Another Saturday morning where I’m up at the crack of dawn to pack up all my paddling gear and get my boat sorted. A quick pit-stop at the petrol station – the car is fuelled and I have the morning coffee in hand.
As I’m driving through to Port Edgar Marina, South Queensferry I’m hit with rain…..howling winds…..heavier rain…..and then sleet. Then I think about Rab’s prediction of force 5-7 winds and that familiar thought pops into my head, why am I doing this again!?!?! When I arrive at Port Edgar the rain is off and Rab puts a smile all our faces by announcing the first task of the day is to have a brew and a warm breakfast. We then spent the next hour or so talking through the process for planning a trip and discussing the things we’d need to consider. I think we also challenged Rab to keep us all on point, it’s amazing how many things can spin off from talking about planning a trip!
As we wrapped up the planning section Rab nicely rounded it off by talking about tide times which brought us to the perfect launch time – High Water at Port Edgar. We also briefly discussed Neeps and Springs…….not neeps n tatties, I’ll say no more! Boats taken down to the slipway, and gear, on we discussed what was actually important kit to carry, where it’s best stored, and why. Turns out the muscles we all thought Rab was packing, was actually just a BA crammed full of emergency kit. It also gave Rab the opportunity to dress someone up with an extra layer and then rip it right back off them, James Bond style. Yip, the black bag demo was something special (ha ha).
On the water we covered things like wind direction and using the Lee of the land (sheltered area). Where to position yourself if leading groups, boat control in wind, staying together and looking out for each other, and how to narrowly avoid rocks. We also looked at timing to hold position near rocks, towing options, and the importance of staying within earshot and safe rescuing distance. Back on dry land we worked through some scenario situations and grabbed a wee tea and bun to talk through some tidal planning. One point of revelation was that trim neutral didn’t correlate to the colour of your trim!
Now another one of my (probably now famous learning lessons)……..a dry bag is not a substitute for a wind sock! Having nicely clipped it onto my kayak I arrived at Port Edgar only to find the rim of the dry bag nicely secured (the bag was ripped clean off). I now understand the flashing lights and why the car swiftly moved into the outside lane. Ooops.
Thanks again Rab for your company, top humour, and pearls of wisdom.
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