First of many Kayaking adventures

[GGTBod]

I will spend some of my time on Lomond touring the islands but i have now decided that i could easy get to several other lochs in the area with a bit of effort and plan to getabootabit, not fair to only feed the lomond midges my English flesh.

4 and 5 foot swells sounds intense

 

[rancid badger]

I will spend some of my time on Lomond touring the islands but i have now decided that i could easy get to several other lochs in the area with a bit of effort and plan to getabootabit, not fair to only feed the lomond midges my English flesh.

4 and 5 foot swells sounds intense

You could always pop over the pass to Arrochar and Loch Long? if you have a fishing rod or even just a line and a spinner with you, the chances are you can take a few mackerel while tootling along ( its a sea loch).

 

[GGTBod]

Hey the Vikings portaged that in longboats so i am sure i can manage with an inflatable kayak in a backpack.

Sadly still not heard nothing back from Kim Bull, 2 of us sitting here waiting to spend near £250 betwen us on a days personal tuition but haven't even had an email response

 

[Grooveski]

...or you could hop in a cab and get dropped off at Finnart Depot. Can take a while to get to a good camp site from Arrochar - from Finnart they're just a crossing and a short paddle away. Run a search on here for Loch Long (and Loch Goil) and you'll see the best bays(Big Oak is a belter).

Most of(but far from all) the time you have a south-westerly running up the loch so you've more chance of a tailwind from there to Arrochar than the other way round. If I had a few nights to kill around Loch Long it'd be two at big oak and maybe one just over half-way up to Arrochar on the paddle out(should the wind turn against you). There are a couple of nice sites around there and even if they were busy any number of overnight spots.

Light-heartedly prep the cabbie on the run over and hang onto his number. If the last day turns into a saga he can come and rescue you from whatever bit of coastline you wash up on.

 

[GGTBod]

Sounds like sage advice, i'm up that way for a month and will be doing a Beachcomber course with Patrick Mcglinchey so where ever that course leaves me once done will be my main adventure starting point and i'll improvise from there on for the rest of the month, all i know at present is i meet them at Arrochar station, i do not know whereabouts in the area they hold the course.

I will definitely make sure i have a good cabbie number as like you said it could be a case of whatever bit of shoreline i wash up on, i've got 3 things, plenty food, very suitable clothing and gear (not taking too much with me like) and loads of time so the more local advice like that then the more interesting an exploration i can get into.

Really love a good bit of old stone like castles and stuff of the like, any recommendations of must see stuff?

 

[Grooveski]

...all i know at present is i meet them at Arrochar station, i do not know whereabouts in the area they hold the course.

I think I do, you'll be nicely out of Arrochar and can just cross the loch and head south.
Sounds like a good time in the making!

 

[GGTBod]

Excellent stuff, i have no doubt the course will be great just like my previous learning with PM and crew, then plenty of time to put my new skills into practice before coming back to my battery human cage in the city

 

[Grooveski]

Really love a good bit of old stone like castles and stuff of the like, any recommendations of must see stuff?

There might be a ruin in the bay you'll be doing the course in, am not sure, Patrick has a few locations he uses and I might be thinking of Loch Fyne.
(on the offchance that the course is at Fyne - watch yourself. The upper loch where you'll be is slightly more sheltered but basically anywhere past Otter Spit and you should consider yourself in the sea rather than on a loch).

Castle-wise the first place that springs to mind is Loch Dochart where you can camp in the old keep ruin. It's on the main island on the loch, is nicely wooded and when you're there you really appreciate the effort folk put into safety back in the day.
It looks a little out the way up in the Trossachs but you could get a train or bus to Crainlarach and head down the river.
Nothing stopping you carrying on down, portaging round Killin and spending a night on Loch Tay as well. It's more crannogs than castles but they're interesting from old to new.

Used to be able to wander round Carrick Keep - not far from Big Oak - but it's in private hands now and all done up again.
There are the remains of an old watchpost or the likes at the camp itself, just as there are at nigh-on every vantage point on the west coast. If old masonary is your thing you're definately coming to the right place.

 

[GGTBod]

Brilliant info thanks again, i don't want to be in the open sea in my Ik

 

[Grooveski]

A little warning about big oak probably wouldn't be out of order either.
To get there you're crossing the mouth of Loch Goil and Goil is a wind tunnel. We've had days where it's been tough going getting there, others where we didn't even try and and a few stuck there too.
If there's any chop at all coming out of Goil work your way round the big bay after the lighthouse and cross at the narrower entrance, then you can let the wind blow you back out to camp. If you head straight over to camp from the lighthouse the wind could blow you back out to the middle of Long again. I've been across the mouth of Goil a couple of dozen times now and I'm still wary approaching it.

Another trip that'd probably tick a few boxes would be Bridge of Orchy down to Loch Awe then some time investigating the loch. Brillaint river for paddling, crystal clear water, more castles on islands, trains and buses to both ends....

 

[GGTBod]

Sounds perfectly what i am after, serious thanks for the heads up on the conditions, i had already been giving myself a talking to about there will be days when i will just stay on the land and enjoy my current basecamp based on the conditions each day, can't beat words from real experience though so many thanks again for putting your oar in

Boom boom, i'm available for parties and social clubs, i know terrible punning

 

[Grooveski]

Paddle when the going's good - hole up quick when it gets bad(or preferably before). If you're stuck somewhere start packing up anyway and keep the camp tidy, there are often evening lulls and the light lingers on the water. You can paddle on later than you'd expect before losing your position.
Inflatables aren't bad in chop. They're stable, bend over waves in a comforting manner and have quite square ends so surf pretty well. You've always got to be thinking about the wind direction though, if it's going your way and trending towards shore then have fun but any hint it may turn offshore or against you start hugging the coast again.
Hugging the coast is more interesting anyway. After your course you'll likely be thinking spears and the likes.

Here's a good read for you. Got a little of everything that trip, including a day landbound.
...the photo of the approach to Goil is telling. Took that when I drifted for a sec to put my BA back on, didn't even wait to see what it was like ahead, wasn't wearing it and the moment I got close to Goil mouth I wanted it back on again.
Wasn't bad but maybe five hours later I came back with the boys and it was choppy enough for us to call off the crossing.
(Has to be said I was already tired - fairer to say I called off the crossing. Had I been as fresh as they were we'd have probably given it a go.)

 

[GGTBod]

I definitely plan to stick near the shore as much as possible, i had based this decision on the thought of when i need to get to land it is just there or thereabouts, i am still learning and it's all self taught as i can't seem to find anyone local to take my money in exchange for tuition, sent out emails enquiring and offering payment and never even had a response yet, figure they all busy or fully booked or the local fellas are having the same issues as me and there is hardly any water in the rivers they train on right now so all bookings are on hold, a courtesy email reply wouldn't have gone amiss though lol

i'm off to read your link

 

[GGTBod]

That was a great read, very coincidental for me as i had wondered on the possibility of down Lomond into the Leven along the Clyde and back up Loch long to Arrochar to catch my return train back to Geordieland but taking a lot longer than it took you to do it based on my skill and fitness levels as after 8 hrs kayaking i then need a day off, answered so many good questions i hadn't formulated yet into sanity

 

[Grooveski]

Trouble with the Lomond Round(and sea lochs in general) are the crossings. The Clyde section feels like a day-long crossing because you're away out there in the shipping lane for hours.
Then you can't just paddle up the east shore of Long. The MP boats will be sniffing around you anyway going up the far shore.
...so you get round into Long and straight away have to cross it. It's pretty wide there and I know fine well I was lucky with the weather that morning.
...then because you're now on the west side you've got the Goil crossing to do as well.

Crossings are funny things. Exposure of any type is a very personal factor, be it climbing, canoeing or whatever. Solo exposure is another thing again and I couldn't guess where your comfort zone is. Crossings can tickle mine though, took me longer to feel comfortable doing them than it did learning to have fun bobbing around in chop.
Top tip for crossings is don't rush them. I find myself developing a sense of urgency sometimes and feel I should get over as quickly as possible. It's a mugs game - just tires you out and leaves you feeling even more vunerable. Better to just calmly plod across and not factor in any heroics when you're deciding in the first place if the crossing is even on or not.

This one will give you a giggle. Day one in a hardshell after a couple of years in the inflatable, felt like I could take on anything. Ended up swimming mid-loch-goil and fighting a headwind all the way home - bad crossing decisions and good and a lot learned over the couple of days for sure.

 

[GGTBod]

What is an MP boat ?

Really appreciate the advice it's clear you know your stuff and i've been needing to find someone whose experience i can learn from, i am pretty good at doing things alone, it is how i prefer things to be as then i know I am relying on myself, making decisions and then working towards my goals.

I like the advice of just take it easy and plod on as i am definitely more the tortoise than the hare in any situation these days, i try to savour the experiences as i go through a lot of pain to get things done so it has to all be worth it all in the end and i also have to pace myself to get through it without causing mental fatigue before i am physically tired.

My comfort zone in the canoe is fair and building slowly but surely but i know i've got loads to learn, i've been able to rely on myself with everything i have ever taken on it my life and this is just the next challenge, as you can tell i am a sponge for info.

Learning new stuff alone it kind of reminds me of just leaving school as a bairn when no one will employ you because you lack any experience but until you get a job you can't gain any, so i take on each challenge and break it down into smaller ones and always try and learn all i can in theory as well as with practical experience and take it step by step.

The one thing that gives me a bit of confidence on the water is that i am an exceptional swimmer (although i do not do it as often these days), i learnt to swim properly in the North Sea without a wetsuit or PFD and used to do daft things like the charity new years skinny dip for a laugh, many times over the years i've had to swim against the current of a backwash area trying to drag me out to sea, worst time was swimming across Newbiggin by the sea bay from the Church point to the Needles eye (see below image), I found out afterwards it was notorious for whipping the inexperienced out to sea, i am told as i climb out the water at my destination by locals who had been watching me ready to call the RNLI, only thing that caused me a little botha was having to change direction into the flow of the wash to avoid 'seagulls wellies' and then having to readjust my stroke back to taking me in the direction i wanted across the bay instead off to Holland.

I just took this google image of the area and you can clearly see the backwash zone, didn't have google back then and i reckon looking at that would have even put me off as a kid, it was the challenge that made it worth doing back then, these days i wouldn't take the risks but i do not fear going in the cold water and having to swim unless there are man eating sharks, i was jet skiing off tenerife years ago and fell off and for half a second i was calm and then my brain reeled off every man eater known to frequent the area and i nearly leapt back onto the jetski and made sure i never came off again

Right i am off to read you other adventure, sounds intriguing, the last one looked deceptively calm even the bad weather pics

 

[GGTBod]

Good read, it's the little things like when you realised that trying to get back into the boat at your third attempt was tiring you out and the decision to swim it was a little one but from the sounds of it crucial in the conditions like if you had gotten in and another wave caught you and knocked you out the swim would have been that little bit more exhausting.

If you have any adventures planned i'd love the chance to tag along and learn directly, i only have inflatable canoes at the minute like but i am saving for a new vessel.

i've currently got that excited nervous combo growing day by day as it gets closer to my trip up north, it's a good sign i am aware of my self

 

[Grooveski]

What is an MP boat ?

Military Police. The reason you have to cross is to avoid the Trident loading bay. You can get away with sneaking under the piers at the oil depot at Finnart but I wouldn't try it at Coulport - grillings, cavity searches, etc may well ensue.

 

[GGTBod]

I thought it might mean Military Police but it seemed out of place although i did see your joke about the trident subs in your other adventure, cavity searches are definitely best avoided when possible, it would be a brave soldier who climbed in there after a day in my wetsuit paddling

 

[Grooveski]

Good read, it's the little things like when you realised that trying to get back into the boat at your third attempt was tiring you out and the decision to swim it was a little one but from the sounds of it crucial in the conditions like if you had gotten in and another wave caught you and knocked you out the swim would have been that little bit more exhausting.

If you have any adventures planned i'd love the chance to tag along and learn directly, i only have inflatable canoes at the minute like but i am saving for a new vessel.

i've currently got that excited nervous combo growing day by day as it gets closer to my trip up north, it's a good sign i am aware of my self

Partly that but also because the quality of the attempts had dropped off so quickly that I reckoned if I hadn't got it the first couple of times I'd probably not manage it at all.

Glad I didn't keep trying. Six years I paddled that wee boat and in dozens of attempts never once cleanly recovered it. Another couple of close-but-no-cigar moments and once where I was in and on my knees but the canoe was 80-odd percent swamped. May have been smiling but didn't count it as a successful recovery, was only really the barrels that were keeping it afloat.
Can slip into a grown-up canoe no bother, was just the Pack. Other folk would have a go too - instructors at the rescue practice sessions and the likes. Philip(one of the SotP river crew) came closest once with only about a half swamped canoe. Everyone agreed that it was tough. Got so I'd warn folk about it when they borrowed it.

Weighed on my mind sometimes on winter solo crossings where the water was so cold I'd maybe not have made it swimming to shore - would have been nice to have been in a canoe I could get back into.

When are you up? About due a big oak mackie bashing weekend myself, you've put me in the mood.