And so I have finally been out for a sea kayak adventure. It’s an activity I have been keen to try for years but somehow I have never found the time to give it a go. This week, thanks to the fab National Kayak School, newly based in Oban, I spent two glorious days pottering in and around sea lochs and islands close to the west coast tourist town.
If you have never given sea kayaking a go then I can’t recommend it more highly. Alternately peaceful and relaxing, then full-on and bonkers, I found myself enthralled by the simple art of paddling a kayak along stunning coastlines and around the islands of Kerrera, Lismore and Shuma to name a few.
And while one night was spent in the plush surroundings of the Crerar Oban Bay Hotel, another night involved wild camping on the tranquil island of Kerrera, just a 45 min paddle from Oban itself. I’m not sure which I preferred the most: the champagne-style kayak experience combining a day’s paddling with the decadence of a hotel or the sublime adventure package of paddling out to an island for a wilderness camp over.
I now have a huge hankering to head off for a much longer trip, perhaps paddling and wild camping between a larger number of islands off Scotland’s wonderful west coast. Or maybe I’ll head to Loch Nevis for a kayak trip into the wilderness of Knoydart. That’s another outdoors bug that has bitten me!