Corryvreckan, Grey Dogs, Falls of Lora

Today I updated the 3rd report of the Scotland seakayak holiday. For readers that are interested in more background-information about the famous Scottish tidal races I referred to, useful weblinks are :
- The Falls of Lora Information Website by Tony Hammock;
- The Corryvreckan Whirlpool by Mike Murray - Corryvreckan Whirlpool Guide;
- Pictures of the Grey Dogs tidal race by David Philip;
- and don't forget the Seakayakphoto-weblog of Douglas Wilcox (search for the tagged items with Corryvreckan or Grey dogs)
Alas I can't cover this part of our journey with good own pictures. On these part of the trip both hands on the paddle were welcome ;-). And when I took the camera out, it immediately got wet, so the shots of the best action-moments are blurred and unsharp because of nasty drops on the lens.

For an action video of seakayaking in the Scottish tidal races: Justine Curgenven's DVD "This is the sea - part 3" covers the Falls of Lora and the Grey Dogs (click here for a preview - with a striking quote of Axel about what the Falls of Lora did to him ;-).

I suppose a "disclaimer" (or call it a little warning) is fitting here. You really can have fun with a seakayak in these places. And Govert and I did have a lot of fun! We had the unique experience of playing in the Grey Dogs with tide full running, paddling the boiling-pot and the eddy lines of the Corryvreckan 2 hours before slack water and were fighting the Falls of Lora at spring tide. We found this manageable -with 30 years of seakayaking and WW-experience together, but both without real local knowledge- but do realise we had the luck of relative calm conditions (no swell from the Atlantic and hardly any wind). And even so - these are serious and potentially dangerous waters that should always be dealt with respect! To paddle here you should be very experienced in handling rough water, be well equipped and know what to do in the case of an emergency. If you have any doubt about paddling here - be sensible and turn back. The wisest way to find your way here is to take a guide. In Oban you can find some experienced seakayak-coaches with a lot of local knowledge: ask them to take you out!