Bothy Adventures

Saturday dawned grey, but dry. Arriving first (or so they thought) Bev and Geri set out to search Plockton for coffee, only to see a sea kayak being carried down to the beach. Closer inspection revealed Leigh under the kayak, girl-handling it over the seaweed like a pro. Take-away coffees in hand, the three of us set about the mammoth task of trying to fit all the kit and food and more kit into the kayaks. There was some re-packing and some re-jigging of which kit was actually going and which had been brought along just to be stored in the car. In the midst of this chaos, Misha and Andy (Misha’s pal, who lives on Skye) paddled into the bay. Finally, all kit was duly stowed, hatch covers battered down and boats slid (slowly) over the last bit of seaweed into the water. Only an hour or so late…

We paddled out into Loch Carron from Plockton, aiming to cross to the north shore, and very soon we were out of the shelter of the land and feeling the easterly wind  transecting our path. It was an enjoyable paddle over and we stopped for a short breather and quick drink/snack before continuing, our path now being with the wind behind, which instantly felt more challenging, even if there was some assistance. Lunch was at a some beach with a beautiful view, though Bev found getting off the beach once lunch was over much more challenging!!

By this time the wind had strengthened, but was still blowing behind us though and there were enough waves to require at least some of us to concentrate hard on our direction, to keep reminding ourselves to stay loose and have a mental run through of how to brace! (Not to mention mentally timing how long it might take other members of the group to reach us should the need arise!) Others, more relaxed in the conditions, played in the clapottis nearer the shoreline. The wind continued to strengthen to a good Force 5 with some sustained gusts of Force 6, so good progress could be made – even paddling backwards!

Turning the headland, Uags bothy could be clearly seen, nestled snugly into the hollow between the hills. It looked so inviting, and was so, so close. But there was a snag; the wind was now directly into our faces so gritted teeth and determined strokes were required to make any progress at all. At this point Geri graciously allowed Misha to practise his towing technique. There was some discussion on whether to call it a day or go and explore Loch Toscaig, a couple of kilometres along the coast. Buoyed having been able to make it into the bay, Bev set off with Misha and Leigh for Loch Toscaig, whilst Geri and Andy opted to check out the bothy and get the fire started.

Paddling back from Loch Toscaig was again into the wind, and first required a short stop to force feed Bev some of Leigh’s Haribos. The beach in front of the bothy was reached, just as the darkening clouds started to spit rain, so the boats were hurriedly unpacked and moved to higher ground. The bothy was a delight, with the fire burning cheerfully (although belching smoke) and had a lounge, “dining room” with clothes line for wet kit, and two upstairs bedrooms, beautifully lined in wood and even with carpet! Cat (Andy’s partner) and dog (canine pet) were there to greet us too. Sleeping bags were organised, before it was time to cook (or re-heat) the pasta, both normal and gluten-free varieties and Geri’s now-famous pasta sauce, followed by everything-free chocolate brownies and custard.

Suitably fed, Andy turned his attention to the fire and, with the help of Misha’s kayak repair kit and some cardboard, soon reduced the smoke-factor to more acceptable levels and had the fire going a-lick. Lubricated with wine and bottles of whisky the DCKC choir tuned up. It was probably fortunate that no other group had opted to use the bothy that night, but all known tunes (and some unknown) were tried from Misha’s song book, together with some others. As Leigh said later, that was definitely the best bit.

Sometime during the night the rain stopped thrashing down, but on waking, the wind still seemed brisk, though not the Force 8 that the group had solemnly promised Geri was the forecast the night before. In fact, the wind had dropped considerably, though was still strong enough to be felt. Breakfast over, we re-packed the boats and said goodbye to Cat, paddling out towards the Crowlin Islands, practising the use of transits and with Leigh leading. Despite Leigh’s map reading skills and Andy’s “local knowledge”, we gained the very sheltered channel between Eilean Mor and Eilean Meadhonach without incident. As we gently paddled through, seals popped up all around us. The tide being quite low, there was not quite enough water to paddle right through the southern end of the channel, but there was enough water to pull the laden boats through by hand.

From the Crowlin Islands, we set a course to the northern end of Longay, this time with Bev leading the group. The wind was nicely behind us and a much more friendly force 3 and dropping, though Geri found out the hard way that a malfunctioning skeg has a big impact on direction! We found a sheltered spot on the west side of Longay for lunch, with the sun breaking through the clouds and providing a welcome warmth.

With Geri’s skeg fixed, the next leg was to Scalpay, round the headland of Rubh an Torr Mhair,  and then across to Skye arriving at the beach at Camas na Sgianadin, with Misha’s van spotted from a kilometre out. We arrived, rather reluctantly, into the bay with the sun now shining in a clear blue sky.

A fantastic trip – singing and all – great company and a really enjoyable paddle (blisters and all). Thanks to everyone who came along and especially to Misha for organising (and for having a van that could do the shuttle in a single trip!)