Day 19: Berneray to Husinish, Harris

Today has definitely been one of the best days of the expeditions - that's not saying much though because it's all been fantastic.

I was up at 7.30, woken by a flapping tarp which had come off my wooden peg. I had an easy start, packing my stuff away in my routine method at a relaxed pace, then went to the hostel to make breafast - porridge with jam. After saying goodbye to the travellers I had met, I carried on packing. I've got a happy routine system now: food and sleeping stuff in front; all emergency stuff including hot flask of coffee in the dat hatch, and everything else in the back hatch (clothes, electric stuff, paper/books.)

It was the windiest day so far today, at around F4/5 sometimes 6 east or southeast. I had the right maps out and planned the trip assuming 4kph into a F5, working with the tide in the Sound of Harris, and then it was off. It took a while to get across the Sound but once I got to the channel between Harris/Ensay the tide was taking me NW, great!

I rounded Toe Head and found some amazing caves where I had to make a precarious emergency toilet stop. The inlet with a beach I had planned to stop for lunch on unfortunately had boulders before the sand so I couldn't easily stop witout dragging my boat over rocks which I decided against, instead opting for a balancing act on submersed stones which resulted in my losing four slices of bread, and eating lasnight's pork off the bone and eating tonight's pudding - chocolate cake. Then the longest crossing so far, roughly 10Nm from Toe Head to Husinish, with Taransay on my right side. It was great paddling in a new place with new things to look at. I was seriously starting to wonder if I'd lost my passion for exploring and this totally refreshed my enthusiasm for it!

So I got to the N beach, set up camp - the best tarp set up yet, with a sand shelf for more height - phoned STV, helped people packing their boat for Scarp, cooked on MSR because there was no firewood. Now I'm lying here under the tarp, lovely night again. Expedition life is harder than a 'conventional' life but simpler.

Food today: breakfast - 2 portions of porridge with jam; lunch - pork + chocolate cake; potatoes and dried ham; 2 oranges from the Scarp people (David + Lesley), and a mug of coffee.

Day 2: Round Berneray and Mingulay (4hrs, 12.5Nm)

In one word, today was fantastic, totally making up for the difficulties of yesterday. In a few more words…I woke up this morning, the mist had come in, everything was damp, no chance of getting a fire going even with my emergency firewood imported from Barra. So again, I had to use the emergency stove! I was so hungry and couldn’t wait for porridge, so I had the rest of last night’s pork and potato stew and some of tonight’s pudding - home made carrot cake.

This has made me decide that I’m going to build the level of challenge slowly. It would be very hard for me to start the expedition, having honed all the skills that I will need, so I’m now looking on the trip as a progression of skills and an experiment as to what is actually possible.

I planned my trip round Berneray and Mingulay to work with the tide, first working out the HW/LW times, then working out tidal stream times, then planning a trip to work with the tides. I then did a specific risk assessment, identifying hazards on the planned trip, and identifying escape routes if anything happened (there weren’t many!). I was too tired to write up a journal entry at the time, but I’m writing it now, at home on the computer. Instead, this time, I’ll put a few photos in.

Morning sun shining through mist.

South coast of Berneray.

Cliffs and natural arch, W coast of Mingulay.

Grey seal pups.

There is something beautiful about the innocence of a place like this, not regularly visited or inhabited by humans, it felt like a new level of exposure and solitude. I kind of felt sad to be disturbing the seals in the environment they usually have to themselves. A couple of motor boats visited, I guess they were wildlife spotting, but when the boats came round the point, they scared a lot of the seals away. This somehow made me feel privileged that they were letting me get so close!

So reflecting on the first day, am I going to make any changes? Yes. Kit I’m dropping off at home will be: the 5 litre water container, in favour of a 1-litre SIGG bottle and the bladder in my BA, from now on I’ll just rely on river water; wetsuit - if I have to swim and dive for razor fish/clams, I’ll do it in shorts; on land footwear - don’t have space, sandals and wellies are enough. Kit forgotten in a rush/to add: trowel and toilet paper (the latter for emergency fire lighting).

Today’s food: breakfast - last night’s pork/potato stew; lunch - bread/jam/dried pork; dinner - dried pork and potato stew; pudding - carrot cake.