A Sibbing Sunset with the Gurnard

[The Gurnard]

After the exhilaration of a speedy super smooth crossing of the sound of Arisaig.. I felt it was time for a second breakfast and leg stretch, so landed in the beautiful sandy bay of Port nam Murrach



Before rounding the headland into Loch nan Ceall.



Whose entrance is guarded by the skerries of Arisaig. The skerries are reefs of rock..almost invisible at high tide.. but an absolute wonderland at low tide. IMHO.. it is the best part of all of Scotland to explore by boat at high tide and by foot at low tide. I had arrived at high tide so there was not too much to see.



Except seals.. that are everywhere you turn







Then at low tide.. everything looks completely different. I didn’t wait for low tide on this trip..but these are from the last time I visited at low tide.









When I took a tub of salt with me to collect some spoots for dinner. Never heard of spoots ?
If you like oysters.. you will like spoots ... here is a video someone put on U Tube of catching them..enjoy...

Tomorrow..I will post the last part of my adventure ..looking for lost French Gold in the islands of Loch nan Uamh... and a vitrified fortress ..even older than myself.

Thanks again for reading this far.

[beerbelly]

I like the sound of second breakfast as one breakfast never seems enough lol. them spoots are they razor clams and do you just cook them or do you have to purge them first . looks like ill be taking a couple of tubs of salt to clachtol do you just pour the salt anywhere on the wet sand or are you looking for something specific as to where they are

[kerny]

Nice pics again Gurnard and that Spoots video is amazing, I will have to give that a go. They look very similar to razor shells, do you cook them by boiling or over a bbq or both ? and what do they taste like ?

[beerbelly]

i love scallops but cant hold me breath long enough to catch any

[The Gurnard]

Hi Barrowboy thanks for looking in.

The only thing I smoke is mackerel..they taste great done that way

Its a few years since I was round at Borrodale on Loch Sunart..not far from Arisaig. I use to call at a fisherman’s cottage who advertise Fresh Langoustines on a sign ouside his home. In the porch was a fridge and a note saying how much a bag was..they were in the fridge and you helped yourself. He left a bowl full of change ..so you could pay the exact amount. I cant see that happening in the city.
The thing that visitors don’t realise ... in remote places .. strangers stand out a mile because there are few folks around. They also watch out for neighbours. Its like A1an notice me..and in turn.. I noticed four or five ribs heading over from the north end of Eigg towards Arisaig on Friday not long before noon.. wonder who they were :-D

Beerbelly and Kerny.. they are razor clams ..in the same way we call horse mussels clappy doos. Treat them as mussels for cooking too

Im not sure I saw signs of them at Clachtol..but you will see plenty shells if they are there. This is the sand and coral from Arisaig. You look for the holes they live in and put the salt down. Dont try digging for them..that big foot pulls them deeper than you can dig.

[Dhf]

Originally Posted by The Gurnard

Thanks for looking in guys.. ...its appreciated

And like all pub bores .... I would probably tell you about my adventure.... where there was an interest or not. But first I have to go help my daughter fit a new kitchen.

Hi JamesF... I have hardrives overflowing with photos and don’t print any..but it wasn’t the best sunset I have seen. This was.. two years ago... just up from Arisaig ... so not far from the same spot








I will tell about my journey shortly.. so stay on the same channel.. and remember .. emergency is channel 16

Absolutely fantastic photography and great reading of your adventure, Its hard choosing a favourite pic as there all so good,
the first set of pics do look very idyllic though, but must agree the sunset shots are stunning, looking forward to next edition.
Respectful regards.

[The Gurnard]

Many thanks Dhf..for some reason ..people seem to love sunset photographs.. but sunrise ones can be just as effective...for the early bird :-D

We just need to slow down a little to appreciate the beauty in the world we live in ..

[Barrowboy]

I was moored in Ardrossan about five years ago and got chatting to some guys on an old wooden trawler that was being used as a dive support vessel with half a dozen guys on board commercially diving for Razor Clams.

The clams were being airfreighted to the far east each evening via Glasgow and the boys claimed to be making a decent living....

Didn't appear to be much evidence of compliance with HSE regs and the boat certainly needed some tlc but they sure landed a heap of clams into the back of a smart reefer vehicle

[The Gurnard]

To finish off the report on my mini adventure, I left the skerries of Arisaig and went exploring the islands in Loch Nan Uamh.

It was at this loch ... in 1746 ... that Bonnie Prince Charlie left Scotland on the frigate L’Heureux, for safe refuge in France, after his defeat at the Battle of Culloden ... which was the last battle fought between the English and the Scots.

It is rumoured that Spanish gold which was to fund the Jacobite rebellion, was hidden in this area and has never been found. Needless to say ... I have searched all the islands in the hope of finding it ... as Im sure many before me have too... but I have not even found a lost £1 coin.

On this visit ... I didn’t land on the islands ... but drifted past with my fishing lures in the water. I didn’t even catch a fish ...never mind find a fortune.



Great care has to be taken when cruising in the area as there are many dangerous rocks submerged just below the surface. While I was passing this island at displacement speed, the fish finder was reading 30 foot of water. Suddenly it read one foot of water !! I looked over the side and narrowly missed a rock tower that rose straight from the depths below.



Then the sun came out and the wind dropped causing the sea to turn like a millpond.



So although I found no hidden gold ... I do treasure those moments.

All to soon I was back at the entrance to Loch Ailort, which is guarded by one of the largest islands in the area called Eilean nan Gobhar. (Goat Island) The tide was full out ... so I knew I had a few hours to kill before I could recover the boat and head for home so I landed on this island.



And clambered up to its highest point to admire the fine view into Loch Ailort ...



And look at the remains of the stone age vitrified fort that was built on this Island. A vitrified fort is one where huge fires were set alight around the walls to melt the stones together for greater strength. The heat required must have been tremendous. You can see part of the remains of the wall in this photograph.



This is a close up of the stones that melted and bonded the walls together.



All this history and fresh sea air ... tired me out ... so I then lay down on the grass and fell asleep until it was time to go home.

For anyone who may be interested in seeing where all these places are ... here is a small map showing the course I took. A total of 50 miles. Sorry there is not an “ X marks the spot” for the lost gold L



Many thanks for reading my rambled prose and looking at my photographs.

Thanks again to all who stopped by and commented, it was appreciated, and I hope you all have many great journeys and adventures in your own vessels..



Happy Boating... and best regards .. from The Gurnard

[Festinghouse]

that was brilliant, and im glad you included a map - i was going to ask!

[kerny]

What a great adventure looking forward to your next one.

[tony t]

Fantastic Post thats one of the best Threads on here really enjoyed following your adventure.
We should make more of an effort to visit your part of the world next year its stunning

[Brian]

That series of posts was absolutely wonderful.
May you have many more of them.......and please post them all on here.

[gennaro]

Excellent format to this thread Gurnard and has everyone looking in for the latest chapter

[Carl]

excellent thread,thankyou

[jambo]

Originally Posted by tony t

Fantastic Post thats one of the best Threads on here really enjoyed following your adventure.

We should make more of an effort to visit your part of the world next year its stunning

What Stirling!!?


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[SteveHall]

Thanks for putting all this up, its definitely added some more destinations to the list of places I want to visit.

Its also kept me entertained at work with nothing but 4 walls to stare at.

[tony t]

Originally Posted by jambo

What Stirling!!?


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Scotland is Scotland ain't it me old mucka or am I wrong


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[tony t]

Originally Posted by SteveHall

Thanks for putting all this up, its definitely added some more destinations to the list of places I want to visit.

Its also kept me entertained at work with nothing but 4 walls to stare at.

Sounds like a prison cell Steve


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[SteveHall]

It feels like it at times!