Hi folks,i thought you might like a look at the wee trip me and Craigm9 had on the same weekend of the moot.
It was decided to go up and do Loch Nevis for a bit of R and R.
Well we set off on Sunday night from Mallaig,after hiking a few miles we stopped and used an old dis-used farm cottage for our first nights camp,which was only a tempory camp,as our main objective was further along the coast.
Next morning we set off early heading along the coast,i must stress at this point that there was no track to follow,which made for interesting walking to say the least.
With the Bracken over head height and pot holes under foot it was not for the faint hearted,at one point Craig went down and nearly broke his leg,thats how tough the going was.In fact it took us over 3 hours to travel about a mile.
Anyway we got to or intended camp in the end.
Looking back the way we had come.
The views we had around our camp were just breathtaking.
Looking over towards Knoydart.
Heres our camp in amongst the Birch trees.
Well we got set up for the next couples nights shrafting.
Craigs set up,note the rip in his trouser leg from when he took a header,could of been a nasty one!
My set up,i chose to make a browse bed and used a rock overhang to keep the wind off me.
After settling in and having a brew we broke out the fishing rods,we managed to catch a couple of fish,Craig caught a Macky and i hooked a couple of small Pollack.But as dusk started to set in,the fishing frenzy started. I hooked into the biggest Pollack i,ve ever had on,we were both using small spinning rods and 8 pound line,the fish i had on the end of my Minnow lure must have been a twenty pounder,i played it using the drag on my reel to good effect,so after numerous nerve wracking dives for the deep the fish finally lay on the surface exhausted.I shouted for Craig to give me a hand to land the monster,but just as Craig was getting a hand on the fish,it came off the hook,i stood there and watched my best ever shore caught fish glide back off into the depths .Craig was gutted as he thought he was to blame but it had nothing to do with him,as on closer inspection the fish had infact broken off one of the hooks on my treble.Oh well it wasnt meant to be.Not being disheartened I re-rigged up and carried on.Well we didnt have to wait long as on my first cast I was in again,and Craig caught his biggest fish ever that night,so well done mate.We must have landed at least ten fish each,so we only kept enough to feed ourselves and the rest went back to swim another day. Well it was now dark and starting to drizzle with rain,making the rocks very slippery under foot,so we decided that we wouldnt push our luck.
Anyway the fish we kept were not the biggest ones,but they were big enough for our purposes.
After all that fishing we had worked up a thirst and an appetite,so out came the beer and onto skewers went the sausages.
Well after a few swallies it was time to hit the sack.
Next morning we got up and started breakfast, I made Bannock whilst Craig took care of the bacon,beans and a brew.
Bannock and Brews.
And Craig tucking in.
So after the breakfast dishes had been done and a few camp chores out of the way Craig said to me"what are we going to do with these".
Well after being strung up all night,i though we would get them washed up ready for prepping,for tonights meal,so off we trot and stick them in a rock pool for a bit of a dunk.While the fish were taking a bath,we thought another cuppa was in order,so whilst we were having our elevenses,unbeknowing to us,we were under seige.After the brew we headed back to the rock pool upon where we find that the mackerel had somehow managed to move its self,about 8 feet from the rock pool wedged in a crevice in the rocks,at first I thought a large wave had swept it up and left it where it was now resting,but the rocks were dry!,i also noticed that there were some scales on the dry rock heading off in the direction where the fish now lay,a little further on I saw wet feet print on the rock, I was about to say too Craig we'd had a visitor when he said look,and under another rock stood this little fellow.
Infact we were treated to the whole family coming and going through our camp.
So after rescuing our fish.
We gutted and filleted them.
We couldnt let our new found friends not share our bounty,so we left the guts and bones for the Mink family to enjoy.
We also collected Limpets and Winkles to go along with the fish,back in camp I got on with sweating the veg for the fish stew while Craig cooked the Limpets.
Craig having a wee taster and a red wine aperitif.
The stew ready for scoffing.
After the meal was eaten and dishes washed,we settled in for a night by the fire,with a couple of beers and some red wine.
Craig said he had done a bit more foraging and found these tasty treats.
We turned in around midnight.
So when we woke on our last day we started to return the camp back the way we found it.Craig also opted to make a floatation aid from some jetsam that was lying around,and swim back to the first bay,me I walked the shoreline back to Mallaig,in hindsight I think he made the better decision.
Craigs floatation aid in the making.
Him starting the swim back.
Half way there he got up on top of it,so you can see how stable it was.
And finally Craig reaching dry land.
After getting in we checked how dry his kit was,and after being in the sea for 3 hours it was surprising how little water made it into his kit.There were some damp patches here and there,but his sleeping bag was dry,so it was a success.
Anyway thanks for putting up with such a long post,we had a great time,and I hope you get a feel through the pics of a great break.
Cheers Stuart.
It was decided to go up and do Loch Nevis for a bit of R and R.
Well we set off on Sunday night from Mallaig,after hiking a few miles we stopped and used an old dis-used farm cottage for our first nights camp,which was only a tempory camp,as our main objective was further along the coast.
Next morning we set off early heading along the coast,i must stress at this point that there was no track to follow,which made for interesting walking to say the least.
With the Bracken over head height and pot holes under foot it was not for the faint hearted,at one point Craig went down and nearly broke his leg,thats how tough the going was.In fact it took us over 3 hours to travel about a mile.
Anyway we got to or intended camp in the end.
Looking back the way we had come.
The views we had around our camp were just breathtaking.
Looking over towards Knoydart.
Heres our camp in amongst the Birch trees.
Well we got set up for the next couples nights shrafting.
Craigs set up,note the rip in his trouser leg from when he took a header,could of been a nasty one!
My set up,i chose to make a browse bed and used a rock overhang to keep the wind off me.
After settling in and having a brew we broke out the fishing rods,we managed to catch a couple of fish,Craig caught a Macky and i hooked a couple of small Pollack.But as dusk started to set in,the fishing frenzy started. I hooked into the biggest Pollack i,ve ever had on,we were both using small spinning rods and 8 pound line,the fish i had on the end of my Minnow lure must have been a twenty pounder,i played it using the drag on my reel to good effect,so after numerous nerve wracking dives for the deep the fish finally lay on the surface exhausted.I shouted for Craig to give me a hand to land the monster,but just as Craig was getting a hand on the fish,it came off the hook,i stood there and watched my best ever shore caught fish glide back off into the depths .Craig was gutted as he thought he was to blame but it had nothing to do with him,as on closer inspection the fish had infact broken off one of the hooks on my treble.Oh well it wasnt meant to be.Not being disheartened I re-rigged up and carried on.Well we didnt have to wait long as on my first cast I was in again,and Craig caught his biggest fish ever that night,so well done mate.We must have landed at least ten fish each,so we only kept enough to feed ourselves and the rest went back to swim another day. Well it was now dark and starting to drizzle with rain,making the rocks very slippery under foot,so we decided that we wouldnt push our luck.
Anyway the fish we kept were not the biggest ones,but they were big enough for our purposes.
After all that fishing we had worked up a thirst and an appetite,so out came the beer and onto skewers went the sausages.
Well after a few swallies it was time to hit the sack.
Next morning we got up and started breakfast, I made Bannock whilst Craig took care of the bacon,beans and a brew.
Bannock and Brews.
And Craig tucking in.
So after the breakfast dishes had been done and a few camp chores out of the way Craig said to me"what are we going to do with these".
Well after being strung up all night,i though we would get them washed up ready for prepping,for tonights meal,so off we trot and stick them in a rock pool for a bit of a dunk.While the fish were taking a bath,we thought another cuppa was in order,so whilst we were having our elevenses,unbeknowing to us,we were under seige.After the brew we headed back to the rock pool upon where we find that the mackerel had somehow managed to move its self,about 8 feet from the rock pool wedged in a crevice in the rocks,at first I thought a large wave had swept it up and left it where it was now resting,but the rocks were dry!,i also noticed that there were some scales on the dry rock heading off in the direction where the fish now lay,a little further on I saw wet feet print on the rock, I was about to say too Craig we'd had a visitor when he said look,and under another rock stood this little fellow.
Infact we were treated to the whole family coming and going through our camp.
So after rescuing our fish.
We gutted and filleted them.
We couldnt let our new found friends not share our bounty,so we left the guts and bones for the Mink family to enjoy.
We also collected Limpets and Winkles to go along with the fish,back in camp I got on with sweating the veg for the fish stew while Craig cooked the Limpets.
Craig having a wee taster and a red wine aperitif.
The stew ready for scoffing.
After the meal was eaten and dishes washed,we settled in for a night by the fire,with a couple of beers and some red wine.
Craig said he had done a bit more foraging and found these tasty treats.
We turned in around midnight.
So when we woke on our last day we started to return the camp back the way we found it.Craig also opted to make a floatation aid from some jetsam that was lying around,and swim back to the first bay,me I walked the shoreline back to Mallaig,in hindsight I think he made the better decision.
Craigs floatation aid in the making.
Him starting the swim back.
Half way there he got up on top of it,so you can see how stable it was.
And finally Craig reaching dry land.
After getting in we checked how dry his kit was,and after being in the sea for 3 hours it was surprising how little water made it into his kit.There were some damp patches here and there,but his sleeping bag was dry,so it was a success.
Anyway thanks for putting up with such a long post,we had a great time,and I hope you get a feel through the pics of a great break.
Cheers Stuart.
