Assault on Glen Etive

Nice little campsite on Loch Etive

The plan was to use the narrow, winding and un-gritted road into Glen Etive to access the headwaters of Loch Etive and drop the inflatable in where the river reaches the sea – then head off for an overnight camp, fish and stargaze. Things went just fine to start with, until I stepped ashore and… Continue reading Assault on Glen Etive

Re-visiting Etive

Moored off Barrs

It’s been weeks since I was last out, and it’s been frustrating watching a shedload of wet and windy weather blasting through on any available free time. However a calm sunny day was forecast for the Etive area so I decided to combine that with an over-nighter boat camping well up the loch. Launching in… Continue reading Re-visiting Etive

The High Sierra Trail

Casting a fly at 8,500 feet.

“Awesome” is a wildly over-used word in the US, but the High Sierra Trail in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California really is just that. If you’re into hiking, camping or fishing and you want to trade in a cool, wet, midge-ridden summer for something hot, dry, bug-free and spectacular then you should seriously check… Continue reading The High Sierra Trail

Camping in Death Valley

Devil's Golf Course Panorama

We paused as we heard the distinctive rattle of yet another Death Valley local warning us to stay away. It had been quiet in the cool of the early morning as we climbed, but the sun was now hot in the sky and the reptilian inhabitants were waking up all around the trail as we… Continue reading Camping in Death Valley

A Pilgrimage to Sandwood Bay

Sandwood Beach with Spitfire engine

Very remote, often stormy, and always stunning, Sandwood is a broad sandy bay guarded on either end by sandstone cliffs hundreds of feet high which sits in the extreme and rather inaccessible NW corner of the Scottish mainland. Over the years it has acquired an almost mystical reputation as a place to visit, complete with the ghosts of drowned… Continue reading A Pilgrimage to Sandwood Bay

Boat camping in December

Waiting for action in the sunshine

Being firmly towards the “bah humbug” end of the spectrum regarding Christmas I was already thinking of a trip west when Trevor phoned with pretty much the same idea – a couple of days boat fishing together combined with a bracing overnighter in a tent. I’ve never camped in the UK in December before so that would… Continue reading Boat camping in December

Etive shines

Alcatraz lies to anchor

Etive is an wildly beautiful place (at times!), and it’s surprisingly unspoilt the upper loch is given how accessible it is from the central belt. Even if it was a fishless desert its upper reaches would attract anyone wanting to experience the beauty of raw nature and the almost complete silence that goes with no roads… Continue reading Etive shines

Kayaking Desolation Sound, British Columbia

Home for 3 nights, South Curme Island

OK, this post has nothing to do with angling, and I didn’t even take a rod with me to Canada, but we were out kayaking and backpacking in a landscape every bit as grand and far larger than our sea lochs. I’d spent time in Ontario a decade before, including several days canoeing, but BC… Continue reading Kayaking Desolation Sound, British Columbia

Mount Robson and Snowbird Pass

Mount Robson and Berg Lake, from above Toboggan Falls

A few days of R&R and some substantial driving following our kayaking adventure in Desolation Sound, we kicked off a 4 day backpacking trip in the Berg Lake area of Mount Robson. Coming from the south and west, Mount Robson remains well hidden amongst other mountains until a turn in the road suddenly reveals this snow covered giant (it… Continue reading Mount Robson and Snowbird Pass