The Ardmore Islands are a chain of small islets to the east of Islay. These guys live there, and they’re very friendly.
Archive for July 2011
Ardmore Islands 2 comments
Islay office Leave a comment
We’re currently camped beside this beach on the Scottish island of Islay. Islay is famous for its whisky but also rather good for sea kayaking and surfing. Remember to cover your head with your hands if you wipe out whilst surfing, though, or you might wind up needing a few stitches…
Getting plenty of writing done, whenever the sun disappears behind the clouds. All good.
Moving Office 1 comment
Just a day or two left at work and we’re out of here…yes, the summer hols have arrived. We’ll be loading up our mobile office with kayaks and surfboards…but also with laptops and books. We have an awful lot of book writing to get done in the next six weeks, so we’re almost praying for bad weather, if that makes any sense…
For reasons too mundane to explain, we’ll be calling by South Wales, then we’ll be camped on the island of Islay for a few weeks, then on the island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides for a couple more, before heading south for a final week on the coast of Norfolk and Suffolk.
All good. Good good good.
SWSKM 2011 – Sunday’s paddling Leave a comment
Photo shamelessly stolen from Richard H, first link below…
Sunday’s weather allowed exploration of all of Purbeck coasts, and groups spread out across the whole area, enjoying some of the UK’s finest coastal scenery. However, like a total eejit, I left my camera at home, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. Or better still, take these guys’ words for it…
http://seakayak-porthsele.blogspot.com/2011/07/south-west-sea-kayaking-meet-2011-day-2.html
http://thedrownedfish.co.uk/2011/07/12/five-go-to-dorset/
SWSKM 2011 – the evening swim and BBQ Leave a comment
On the Saturday night, everyone trekked down to the beach at Studland bay, taking advantage of the stones laid out for public barbeques, and the (relatively) warm water…for those brave enough.
A great relaxing evening, and once it was all over, there was still the pub…
All good.
SWSKM 2011 – Saturday’s paddling Leave a comment
Saturday dawned to sunshine but strong winds, limiting paddling route choice somewhat. Hence, all groups restricted themselves to the more sheltered eastern side of Purbeck; Poole Harbour, Studland Bay and Old Harry Rocks.
Here are a few photos from my group’s trip…
South West Sea Kayaking Meet 2011 – Thanks! Leave a comment
The weekend seems to have gone smoothly and hopefully our guests had a good time. I’ll post up pictures of the paddling and socialising in the coming days, and I’ll work out how much money was raised for the respective charities.
Heather and I would like to say a BIG thank you to all the volunteers who made the weekend possible by helping to run trips…various Andys, Barbara, Chas, Dave, Eurion, various Grahams, Ian, Lizzie, Mark, Pete, Phil, various Richards, Simon and others…it’s a big ask for them to stick their necks out like this, I’m hugely grateful to them. Thanks also to the National Trust for allowing us to use the camping field.
SWSKM 2011 – bumf Leave a comment
Those who have attended the South West Sea Kayaking Meet before will be aware that paddlers are encouraged to be aware of what their group are doing, to participate in planning and to make sensible informed decisions, rather than just being ‘sheep’!
I’ve collated some outline maps, tide times, addresses and so forth – make use of them as suits you…download the bumf HERE.
Saturday’s weather is looking unsettled but (fingers crossed) not disasterous. We will almost certainly be launching from Middle Beach on Studland Bay, where there is some shelter from the SW wind. Sunday is looking great, all local trips should be possible and good to go.
See you soon…
Carn Gloose 2 comments
Also known as Ballowall Barrow, this elaborate multi-chambered tomb dates from the Bronze Age, or possibly earlier. It sits atop the cliffs overlooking the last setting of the sun in the far west of Cornwall, just south of Cape Cornwall.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/ballowall-barrow/history-and-research/
In other news…
If you’ve somehow missed joining info about the South West Sea Kayaking Meet, it is here…
http://southwestseakayaking.co.uk/2011/06/29/south-west-sea-kayaking-meet-2011-joining-instructions/
…and here…
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=528037799#!/event.php?eid=219332064746170
…and here…
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=77320&start=30
Nothing can go wrong.
Mobile Phone clear-out Leave a comment
It’s a beautiful sunny weekend, but I’m sprawled on the sofa under a blanket, trying to shake off a nasty bout of man flu. Mrs R is upstairs in bed trying to sleep off whatever the female version is called (whatever it is, it surely can’t be as bad). What a pair. This is pretty irritating and disappointing, as this weekend we were supposed to be down in Cornwall taking part in a triathlon and also going surfing.
To assuage my boredom, I’ve just cleared my mobile phone of photos, taken in random places over recent months. I’ve spared you drunken pub shots, but each here tells a small story…
This Catholic shrine is located beside the get-on to the Torrente Ayasse, a steep and frankly terrifying looking Italian river. We looked long and hard at this creek, whilst rain visibly brought the level up. For certain, if you were going to take on the section directly below this shrine, you would be needing to spend a fair amount of time beforehand praying at the shrine. We eventually decided to give the whole thing a miss, and ran away from the valley with our tails between our legs.
This is Pendeen Lighthouse in west Cornwall, late one evening back in February. We were staying in a Coastguard cottage beside the lighthouse for a week, pretending to get some work done. As offices go, it doesn’t get much better…
This is our most unusual wild camp in recent times. The river is of course the Thames, and we’re overlooked by the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf in central London. The location was an outdoor centre from which the London Kayakathon was to be based the following day. We’re not really city people, but as places to wake up go, you could certainly do worse…
The final pics are taken at Perranporth Youth Hostel in north Cornwall. I was there for a friend’s Stag Do. The choice of location was inspired; the Youth Hostel is a small building perched atop the cliffs overlooking the Perranporth beach. We enjoyed attempting to surf the waves by day, and then spent the evening chilling out with a beer in hand watching gannets dive. It’s also where H and I are meant to be surfing today, but no worries…the summer hols are coming soon.
All good.
Mutually Assured Destruction Leave a comment
Post-WWII, the development of atomic weapons made coastal fortifications obsolete. The ‘strategy’ of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) reduced the concept of defence to, surviving a Soviet nuclear onslaught just enough to be able to retaliate in kind. This ‘Cold War’ left its imprint on our coastal landscape. Enormous radar domes were constructed to detect incoming missiles, e.g. RAF Saxa Vord on the island of Unst in Shetland. The Needles Battery on the Isle of Wight became the unlikely location of a rocket testing station.
