Paul and Ashley planned a morning paddling with me on their NC500 holiday. We had a good time going around the coastline spotting wildlife under the water. Spiny and common starfish, moon and lion’s mane jellyfish, urchins and anemones.
Sue was in the area with her mountaineering club but wanted to get out on the water too. She has her own boat but coming out with me meant she got to try a different boat, learn some skills from me and of course benefit from my local knowledge about the best places to go. We spent plenty of time gazing through the crystal clear water at the amazing habitat below.
These three from my mountain rescue team decided to come out kayaking with me for a change from being on the hill with me. We had a good time in the sunshine looking at the hills from the calm water rather than being out in them.
I’ve been bumping into Tanya, David, Caz and Robbie for years when they’re up here on their holidays but we’d never managed to get out in boats till now. They made up for it this holiday by paddling twice with me, asking to book another trip as soon as they’d got off the water the first time.
Twice a year we have the warships around us as the Joint Warrior exercises happen, today we had a few big boats go past us as we paddled around the coast. We also had plenty of bird life pass by including a huge sea eagle who was sat watching us before soaring up into the sky.
Richard, Vivienne, Susannah, Caroline and Andrew met me for an afternoon of kayaking and canoeing in the sunshine. We used a combination of sit on top kayaks, young person sized kayaks and a canoe to suit everyone. Everyone picked up the skills quickly, enabling us to have a good session playing games and exploring the area.
Allison and Will joined me for another kayak session. They keep coming back for more – I’m surprised they’ve not got bored of my jokes yet! It’s always good to see up here enjoying the water.
This afternoon Fiona, George, Max, Lei and Isla joined me for some fun splashing about in boats. We had a good time exploring the rocky coastline and learning how to paddle the boats well.
David, Janet, Josh and Ella joined me on a sunny afternoon at Gairloch harbour. We headed out in canoes to learn some paddling strokes, see some wildlife and have some fun. It was a very low tide which meant we were able to spot lots of sea urchins easily as we paddled past the rocky coastline.
Richard and Claire met me in the rain, it didn’t deter them and we headed off onto the water. Shortly after getting out in the boats the rain stopped and the wind diapered, giving us perfect paddling conditions. The one thing that they wanted to see on our paddle was a seal – the seals didn’t disappoint and we had them swimming close to our boats as we left the harbour area.
Alison joined me for an afternoon paddle before coming to the normal climbing wall session in the evening. It was a nice calm afternoon on the water, with a nice bit of wildlife around as we paddled along the craggy shoreline.
I met Irene and Alan again for another session, this time from the jetty in Laide. After the great seal experience we had last week I warned them that our wildlife sightings might not meet their expectations, but we had another great wildlife show today. Along with the seals swimming around us we also followed an otter along the coastline – he posed on a rock whilst eating a fish, then he swam towards us to get a good look at us before he made his way along the coast in front of our boats. On our return journey a peregrine put on a display by swooping down and catching a pigeon for his tea. The paddling wasn’t bad either.
Nibby, Ken and Sue luckily got a lovely calm morning on the water – great for us but maybe not such a good start for the Gairloch boat club sailing races that were due to be starting later on in the day. As we paddled around we saw thousands of little fish schooling and jumping out of the water.
Today we had some very friendly seals, looked like they were trying to eskimo kiss the kayaks!
Irene and Alan met me on a midgy afternoon ready for a paddle. We had some very inquisitive seals coming right up to our boats, always a great experience.
Ashley and Beth were on their tour around the #NC500 and they stopped off for a look at the route from the water’s edge. We paddled from Gairloch harbour, exploring the rugged coastline as we went around, bumping into a number of large jelly fish on the way.
Oliver, Sonja, Rafaella, Felix and Oskar joined me in Mellon Charles for a slightly breezy session. We used the wind to our advantage and headed around the coastline with it, using sheltered spots to learn some skills and play some games. Oskar, who joined me in my boat, decided that I had such a great job he’s going to become a canoe instructor when he’s older too.
Sophie and Simeon met me for an afternoon paddle as part of their #NC500 adventure. They chose the sea kayaks rather than the more stable sit on top kayaks, Simeon might have regretted this later when he inadvertently took a dip.