Published by the Open Canoe Sailing Group

enjoyable event and thanks to JohnE for organising it and to Ann for helping organise the catering. I'm looking forward to next year.

Expedition In Two Modes (JeffB) - Mull By Boat And Bike

In previous years there has been a cruise somewhere on the West coast of Scotland during the week following the Spring Bank Holiday. Originally these were private affairs arranged by Group members, without official sanction, but for several years they have been Group Meets. This year, however, there was a meet at Tayvallich instead, so at the instigation of Solway Dory, a cruise was organised at the beginning of July, partly in the hope that the weather might be a bit better than it can be in May. The objectives of the trip were ostensibly to test out Solway Dory kit and to get good photos for advertising. I was invited, but was the odd one out with a non-Solway Dory boat, although I do have their sails and outriggers.

There had been a lot of discussion on the topic of where to go, which originally centred around Skye, but this was later changed to starting at Oban, which, given the weather we experienced, was a far better choice. The expedition also was unusual in that it took place using two modes of transport, with a smaller cycling faction covering some of the same ground.

One advantage of starting in Oban is that it is a lot nearer where we all live and so on Saturday we met up in the town while various people made last minute purchases and then headed south to our launch site at the Puffin Diving Centre at Gallanach. It was late afternoon by the time we all had all five of our boats assembled and ready for action. The sailing team consisted of the two Daves, Gavin, Steve and me, while the cycling party was made up of Ellen and Jan. I must admit I was a bit unsure of the need to dash off after driving all the way from Yorkshire, but it worked out really well. We sailed round the north end of Kerrera and camped at Saltrach Bay, while the cyclists camped at the nearby campsite. This gave them a chance to sort out a single set of camping equipment and food, then work out how to attach it to the bikes.

The morning saw us making an early start because we had grand plans to cover a lot of ground and we wanted to catch the north-going flood tide to carry us up the Sound of Mull as far as Salen. Our objective was the west side of Mull, but the N wind was forecast to swing round into the SW and we didn't fancy being caught on the S coast where there is little shelter, so the plan was to portage across the island and then sail back to base.

We got fairly spread out in the light wind and unpredictable currents as we crossed the Firth of Lorn. I snuck into the shore S of Duart Castle and got carried into the Sound by an eddy, while everyone else plugged away against the last of the ebb tide. Once inside the Sound the wind got up nicely and we sailed up to Salen on a reach and in grand style. Getting the boats out of the water was a bit of a problem as they were obviously fully laden with a week's food and water. The best place to do this was a beach with a combination of boulders, soft mud and the detritus from abandoned fishing boats to impede our progress. However, we

stripped as much as we could from the boats and carried them up to the road, stuck them on their trolleys and sat down on the conveniently located bench to eat lunch.

Gavin and I set off a little after the others, partly to cause less of an impediment to traffic on the single lane 'A' road through Salen, and stopped soon in front of the local public convenience. I wanted to fill up my water carrier and Gavin wanted to find some oil for his squeaky wheels. Just then Ellen came round the corner, followed soon after by Jan. This was handy because I was able to blow up my tyres using their bicycle pump and Gavin found a friendly local with an oilcan who oiled all of our trolley wheels.

The portage was rather harder work than I had expected. DaveP had assured us that it would be trivial; only two miles (actually 3 and a half) and a high point of only 41 metres, according to the map. It was hot, very steep if you are pushing a canoe and we were besieged by horse flies. Fortunately the cycling team assisted and we eventually conquered the pass, which gave way to a gentle descent to Loch na Keal, where we found an excellent launching site, complete with an audience to watch us reassemble the boats and set off into the teeth of a brisk wind.

As we passed between the island of Eorsa and the impressive cliffs of Creag Mhor the sun started to shine again, we were no longer close hauled and making rapid progress towards our objective, Inch Kenneth. Suddenly we were struck by the most violent squall I have ever experienced. Others less foolhardy than I luffed up to reef but I just careered on, totally out of control, but enjoying the ride. That night's campsite was idyllic, with nice level, soft, sheep-cropped turf and magnificent views of the spectacular W Mull coastline and islands.

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