On Saturday I travelled from Sunart to my new base at Ord on Skye. Having suffered immediate withdrawal symptoms Sunday had to be a paddling day. Fortunately the weather was superb and the trip I had in mind was one not to be undertaken lightly by someone traveling solo - Loch Scavaig and the isle of Soay. My launch spot was Elgol, a delightful village with a superb tea room and small harbour.
I was very keen to get on the water as the conditions were just too good to be true and the scenery quite stunning. The ridge of the Black Cuillin lay before me, Gars-bheinn to the left leading away to Sgurr nan Gillean in the distance at 3/4 right. The little hill in the front right is the modestly high but still striking Sgurr na Stri.
To prove how keen I was to get paddling, please observe the day-glo yellow jacket still tied to the stern of my kayak from when it had been on my car roof rack! I beached at Claddach a' Ghlinne at the mouth of Glen Scaladal to remove this item of uncool paddling kit.
Then I noticed the view in the other direction - Rum. The island is about 18km away.
Having corrected my faux-pas I pressed on, passing the bothy and other buildings at Camasunary. The estate here used to be owned by Ian Anderson of Jethero Tull fame, before he sold up to the local community. The hill to the right is Bla Bheinn and the one at the back Marsco, both part of the Red Cuillin.
Eventually I entered Loch na Cuilce, hemmed in by the Cuillins and with many islets covered with seals, hundreds of them. The Junior Mountaineering Club of Scotland have a hut here, the Coruisk Memorial Hut. What a superb location. Landing around here is generally difficult as the rocks slope straight down in to the sea, but just in front of the hut there is a seaweed covered rocky beach. Time for lunch number one.
"It's one o'clock and time for lunch...." but there are no lawn mowers around here. Just a slightly exhilarated paddler, a seaweed strewn beach and a rather brilliant view of Loch Scavaig and Rum in the distance. Oh, and it can hardly be 11 o'clock. Unbeknown to me while I feasted on a first lunch of sandwiches, fruit cake and a very decent coffee whilst lying on my kayak, the first tourist boat of the day had disgorged its day trippers just around the corner, and many of them were now stood behind me taking photos of yours truly in the foreground of a rather decent view. Tourists eh?!
Just to my left the magnificently short Scavaig River, which must be all of 300 metres long, discharged its flow over the boiler plate slabs of rock in to the sea.
Follow the river upstream and you come upon Loch Coruisk which lies right in the heart of the Cuillin surrounded by 3,000 foot mountains and ridges. Truly stunning. I've long held an ambition to paddle this loch, but that wasn't going to happen today.
Having scoffed and viewed, it was time to set off again and I slowly worked my way around the numerous skerries, trying not to disturb the seals off the rocks and succeeding in the case of all bar one. The views in to the mountains were quite something.
Eventually I worked my way out of the inner confines of Loch na Cuilce and Loch Scavaig, around Rubh'a a' Gheodha Buidhe and across to Soay, picking up the constant west bound tidal flow in Soay Sound. Landing on Soay and looking back a new perspective of the view opened up.
Across the Sound, the slopes of Gars-bheinn sloped straight down to the sea at a near constant angle, from nearly 3,000 feet to zero in 1.5km!
As I was paddling solo, I again exercised caution over valour and declined the opportunity to circumnavigate Soay. Instead it was straight across 4km of open water back to Elgol. My reward for that decision? Two porpoises surfacing right in front of my kayak, so close I could see the dorsal fin structures. What a day! 
