Scotland movies

Andy and Martin are “Double trouble”, from Alexey

Penty of folk on the Etive triple step, in Alexey’s “Scotland 1,” very mellow.

 Alexey’s “Scotland 2”:

Evidence of a Wookie swim, thanks Si:

Si again, Anna on right-angle fall:

 

 

More on Scotland

Excerpts of Andy R’s report:

The Arkaig:

Barring the safety team and perhaps 3 or 4 others, of a group of 25, everyone ran the drop on their head

Duo paddling:

going deeper under water than ever in your life,
and gaining access to this depth by way of a 7m waterfall is an experience

 

Culinary delights:

drinking marmite, cheese, curry power, sunflower oil, and sweet chilli sauce surprisingly good fun

 

Read the rest of Andy’s report at lucanoe.info

Photos by: Kim and Katie.

Scotland 08

Wednesday

So Scotland started in true paddling style with a few of us olds going for a curry in the Royal the night before we set off.  After the Royal a quick visit to Kelly’s to catch up with everyone else who had been having a curry ala Lloyd and watching previous year’s carnage.

Thursday

Scotland as always starts far too early to be sociable but needs must as they say. So I get up at 5.45 for breakfast before being picked up by Will at 6.30am or so I thought. 6am sees a txt off Will “pick you up at 6.10” and 5 mins later Will turns up. Barely enough time to get the surprise bacon rolls ready for the journey up.  Boats on car bags stuffed in and on the road we go.

Mid morning and we get a quick chuckle at the Kev mobile, with Daffers and Mary in it, as it goes flying past in the wrong lane of a contra flow and misses the turning into Glasgow. That coupled with a few stops at services and a stop to pick up Cath’s friend in the centre of Glasgow see’s us getting to the Orchy for 12.30 ish.

A quick scout of the river while waiting for the mini bus to turn up and everything is looking good. Then while running the shuttle the first mishap of the weekend happens and Chris gets rear ended turning off the main road. He was fine but his car is a little bit shorter then it was that morning.

So on to the purpose of the weekend and paddling.

 

The first drop on the Orchy claims it first victim Jen H (from Wigan). The newly re-name freshers corner due to the number of freshers it made swim, also claimed Daffers (its down as sheep trolley gorge in the guide what are sheep doing with trollys I ask?).

Then on to Easan Dubha to see Will face his nemesis from a few years back.

And face it he did, twice, cos he swam the first time, cheers Will made my day. First time Will got airborne sideways just above the lip of drop and then pencilled it. After a few roll attempts it looks like his boat came away from him and he swam. But not one to let things beat him there was a 2^nd attempt where he just bobbed over the drop and did it fine.

At this point the freshers get off and only a few people carry on to do the lower section. I run down Sore Tooth first and get nailed on the exit and swim. While floating down stream I scream at Rob whos walking down the side for a line only to get a blank response and the dreaded phrase “I don’t have one”.

Andy Squirrel, Wigan James and Lloyd all run Eas a’ Chathaidh. Lloyd apparently styled it and the other two got down ok I was too busy running the portage to watch.

A quick blast to the bottom and then off to the hut for dinner. Me and Ali D had a nice “romantic” dinner of sausage and mash in the mayhem of the hut with people falling over each other to cook.

Friday

Friday day brings the Arkiag a nice flat paddle in to the one drop and then a nice paddle out. So us olds were up early kitted up and running the shuttle when the van and bus turn up. This is when the 2^nd crash of the weekend happens (technically number 2 and 3) as the van and the bus drive into each other some how. NO major damage and everyone carry’s on with the task of paddling.

Ali D and Mary S both took a swim above the drop and managed to make it on to the island instead of swimming the drop. Heidun managed to get a roll going into the top of the rapid but swam the drop. Daffers ran the big drop fine, but with comedy timing and style managed to swim on the flat bit insight of the get out!!

Then the afternoon brings the Roy, from the hut (after a nice warm lunch) down to Spean Bridge. A few dodgy braces all round on the first little rapid but nothing major or head wetting. The weather was grim, hail, sleet and snow all took turns and sometime join forces with the driving wind to make you really cold.

Apart from the weather nothing happens until railway falls. Jen M (Wigan) swam on the river right drop about half way down. It looked rocky and painful but she was ok and stuck back in her boat promptly.

 

Mary managed to swim on the entry rapid and had to walk around and down to the bottom to get her gear back. But apart from a damp leg she said she was fine!

Saturday

Saturday see us with an 8.30(ish) start up to the upper Roy get in. At this point the 1inch of snow on the boats at the hut should have been a clue.

The snow covered hill glistening in the morning sun should have been another. Will driving very slowly up the get in road breaking trails through the snow in places should have been another big screaming clue to it being COLD!!! A few inchs of snow at the road of the get and most of us think it is too cold to go down to the river to inspect (This is after dressing for the river at the hut).

So Will is left to go down and inspect while everyone else messing about in the snow. With Anna snowballing Chris at point blank range for making her get up! After a fun 5mins in the snow Will returns to proclaim it is too low to run if it is this cold. So, on the drive back we pass the student parked up having a snowball fight and hit them with a drive by snow balling. Well it seemed rude not to. So back to the Arkaig we go so everyone that swam yesterday can face some demons. And on arriving at the Arkaig we were greeted with beautiful warm sunshine and no snow. IN short JenH swam and got out on the island above the drop and Heidrun gave me and Chris heart flutters by swimming through the right hand chute of the big drop. It wasn’t just the swimming that caused us the flutters it was the disappearing at the beginning of the drop and not reappearing until after the tow back at the bottom of the drop a good 50ft later that did it.

 

On wards to the Spean Gorge we go. The gorge passed by fairly uneventful, I had a numpty roll after a little drop. Dinny, Mike, Will and Cath all ran headbanger with Cath styling it and Will dinging his boat.

Wigan James ran constriction coming out upside down.

Apparently one of the Wigan Jens and Mary both had a swim on witch’s cauldron but were quickly stuck back in boats.

Then back at the Hut, one of many renditions of Happy Birthday was sung for Penny, but we still don’t know how old she is!!!

 

Saturday Night

The most Surreal night ever!! In the pub there was a live band of a guitar and an accordion. We shared the pub with a few locals and group of paddlers on the Student safety course. I enjoyed a couple of pints in the company of friends old and new alike.

Then things get interesting. Ash and Splinkly start moshing to the things like classic tunes like wildrover, postman pat, the balamoray theme tune and lots in-between. Then there was vigorous dancing, a conger line, some crowd surfing (yes crowd surfing), lots of tops being taken off, dancing on tables and 3 encores for the band.

By the end of the night everyone in the pub including the staff were up and dancing and having a great time.

Probably the best night ever seen in the Roybridge EVER!!!!!

 

Sunday

I got up early not having a lift to the river Findhorn, on the off chance of finding one. Saturday night Will had said he was going for a walk and since I have an aversion to walking I was left to fend for myself. Over breakfast Matt and Ali D became my best friends as Tim and Heidrun decided to go walking too. Off to the Findhorn we go. The snow on the hills and the snowplough on the way there should have indicated how cold it was.

My group was the last on the water and caught up the next group at “Simons” corner. After watching Dales almost impressive run (with no paddle strokes) and swim I had a go at my corner. To date River 2 Simon 2.Yes I swum needless to say pictures and videos were taken and no doubt they will appear shortly. A quick climb out and mountain goat impressions I was reunited with my boat. Thanks to Andy Squirrel (I think) for emptying it for me. I also learned that when being a gent helping a lass down the cliffs with her boat use a rope to lower it as catching it in the arm hurts!

A quick blast down the river to warm up and we over took another group at the last big rapid on carried on to the get out. It was too cold to hang about and a bit of weather, snow and hail at the get out proved that.

But it didn’t stop a little Robin crapping on my dry bag.

 

Martins group arrived eventually and news of his swim as captain was received! Captain’s swim beers a great tradition! Being a true gent he brought 2 cases of beers on his way back to the hut as captain’s swims beers for all those on the water!

 

Monday

We went to the Etive, via Mcdonald’s with a drive by soaking of Matt W on the way out. I would like to give a full account of the river but I didnt paddle it, I just did some shuttles and took lots of pictures of people running it.

Then Off home to bed!

 

The end of another cracking Scotland trip. Cheers Will.

Happy Easter

 

Have a super time xx h

Loonsey ice climbing on Ben Nevis – featured blog of the week

Amazing pictures of spider-glacier-girl: Read Lindsey’s blogpost:

Loonsey: Ben Nevis Feb 2008

Really great that your shoulder is getting better, great stuff!

Article on Ben Nevis, as well as Loonseys other adventures, can be found on takeittothebridge blog.

Photos: Jos Style, Andy Bottrill, Lindsey Kennedy

Scotland river levels

Hey scotland trip people, you need this site:

Where’s the water? River levels website

Announcement: Scotland 20th-24th March

As you know Scotland 20th – 24th March 2008 is happening it will cost you £50 for accomodation plus transport costs! I think this year due to wide variety of
interests attending that it will be better to travel in cars. a minibus can be sourced if required but it will be a self sufficient vehicle. The hut that
holds 28 in beds and i have 15 places left, however if you want to come when full camping is available.
If you want to come email me  or ring/text me to arrange securing YOUR place!!FRESHERS ARE WELCOME!!! Please feel free to attend as i can guarantee we can enhance your paddling exponentially – afterall, you are the club leaders of tomorrow and we need to push your boundaries!Get in touch

TICK TOCK timeis running out

Will

Original email

My Day (and my Shoulder)

by Aussie Dave 

I had an exciting day today… I skipped work and instead went to hospital to get an MRI scan.

It kicks off by getting a nice fluid injected into your shoulder…

The Doctor: “People say its just as you would imagine it to be if your shoulder was gently inflated”
Me: “I have never imagined my shoulder being gently inflated”

Followed by a whole lot of muffled (to appear more manly) grunts and swear words.

Review: It feels exactly like you would expect it to if someone jammed a needle deep inside you joints and started wiggling it around injecting stuff to inflate it… note a lack of the use of the word “gently.”

Immediately afterwards your shoulder feels like it could fall out, that’s because all the fluid they injected forces the joint out of the socket to show up the damage better… so pretty much it could fall out as you walk to the MRI scanner.

The MRI scanner is a tube they stick you in, that sits about 6inches away from your face and makes a really loud noise, but is otherwise painless.

Back to work for a bit, stuff starts to go wrong… sorry guys gotta another hospital appointment.

New Doctor: “Your Shoulder looks damaged I think we should operate, we can probably fit you in, in about 8 weeks”
Me: mental calculation… 8 weeks, early march, pre ski fest, pre Scotland oh shit… “and how long does it take to come back from this”
Doctor: “You can be at the gym in 6 weeks or so, but no contact sports or climbing for 6 months” (he didn’t mention paddling its all good)

Then, I go up to another floor to book the operation…

Me: “Can I get it after my Holidays in March”
Receptionist: “No Worries”

So in the end I am booked in for a shoulder operation on the 3rd of April. That will knock me out of paddling for 6 months, but probably mean I can paddle better at the end of it all.

Scotland is going to be my last boating for a while, so lets make it a big one.

(copied from lucc forum post)

Glasgow-to-Skye sea kayak. radio documentary tonight 14 Nov (or online)

Cheers Tim for pointing this out: bbc site, documentory about 1934 pioneer sea kayak expedition “the canoe boys.” 

Facing tidal races while “wearing singlets and kilts, and with only the inner tube of a car tyre for safety…” Very adventuresome stuff!

 Comment and narration by Simon Willis (adventure writer and journalist) and Cailean MacLeod (sea kayak expert coach).

Scotland DVD review (and preview)

Another fine offering from Down Under Productions, vies with previous DVDs. The only weakness being the dearth of paddleable rivers, so a bit less “photage” for Dave to play with. Nevertheless, he’s still managed to serve up several neat portions of waterfall action, carnage, and our own special Riverdance star:

The full DVD is available from Aussie Dave – by whom one blank DVD and one beer would be gratefully received – email your order.

More on the Scotland trip.

Another interesting Scotland.  It was quite dry for the most part but it was a few good days off from the constant study for finals (at last) with some good friends, and some of the younger newbies in the club (future good friends).   As someone has already said, we bagged a few rivers even though the levels generally were low. And things were, er, eventful…

Scotland was tops

It was a bit dry but on the whole we made the best of it. First day was a scrape down the etive, big falls over rocks landing in a little bit of water, just deep enough to stop your feet getting hurt. The last drop was shoulder poppingly fun, ruling me out from boating for the rest of the weekend. (but hopefully not for the alps)

Friday, I did a whole lot of walking and sleeping while everyone else made their way down the Arkaig, followed by the Spean Gorge, it appears there was enough water to cause some fresher based carnage. (Wish I was there to watch).

Saturday was a walking day, bit a of a lack of water, meant we split into 3 groups walkers, hardcore walkers, and mountain bikers. The mountain bikers discovered that most the paddlers in Fort William over Easter wanted to hire mountain bikes for the day… and turned into walkers number 3.

Sunday was a day of the Findhorn and of course… silly hats