Ramsey Circumnavigation - West Wales Day 2

It's Bank Holiday Monday, and a wonderful hot sunny day is promised. While we wait for the tides to come into alignment with out intended circumnavigation of Ramsey Island, Claire, Ian and I head off to the Blue Lagoon at Abereiddu. Claire and Ian swim around to the abandoned quarry, while I take the easy option and paddle around.

Ian takes to the water in the Blue Lagoon

The lagoon isn't quite the sun trap we had hoped for, with still quite a breeze blowing in.
This young chap seems to have found a little sheltered spot though.

Bank Holiday's are made for for lazing in the sunshine!

Returning to Porthsele to launch, Richard takes us around Saint John's point towards Ramsey Sound. The north going flow causes a big back eddy that starts near St Justinin, which we utilize to take us down to the southern most tip of the mainland. It is quite strange to be paddling easily with the back eddy going south and seeing the main flow moving rapidly north just a few feet away from you. Water flow is seriously on a grand scale here as the water flowing in from the Atlantic is constricted through the Sound as it begins filling St Georges Channel between Wales and Ireland.

At Pen Dal-aderyn we begin a ferry glide across the sound, losing ground rapidly and watching The Bitches getting closer as if sucking us in for a good tossing over. We make it of course over to the east side of Ramsey without incident.

Looking back across Ramsey Sound to the mainland

Here we explore the caves and arches and get followed by numerous seals. 

Approaching Ynys Cantwr and the Midland gap - this is our point of no return, as once entering the gap there there is no returning and we are committed to going up around the island's west coast. 

Continuing up along the west coast we get to explore various caves, cracks and play with a little bit of the swell.

South Bishop lighthouse - though not today's destination . . .

South Bishop lighthouse appears below the clouds

Looking out westward toward Grassholm on the horizon

It really was quite a mellow evenings paddle. The tide now taking us fairly swiftly north.

Rounding the northern tip of the island we continue paddling now against the tide using the back eddy to take us some way into the sound. This gained ground we've "banked" in order to lose as we cross over the main flow, heading back to the mainland.

Thanks to Richard for the "Introduction to Ramsey Sound Back Eddies - easy conveyor belt seakayaking".

Circumnavigation of Ramsey Island

Chick'n Bitchin' - West Wales Day 1

Long weekend paddling pass - rare has hens teeth and rocking horse dung - but I GOT ONE. The tides are on BIG springs so there should be fun to be had somewhere.

All the usual suspects seem tied up doing other stuff, but Richard is "Down West" and I hope to catch up with Claire for a paddle too.

As the weather is blowing quite a hoolie I'm in no mad rush to make it down to West Wales, so take it easy and arrive late Friday afternoon. Richard and I go for an evening surf just south of Whitesands and are treated with a fantastic sunset. Let's hope the wind dies down for some decent sea paddling.

Sunset over St Brides Bay towards St David's- after a good surf, does it get any better than this?

The next morning isn't so brilliant initially with respect to wind, but having taken a walk along the cliff top and looked down onto Ramsey Sound it's looking a bit sheltered from the wind, so we decide on a little jaunt to the Bitches. The sun however is out, lovely.

Leaving Porthsele beach we head out towards St David's head crossing Whitesands beach - which seems absolutely packed with holiday makers.

Cliff top walkers enjoying the Bank Holiday sunshine near Porthsele

Packed out Whitesands

From Saint David's Head we drop down with the tide to the little rocky Gwahan on our way to Bae Ogof Hen at the northern tip of Ramsey Island.

Approaching Bae Ogof Hen (Old Cave Bay) - North Ramsey Island

The tide in the sound has just started moving north so we use the back eddy on the eastern Ramsey shore to take us towards The Bitches.

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 We pass through the cave that burrows through one of the outcrops approaching Aberfelin.

At The Bitches the wave is beginning to build and I watch as Richard has a great time playing .

Richard with a big smile on his face

This is only the beginning of the build up of the wave, and for some odd reason I just don't fancy jumping into it. I just sit back and watch for a while and chicken out before going to play on the waves that emerge from the cave that is under the cliff near the Ramsey jetty.

Ramsey Sound building up nicely

We cross into the main flow of the tide which will take us up north through the sound. Massive, I mean, massive, boils are here 50 feet wide at least and confused water (with dragons and sea beasts and everything living in the submerged caves below), I'm not concentrating and lack of experience crossing one of these massive (did I say that before) eddy lines I err capsize rather embarrassingly. Glad to say my roll was fine.

We speed along at some ridiculous 10 knots passing Horse Rock before sweeping up to Carreg Gafeiliog to play on some of the rather big waves that are forming there.

We return to Pothsele glad to have been able to get out on the water.

Thanks to Richard for my induction to the Bitches. Hope to get back sometime to play on it properly :)

South West Sea Kayaking Meet 2011 - Day 2

You have to laugh really.

Partaking, whole heartedly, in the socialising facilities at the Greyhound ale house amongst like minded paddling folk, Richard and I have the intention fixed in your mind of doing a very sedate paddle the next morning, probably after second breakfast.

We wake up in the morning to the reality of being asked to paddle most of the Purbeck coastline.

How could we refuse?, it's after all what we came down here for. We all assemble for the morning briefing, ours is a trip from Swanage Bay heading west along the coast to Durdle Door to return and end up at Kimmeridge Bay.

After the briefing no one seems keen to sign up (not sure why), but at the last minute Huw, from Pembrokeshire steps up. Our very own Welsh armada rapidly assembles gear and heads off to Swanage tout de suite to take on the South West.

Swanage Bay

One slip and there's venison for tea

Approaching Durlston Head we catch a glimpse of deer grazing on the very steep slopes of Durlston Country Park.  As we head around the coastline takes on a more rugged character.

Huw passes by the diving fisher birds - shags at a punt

I can never remember the difference between a shag and a cormorant (queue crude joke), but there were plenty of them about. Along the coast between Durlson Head and Anvil Point we were treated to puffins and roosting guillemots.

Small floatiila of Puffins

Huw is dwarfed by the cliffs

Anvil Point lighthouse

Grand scape - sure feel quite small

The cliffs take on a remarkable brick like patterning. Rock was quarried extensively around these parts in the 18th and 19th centuries and as far back as Roman times.

Weird troglodyte homes appear to be left behind from some distant history.

Approaching Kimmeridge Ledges we hear over the VHF that the Little Spirit - 37 foot yacht - had run aground. Some lat and long co-ordinates were spouted off. I didn't take much notice of it . Then Kimmeridge Ledges was mentioned and my ears pricked up and we all started to look around. We could see a yacht a few 100 yards away with people waving their arms at a fairly large speed boat that was making it's way towards them. We responded to the coast guard that we may be able to help and made our way over.

As we approached the yacht could be heard bouncing up and down on a rock ledge and a line had been thrown from the yacht to the motor cruiser, and missed. A swimmer had been dropped in to pick up the line for it to be passed to the cruiser. The towline failed and as the cruiser went to collect the swimmer I retrieved the tow line and prepared to pass it back to cruiser while the yacht crew joined the other end to a longer line attached to the top of their mast.

By this time the coastguard helicopter had started to hover over us and was standing by.

Coastguard keeping a watchful eye on proceedings

The cruiser then pulled the yacht over almost to 45 degrees, quite impressive, while the helm motored the yacht off the rocks with much noise.
That sorted out the problem and the drama was over. The boat hadn't suffered any damage and all 6 crew were fine - we packed our supermen T-shirts back in the hatches and went back to the paddling.

We headed into Kimmerage Bay for a quick lunch stop. Kimmerage has an oil field below it, and in the bay there is a "nodding donkey" oil pump similar to those that you might associate with in Texas. It's been pumping oil continually since 1961, and as such is the oldest working pump in the UK. Oil production has now dropped from 350 to only 65 barrels a day.

By now the wind had picked up quite a bit and we are in for an exciting and hard paddle as the sea gets quite confused by Warbarrow and towards Lulworth.

Durdle Door

Finaly we make it to Durdle Door and hang around for a few pictures before turning tail back to Kimmeridge.

Spectacular Glad Cliff near Worbarrow

We head out away from the cliff bases to pick up some of the fair tide and get a different perspective of the magnificent cliffs. We arrive again at Kimmeridge to end a very satisfactory days paddling.

This is a trip to make you feel small and insignificant.

Quenching our thirst overlooking Corfe Castle before the retreat home to Wales

We return to have some grub and drinks overlooking Corfe Castle, and raise a glass to sadly the last SWSKM.

Richard does the trip far more justice with his photos of the trip and some of the yacht being hauled over.

Our "relaxed morning" trip. Well worth the effort!

South West Sea Kayaking Meet 2011 - Day 1

The informal South West Sea Kayaking Meet (SWSKM) that spawned from the original launch of Mark Rainsley’s South West Sea Kayaking Guide Book back in 2008 has become a very good annual excuse to come and meet like minded paddlers and explore some of the great coastline that the south west coastline has to offer.

It has been held, up 'till now, over in Dorset, at it’s southern most tip at Prawle Point. Evening entertainment in the form of talks by kayakers has been hosted in The Pigs Nose fueled allegedly by jars of ale. It's always been a great weekend.

This year it’s been centered at Corfe Castle on the Isle of Purbeck. A bit misleading to call it an island, as it is surrounded  by water only on three sides. You get the impression though, when you get down here, that it may as well be completely cut off as it is so wonderfully unspoilt. A real hidden gem.

Mark’s book has been hugely successful (now in it’s second edition) and no doubt has inspired many a trip to the sticky out bit of the southern west of the British Isles. Flicking through the latest version I realise that bit by bit over the last few years I seem to have covered quite a portion of it by now. The Purbeck coastline has some of the finest, dramatic, day paddling coastline with the opportunity to put in a few wild camps, making it a fine long weekend destination for the discerning paddler

Richard and I arrive on a Friday evening and set up camp early with the intention of finding a flat cow pat free area before going out for an early evening paddle. 

Looking out from the Purbeck Hills down on to Saint Alben's Head overfalls

  With the winds blowing fairly high the paddling option open to us is probably the same paddle on the agenda for tomorrow with the promise of less wind, so we unanimously decided to visit the Greyhound Public House situated by the historic walls of Corfe Castle, to test it’s suitability as a venue for our weekend’s patronage. Hard decision I know.

After a few swift pints of Doom Bar on tap, we decided it would only be fair to venture into another hostelry for comparison. The Fox – a nice cwtchy kind of place, similar to front-room shebeens found in Wales that sprung up after the Sunday Closing (Wales) Act 1881 was passed, that banned the sale of alcohol in Welsh pubs on the Sabbath. These shebeens were literally someone’s front room where one could purchase a tankard of illicit ale.

My good friend Addlestones Cider was here, but I have to admit, it seems to taste much better closer to its origin on the north coast. My conclusion is, that like real Guinness, it doesn’t travel well.

We returned to the Greyhound to chase more Doom Bar.

Setting the scene

Saturday morning dawned and, under the shadow of the 1000 year old castle, we awake to a field of congregated kayakers.

Good Morning Campers - get up it's briefing time

After a short briefing we head on down to Studland Bay with the intention of paddling out towards Handfast Point to see Old Harry, and The Pinnacles.

On the beach at Studland looking accross to Handfast Point

Approaching Old Harry

Old Harry and his wife

 With the tide low, we paddle right out and around the point, and come face to face with the magnificent view of The Pinnacles. Made even more striking with the sun shining down on them.

Stunning bit of coastline! 

Sticking our noses around Ballard Point, the wind is a bit stiff, we turn tail and head back to Studland, stopping for lunch on one of the white chalk stoned beaches.

A few of the group call it a day and stop off for ice cream, tea and a lounge in the sunshine, while the rest of us head out towards a windy Poole harbor.

The chain ferry that is pulled across the harbor mouth using 2 sets of chains

Turning tail here, we go full steam back to Studland. 

The evening is topped off with a BBQ on the beach followed by a retreat to the Greyhound for "cold squash and ginger beer", not!

Richard took some cracking picks of the trip, you can see them on his blog. 

The days trip, short but very sweet