Some of the possible routes in and around Knoydart
Looming over the Sound of Sleat opposite the Isle of Skye, Knoydart is a famously rugged peninsula that’s inaccessible by road; part of the so-called Rough Bounds. Rising north of Loch Nevis, the mountains top out at the 1020-metre (3346′) summit of Ladhar Bheinn (‘Larven’), before dropping back down to LochHourn. On an OS map, contour lines here are as dense as spaghetti and to the south, Loch Morar is Europe’s deepest body of freshwater. Sounds like packrafting country!
It took just a morning to stitch together a challenging three-loch loop via Loch Quioch, but once I got there the initial 20-km stage down the channel of Loch Hourn looked a bit daunting alone in the untried packraft sailing outfit and required a 4am start at Low Water if I was to do the loch in one tide. By the time I tried something else, I was pushed back by wind and tide, so I settled for a good look around, tested the sail on the Rebel 2K, the Six Moon Designs Flex PR pack harness and a new tent before returning a fortnight later with Barry with whom I’d paddled the River Wye last April.
Driving up to Mallaig freed us from train timetables, which left the weather and 18-kilo packs as our main constraints. Unfortunately, the forecast dropped an F5 headwind on the Friday we planned to paddle out of Loch Nevis back towards Morar or Mallaig. Along with agreeable tide timings, I realised this was a limitation of circularpackrafting routes on the Scottish west coast: chances are you’ll hit a prevailing southwesterly which may slow your packraft to a crawl (as I’d found). Depending on where you are, that can mean turning back or a tough walk out. Maybe both.
So Barry and I flipped the plan: hike 16km from Inverie (the only village on Knoydart) over to Barisdale, paddle inner Loch Hourn (7km), walk up to Loch Quoich (8km), cross it and then head 6km to a bothy in desolate Glen Kingie. From here, on Windy Friday we’d walk 6km over another pass to the 20-km long Loch Arkaig and try and sail the F5 west, maybe getting as far as Fort William via the River Lochy, though gusts out here were tagged at 40mph. At Fort William we’d catch the train back to the car in Mallaig.
Ferry from Mallaig to Inverie; the only way to Knoydart other than walking or paddlingToday we will get wet. Barry tries his Anfibio AirSail as a brollyThe long walk from sea level up to the 1500-foot Barisdale passTwo weeks ago this bridge was on its last legsNow it’s gone, requiring a ford as the rain sets inTwo weeks ago I arrived in Barisdale bothy utterly knackered; this time we’re both soaked through and shivering. Hot tucker needed quick!Mid-afternoon the rain stops and the spring tide and wind are just rightWe arrive at the Loch Hourn jetty with 3-4 hours to HW and only 7 clicks to Kinloch HournHoist the mainsails and off we go!Barry’s longer MRS Nomad S1 is notably quicker than my 2KPeak flow through the Narrows. Standing waves wash over the S1’s sides and a hidden current shoves it sideways So I appreciate the Rebel’s zip-up deck. Even paddle-sailing I can’t catch the NomadWe leave Kinloch Hourn with two hours of daylight for the 7km walk to Loch QuoichThis walk is taking forever and my feet are killing me. Where is the inlet by the road?We give up and camp by a pump shed; the noisiest place for 50 miles. We’ve covered 20 miles today.Later I check Bing: unlike maps and Google, it shows the much lowered water level following the 2010 droughtNext morning the once-submerged 200-year-old Telford bridge mentioned in the link above is visible below our camp. It explains the weathered milestones we saw on the walk up from KL-HWe carry on along the road until we can get nearer to the shore without getting bogged down Opposite a small plantation we get our chance but a headwind in blowing from the southeastOnce on Loch Quoich the boats make good progress and we’re soon in the lee of the hillsBehind Barry, the 3291-foot (1110m) mountain of Sgurr Mor, with Knoydart’s peaks beyondWe didn’t want to get off Loch Q, but the time had come to plod on southwards to the next lochA rough 4×4 track makes nav a bit easier; it’s a 200m climb to the passOver the watershed and down into Glen KingieNear here Barry gets a freak whiff of wifi. “Rain expected 14:00; let’s step on it!” Up ahead is the Kinbreak bothy we’re aiming forFording the River Kingie not far from the bothyFrom the river we take a direct route. Big mistake: it’s only 700m but knee-deep tussock hellThe bothy is in sight but we end flat on our backs more than onceNot far now…. Will it be open and vacant?Halleluia! I only learned later that MBA bothies had reopened after Covid just four days earlierSoon the rain lashes down and doesn’t stopWe spend the afternoon eating and drying and chatting. What a relief to be in here. Thank you MBA!I had a set of these ex-army mess tins as a teenagerAt dusk three dozen deer come down from the hillsides to ensure ticks are evenly spread across the glenMy boots snag a cozy spot by the fireBy 10pm the only sound is the rain hammering on the roofWindy Friday. We wait in vain for the rain to let up, then face the inevitable. Yesterday this stream was a trickle. My boots are soaked againDespite re-applying Nikwax’s finest oitments, my 10-year-old cag is as effective as an old t-shirtAfter two hours bog-hopping, Strathan homestead rises from the murk. We’re both drenched so heat up a snack between two locked barns. It’s still a long way to anywhere. We’re fed upThere is a lochside road but it’s a 4-5 hour trudge. Then in a lull we pass beach: “Let’s put in!” we say simultaneously Had we forgotten today was Windy Friday with forecasts of 30mph gusts?Twenty minutes later we’re holding on for dear life, pelted by torrential, wind-driven rainBut our packrafts are amazingly controllish-able, stable and much faster than walking, providing you steer off the shore80 minutes and 7km down, I need a slash and Barry needs to tip out his flooded boat. We’re both drenched and chilled; sailing may save energy but doesn’t generate warmthThe next shower is rolling down the glen. Barry gets a rogue signal and calls in the only black cab in Fort WilliamWith good gear like a dry suit, the rest of Loch Arkaig would have been a blast. But this was 40 quid well spentStarter preceding a delicious curry at Tiger Wall in FW. And it ain’t bag food!Long drive home with much talk of Gore Tex ProOut route from Mallaig to halfway down Loch Arkaig, about 55km
Inflatable Kayaks & Packrafts 
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