Thursday 9 December 2010

Loch Ailort

photo: Angela Smith
We launched at one of the fish farm slipways in to a very calm Loch Ailort and headed west towards the open sea.
After passing a few islands and skerries in the confines of the hemmed in upper sea loch, the view opened out towards Eilean nan Gobhar, with Eigg and Rhum in the distance. 
Gobhar has an iron age fort on its southerley summit and has a large pebble beach that joins the northern to the southern half of the island. This shelves steeply in to the sea and provides for a fun, often wet, landing if you don't get it right.
Eigg came more in to the view as we headed down the northerly shore.
It was very quiet and Fiona enjoyed drifting whilst admiring the scenery.

This beautifully renovated and isolated cottage (no road) is presuambly someone's summer retreat.

Meanwhile Angela had driven down to Glenuig to walk over to Smirisary before collecting us at the Glenuig slipway.... and the wind had got up.

photo: Angela Smith
We'd been having a leisurely lunch on Gobhar in the shelter from the wind. After lunch we paddled around the north side of the island and hit a very strong south-westerley head on. It was a bit of heads down battle back to Glenuig and a smug-looking wife!