Great Glen Canoe Trip: Page 5
Day 5.
Loch Ness was our longest paddle of about 17 miles down the whole length of the Loch, to be done in one day. Robin suggested using a mast and sail to speed the journey and a complicated lashing arrangement was made to secure the three canoes together so that they could be pushed along by one sail. We made fast progress down the loch for a few miles once all was arranged but eventually disaster struck when the veering gusty wing fractured the mast and brought the sail crashing down. There was no way to repair the mast and the wind was now far too strong to attempt further sailing so we continued using our paddles. We had to keep in to the side of the Loch to ensure that we didn't get out into the bigger waves and risk swamping. A lone sea kayaker (find august page) passed us during our paddling and he informed us he was circumnavigating Britain but needed to avoid the north Scottish coast because of the weather so was taking a “short cut”. We made several stops on the way down but finally ended up on the beach at the east end of the Loch near Tor Point. This was probably not such a good idea because the wind was driving the waves directly against the beach and to get back afloat we needed to make a classic “beach launch” between the waves. Some achieved this with more success than others but the paddle around the end point was a hard and frantic affair with much green water being shipped on the way. We eventually arrived at a small beach around the point on narrow very eastern exit from the Loch and just near the mouth of the river that flows down to Inverness. Even though the ground was uneven and not ideal for camping, we erected our tents under the trees and passed a reasonably peaceful night, in spite of the stormy conditions.
