A Very Very Good - Good Friday 10/04/2009

With last night's wind and rain finally stopping, I decided to let the last of the south flowing ebb tide take me down through Ramsey Sound and to the south of Ramsey Island, then see how the sea conditions were as to whether I carried on around the island.

Heading through the centre of the sound I make a slight detour to Horse Rock which is just visible. After a quick battle against the tide to take some photos I carry on down to the Bitches.

The Bitches are just coming to the end of their southerly flow and the water is very sedate at the moment, in a couple of hours it will be a totally different story with it being a 7 metre spring tide.

Still paddling southward I reach the arch through Penrhyn Twll, but today I can't pass through as the tide is still too low. Rounding Penrhyn Twll, the so called Batchelor Beach, is crammed with numerous seals hauled out on the steep pebbled beach. It is called this as during the pupping season this beach is frequented by single bull seals.

At Twyll y Dillyn (The Devil's Hole), the gap between Midland Isle and Ynys Cantwr I decided to carry on around the island as although the conditions were a bit lumpy I would have the tide in my favour.

It was a pretty bumpy wet ride up until reaching the shelter of Abermawr with the conditions not really right for any exploring of the numerous caves and inlets but ideal conditions to test out the new Reed Aquatherm Spraydeck which did the job, and I must apologise for the water on the camera but there wasn't much time to stop and wipe it.

Crossing Abermawr the sea roughened up at Trwyn-drain du at the NW corner of Ramsey and it was not until reaching Bay Ogof Hen at the North of Ramsey that the conditions again calmed.

Instead of paddling back across the sound I decided to head southwards again back to the Bitches and see how they were building up.

Reaching them there was a large group of playboaters already on the wave but the swell was causing the wave to rise and fall making it difficult to stay on. After stopping for a while in the calm water behind one of the Bitches I then paddled across and out into the main tidal flow enjoying the express train ride back northwards reaching a top speed of 9.5 knots on the way back to Porthsele.

After my paddle of nearly 11.5 nautical miles (approx. 13 miles or 21km) I had worked up quite an appetite and could have eaten a horse, but after an invite up the farmhouse I guess a pig will do!

Thanks to Adrian and Helen for providing the unfortunate little blighter for the scaffold pole and to Sian and Alan for their hospitality once again.