Heading for Edinburgh

Harris’s landscapes and seascapes of the soul were not going to be an easy act to follow. It was thrilling to see dolphins again as we travelled on the Calmac ferry from Tarbert to Uig, but once on Skye our spirits sank. We found ourselves in a queue of fast ferry traffic vying for pole position so stopped off at Portree which was thronged with coach parties. We made a rapid decision to head for the next ferry to the nearest island and, fortunately, didn’t have to wait long at Sconser for the little ferry to Raasay. Immediately, we stepped back into island life again: the slow pace, the peace and the friendliness.
Although we only stayed two days on Raasay because the weather worsened, we would go again. We spent our whole day there climbing to Dun Caan, at 1400 feet the island’s highest point. We would have liked to kayak around Raasay and Rona but this would be a good 3 day journey, requiring settled weather. Our campsite was in the grounds of Raasay House Adventure Centre. The house itself burnt down earlier this year and the staff were going to lose their jobs, so they came up with a plan to take over the Raasay Hotel, which was not making money, and run that with outdoor activities on offer too. They are all working so hard- out of doors all day and running the bar at night! They’re really enthusiastic and very welcoming. If you want to know more it’s: www.raasay-house.co.uk
We’re now heading into our final week, concluding our Scottish tour in the Scottish capital. We can hear distant road traffic for the first time in eight weeks and see planes heading up from Edinburgh airport.

Yesterday having had a cold night we woke up to a ground frost, however the sun soon came through and warmed us up. We spent most of the day at Falkirk, this is where the Grand Union canal joins with the Forth and Clyde canal, and instead off the usual lock arrangement to accommodate the differing water levels a large rotating boat lift is used. The Falkirk Wheel is an elegant piece of modern engineering that very efficiently raises and lowers boats (and short sections of canal) from one level to another; it uses only the same power as 8 electric kettles to turn the wheel as it is perfectly balanced. The locking mechanism and hydraulically actuator powered gates at either end are cleverly devised to give a very clean and aesthetic, yet efficient closure to the ends of the canal sections. See www.thefalkirkwheel.co.uk for more info. Whilst there we paddled part of the Forth and Clyde canal, and hope to paddle part of the Union canal in to Edinburgh later this week.

We’ll write our final blog at the end of the week.