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!