On the first of a three day outing on Loch Nevis , I left Mallaig in cloudy, drizzly weather. The boat was heavy with my own kit plus some resupplies for friends who were in the middle of a six night backpacking trip linking bothies in Knoydart and Morar.
For the first couple of hours visibility was poor; it was like paddling in a Tupperware box with the lid on.
Farther into Loch Nevis, the hills press in and the loch narrows at Kylesknoydart. I'd planned carefully to arrive here before the ebb tide started with up to 3 knots of tidal stream. The cloudbase had lifted somewhat and the drizzle had eased, making for more pleasant conditions. I had time to land on the shingle spit to collect firewood. There was plenty and I paddled on with a very large bag of wood on the foredeck.
I soon arrived at the rendezvous, Sourlies bothy. My friends had arrived shortly before and there were also other folk arriving. I pitched my tent to ease space indoors and we unloaded the wood and supplies consisting of fresh milk, vegetables, and of course a couple of bottles of wine :o)
Dave and I scoured the shoreline and gathered another large bag of firewood; we'd not be cold in this bothy!
We shared a most convivial evening in the best tradition of bothying. It was raining when I retired to the tent and continued to rain heavily right through the night as the "lid" once again descended on Loch Nevis.
No comments:
Post a Comment