and ate it while sitting on a bench overlooking Loch Gilp. This had the benefit of eliminating the need for us to cook for ourselves (whilst doing little for our cholesterol levels!) Suitably refreshed we set off again driving alongside the Crinan canal for a while before turning off towards Tayvallich. I knew (from a previous trip on my motorbike) that there were a couple of picnic areas on this stretch of road that would provide potential overnight stopping places at this time of year and after looking at them both we settled on one that had a nice level parking area.
We still had some daylight left and nothing else to do so we decided to take a walk down to Loch  Coille-Bharr in search of the elusive beavers (which were re-introduced to Scotland here in 2009).

There was little chance of actually seeing any as we were making so much noise chatting away catching up but we saw lots of bats and definite evidence of the presence of beavers.

 As we wandered on the last of the daylight faded leaving a beautiful still evening.

 We walked back up the road (preferring this to negotiating the path through the forest in the dark) and were soon back at the car park where we made a final brew before having an early night.

We got up early on Saturday morning and had a quick breakfast before hitting the road for the short drive to Tayvallich. We were at the slipway assembling our canoes by eight in the morning. 

We had to do a short shuttle with the vehicles to leave them in a car park but we were on the water by nine. We tacked out of the beautiful natural  harbour in a really nice Force 4 and enough chop to come over the bow of my heavily laden canoe. Unfortunately as soon as we cleared the harbour the wind dropped and while we were still making decent progress it wasn't the exhilarating sailing we'd just experienced. Still the air was warm and the sun was shining and the scenery was everything I'd been led to believe it would be, the Loch Sween area is really beautiful. Quite soon we sailed into an inlet to check out a potential campsite, it was really pretty and the bottom of the inlet was white sand and clearly visible through the clear water.

 We landed and had a wander about, a lot of the land was boggy but we found one area that looked like a real possibility. After some discussion we opted to carry on a bit further on the basis that we could always return to this spot later on. 

We rounded the point at Rubh'an Oib and sailed north into upper Loch Sween, the wind became really flukey, constantly shifting direction and varying between total calm and F4 gusts every few minutes. We ended up paddle sailing into an area I'd been dying to visit since I'd first read about and seen pictures of it in Douglas Wilcox's sea kayaking blogg a few years ago. The Faery Isles are a series of small islands contained in a tidal lagoon branching off the western edge of Loch Sween, ideally you visit at high tide as parts of the upper lagoon dry out as the tide drops.

 Loch Sween is unusual in that it has a strange double tide so there are effectively two high tides followed by two low tides. Unfortunately our visit corresponded with a low tide and whilst we were able to penetrate well into the lagoon, some of the upper area had dried out.   

 We pottered around for a while exploring in and out of the small islands and admiring the scenery.

After having a good look about we paddled out of the lagoon and raised our sails again before heading north to see if we could reach the head of Loch Sween. The sailing conditions had us alternating between frustration and fits of laughter as the wind constantly changed direction and we continued to paddle sail which at least allowed us to keep moving in the right direction. As we approached the head of the loch we were treated to a display of low flying by the RAF!

 Eventually we reached the head of Loch Sween and landed for the obligatory photo opportunity. 

 On the way up the loch we spotted a campsite that Stephen had tipped me off about so we decided to check it out on the way back down on the basis that if we didn't like it we could continue on to the spot we'd seen earlier. In the event we opted to set up camp in the spot Stephen had recommended.

It was still only lunchtime so after having something to eat we elected to go back out for another sail. While we'd been setting up camp and eating the wind had picked up significantly so we thought the conditions would be much improved. As soon as we set off though it dropped off again and we were treated to similar calm spells interspersed with strong gusts that we'd experienced earlier. Just past the entrance to the Faery Isles Graham whistled to get my attention then pointed, I looked in the direction he indicated and saw this chap sitting on a rock.

 Once we approached the headland at Rubha na Marraidh we could see from the water state ahead that the wind was stronger and we were treated to an exciting reach for about half a mile here as we headed for Cala island.

We rounded Cala and headed back passing the entrance to the Faery Isles.

 We were fortunate enough to see an osprey flying just after this, I attempted to photograph it but sadly my skills (and my little camera) weren't up to the task of capturing it.
We arrived back at camp and collected some firewood (which was plentiful). Graham did his Ray Mears impersonation and started the fire using his firesteel and some dried grass so we could  cook dinner on it. He'd collected some mussels earlier and cooked them over the fire to have as a starter and they were delicious.

 After dinner he even produced a birthday cake for me complete with candles (it was my birthday the following day). Thanks Graham!  We chatted for a while then went to bed mindful of the fact that the clocks would be going forward overnight costing us an hour.
Sunday morning was beautiful. Despite the fact that we were up early again and that it was only March it was really mild. The sun came up over the loch treating us to a lovely sunrise.

As we cooked breakfast Graham spotted a bird of prey (he thought an eagle of some kind as it was bigger than an osprey) watching us.

After a while it took to the air and circled for a while before moving off.
We packed up and were on the water just after nine. The wind was very light and we feared that we'd have to paddle all the way back but as we got further up the loch it freshened and gave us a pleasant sail back towards Tayvallich.

 On the way we passed the entrance to Caol Scotnish which looked enticing with a little misty haze hanging over it in the morning sunshine. Exploring this would have to wait for another trip.

 We sailed back into Tayvallich harbour with the plan to drop our camping gear and shuttle the vehicles to the car park near the slipway then we could go back out for another sail unladen.

As it happened there was a cafe right next to the slipway overlooking the harbour and it would have been silly not to take the opportunity to have a cuppa and a scone!

After a quick break we set off again, we'd decided to stay close by in case the wind died  (potentially saving us a long paddle) however we ended up sailing back out round Cala island again.

 There were some cormorants perched on the island watching us as we drifted past.

Predictably the wind did in fact drop off again and after a quick look round the corner of Eilean Loain (where we disturbed some sunbathing  seals) we started back sometimes sailing, sometimes paddling and some of the time just enjoying the sunshine!

We made it back to Tayvallich just after lunchtime and packed up the boats then we had another cuppa in the cafe before setting off home.
Loch Sween is a beautiful place and there's plenty left to explore on further visits, in fact Graham and I have already hatched a plan for another trip there to see the western seaward end of the loch.




 

Barra video.