Daily Picture - 22

At last a day of sunshine and virtually no wind.  A visit to Grosnez this morning was particularly pleasing.  Unlike other Jersey castles the one at Grosnez is almost impossible to sea from a kayak, perched on top of the cliffs of the north west corner of the Island.

Probably built in 1330 it is protected on 3 sides by steep granite cliffs and on the landward side by walls and a ditch.  It was probably demolished in the 1460's.  A lighthouse marks the point today but in the 19th Century there was a signal station here for communicating with Guernsey.

A Paternoster Sunday

The Paternoster's is a wild reef nearly 3 miles off the north coast of Jersey which is always an interesting place to visit.  Sunday morning's forecast couldn't have been more co-operative with a light southerly breeze to blow us out and then dropping off, with the sun coming out.

It was a slightly longer Sunday morning paddle for the Jersey Canoe Club than usual and it did involve taking sandwiches but it was well worth the effort.  It is strange that we were only out for 5 hours in total but after a visit to the Paternoster's you always feel as if you have had a break from the island.

 The Paternosters are just visible, with Sark on the horizon beyond

 Nicky and Kate leaving the north coast.  Sorel lighthouse is just visible on the headland behind the kayaks.

 Just approaching Great Rock from the north, landing would probably have been impossible an hour earlier due to the swell but the ebbing tide had produced some relatively sheltered areas in the reef.

 Looking south west from the summit of Great Rock.  Grosnez is the obvious headland behind

 The view north.  Sark is visible on the horizon.  What a delightful paddle we had back from Sark earlier in the summer.

Paul crossing one of the tidal flows, which contribute to making paddling in this area so entertaining.

Jersey North West Corner

The north west corner of Jersey offers some of the finest sea kayaking on the Island.  Tonight it was particularly beautiful, with the stunning light and calm seas.  A great Thursday night paddle with the Jersey Canoe Club.

 Heading north from Stinky Bay

 Le Pinacle viewed from the south.  A cave system cuts through this headland.

 Pete with the stunning north west face of Le Pinacle.

 Heading towards the Gun Cliffs. 

 Alex heading into the bay to the north of Le Pinacle.

 Typical north west coast scenery.  The nearest land to our left is Newfoundland, the North Atlantic is particularly quiet.

 Underneath La Nethe Falaise.  Even late on a May evening most of the cliff remains in shadow.  The Black Cliff.

 Just to the east of Grosnez, some superb rock climbing routes.

 Approaching Plemont Bay, a real gem.

 Time to head back to L'Etacq.

The moon passing close to the summit of Le Pinacle.  It is clear why there are Spring Tides.

A Different Perspective

After having been kayaking with a number of archaeologists over the summer months, linked to the excavations at La Cotte de St Brelade, I have started to look at the island from a completely different perspective.

On Saturday we paddled around the north west corner of the island and as usual, swell permitting we entered a number of caves.  Previously I had always looked at the caves wearing my geographers hat.  What processes are at work to produce such dramatic physical features?

Nowadays I always think geography first but then I wonder whether the caves could have provided habitation in the same way that La Cotte de St Brelade did.

A number of academic institutions in the UK have combined in a project known as the The Quaternary Archaeology and Environments of Jersey project (QAEJ).  It makes interesting reading and helps, us as sea kayakers, to understand the backdrop to the environment in which we spend so much of our time.

I had paddled into this cave numerous times but until Saturday I had never realized that there was a tunnel leading through another section of the coast.  The tide was too high to go through the tunnel on Saturday so another visit, towards low water is necessary.

 A beautiful cave, close to La Cotte a la Chevre, which was known to have been inhabited, thousands of years ago.  It would be interesting to see what is on the shelf, above the kayakers head, but access looks like a challenge.  Extreme coasteering?

 Another cave which is close to slightly above the present high water mark. Conditions look favourable for a return visit towards the end of the week.  Today we have force 7 gusting 50 mph mean this area would look slightly different to when this picture was taken.

Jersey's North West Corner

As the wind swings to the south east and the North Atlantic swell drops off any self respecting sea kayakers thoughts will turn towards the north west corner of Jersey.  Although there are many interesting areas to paddle around the Island this stretch of coast is as fine as anywhere.

Physical features set against an historical backdrop which stretches back tens of thousands of years, in relation to La Cotte a la Chevre, create a sea kayaking playground second to none.

 Le Pinacle, seen just after leaving Stinky Bay.  A stunning physical feature, a cave, whose entrance is seen just above the bow of the kayak, runs underneath the stack.  On the col at the base of the stack are the remains of the only Roman building on Jersey.

 Slightly further north the history is far more up to date.  The German tower was built during the occupation, which lasted from 1940 to 1945.  There are a number of these towers dotted around the Island.

 Grosnez is the north east corner of the Island is exposed to the full force of the winter storms.  Notice how little vegetation is growing on the cliffs, it is hard to imagine how far up the cliffs the waves break.

 There are a number of large caves between Grosnez and Plemont, which we were able to explore. They were largely sheltered from the low swell which persisted throughout the day.

  The north facing gullies and cliffs receive very little direct sunlight at this time of the year.  La Nethe Falaise, the largest cliff in the area will not see the suns rays until next June, when the sun sets far enough to the north to light up granite.