Snakes alive....

We woke at our camp on the Jura shore to a bright morning with a light ENE'ly breeze, just about  perfect weather for a crossing to Colonsay.  Our camp had been on the shore at the left of this image.  Glenbatrick Lodge is on the right, a property owned by Lord Astor and used as a summer house - it's the only real habitation on the entire west coast of Jura.  We kept well away from the house to respect the privacy of anyone staying there, and there's plenty of space to do that.  Up the glen, the iconic Paps of Jura make a striking backdrop.

The previous day had been a fairly long one.  We'd all had long journeys to get to the starting point at Carsaig and had then done a 25Km paddle with a portage across Jura.  A late finish had been rewarded though, we were in a great position to cross to Colonsay and to make our planned camp for the following night.


 

 The first stage of our journey to Colonsay would take us to Rubha an't Sailein - the name is possibly point of the sea-inlet and it's sometimes named as Ruantallain.  We planned to take a leg stretch and a comfort break there prior to the crossing to Colonsay.

 The north shore of Loch Tarbert has more splendid examples of raised beaches - once they're recognised as raised beaches the shape of the land during the ice age can be glimpsed.

 We landed at a sandy beach backed by grassy ground.  This had been considered as a camp site but Douglas was reluctant to camp here, on a previous occasion he'd seen many Adders.  Sam wandered up to take a look at the private bothy, and Maurice and I were following when, just above the beach, I glimpsed movement as I was about to put my foot down on a female Adder.....

The beautifully marked snake had curled into a defensive posture and I just managed to hop aside without standing on her. A relatively small Adder at about 30cm, she stayed stock-still for a few moments before darting into longer grass.  I'm not at all scared of snakes, but we decided not to venture further through the grass as there would likely be others warming up in the morning sunshine.  Adders are Britain's only venomous species of snake, and this was no place to be dealing with a painful bite!

 The crossing from Ruantallain to Oronsay, the tidal island at the south of Colonsay, is 15 km.  A breeze from across our right shoulders and low swell gave perfect kayak sailing conditions, and we enjoyed a great sail with spray bursting from our bows in the bright sunshine.

The sailing rigs meant that we completed the crossing in under two hours at an average speed approaching 8 Km/h, much quicker than if we'd paddled without the sails

 Sam doesn't (yet) have a sail, but with his youth and strength plus a background in marathon paddling he was able to stay with us.  As the breeze was fairly steady, we could drop our speed occasionally in order that we didn't get separated.

We headed straight for a prominent white sand beach, seen from right at the start of the crossing, and gradually it gained detail as we approached.  We were soon in turquoise water with white sand visible beneath the boats.......

 ....pulling around a reef we made first landfall on Oronsay.  We had arrived!  Sea kayaking to a new island is always a special thrill for me, and these islands have been high on my "must do" list for some time.  We found a spot out of the breeze with a view back to the Jura skyline and enjoyed a leisurely luncheon in the warm sun.

 The tide was approaching low water and it was nearly Springs - there was no possibility of paddling between Oronsay and Colonsay as the channel dries to reveal a large expanse of sand.  Besides, the paddle around Oronsay promised to be great.

The east side of the island is largely white sand beach backed by machair - stunning in the bright sunshine.

 At the south of the island we were able to pick our way through a series of rocky channels to gain the west coast.  A deep thrumming noise from astern proved to be a Coastguard helicopter overflying the island.

"G-MCGG" is a Sikorsky S-92 operated by Bristow's on behalf of HM Coastguard, operating from Prestwick in Ayrshire.  With a crew of four and an endurance of over four hours, it's an impressive aircraft.  I reflected that in the worst case, if I'd not avoided that Adder I might have required to be a passenger in her rather than a spectator as she flew over!

A Jura salute for a Jura sunset

By the time we reached the Cumhann Beag (Little narrows) separating the hidden upper part of West Loch Tarbert from the middle part, the tide was running through like a river.  Our plans had been formulated to take advantage of each of the tidal streams we encountered during the journey, or at least planned to avoid paddling against the flow.  We'd also taken the wind direction into account in the wider route we envisaged...after all, our sails could help us!

Turning south west into the middle part of the loch, we headed into a searing early evening sun, the angle above the horizon a reminder that we should push on to find a campsite.  Although the bothy at Cruib Lodge would have made a fine base for the night, it would have left us a prodigious distance to journey on the following day, so we paddled on past towards the Cumhann Mor (big narrows) separating the central part from the wide outer loch.

Although we were keen to reach our camp site, there was a place to explore which simply couldn't be passed by.  The raised beaches near the Cumhann Mor are one of the most remarkable places in Britain, and so remote that most folk wouldn't even know of their existence.

The pebble ridge rises in a series of steps above the present day sea level - relic beaches from a time when the ice pressed down on this part of Scotland and the land was lower.

The top of the ridge is 15 metres above the present high water mark, and the pebbles are left clean and smoothed as if raked....just as they were left when the tide last went out here some 10,000 years ago.  Maurice and Sam hadn't been here previously, and the place had left a lasting impression on me from my previous visit....an remarkable landscape simply not to be missed.

After visiting the raised beach we paddled a short way along the south shore of West Loch Tarbert to another raised beach, this one much lower and backed by a level grassy bank - a good camping spot with fresh water nearby.  As a bonus, the Paps of Jura heaved into view over the glen behind the beach, and the sky was starting to colour with the imminent sunset.....time to get the tents up and dinner on the go.

When it came, the sunset was a show-stopper.  Dipping first beyond the northern headland of Loch Tarbert and then beyond distant Colonsay, the setting sun fired the sky to an intense burnt orange shade.  We saluted it with a dram distilled on the very island where we sat - and there was something extra special about enjoying whisky "in its own place" with such a spectacular view in front of us.

The noticeable drop in light levels as the sun set was followed by......

The effect of an increase in light levels as the sun began to illuminate the sky from below our visible horizon - it really was a sunset (and a dram) to savour.  More subtle than those pyrotechnic sunsets where there's some cloud to catch the light, this was a slow procession of gorgeous shades washing the whole of the western sky.

Well over an hour after sunset, a band of bronze light was still burning on the western horizon, rendering the low outline of Colonsay into sharp relief.  It seemed a long way out into the sea, but there lay tomorrow's destination.  We sat and chatted long into the evening... just enjoying the sense of place in this remote and wild spot.

Time and tide - a sea kayaking trip to Jura

 A four day, 136km sea kayaking trip from Carsaig bay to the west coast of Jura and the Sound of Islay.

 Day 1 - Carsaig Bay - Gulf of Corryvreckan - Glengarrisdale

Time and tide - heading to Jura

Corryvreckan - "a depe horlepoole quhairin if schippis do enter thair is no refuge but death onlie"..... 

Shared warmth at Glengarrisdale Bay

Day 2 - West Jura, Glengarrisdale to the Sound of Islay

The wild and lonely coast of north west Jura

Full of life at the Place of the Dead

Going in at Shian

Small sails and tall sails on the west coast of Jura

The coast which just keeps on giving

An evening out on the Sound of Islay

Day 3 - Sound of Islay - West Loch Tarbert - Cruib Lodge

Catching the tidal travelator in the Sound of Islay

Breathtaking west Jura

The Zen beach of West Loch Tarbert

Al fresco dining for three at Cruib Lodge

Day 4 - West Loch Tarbert - Tarbert portage - Sound of Jura - Loch Sween

Per mare per terram - across an island 

A brew and a banjo

A long brawl in Loch Sween

Per mare per terram - across an island

 We slept well at Cruib Lodge, waking at at 0500.  After packing our boats and tidying the bothy ready for the next visitors we were pleased to be on the water as planned by 0600.  Unusually for us, first breakfast was postponed in order to get to the head of Loch Tarbert at high water.  The last morning of our Jura adventure began with a searingly bright sunrise......

 ...and a lovely quality of early morning light.  There was no sign of life on the yacht anchored in the bay, the only sounds were the dip of our paddles and the distinct calls of shorebirds creating a slight echo from the hills surrounding the middle part of the loch.

 The channel connecting the middle section of West Loch Tabert with the hidden inner section is called the Cumhann Beag (Little Narrow) and that just about sums up this unlikely passage.  The entrance is very difficult to see and the passage itself is more like a canal than a channel.  Tidal streams can run at up to 8 knots (16 km/h) on Spring tides, one of the main reasons we'd started so early was to get the last of the flood through here.

The stream was still pushing though as we paddled the narrows; remarkably in this age of digital charts and maps when everything would seem to be well explored, the first survey of the Cumhann Beag was only undertaken in 2006 and even that may not be comprehensive.  The inner loch was historically used as a concealing base for longships and their Scottish equivalent, the Birlinns of sea raiders.  It's more peaceful today but remains a challenging anchorage for adventurous yachtsmen.

 This tree growing from the west side of the channel clearly shows that it's not always calm in this part of the world!

 We reached the head of inner Loch Tarbert right on the time of high water, although the tide actually rose for some 40 minutes after this.  We were pleased to have avoided having to carry the boats over the mud which is revealed at lower states of the tide - this day was going to be energetic enough without an additional "plowter" through sticky mud!

The most important priority was to get tea and coffee brewed, after which our belated first breakfast was taken.  Then we rigged our boats for the next stage of the journey and changed out of drysuits into walking gear.

Between Loch Tarbert and Tarbert Bay, the island of Jura is less than 2km wide.  The name "Tarbert" is found in several places around the west of Scotland and derives from a Norse phrase meaning "draw boat"; a Tarbert being a place where a longship could be hauled overland from one body of water to another.  In at least one place, pulling a boat over a Tarbert was used to gain control over a large area of the mainland following an agreement that a Norse king could claim ownership of anything he could take his longship around!

This amphibious ability would have been most useful to seafarers in case of stormy weather, or as a flanking manoeuvre.  The Norse warbands were true "marine" fighters, using their shallow draught and manoeuvrable ships to access far inland, an amphibious ability which led them from their Scandinavian bases as far as North America, across the Arctic, down the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Europe, to the Middle East and even far into Asia via river systems.  The motto "per mare per terram" (by sea and by land) is that of the UK's elite Royal Marines, and sums up this amphibious fighting capability.

 In addition to sea raiding, the Tarbert was used to transport a range of goods and even bodies bound for burial on Iona as it avoided the fast tidal streams of the Corryvreckan and the Sound of Islay which flank Jura to north and south.

We aimed to emulate the Viking example (minus the raping, burning and pillage or course!....) by putting our boats onto the trollies for the 2km pull.  Douglas has been testing an Easy Haul Portage Strap made by Kayak Carrier Systems this year, and it works really well on a long portage such as this.  I tried out an arrangement using the short tow-line attached to the deck of my boat (which is one of those things which can be used in all sorts of ways) attached to a spare portage strap.  Once I'd adjusted for legth I found this worked very well, but is obviously less adjustable than the KCS shoulder strap.

The track across the Jura Tarbert is notoriously rough. The track is bumpy, stony and rises to around 30 metres above sea level before heading down to the east side of the island.  It's a noted destroyer of sea kayak trollies, but I'm pleased to report that our KCS Expedition trollies once again proved their worth; the addition of the rear extension prevented any movement of the trolley beneath the boat and all three made the crossing without a hitch - a truly tough piece of kit.

After crossing the high point of the crossing the track descends to cross the island's only road and enters the narrow strip of good agricultural ground on the east coast.  The underlying rock here is a schist which breaks down into much more fertile soils than the volcanic rocks elsewhere on the island.  It's land which has been farmed and lived on for thousands of years.  This slender 2.5m high standing stone is aligned N-S and is at the end of a low ridge near the remains of a later chapel and burial ground, indicating an ancient, continuing use.

Soon after, we arrived at Tarbert Bay on the east coast of Jura, and although the portage itself had been strenuous, it had presented little difficulty.  The final 10 metres to the sands of Tarbert Bay were another matter altogether though.....

Barring the way to the water was a wide swathe of rotting seaweed which was a calf-deep slime and absolutely stank - quite the worst example I've experienced for years.  We changed into drysuits and paddling boots before attempting this obstacle.  The stench was such that it attacked in a multisensory way and I found myself having to resist the urge to retch as we crossed it six times to move our three boats - fairly minging!  As soon as we reached the water we washed our drysuits and equipment clean of the vile residue.

At last cleaned off, we set out from Tarbert Bay into the Sound of Jura "per mare" for the final leg of our adventure...

Al fresco dining for three at Cruib Lodge

 After leaving the "Zen garden" raised beach we continued through the narrows and into the middle part of Jura's West Loch Tarbert.  It was now early evening and we were keen to get to our planned overnight stop.  A light breeze helped us, we were able to use our sails in addition to steady paddling for much of the way.

Loch Tarbert has three sections; a wide outer section open to the prevailing swell and weather passing between the islands of Colosay and Islay, a sheltered middle section and a smaller inner loch accessed vai the most unlikely of channels.  We were heading for a bothy in the middle section which remains hidden on approach........

 ...until a final corner is turned and the neatly kept bothy appears at the head of a small bay.  Our planned arrival time coincided with high water which meant that we had only to lift the boats from the water with no carrying involved.  This convenience did have a consequence though....we needed to be at the very head of the inner loch right on high water the following morning to avoid a long carry over mud.  As HW would be at 0641 we needed to be underway by 0600, but that was tomorrow's issue - for now we could enjoy being in this superb location and in warm evening sunshine.

 Cruib Lodge bothy is owned by Ruantallain estate who retain half of the building (open outwith the deerstalking season and locked for estate use in the stalking season) with half of the building  maintained as an MBA bothy open at all times.

It takes a deal of faith and trust for estate managers and owners to permit use of buildings as open bothies - and a good deal of work and cooperation to keep the buildings in good shape.  The trust, reputation and experience which the MBA has built up over 50 years is critical in maintaining the unique bothy tradition - and it's why I'm a member.  Membership gives no "rights" to bothies or any particular privilege other than contributing to something which is a national treasure.

The estate end of Cruib Lodge appears to have originally been a deer larder.  The hooks for hanging carcasses are still in place on large overhead beams and the large apertures now glazed with sash windows would have contained not glass but slatted wooden covers to allow airflow whilst the carcasses were hung and butchered.  The amount and size of the windows in this end of the bothy make it perhaps one of the lightest and airiest of all bothy rooms; Mike and I chose to put our sleeping things in this end, while Douglas chose the other room which would be warmer as we lit a fire in the grate with the wood we'd gathered earlier in the day.

 Above the fireplace is a well-stocked library, and it's the mark of a remote and well kept bothy that the books haven't been used as firelighters.  The peats placed around the fireplace were cut by Douglas' friend Tony who had visited some weeks previously and had left an entry in the bothy visitor's book.  After enjoying a great fire through the evening, we were able to add a good deal of dry logs to leave for the next occupants.

 A yacht which had passed whilst we were exploring the raised beach in the outer loch was anchored in the bay and other than that there was no sign of any other human activity - it's a truly remote and wild spot.  After sorting out our kit and changing into evening attire (not vastly smarter than our paddling attire!) we cooked our dinner.......

 .....which was served, accompanied by frothing sports recovery drinks and a post-prandial dram of Jura Superstition distilled just 15km from where we were dining, at a table on the terrace with marvellous views......

 .....over the bay and of a sunset lighting up the clouds in ever changing shades.

After dinner we got our fire going and sat chatting about this and other trips into the long Hebridean evening.  A glance outside showed a hazy full moon rising; a reminder that the following day would be Spring tides and that we needed to get an early start.

Alarm clocks set for 0500, we retired early and slept well after another great day on the west of Jura.

The Zen beach of West Loch Tarbert

As we paddled into West Loch Tarbert, the sea loch which almost bisects Jura we got a helpful push from a breeze at our backs.  Across on the north side of the loch we could see a huge raised beach system, and we were heading for an even more remarkable example.

The beaches and terraces above the present-day shoreline are a legacy of the last ice age. As the ice sheet melted the immense weight pressing down on the land was released and the land began to rise in a process known as "isostatic rebound".  The north of the UK is still undergoing this process and there's an opposite sinking effect in the south east of the British Isles.  Isostatic changes are quite independent of the major (eustatic) changes in sea level - it's the land itself which is changing level. The resultant landforms such as raised beaches, dry stacks, arches and raised beaches can be be found in many places around the Scottish coast and on many of the islands.

But this beach in West Loch Tarbert is perhaps the most remarkable I've ever visited.  A 750 metre crescent of pebbles rising 15 metres above the current sea level, the scale is quite difficult to convey without a very wide angle camera lens.  

The very top of the beach has a narrow strip of vegetation, mainly heather with some grasses.

Behind the beach is a lochan held back by the pebble ridge; it has no visible outflow and the nearby burn of Abhainn Liundale also disappears into the pebbles- the water reaching the sea by filtering down the beach.  In this image there's a pale line across the pebbles which is one of the tracery of deer tracks heading to and fro.....

...clearly visible if this Google Earth image is enlarged.

The whole beach looks as if it has been recently raked over, the pebbles are uniform and the surface smooth.  On the slope above the lochan there are a number of strange circular or oval patches of heather, arranged as if the whole beach were a vast Zen garden - and that's the feeling I had whilst wandering around.

Douglas captured the sense of the place during a previous visit in this image from above the beach and this one using a wide angle lens - in my opinion two of the most striking images from his very large portfolio.

From a distance the beaches look ash grey, while close up the water washed pebbles seem to have little variation - they are left just as they were at the last high tide several thousand years ago - a remarkable relic.

But down on the present-day high water mark a hidden beauty is revealed....

as the little waves rushing over the pebbles recede....

...to reveal a subtle palette of greens purples and browns, a reflection of the landscape from which the pebbles have been drawn.

I left this beach with a feeling of having been in a unique and special place, perhaps all the more a privilege due to the difficulty of getting to it.  With an atmosphere all it's own, the "Zen beach" of West Loch Tarbert is a truly amazing place. 

Small sails and tall sails on the west coast of Jura

From Shian Bay we continued south along the coast towards the mouth of Loch Tarbert, the large west-facing sea loch which almost bisects the island of Jura

The light breeze helped us along a coast full of interest

Towards Rubh an t-Sailein (point of the inlet) at the northern side of the mouth of Loch Tarbert the hills recede and the shoreline is littered with remnant basalt dykes.  From a distance these looked like chortens built on a huge scale.

Ahead, the Paps of Jura were coming into view and would be our companions for the next two days.  There's a bothy near the point but it was still early and we had a different destination in mind. And anyway, the afternoon sun was high and warm, the sea sparkling.......

......and occasionally stunning aquamarine shades as variety to the blue.  What a place this was to sea kayak!

We passed small beaches squezzed between the walls of dry coves; pretty much inaccessible from the landward side.

Ours were not the only sails in use off Jura that day, a fine looking tall ship was emerging from the Sound of Islay on the flood tide, making good progress under a minimum of sail. 

She's the "Stavros S. Niarchos", a 60 metre, 635 tonne brig (a two masted sailing ship with square sails on each mast).  She can carry 18 sails with a total sail area of 1,162 square metres - slightly more area than our 0.8 square metre Flat Earth Kayak Sails!

The Stavros Niarchos is owned and operated by the Tall Ships Youth Trust, and is used for sail training and also for voyages by fare-paying crew which help to subsidise the work of the trust.  Despite her very traditional looks, Stavros Niarchos is a comparatively new vessel, being completed and entering service in 2000.  She made a really fine sight on a sparkling sea against the Islay shore.

As we crossed the mouth of Loch Tarbert we could look over our shoulders to a huge raised beach on the northern shore of the outer loch.  We could clearly see what the coastline must have looked like at the end of the last Ice Age with pebble beaches and rocky inlets.

Once across the entrance to Loch Tarbert we could slow our pace.  The flood tide which had carried the Stavros Niarchos through the Sound of Islay had some time to run, and we planned to use the ebb to speed our own passage once the tide turned.  Time for a leg stretch on a little sandy beach which would be a stand-out spot in many places, but here on the coast of Jura was just one of many glorious beaches.

We'd enjoyed a superb paddle already, and it was still only early afternoon - explored the wild and lonely NW coast of Jura in superb weather; and if anything the features on this wonderful coast were about to get even better!