Saturday, around midday and Ray and I leisurely packing our kayaks on the banks of Loch Lomond at Balmaha. Our friends Sebastien and Lawrence have already set off to prepare the course, John and Evelyne arrive and Tom rings from on the island. We take a slow paddle over to Inchcailloch and start unpacking our kayaks and putting up tents, drinking tea, wandering around the island, telling tall stories and picking sloe berries. Gradually over the next few hours more and more kayakers arrive. As the light fades the excitement mounts. We sort ourselves out into teams of three, Jonathon joins Ray and I. At last we are handed a sheet of paper with the grid references on and the clock starts. There are ten check points, a string with a weight at one end and a light stick and a float at the other. Written on the light stick is the name of a rock band, we have to collect the names and get back within two and a half hours.

We wear a light stick on our BA’s and I have another on my compass, we each have a headtorch but keep it switch off most of the time. The first two check points are quickly found one on Torrinch and one on Creinch followed by an open crossing on a compass bearing, 2km to Inchmoan. On the south side of inchmoan is a large bay, the check point is on the western headland enclosing the bay. We’d deliberately headed for the other side of the bay, so that if we’d strayed off bearing a few degrees either way the check point would still be on our left. Paddling along the shore line was an eerie experience as a misty layer was hiding the beach and making judging distance difficult. Eventually we hit – quite literarily – the other side of the bay. We can’t see the check point; it’s amazingly hard to see a light stick floating in water until your right on top of it. We search both side of the headland, no sign of it, we backtrack, it’s hidden behind a rock. Now we have a fix of out position. The next checkpoint is by the castle on Inchgalbraith, little more than an overgrown crannog less than 50m wide. We take our bearing and head off in line abreast. The headlights of cars on the A82 give away its position; we quickly find the light stick - the Rolling Stones.

Head north until we hit Inchavannach then follow its east side up into the narrows. Here we have a choice; there are check points on the west, east and north sides of Inchconnachan and another on the north side of Inchmoan. The points on Inchmoan and the east of Inchconnachan only have a low score so we decided to skip them. Entering the narrows is like a scene from “Apocalypse now” there are four huge fires; at first I thought it was a forest fire. Each fire is big enough to burn a whole coven of witches. There are many very K-lyed people around, one with a very powerful spotlight. We sprint through and away, back into the darkness.

Different coloured dots of light coming towards us as three groups collide at the check point on the north end of Inchconnachan.
“Who’s that?”
“Is that you Owen?”
“Have you found it yet?”
“It’s over here”.
“What’s it say?”
“The fix-ises”
“Who? Spell it”
“J.I.M.M.Y.S.H.A.N.D”
“Bugger off Ian”.
“Wasn’t he in Deep Purple?”
“Now that would be different”.
“It’s the Pixies”.
“Oh, who are they then?”

Bucinch, our next check point, over a kilometre away is clearly silhouetted. We paddle across, flat out. How can three people starting off from the same point and heading for the same place end so far apart in such a short time? Eventually we re-group and collect that point and the final one on Inchcruin. All we had to do now was get back to Inchcailloch. Inchfad with its off-layer island Ellanderroch was clear on the horizon. As we paddled past I said “don’t go through the inside channel it’s very shallow” so we went around and promptly all ran aground. We made it back to the campsite with only a small time penalty and came third; the best I ever done.

All Change.

I've not posted for a while, I've been quite busy. I'm working full time again - what a shock to the system - moving very large quantities of Scotch Whisky around the Blackgrange warehouse complex. This last month I've had my head under the bonnet of my car for longer than I've driven it. There was a fault with the engine management system, could I find it, could I hell, cost me £100 to put it on a diagnostic computer. Turned out to be a sensor on the camshaft, another £65 to replace that. Then it failed it's MOT, new front brake disc's and new brake pipes, hopefully it'll all be done by Tuesday. Anyway, it's not all been work and trouble, I have done a little paddling. A few weeks ago a group of us paddled the Balvaig river from Loch Voil to Loch Lubnaig; it was really quite a mellow trip.

Ray and daughter Jacqueline on the Balvaig.

I've also got a new toy, a second-hand Pyranha Ina Zone. I don't do much white water paddling these days, partially because I've not had a WW boat, so now I have. Also I can use it in the pool and as I've just posted of my application off for a Level one coaching course I can use it for coaching.

Forth open water swim.

The annual cross the Forth swimming race was held yesterday. The Fife and Lothian kayak clubs act as safety boats shadowing the swimmers. This year we had a little drama, the race couldn't start until 16.30 after a large ship and a tanker had past. The swimmers got half way across when another very large tanker came down the Forth at high speed, it caused chaos.
The swimmer at the start on Hawes peir.

Two of the swimmers didn't make it across before the tide turned and they were sweeped out under the bridge. Still they didn't want to give in even though they were going backwards. In the end we had to pull them out of the water.

Big Eck.

My friend Alex Knox better known as Big Eck came paddling with Ray and I six weeks ago on Loch Tay. Although he'd been sea kayaking for over fifteen years that was his first time in an open canoe. He was so taken with it that he went out and brought a second hand canoe, a We-no-nah Aurora. For his maiden voyage a group of us meet up on Loch Voil for a warm up paddle half way down the Loch and back, before descending the river Balvag, which flows out of Loch Voil down to Loch Lubnaig. As always with Eck there was a really good banter flying.

"Eck I thought only lesbians wore dungarees".

First try at solo paddling.

On the river teamed up with Mike.

Not quite got the steering in flowing water off pat yet.

White water weekend.

No photo's this time, I did take my camera but was a bit preoccupied to take any pictures. On saturday we put in on the River Tay at Birnam near Dunkeld and paddled down to Meikleour at the confluence of the river Isla. Eck teamed up with Steve Croft in his Prospector, Nicky and Tony Credland (Tenboats) were in a brand spanking new Mad River reflection, while I was solo in the Pack.

It had pored down all night but by the time we started it had stopped and it turned into a fine sunny day. With all the rain the river was high and fast, so we really whizzed along. This section is mostly flat water with just a few little rapids, nothing over grade 1. We stopped for a picnic by a Roman Fort not far from Caputh a really nice spot in the sun.

Nicky, Tony and Eck had to return home but Steve and I camped at Grandtully. Ray came up on sunday. The three of us put in at Kenmore on the banks of Loch Tay. This time I teamed up with Ray in his "Charles River" and Steve paddled solo. The first rapid is under "chinese bridge" by Taymouth castle, a grade 2. The river bends sharply right just after the bridge and we had to be careful to avoid being sweeped into the left bank. Between here and Aberfeldy there were a few easier smaller rapids. We past a whole family of Red-breasted Mergansers but by the time I'd got my camera out we'd spee'd past them; we also saw some Goosanders.

At Aberfeldy there was a nice grade 1 rapid and then for the last mile or so into Gradtully was a string of grade 2's all bouncy and splashy and fun, but never too frighting. We got off the river just above the grade 3 slalom course, in the high water that looked really meaty.

Fire!!!

I haven't been out paddling for a few weeks but I have been out hill walking. As I've been walking I've been collecting anything I find that may act as tinder for starting a fire with a firesteel; Ray Mears style. I've been coming back with pockets full of dry bracken, birch bark, grass, twiggs anything that looks like it will burn easily. So far I've only found three things that catch fire with any degree of reliability. I videod the result, the first one is down from a large thistle head. The second is cotton grass seed heads which was very easy to light but you can't always find cotton grass when you've run out of matches. The third works a treat.

So, the conclusion of this little experiment is to always have plenty of fuel and keep your matches in a dry place when you head into the great outdoors. Because all this bush craft milarky just isn't gonna save you.

Back on the Road again.

Not been out on the water this weekend as I've been finishing off my new hatch; I had a few problems with it but it's all done now. I'll leave it a few days to really set hard before taking it out on the water again.

On Friday I did a shift, the first days work for five months. I've also got myself another car. It's only an old banger but should keep me mobile for a bit. So if you see a red Astra with an orange Anas Acuta or a green Old Town Pack on top, give me a wave.
Kayak sorted, car sorted, hopefully work sorted so money coming in again, life's looking up after being down in the dumps for a while.