On Saturday 2nd August 2008, 6 sea kayakers (Rob, Chris, Tony, Liz, Ailien and Sean) arrived at the North Uist outdoor center in the middle of nowhere, also known as the Outer Hebrides and Western Isles.
Thanks to Rob Scott, whose idea this was, and to all who participated with good humour, fun and patience.
Highlights (mine), in no particular order:
- Liz, who never gave up trying to find us dinner by launching her hooks in the depths of the salty water
- Getting a free night’s accommodation at Premier Inn Glasgow Hamilton, having complained about a smoke smelling room. They did not have an alternative room, so we got a free room. Better still, we smuggled Liz in and had 3 people in a twin room.
- Trip to St Kilda (last inhabited in 1930, now a research station and tourist destination) on a Rib with 8 sea kayaks strapped onto a frame
- Dolphins on the return from St Kilda
- That massive bird colony (can’t remember the name of those thousands of birds perched all over the place) that we diverted to on the way back from St Kilda to North Uist
- Getting off the Rib twice, and being on solid ground; having avoided decorating Ailien’s and Rob’s neck with the contents of my stomach
- Sheep/goat poo everywhere we went
- Seaweed all over the place
- Puffins, puffins and more puffins
- Lots of other birds
- Fish causing ripples on the water
- Bambi on some islands
- An excellent guide in the form of ex Vet and now outdoor Level 5 coach, Kate Duffus
- Seals (they watched us watching them)
- Ailien’s uncanny ability to spot wildlife way before anyone else
- Spectacular sunsets, and incredible (almost unbelievable) cloud formations
- Big(ish) skies, with nothing but space .. no buildings, streetlights or other signs of ‘civilisation’
- The most prime of prime camping spots – you could not design anything better, apart perhaps from the access points. Life is indeed a compromise!
- Some surfing on the way into safety from the roaring unsettled Minch
- All those who did the navigation of the 4 day paddle, which allowed me to ‘disengage’ and just ‘be’
- Very challenging paddling on the Minch, with 2.5 meter waves. We all got through unscatched, except for my capsize while drinking water in calm water
- A wonderful sense of the wilderness, the sense of space, the still and quietness of it all, the very many intense and distinct colours of the magnificent water
- Successfully, on Sunday 3rd August 2008, rolling with 6 people watching (having not attempted to roll since Jul 07 in [wikipedia:Sweden]), and then failing each time thereafter
- Being at one and connected with nature, a parallel universe of the most relaxing and invigorating kind
- The brilliance, balance and handling of my Werner paddles .. used for the first time in ‘extreme’ conditions
- Sunshine and dry weather while the rest of the UK was suffering from torrential rain; this made the 3 nights of wild camping most pleasurable, unique and something to remember for a while -- I was sort of not really much looking forward to camping in the wet and being chased by midges
- Absence of midges, but presence of ticks (for some)
- My 12 year, 169k mile Mercedes estate for making the 1350 mile return journey without skipping a beat, and also for providing emergency accommodation for 3 on the banks of Loch Lomond. Thanks to Chris and Liz for sharing the driving
- Roaring campfires, thanks to the presence of 2 pyromaniacs in the team
- Fresh mussels from the rocks, cooked in wine Liz had brought as a treat. Best, freshest mussels ever
- Scallop feast (Ailien, Liz, Chris and Sean) on the last day, having looked enviously at the ones caught by the divers. We had 1.5 kgs of scallops (excluding shells!) in 1 meal, despite the reservations of those who implicitly accused me of gluttony