The intrepid gang of four continue their off-river excursion to visit another distillery. This time the small but perfectly formed Ballindalloch distillery. Kevin asks some searching questions and gets more than he bargained for…
The gang wake to a chilly start but get going quickly. No cooked breakfast today! There’s a reason for the alacrity, though, word of the possibility of sampling some of the local produce. By this, Kevin assumes, hopes, prays Justine means whisky.
The Spey saga continues. We take a side trip to walk to some ancient standing stones. Kevin underestimates the haggis but his obsession with filming sheep means we end up paddling the last part of our route virtually in the dark. And then we still have to set up camp…
The adventure continues on the River Spey. In this section the river starts moving, Kevin needs to negotiate some rapids and Ray talks safety and signals so everyone is on the same page…
The off-the-wall journey down the Spey with Kevin Callan, Ray Goodwin and Justine Curgenven continues with the morning after the night before. Pancakes, bacon and maple syrup are on the menu but the priority is coffee. First, though, I need to get the fire going…
Ray Goodwin and I take Kevin Callan and Justine Curgenven down the River Spey on a magical mystery tour of water, whisky and wild haggis…
Recently I was able to spend a couple of days paddling on the Tees. The first day I paddled tandem from Cotherstone to Barnard Castle, a run I have done multiple times before but the water levels are always different so there is no lack of variety. It’s also a very picturesque section of river…
By necessity, much of the materials of remote cabins have to be transported to the location. Some of the smaller, finishing details, however, rely on more immediately available resources. These details reflect the personality of the people who put them there, their decisions and their handywork…
Every year Ray Goodwin and I lead canoe-camping trips on the River Spey in the Scottish Highlands. It’s a lovely river to paddle in an open boat and the surrounding scenery is beautiful. Travelling in such a fantastic natural environment, there are many highlights. Amongst the highlights of a watery nature are several rapids…
In this podcast episode, adventurers Tom Allen and Leon McCarron join me to talk about making independent, long distance, human powered journeys off the beaten track. Both are Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society. Both have made seriously long human powered journeys. Last year they teamed up to undertake a couple of adventurous journeys trips, one in Patagonia, Argentina and the other in Iran…