It’ll come as no surprise that 2020 has been a difficult year with the ever changing Covid 19 situation putting a holt on life in general, the lockdown which came into place at the end of March provided time to reflect on life and things i’ve achieved in the past and what I want to achieve in the future.

I’ve been fortunate over the years to have worked and lived in some amazing locations and take part in some amazing expeditions, however doing a trip which really tested me physically and mentally, putting all of my skills to the test is something I really aspired to do.

In June I was contacted by a good friend Dave Janes who following the news of him and his wife expecting a baby wanted to plan a big challenge before the baby came along.

When you think of a location for a big canoe expedition Canada comes to mind however given the Covid situation we needed to think a lot closer to home. When Dave proposed a ten day trip into the Scottish wilderness including a good few Scottish classics I immediately jumped at the trip.
We wanted to have another member join our trip, for an expedition of this scale the skill level required by each paddler is very high and its essential to have the right team and a good dynamic within the group.

We floated the idea around a few friends and Pete Firth said he was keen. Pete is a good friend, accomplished paddler and also runs his own media company, the perfect addition to our trip.

We mapped out our route which roughly came to a total of 200km including a monster portage of about 13km. Our circuit consisted of;

Mallaig-Loch Nevis- River Carnach - Lochan Nam Breac- Loch Cuaich- River Garry- Loch Garry- River Garry- Loch Oich- Loch Lochy- River Lochy- Loch Eil- River Dubh Lighe - River Callop - Loch Shiel- River Shiel- Moidart- Arisaig- Mallaig

The initial route was starting from Fort William however due to the conditions we changed our plan to start at Mallaig to make use of the predicted winds. The downside of this was that we carried 9 days worth of food over the 13km portage.

We met up in Nottingham, loaded up the van with all the kit our three boats (having decided to all go solo) and started the journey up to Scotland leaving Nottingham at 10pm.

Day 1

We drove through the night arriving in Mallaig for about 9.00am. None of us really got any sleep on the journey however the conditions were great with blue skies and force 3-4 winds blowing down Loch Nevis by 10am we were on the water and making our way down the Loch. Not one paddle stroke was needed as we sailed down the entirety of Loch Nevis which was approximately 20km. We stopped for lunch half way down and did a spot of fishing both from the banks and from the canoes.

Easily the best days sailing i’ve had and what a way to start our trip. We decided to have a night of comfort for our first night and stayed at the bothy at Sourlies. Sat in the bothy we had a closer inspection of the map and the next leg of our trip, the portage over to Loch Quoich. We all knew the next part of our trip was going to be difficult but on closer inspection of a Harvey mountain map and talking to a group of guys who were munro bagging it brought home how full on it was going to be.

Day 2

I’ve done quite a few expeditions over the years and have also done some pretty notable portages in Canada with the biggest about 4km, I have to admit I underestimated the scale of this one. If we’d have planned to tackle the portage so early in the trip it would have influenced my meal plan considerably. The original plan was to have eaten all of the heavy items by this point so my bags were extremely heavy!

We began day 2 making our way up the river Carnach as far as we could. By lunch time we’d poled and tracked as high as possible before meeting a pretty serious rapid. It was great to use these skills in an environment where they were essential over a notable distance.

We looked up stream and at the topography and decided it was time to start the portage. We initially thought it would take a day and a half to get over the portage, how wrong we were.

The track was more of a deer track, cutting its way up the side of the mountains through boggy marshland and rocky scrambles. We knew we had no chance of completing the portage in a day so decided to aim for a camp in a woodland patch before the gorge started to close in.

We began by carrying all the equipment first, mine consisted of a 125ltr Ortelieb bag and a 35ltr NRS duffel containing my food. On top of this were my paddles, poles, bailer, throwline and helmet. I suddenly had a new level of respect for what the sherpas do on a regular basis, not that we compared!

We decided to do multiple legs scouting the ground and route with the kit before coming back for the canoe covering a km or two with each leg.

Dave was paddling/carrying a 16ft Novacraft prospector royalex Lite, Pete a pretty battered royalex Mad River intrigue and I used a 16ft Novacraft prospector in royalex.

The terrain was tough and went from relatively flat marshland where every now and then you’d sink up to your thighs in bog to steep ground, scrambling over some pretty hairy terrain. My legs were burning under the weight being carried on my shoulders with the only rest being the walk backs for the canoes. Trolleys would have been useless on the terrain we were covering.

We arrived at the camp spot which was a lovely spot, the midges were out in force and a fire was at the top of my priorities to clear the midges and to give us a much needed morale boost.

I like to think i’m pretty competent at some parts of bushcraft and am confident I can get a fire going in most places in the UK, this was a bit of a challenge though. All the wood, even dead standing, was saturated. Both Dave and Pete know I like my wilderness skills so the pressure was on! Thankfully after splitting down some dead standing wood I found dry enough wood to make some feather sticks and we were away.

For sleeping systems I was using a DD hammock with a in built mosquito net with a tarp that I could double up as a bivvy if there were no trees, Dave had a tipi style ultralight tent and Pete had a tarp and bivvy.

Day 3

The morning of day three and after packing away camp a couple stumbled into camp and the look on their faces was priceless. They couldn’t quite believe what we were doing and said they didn’t expect to see anyone on their route, let alone three guys with canoes!

When planning the trip we did wonder whether anyone would have completed the route before, knowing that nowadays most things have been done in the UK, however we were quite confident given the scale of the portage and trip that we were to be the first.

Immediately leaving camp the route started to climb and we started making our way up some very steep terrain. With the first step carrying the kit my legs were already aching and I knew it was to be a tough day.

Due to the terrain we were covering we decided to do short legs which helped psychologically being able to see the bags of where to aim for each time helped. We reached a high point and looked back down the valley, I’ve visited some spectacular places in Scotland but the scenery here was up there with some of the most spectacular. The gravity of what we were doing hit me and spurred me on to keep going.

Whilst hiking over the top we passed a series of waterfalls and noticed reoccurring red plastic on the rocks as if a kayak had been dragged along the route, such a shame to see plastic in such a remote area. I have to admit this didn’t do us any favours pondering whether someone had already beaten us to it.

Looking up the valley to where we were heading was a daunting prospect knowing we had two options, to hike up some pretty serious elevation and then traverse the side of the mountain or to head up the gorge into the unknown.

Once we finally reached the start of the gorge we decided the river was the better option.

We managed to get up the river scrambling and lifting the boats up the boulders until we reached a very welcomed sight of Loch Nam Breac. The feeling of relief as we saw the Loch was great knowing we’d tackled the hardest part of the journey. We stopped alongside the Loch at a windblown silver birch and gathered firewood for the evening.

Our camp spot was stunning on a sandy beach looking back down the valley to where we’d come from. We had a break in the weather and an opportunity to dry out our kit which was proving harder and harder to keep dry. The whole of the portage was made harder given the continuous rain.

It was my turn to make dinner having decided to share the evening meals cooking three each.

Day 4

The end of the portage was in sight as we left Loch Nam Breac and headed over to Loch Quioch. We weren’t stopping for lunch each day, we just grazed off protein bars, trail mix, cheese and whatever sources of energy we bought along. The last leg of the portage was tough and conversation between the three of us dropped, all shattered and drained. The dam was in sight and before we knew it we’d arrived at Loch Quioch.

The weather on day 4 was stunning and the elation of completing the hardest leg was overwhelming, knowing we’d climbed from sea level to over 200m over some difficult terrain and the rest of the journey was essentially downstream.

We stopped here for a lunch break and made the most of the weather drying out all our damp kit, a much needed boost with Dave even going for a dip in the Loch.

There was just enough wind to sail down Loch Quioch and once again we made it all the way down without a paddle stroke, spirits were high as we had a much needed rest and drifted down the loch.

At the bottom of the Loch we reached the dam which we needed to portage around to the headwaters of the Garry.

Once at the Garry it was time to pop the helmets on and make our way down the river through the boulder gardens using a multitude of techniques. This was definitely lining in the top end environment and I loved it!

We made our way down to a patch of woodland above Kingie.

The midges were horrendous, inescapable until we got a fire going.

Day 5

Morning of day 5 and a day i’d particularly been looking forward to as we were on the Garry which is a Scottish whitewater classic. The section we’d already made our way down was tough especially given what we’d already done up to this point.

The next section was no different, dropping height very quickly before reaching Loch Poulary.

If you refer to the guidebook the upper Garry is dismissed as not very notable, well I can tell you that is not the case with multiple rapids of big grade 3 standard i’d highly recommend giving it a visit!

It was such a pleasure putting our skills to practice and paddling in a committing environment with no worries about the team around me, it highlighted how skilled the guys with me really are.

We made our way down Loch Garry and portaged around to the get on point for the classic section of the Garry and set up camp.

By this point in the trip all of our boats had visible signs to show how adventurous our trip had been to this point, no more though than Petes intrigue. This boat has definitely seen some action over the years and to be honest most would have retired it some years ago, however finding a good condition intrigue for sale these days is like hens teeth.

With a split the whole way through and existing repairs that needed repairing once again Pete’s boat started to take on water. Pete cracked out his repair kit and started a field repair until the early hours, using a mixture of scotch weld and flashband. Tomorrow was set to be the day which would put his boat to the test as we were paddling the classic section of the Garry.

Day 6

We awoke early in order to pack up camp before the paddlers and rafters arrived. Pete’s boat was looking good (for a battered boat) and repairs watertight. We got chatting to a few of the paddlers, it made me smile when we were speaking to the locals who asked where we’d came from and when we said Mallaig a confused look was given!

We portaged some of our kit a bit further down the river and got on the river.

None of us had paddled this section in recent times so didn’t know what was around each corner however we did try to scout after dropping some kit off.

This section is such a great section of river with some lovely rapids of grade 3+, we had no real issues on the way down with the exception of Dave taking a little swim on one of the trickier rapids. Dave self rescued his boat and kit and we were ready to go.

We continued down the garry and reached Loch Oich.

Once on Loch Oich we decided to pull into a patch of woods to wait until the wind died down and have a long lunch and dry kit out once again.

My back was giving me some grief by this point so I did a few stretches on the ground which seemed like a good idea at the time.

Dave noticed he had a tick on him so we removed it and checked ourselves over to which I found four on me, one of which was in my groin. It’s times like these you truly bond with your friends!

Tick free, having dried kit out and after a good meal we set off up Loch Oich.

The wind had died down and we were making good progress heading up the loch and into the Caledonian canal in pitch black.

After an entertaining paddle up the canal in pitch black we made it to Laggan locks at 1.30am and we decided to get our heads down in the shelter of the closed café to avoid having to set up shelters. This day was the first of many long days we had ahead.

Day 7

Morning of day seven and after a quick breakfast we got on Loch Lochy and started making our way into the wind and up the Loch.

Progress was slow and looking at the map and the vast length of the loch didn’t help. We decided to raft up and constructed a 3 way box tow to work as a team battling into the wind. It didn’t feel as if we were making any progress and it was evident we were all pretty knackered. Finally we stopped for a break and a quick bite to eat with only a few km to the end of the loch. The forecast for the next few days wasn’t looking great with south westerlies (head winds) predicted and we were already behind on where we expected to be by this point.

We reached the top of the loch and paddled up the canal to then portaged onto the river Lochy.

Once we were all at the get on concerns about our progress turned to discussions about getting a train to miss the next section of our trip or ending our trip at Fort William. Unfortunately for us Dave had secured a job in Norway which meant he had a flight to catch two days after our trip was set to end meaning we didn’t have the contingency to spend an extra day.

It was a difficult conversation to have with concerns over missing a flight and the additional worry of a pregnant wife at home.

By this point of the trip there was no way I was going to get a train or change our route, this just felt like it’d taint our trip or that we’d failed in what we set out to do.

The atmosphere was tense but we decided to push on and make a decision in Fort William.

The river Lochy is a lovely little section with small rapids of grade one with the occasional grade two. As a group we started to spread out as we put our heads down and paddled into the wind and down the river which turned into a bit of a slog. We finally made it to Fort William and the morale within the group was a bit low.

We decided to fill our faces at Mcdonalds and discuss options over a coffee.

We got the maps out and ran through thoughts about the remainder of our trip. We still had a long way to go with the next section unknown as we had to head up the Dubh Lighe and onto the Callop into Loch Shiel.

I managed to get some pictures of the rivers from a good friend which gave us hope that we maybe able to pole up the Lighe.

**Camp at Loch Eil, looks far more pleasant than it was!**

We decided to commit with the option of paddling at night to avoid battling into winds. We knew we could do it if we put the hours in!

We stocked up on supplies at Morrisons and got on Loch Eil at 10.30pm.

We had the boats rafted once again in a box tow configuration and started to make our way up the loch to the narrows.

We got through the narrows with no difficulty and thankfully there were lights at the top end of the loch which we could head towards.

This was tough! I’ve never felt so physically drained and as we made our way up Loch Eil the temperature had dropped, it was raining and conversation was at a minimum yet we ploughed on.

We decided to play some music through my phone to lift spirits as we mustered what energy we could find to get us up the loch to a patch of woodland we planned to camp at situated at the top of the loch.

We were a good distance up the loch when I noticed lights in the water. Initially I didn’t mention it thinking it was hallucinations from exhaustion but realised it was bioluminescence, this brought a much needed boost in morale as we stopped for a break to enjoy this unusual sight.

We carried on up the loch feeling exhausted, disorientated and broken heading to our camp spot, suddenly we were there. I don’t know quite what happened with one moment staring at the light we’d taken a bearing on and the next moment being at the camp spot. Maybe I drifted into a state like sleep walking it was really quite strange.

We arrived at the woodland which we couldn’t access due to deer fencing so had to find a camp spot in what can only be described as marsh land, the time was 3.30am. Thankfully I had a hammock but still it was definitely the worst camp spot I think I’ve stayed at.

**Portage between Dubh Lighe and River Callop**

Day 8

We got up and were on the water by 10.30 and onto the Dubh Lighe. Thankfully we had quite a bit of rain which meant we didn’t have to drag our boats up the river, however it was full of trees. We started poling our way up dodging and punching our boats through the trees. The constant trees and difficulty of poling forced me to portage a couple of sections and wade and drag the boat. Dave chose to do the same whereas somehow Pete continued to pole (I think his height gave him an unfair advantage) we made it up to a rapid which forced us to portage up and onto the Callop.

The portage was pretty grim as we trudged through marshland and through deforested areas.

Once we eventually reached the Callop the mood within the group suddenly rose knowing that was potentially the last portage we’d have to do. We later worked out that we’d portaged over 35km!

We got onto the Callop and made our way down to Loch Shiel once again battling through the trees.

Once we reached Loch Shiel we stopped for a break and had food whilst we waited for the considerable winds to die down.

It was great to have reached Loch Shiel as it felt like it was the last leg of our journey.

Once fed and having had an hour or so rest we rafted up once again and started the long journey up Loch Shiel.

Before we knew it we were once again paddling in pitch black using the ridgelines on either side to navigate, it was pouring it down!

We pulled over for a quick dram of whiskey and referred to the map. We saw the wind was due to change direction and were hopeful that we could sail up the loch - wishful thinking!

Paddling at night and being physically drained is a strange experience, I fell into a trance like state hallucinating and seeing weird shapes in the shadows like diggers and thinking there were sea caves along the shore knowing that my brain was playing tricks on me.

Dave on the other hand was finding his mind wonder conjuring images of the fairy glen river in North Wales and scary thoughts entering his head.

I cracked out my phone to play some uplifting music to get us through another difficult night of paddling.

It was truly relentless, Loch Shiel is huge and the fourth longest loch in Scotland at a length of 28km. The sun started to rise as we made it to the end of the loch where it joins the river Shiel. We set up camp at 5.00am!

Day 9

After a few hours sleep we packed up and got on the water and onto the river Shiel. The river Shiel is lovely a picturesque section with no notable rapids until you reach the section where it joins Moidart, here you’ll find a grade 3 rapid depending on tides.

Pete decided to portage around whilst Dave and I ran it with no issues. Back on the sea!

We were hoping to make our way out of the south channel and start sailing up towards Arisaig, however the wind was too strong and it was too bold of a prospect so we portaged over to the north arm and camped at Barramore bay on Eileen Shona. Fair to say this was a much shorter day than we had planned however we were all suffering from a lack of sleep and the physical demands of the trip to this point.

We set up camp at Barramore bay, I collected a load of firewood and we sat and reminisced over the trip whilst celebrating our achievement up to this point with a few drams of whiskey.

The forecast for our final day was looking perfect rather than the force 4 winds we had today it was looking like force 3 tail winds to sail us back to Mallaig.

Day 10 - The Final Day

We still had a long way to go with the last day covering approximately 25km including a bold 6km crossing past the sound of Arisaig. Unfortunately, the winds predicted never showed up but the conditions were calm and the perfect conditions for a 6km sea crossing in canoes!

It was lovely to be out at sea making our way up the coast looking across to Rum, Eigg, Muck and Skye. The paddle across such calm conditions provided an opportunity for the gravity of what we’d done to sink in, I felt overjoyed knowing that we’d completed the expedition but at the same time sadness to know it was coming to an end.

It was a pleasure going through this journey with Dave and Pete, two friends whom most of our time together had been in a work capacity. It was great to spend the time and share the experience with two highly talented paddlers and lovely guys which made the perfect dynamic for the trip.

We could see Mallaig approaching and it was a slog of a paddle but I enjoyed every moment. This was a bit like the whole trip to be honest, probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done and although my body was broken it was an experience I enjoyed throughout and a trip I’ll remember for a very long time!

Mallaig to Mallaig, we’d done it.

Slideshow photography credit to Multi-tool Media