Pabbay, Lewis

 After cycling back from Hamnavey we have lunch looking at the exciting seas at Mangurstadh.

Then drove over to the slipway at Valtos and paddled  through calmer waters to the island of Pabbay. What a difference it makes being protected from the swell!

The Hebrides are full of the remnants of sheilings and Black Houses. Homes of crofters were evicted  to make way for sheep.

At the rather special time of 9:30pm 29 May 2015... a rainbow appears over Bernera, as if to say "all is well"

Loch Hammnavay (Tamnabhaigh!)

We went up to the Uig area, hoping better weather would set in soon, but the next day, with strong westerlies forecast, we cycled down to Loch Hammavey, hoping the deep NS valley would give us shelter.


It didn't, but it was still a lovely spot.









 

We rigged our groundsheet as a basha, using our bikes as tent poles!

Stockinish

On the way to Tarbert, we camped on Stockinish Island, next to an "Ob" a tidal nearly-fully-enclosed loch. In this case it was used by local fishermen to store lobsters in, ready for the Xmas rush.

The land here is incredibly bleak.   Must have been heartbreaking for the families evicted in the 1850s from their fertile crofts on the West, just a few miles away.

The soil is too thin even to bury the dead, so they had to be carried over the Coffin road to the west coast 

Luskentyre

Arrived in Harris, with the weather forecast predicting Force 5 Westerlies.  This was to be a bit of a pattern, with the weather unusually cold and windy for the whole trip.  We wild camped on the lovely Luskentyre beach, looking over to Taransay, before paddling the sheltered bays of East Harris from Rodel back to Tarbert

Outer Hebrides

This year we're going to the Outer Hebrides with kayak and bikes.  We're starting by taking the ferry from Uig on Skye to Tarbert on Harris, planning to explore Harris and Lewis then work our way down and return from either from Lochboisdale on South Uist to Oban, or from Lochmaddy back to Skye

River Bure

Salhouse Broad (with some massive holiday cruiser boats carefully out of shot!)












Quiet Camping corner, just for us.  It won't be like this later in the summer though!

Contact details for the Camping Corner at Salhouse Broad: 01603 722775 07795145475
bhamilton@salhousebroad.org.uk

The camping corner is about 500m from the parking place, but they helpfully provide a trolley to transport your stuff.

River Bure, Norfolk

In preparation for this years scottish trip .. to the Outer Hebrides, we had a very pleasant paddle down the River Bure in the Norfolk Boards.    We started at  Buxton chatting with the kayaker-friendly owner of the field, finishing at the lovely wild camping corner on the privately owned Salhouse Broad