What to expect on a guided canoeing day trip

A lot of people who come on a day trip with us have never been canoeing before. They're naturally a bit nervous and don't really know what to expect. I've already raved about a wonderful birthday spent canoeing on Loch Moidart and to further help alleviate any doubts or fears we wanted to share more about a "typical" day with you.

We get on the water at about 9.30 which means leaving home between 8.30 and 9. Sometimes the weather lets us down and we set off in a dreary drizzle but more often than not this has lifted by the time we're on the water!

Our groups sizes are small with a maximum number of 6 people. We either meet at the loch or river that we're paddling that day or we can pick up clients who are staying in Fort William. Once at the water we kit up - we always wear buoyancy aids and we supply waterproof trousers and jackets too if needed.

Chris gives a short introduction before getting into the canoes.


We normally have 2 people in each boat - our open Canadian canoes can hold 2 adults plus one or two children depending on their ages. Sometimes people want to paddle solo which is perfectly fine as long as they have some experience.

Once on the water it's time for a gentle paddle while everyone gets used to the boats and to being out on the water. The scenery is spectacular and there's always wildlife so you might find that the paddling takes care of itself while you're busy being distracted by your surroundings. The group stays pretty close together and Chris is always on hand for some paddling tips or tuition (though this is not obligatory by any means if you'd just prefer to take it at your own pace).

The day canoeing is a mix of:

- paddling

- rafting boats together to paddle in a group: ideal if the wind picks up or if younger/less experienced canoeists are getting tired

-rest breaks on the water; pulling in to sheltered spots

-sailing: a lot of fun and covers ground very quickly!

- and even some poling at times!

Lunch is on a beach or at a wooded area. Chris lights the Kelly Kettle so everyone can have a hot cup of tea and I normally try to bake cookies for the trips because spending a day canoeing is definitely a great excuse for treats!

Back on the water we'll try to spot some seals or otters before heading back towards home.

Our day trips finish at about 3.30 and then it's just a short drive back to where you're staying for a nice hot shower!

The folk who start the day pretty worried and unwilling to get into a canoe (perhaps their children or partner really want to take part and they've been reluctantly talked into it) are always delighted with the experience and surprised at how easy canoeing was. I don't want to put words in Chris's mouth but I think watching this transformation is one of the things he loves most about guiding trips.

If you'd like to read more, one of our favourite trips is on the River Lochy and this hopefully captures some of the fun of that trip with easy rapids to canoe and swim!

http://canoeingscotland.blogspot.com/2013/09/canoeing-river-lochy.html

Canoeing the Great Glen: Best tips on what to bring

Back in June we rented a canoe to two guys to paddle the Great Glen Canoe Trail.

Nothing unusual about this except that they had a lot of kit with them - a lot! Like Mary Poppins' bag, their car seemed to produce an endless supply of bags, food and BBQs! They even had two sturdy folding garden chairs that might or might not be making the trip down the Great Glen with them.

Start of Great Glen Canoe Trail in Banavie

Now I don't think the guys will mind me telling this story - we all laughed about the quantity of kit and the garden chairs at the time. And it helps to illustrate my point that canoes are spacious boats with plenty of space for all the kit you might want to bring.

However that being said, just because there is lots of room it doesn't mean it all has to be used. Chris has been telling me this for years in relation to hand bags, canoes and suitcases but it's only with boats that I actually agree with him! A canoe moves easier and gathers momentum quicker if it's a bit lighter. This is a definite advantage for longer trips however if you simply can't live without your creature comforts then by all means pack away!

Either way here's what we suggest is necessary to canoe the great glen.

The Essential Canoe Kit

All the essential canoe kit is included when you hire a canoe from us so no need to factor this into your packing. We provide you with buoyancy aids, paddles, maps, first aid kit, flares, an emergency mobile phone, dry bags, portage bags, portage trolley and waterproof clothing.

Camping and cooking kit can also be rented from us but we find most people have their own kit if they're taking on the Great Glen.

Here are just a few pointers; these may seem obvious to experienced wild campers so feel free to skip this part....

- A good, rain proof tent is important for camping in Scotland. There's nothing worse than waking up to slightly damp (or drenched) bedding after a night of heavy rain. Always make sure to check your kit out before your trip if you haven't used it in a while.

Checking kit for a Great Glen Trip

- Be sure to close your dry bags properly - get all the air out and then do at least three good folds before clipping. If you're new to dry bags, we can show you before you set off from Fort William.

- A hand shovel is a very handy piece of kit! You'll need to include this as part of your toilet bag, as well as toilet paper, a lighter and hand sanitiser. If you're not sure of the order of using these items, just ask!

- Open fire v cooker: Everyone loves cooking over an open fire but sometimes heavy rain or a late finish make a fire impossible. It's important to always bring a back up with you even if you're a seasoned camper. You don't want to risk heading to bed hungry!

Evening time on Loch Lochy

Clothing for Canoeing and Camping

We like to pack light and for a five day trip we'd bring two pairs of walking trousers, two or three t-shirts and 2 fleeces. Try not to bring anything cotton as once it gets wet it's very difficult to dry it. We'd wear one set when canoeing  and keep the rest for camp. It might not sound like a lot of kit but it actually gives you a great sense of freedom not having any change-of-clothes option.

To show you how light we usually pack - this was my bag for a week's sailing and camping in the Bahamas and I actually conceded in the end that I had over-packed! In fairness though, these bags pack down really small once all the air is gone and there wasn't as much need for warm clothes....

Packing light!

It's important to be comfortable and confident with your kit so by all means bring more clothes if you'd like. There is definitely enough room in the canoe for them! Also the Great Glen canoe trail does have hot showers all along the route so with that in mind you may want to pack a bit more.... The showers and toilets can be accessed with a key you can get from the Canal Office in Banavie. We can arrange this for you ahead of time if you'd like.

Last but definitely not least are waterproof trousers and jackets which will keep you dry and protect you from the wind so they'll keep you warm too! We'd also bring two pairs of trainers - a pair for when you're canoeing which you don't mind getting wet and a dry pair for camp.

Fueling yourself for the canoe trip

While we may save space with our clothes we definitely make up for it with the amount of food we bring! It's fair to say that we think eating well while living outdoors is a must and we make sure that we are never, ever hungry.

Fort William has a big Morrisons supermarket in the centre of town, right beside the train and bus station and is a handy place to stock up. There are not a lot of places to refuel along the way until you get to Fort Augustus (about half way through the trip). Therefore we recommend that you try to bring all the food you will need with you on Day 1 rather than relying on reaching the shops before they shut along the way.

The all important bits and bobs

Mosquito repellent/Midge head net - Repellent is a must and a head net is not a bad idea. We've just had a pretty good summer with low numbers of midges around but it's always good to be over prepared.

Sun tan lotion and a sun hat - you'd be surprised by how many sunny days we get here on the west coast of Scotland!

A sail - we recommend you hire a solo sail which cost £10 per trip. These are invaluable for canoeing on Loch Ness in particular and can make a very welcome break from paddling for a while. They're easy to use and we'll show you how before you leave.

Demo on how to use the sail prior to setting off

Hope this helps when you're planning your canoeing trip. If you've any questions please email us or call and we'll be happy to help.

Canoeing River Lochy

One of our favourite canoe trips is on the River Lochy and when someone calls asking for a more active and adventurous day or saying that their children can't wait to jump in the water then we only have one answer for them - you should join our River Lochy trip! I've already written a blog about what to expect from a day canoeing with us and now here's a little more about the River Lochy trip specifically!

I rarely get the chance to join this trip as we need a shuttle vehicle to pick everyone up at the end of the trip. So I'm normally on hand to take photos like this -

However during the summer Chris and I decided to paddle the river with some friends. The sun was shining as we kitted up and got our canoes on the water. We normally run the Lochy from Gairlochy down to Torlundy Beach or, if the pace is a bit faster, we continue on to Inverlochy Castle just outside Fort William. It's about 10km in total with low level rapids and fantastic rapid swimming along the way.

I was in a boat with Lindsay who had never canoed before. We meandered down the river encountering a couple of small rapids straight away. That's the good thing about this trip, there's little challenges all along the way to keep you on your toes.

Lunch was our usual buffet style, with a selection of meats and cheese to go in hearty wraps along with a fresh cup of tea from the Kelly Kettle. Lindsay baked some amazing mars bar crispy cakes (I'm sure they have a more official name than that!).

Sufficiently fueled, it was time for some rapid swimming. I'd never tried it before and watched with great interest as Chris waded out to the centre of the rapid and then in a blink of an eye sat down and, as if on a slide, floated (and bounced) in a reclined position to the end of the rapid. I followed with some skepticism and gingerly crouched down and let the water take hold of me. I couldn't believe how much fun it was! We laughed all the way - I can report that rapid swimming is actually a very relaxing way to travel. I've no photos from that day but here are a couple from another trip this summer.

One of the last rapids you come across is Torcastle Rapid which is the biggest one on our stretch of the river.

This is what the day has been building to; with the small grade 1 rapids helping you to gain enough confidence to tackle this grade 2 jigsaw. Lindsay and I stood on the banks and watched as Chris and Alan showed us how it's done.

 It looked so easy when they were doing it. Here's Chris:

Then it was our turn. Things started well but after a few seconds it was clear we were far too close to the only rock we were trying to avoid and we hit it straight on and capsized. It's not hard to see what we did wrong:

This was my first time ever capsizing in a canoe and I was pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable it was. Once you get over the initial shock of landing in the water and you've gotten clear of the canoe, there's nothing left to do but let the water do its thing and carry you down to where it becomes calm again. I didn't feel in danger at any time as I knew Chris and Alan were both standing at the end of the rapid with throw-ropes on hand to pull us out if needed.I never thought I'd enjoy being thrown out of a boat into cold water but I've been proved wrong! I think also the time spend rapid swimming probably helped greatly in reducing the fear.

Once we got back in our canoes we paddled on to our get out point at Torlundy Beach, tired but very happy with a great day's paddling. I can't wait to go back and do it again!

How to make a Wanigan for canoe and camp trips

You'll know from our earlier blogs that we spend a lot of time camping in Scotland, Sweden and further afield. After many years of canoe camping involving spilled pasta and muddy spoons I have at last got round to making a wanigan, a simple camp kitchen. 

Jura was intent on helping but lacked essential skills and had a very short attention span!

Obviously the first stage (once Jura had been otherwise entertained) was to measure and cut the main pieces. I decided to use 6mm marine plywood to keep the box nice and light but tough enough to survive. I designed the box so that it would fit perfectly between the yoke and the kneeling thwart in my canoe.

All the pieces were cut really fast and gave the impession this would be a short job, finished by dinner!

Once cut I gave them notched edges to lock together, keeping weight down but making it a lot stronger.

As each bit side was notched it had to be checked against its partner to make sure it fit. This was easy enough for the first joint but got gradually more complicated as the project went on.

With the internal wall and shelf in place the box gained a lot of rigidity and seemed like a real object for the first time.

The shelf and wall were supported with the same notch idea as the rest of the joins, just with a lot less of them. Lining them up proved to be one of the hardest parts of the build.

With everything in place it just needs a roof on top!

With it upside down I could start nailing it together and stop everything from spontaneously exploding as it liked to do!

Lid on and everything nailed down it was time to sand the joints flat, a quick and painless joy of a task.

After two days of sanding Jura was starting to wonder where all this amazing wood powder was coming from!

After the madness of sanding came the tranquility of layer upon layer of varnishing! Jura attempting to get high on varnish was a real and ever-present danger that was for the most part avoided though she still has quite a shiny nose!

The shortest screws we could find were 12mm long so 'decorative touches' were needed to stop sharp pointy things poking through.

I wanted to have somewhere for utensils and cutlery so turned a draw tidy (and a lot of imagination) into door mounted racks.

And for the finished article...

Fully closed...

Doors open to show the maddening amount of stuff needed to cook for a group. Notice utensils holders on both doors courtesy of one draw tidy.

 And ready to use with counter top wings out.

And in use a day later next to a roaring fire ready to cook!

A Birthday Canoe

Even though we run a canoe guiding company on the west coast of Scotland, I sadly don't get on the water as often as I'd like. Chris is always out on  canoe day or camping trips but I'm normally waving the group off from the shore so I can concentrate on rentals and answering calls and emails. So naturally there was only one thing I wanted for my birthday - a day spent canoeing!

Loch Moidart is one of my favourite canoeing spots. It is incredibly picturesque, with the ruins of Castle Tioram appearing as if by magic on a small island. We always see seals and there are golden beaches for lunch or camping. And to top it all off, it's the loch where Chris and I met for the first time so it holds a very special place in my heart!

The day was a mixture of paddling and improvised sailing when we were feeling lazy. That's one of the great things about canoeing, a simple sail can be rigged up and the wind can do all the work for us as we sit back and watch the world go by. We had lunch on this spectacular, isolated beach and Chris lit the Kelly Kettle for tea. It's so simple to light, we used some heather found near the beach.

 We took our cups of tea up to the rocks to spy on the seals from afar.

The weather was so good that some of us even decided to go for a swim - be warned, the water is still freezing!!!

After our picnic lunch it was time to pay the seals a closer visit. We paddled stealthily towards them but, ever watchful, most of them slipped into the water before we could get too close. Some of the smaller pups were quite adventurous, swimming beside us for a while. There was no one else on the loch apart from our 3 canoes and these seals. It was a silent few minutes of reflection and peace.

Once the young pups grew bored of us, we set up our sails and flew off. With the sun beating down on us, I couldn't resit a short nap before we reached shore.

Feeling thoroughly refreshed and inspired by such a gorgeous day, we headed off for a birthday dinner at the fantastic Glenuig Inn. It was a perfect birthday in every way!

The River Lochy day trip is another of our favourite trips with easy rapids for canoeing and swimming!