The Forecast had looked a bit dodgy all week for our proposed trip out to the Farne Islands on one of the biggest tides of the year. As Sunday drew closer the idea of battering back in from Inner Farne on a F7 Westerly forced us to come up with an Alternative.
Ollie hatched a plan to have a trip down a stretch of the Berwickshire Coast that might afford a little shelter. The forecast was now for F5 gusting F7 from the SW and later veering into the West. A launch from Pease Bay with a finish point in St Abbs harbour was agreed upon. An early start saw the shuttle complete and we were mustered on the sand at Pease Bay ready for the off by 10.30 ish....
George's radio crackled into life as Ollie was briefing us on the paddle plan. The Forth and Aberdeen Coastguard confirmed that strong winds were still forecast for the day ahead but the strength had been reduced to F4/5.
We set off towards the headland of Fast Castle. Not long after leaving the shelter of Pease Bay the Cliffs steepen and we were soon rounding Siccar Point. This rocky outcrop known internationally as Hutton’s Unconformity is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and from here on the rock hopping improves all the way with Stacks, caves, narrow gullies and all manor of jaggy bits to destroy a composite boat. No surprise that on our trip we had a fine and varied selection of rotomoulded boats, that consisted of five Delphins and an Avocet.
With a little push from the breeze behind us we nosed into caves that had escaped our inspection on previous visits. The ever watchful eye of the numerous Grey Seals kept guard of their tranquil home. This part of the coast line is very remote and even signs of fishing activity are rare. A quick look back towards the blot on the landscape that is Torness Power Station betrayed the otherwise calm conditions we were experiencing. White horses were visible as the Westerly wind had freshened enough to fold the tops over.
The piece of coastline known as the Little Rooks just before Fast Castle has some of the most amazing rock formations you'll find in SE Scotland. Time your arrival here half way up the flood and you'll find some fantastic gaps and gullies to squeeze through. Any more than a couple of feet of swell might render most of this ground inaccessible so keep an eye on the swell forecasts for trip planning here.
The pictures above shows the remains of Fast Castle balanced precariously on the edge of the cliff.
Fast Castle was originally known as False Castle, on account of the lights that were hung from it to mislead shipping. Mariners would see the lights as they were passing in darkness. They would assume that they had reached a safe haven, only to find that they had been guided onto rocks, where the awaiting wrecking parties would retrieve the cargo from the wreckage.
A few hundred yards from Fast castle you will come across the distinctive column of the Wheat Stack, a popular adrenaline rush for climbers who can often be seen clinging to the vertical sides by their finger nails.
Time had flown and the dinner bell had gone off an hour ago. We wanted to get to St Abbs Head for peak flow to catch some tidal action, so with two hours to spare we decided to spend the first one on the shore. What better place to stop than Lumsdaine Shore. This really is an oasis in the desert. The relatively sheltered fine shingle landing is one of the very few places you can get ashore on this remote stretch of coastline. The shingle beach lays way to a fine gravel plateau with a ready supply of drift wood to make a fire. Behind the fine gravel there's a small patch of fairly level grass which makes way to a winding track up the cliff. This might come in handy should you need to walk out for any reason.
As we left the tranquillity of Lumsdaine we could see St Abbs Head in the distance. A strange white line fringed the bottom of the cliffs which suggested to us that we may be about experience a change in conditions. As we neared the headland conditions rapidly changed form benign to a rather more interesting environment. The next few pictures are a little smudged and blotchy, probably something to do with the rain squall and tidal conditions we passed through to get round the headland.
Once round the Head we sought shelter from the wind and waves behind one of the towering sea stacks. This particular one has taunted Ollie for some time now, he is determined that one day he will climb to the top. I just hope I have my camera batteries charged for that day. On Sunday he took a bite out of it before diving in to cool off.
Things calmed down as we progressed beyond the lighthouse under St Abbs Head. As it was now high tide it would have been rude not to take a look in one or two of the caves that intersect the base of the cliffs to the South of the now redundant fog horn.
All too soon our trip was over and we had arrived at St Abbs Harbour. Brian still needed to expend some fuel before making a landing on the slipway in the corner of the harbour. A quick climb up a ladder on the harbour wall dragging his boat behind sorted this out. The launch from the top of course was the reward for his efforts.
Weary and weather beaten we dragged our boats up the slip in the harbour. The cries form harbour master asking us for launching fees were met hastily by Alan's tongue in cheek reply of " We didn't launch here mate, we've come from Pease Bay, we're only landing". We loaded our boats and paid our dues to make sure we were welcome upon our next visit. The launching fee here is £3.00 for a kayak and to be honest is not too bad considering you can park for nothing all day in the upper car park .
Make sure you carry a repair kit !
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