A very mediocre canoeist paddling the Conon (Part 1)

There's something fabulous about canoeing. I've always loved it. I did some canoeing when I was at school. But I haven't done much since then. And it's some sixteen years since I left school.

But my father bought some second hand canoes on a whim a little while back. And I've been staying with him in Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands for the last week or so. That means I've managed to get out onto the river Conon on a couple of occasions over the last week.

A cursory search on the internet before we set off onto the river didn't reveal too much, although someone had posted some notes from a canoeing trip. As you may have guessed from the title, my canoeing skills are quite basic. I can paddle in a straight line, I can steer reasonably well, and I can usually keep myself afloat on some moderately bouncy water. But nonetheless it felt like a bit of a voyage into the unknown. I am not an experienced canoeist and I do not know this part of the world that well.

But it's exploring; and a voyage on a means of transport that is not familiar to me. And that's exciting. This section of the river Conon is located downstream from a dam constructed in the 1950s to generate hydro-electricity. So the flow in the river depends on the quantity of water being released through the dam. On this day there was lots of water in the river and progress seemed easy. When one isn't paddling vigorously through fast water, it feels like an easy glide down the river.

The views around here are beautiful, and the position in the river gives one an unusual view of the scenery. Sometimes I felt a little nervous. I tried to "read" the river to see where the flow was going and to follow it. And you have to listen out for the sections of fast water and plan your route through. Also the map warned of a weir, and I was keen to get out and lift the canoe over that particular obstacle.

I think that part of the fun of river canoeing is the variety. And in the quiet, slower sections, there's an opportunity to enjoy the scenery and the wildlife; the birds, the ducks and the swans; to savour the alternative perspective on one's environment.

It was Saturday, there were lots of people fishing in the river, the weather was fine and the scenery was lush. Also I think maybe rivers bring out the best in people. I greeted each of the fisherman the walkers and the cyclists that I encountered. I stopped for a chat - and perchance a little banter - with a group of fishermen. Everyone was friendly, all seemed to be well in the world.

This section of the river had quite a lot of variety. At the point that I set off, it feels like a river flowing through quite a steep valley. And then where I finished in Dingwall, you're in the Cromarty Firth, that's the sea; a contrast to where I embarked.