The Happy Little Dude Goes Climbing

Ben was having his breakfast and I started to say, 'well Ben, shall we.....'  when he interrupted me to say, 'Go Climbing!'  So we did!

        

Ben seemed to really enjoy the day. Although he didn't reach the top he did get pretty high up the wall.  I had to go up and get him down from the slab, but he could be lowered down the vertical walls... what fun we had in the cafe afterwards chatting to Ned and Charlotte (2 friendly staff members) and eating chips and chocolate... an odd mix I know!

Can't wait till the next trip!

Open Canoeing Accross Scotland pt 4

(Mark getting the canoes back down to the Middle Tummel)

The next day began with Mark, Tony and I lowering our boats to water level. Dave elected to portage after looking at the first rapid.  This section of the Tummel was the most technically demanding.  It would involve 2 portages, 2 rapids that we elected to line our boats down and some excellent white water paddling and poling. In fact, pretty much everything expedition 

canoeing has to offer - problem solving, riverside decisions, teamwork, and physically demanding work hauling expedition laiden boats.

                                                                   
(Mark and Tony lining down a                                                          (Tony seal launching at the Linn
rapid in the middle Tummel)                                                               of Tummel)

We eventually joined Dave at the bottom of this section of river where the Tummel widens out and becomes Loch Faskally near Pitlochry, and yet another dam to portage!

The Lower Tummel flows out of Pitlochry and confluences with the Tay at Ballanluig.  It's mainly 
grade I shingle rapids intersperced with salmon fishermen and long flatwater sections.  We decided
to push on down as far as we possibly could and managed to get to the Tay - Isla confluence at Isla 
Bridge (where Dave and I had left our cars).  We arrived at Isla Bridge at about 9pm after a mammoth days paddle.  The bivvy here was the worst on the trip unfortunately it was by a road, yet we were so tired that we slept the sleep of the righteous!

The next day Dave elected to drive home after running the shuttle for my car.  I left my car at 
Waulkmill Ferry.  We enjoyed a fabulous paddle on the Tay to Perth.  We enjoyed the paddle through Campsie Linn and Stanley, playing and surfing a little on the way.  In fact we were enjoying the paddle so much that Mark and I passed our get out by about 3 miles!  Tony lives near Perth so he paddled on as far as salt water. 

However, this gave Mark and I the opportunity to practice two of the as yet untried open canoeing techniques, upriver tracking and poling!


(Myself (L) and Mark at my car at last)

Open canoeing across Scotland pt3

(Mark at our shared bivvy on the banks of Loch Rannoch)

Loch Rannoch near Kinloch Rannoch and the surrounding area is dominated by the dome of Schiehallion (in Gaelic ‘The Fairy Hill of the Caledonians’). The loch has a silvian feel, with pine covered hills on either side. Day 3 saw us paddle the remainder of Loch Rannoch and portage the dam at Kinloch Rannoch.  From Loch Rannoch there was more water, we enjoyed the paddle along the river into Dunalister Water and the next Dam in the Rannoch - Tummel hydroelectric scheme.

(Tenboats Tony on a section of the upper Tummel)

The Dam at Dunalister Water indicates the start of the Upper Tummel, the river contained some great grade 2 - 3 paddling. Dave elected to portage along the road whilst Mark, Tenboats and I decided to paddle. The first rapid at the get in was a technical grade 3 indicating the type of paddling we could expect for the rest of the river. We negotiated the river in about 2.5 hours by paddling, lining and poling. We portaged one rapid which looked about grade 4. Eventually we met up with Dave at Tummel Bridge and began the paddle on Loch Tummel.

The wind was quite strong (F4 - 5), and almost directly down the loch. The sail down the loch was probably the most exhilerating sail we’d had and we covered the length of the loch in about 1.5 hours! We portaged the dam on the left and found a bivvy site high above the Middle Tummel.

more of our story later!