Flat Holm & Steep Holm 02/08/2009

After 3 weeks of paddling inactivity due to mostly work and the British Summer, it was great to finally get back on the water.


Launching early from the slipway at Penarth in ideal conditions, I let the last of the SW ebbing tide of the Bristol Channel aid my progress towards Flat Holm, the first of the two islands that is approximately 4 nautical miles off the South Wales coast with the island of Steep Holm, another 2 nautical miles further south.


The nearer I get to Flat Holm, the more my speed increases and as I pass the lighthouse, glancing at my GPS I am paddling at a speed of nearly 6 knots with very little effort.


Maintaining this speed with ease I am soon approaching Steep Holm which is very different to it's neighbour apart from the pretty obvious.....the height, the vegetation is a lot denser.


Paddling around Rudder Rock at the west of the island I see the first of the island's numerous gun emplacements dating back from Victorian times once again to repel the threat of a French invasion and again used in both World Wars.

Rudder Rock, I suppose was named due to the vertical layers of rock looking like rudders!

Paddling along the south of Steep Holm the layers of rock are horizontal with again more gun emplacements on the South East corner.

From here the coast of England looks very close but I will leave that for another day, also the number of Gulls seems to have increased and their constant squawking is becoing rather irritating.

Paddling northwards I pass the only steep pebbled beach on the island with it's landing jetty and now derelict inn.

On the steep cliffs on the north of the island the full extent of the Bristol Channel's huge tidal range of 15 metres or 49 feet can be seen with the dark stained high water mark a long way above my head. The Bristol Channel has the second largest tidal range in the world after so it is quite important to try and get the tides right!

I paddle right along the north side of Steep Holm back to Rudder Rock passing another gun emplacement perched high on the cliffs and then paddle on a course back over to Flat Holm.

I was soon at the lighthouse built in 1737 and was again greeted by the squawking of the Gulls.

Paddling along the south of the island I pass more gun emplacements, and on rounding Bottleswell Point on the Southwest side of the island I paddle on a course for the South Cardiff Cardinal Buoy.

After about 25 minutes of paddling I reach the Buoy which is straining at it's moorings due to the ever increasing flood tide.

On the last leg of my paddle back to Penarth I am passed by the MV Balmoral one half of the Waverly Excursions running pleasure cruises in the Bristol Channel during the summer months.

In 2009 the Balmoral is celebrating its 60th year being built in Southampton in 1949. I follow her as she pulls alongside Penarth Pier picking up more passengers.

As I load the kayak on the Landrover I watch the Balmoral leave and take one last look at Flat Holm and Steep Holm in the distance after a great paddle of 14 nautical miles (16 miles or nearly 27 kms).

A Birthday Paddle 13/07/2009

With it being my 21st birthday yet again and the wind increasing through the night and forecast set to increase even more, my birthday paddling options were limited, unlike this time last year....


I launched from a sheltered but deserted Martin's Haven, as yet again the boat trips to Skomer were cancelled due to the high winds. I paddled the short distance to Wooltack Point in the shelter of the North facing cliffs.

On rounding Wooltack Point I was hit by the full force of the ever increasing South Westerly gale and with the tide against me as well it was a real struggle just to paddle the short distance to Tusker Rock.

It was obvious I wasn't going to be able to paddle much further so I just played around in the rough water between Tusker Rock and Wooltack Point, great fun and also good practice.

After spending a very pleasurable but tiring 45 minutes playing about I paddled the short distance back to Martin's Haven accompanied by numerous Gannets and Porpoise, but as usual, the Porpoise were more concerned with feeding than posing for the camera, and taking photos of the Gannets was a bit precarious due to the high wind, so no decent close ups there either.

It was then a matter of trying to pack the tent up between the numerous very heavy showers of rain and then drive back to Cardiff not knowing when I would next be paddling due to work commitments, but at least I managed some decent paddles over the weekend considering the weather.

I stopped in nearby Marloes to take a few photos of the Giant Puffin, this would be the last one I see until April or May of next year.

A Sheltered Haven 12/07/2009

With the tent holding up well to a very wet and windy night, I woke to a sunny but still very windy morning.


I took a short walk to Wooltack Point to take a look at the conditions around Skomer, it looked a bit wild and with the boat trips to Skomer being cancelled plus the forecast predicting strong winds all day I decided to take short drive to Dale and hopefully find some shelter in the Haven.

It was a totally different Dale since I was last here on 21/03/2009 , today was a bit of a slalom course paddling through all the moored boats.

Dale was quite sheltered until I passed the Dale Fort Field Centre at Dale Point, where the southerly wind hit me and an old landing craft heading out of the Haven was having a bit of a bumpy ride.

As I paddled into Castlebeach Bay the sea conditions again calmed. Paddling out of Castlebeach Bay the skyline on Watwick Point is dominated by the huge navigational tower.

In the shelter of the Point I watch another ship escorted by the Pilot boat. Both were having a very rough ride through the large swell entering the Haven which became apparent as I paddled around Watwick Point.

Again paddling into the sandy Watwick Bay it is amazing how the sea conditions vary in just a few hundred yards.

Paddling out of the bay I pass the remains of the jetty that used to supply the West Blockhouse Fort which is one of the forts built in the 1860's to defend Milford Haven from those Frenchies again.

I was going to paddle onto St Ann's head but there was no shelter from the southerly wind so I decide to turn around and follow the 3 cardinal buoys along the edge of the shipping lane and out to Stack Fort.

The first I reach is the East Cardinal Buoy named after the Dakotian, a cargo ship sunk by a German magnetic mine on November 21st 1940, the wreck lies about 100 metre from the buoy.

The next buoy is the South Cardinal Behar Buoy which again is named after another shipwreck, the Behar, which again was sunk by another German magnetic mine 3 days after the Dakotian sinking.

The third buoy is the South Cardinal Montreal Rock Buoy which is not named after anything as exciting as a shipwreck but a submerged rock to the north of the buoy.

As I paddle from the buoy to the Stack Rock Fort, the Pembroke Ferry passes me as it leaves the Haven on it's way to Rosslare.

Approaching the Stack Rock Fort, a marvel of Victorian construction, there is an example of modern construction in the background, the LNG terminal, I know which I find more pleasing to the eye....

Stack Fort is another of the forts of the Haven built to protect against those dreaded Frenchies. Building was started in 1859 and completed in 1871.

Stack Fort is one of the many forts around Britain's coast commissioned by Viscount Palmerston to deter the threat of invasion and were never used in anger. Hence they are known as 'Palmerston's Follies'. Today the only invaders are the protesters against the LNG Terminal!

From the fort I paddle NW into the shelter of Butts Bay and another of the Haven's navigational towers on the Little Castle Head.

Paddling over to the disused jetty at Great Castle Head, the water is glassy calm, totally different to the sea as I paddle round the headland and back into the SW wind. It is a struggle to take photos of the Great Castle Head Fort and Radar Station.

It is quite a slog paddling to Watch House Point with its jagged rocks and the small hole piercing it near the top. It is not until I get back into Dale Road and the shelter of Dale Point that I manage to get a bit of respite from the wind.

While I have been paddling it looks like Dale has been invaded, not by those damn Frenchies (luckily) but by pirates!

The nearer I get to the jetty at Dale the calmer the sea gets but with no sign of any pirates.

A paddle of just over 9.5 nautical miles in very differing conditions but at least I managed to get on the water.

It is now a short drive back to the tent where, for the first time in 3 days I can cook with the tent open and even manage an evening's walk over the Wooltack Point to watch the sun setting over Skomer. Lets hope it continues tomorrow.