Over the top

Day 24 of kayaking around Ireland for Parkinson’s - I made it around Malin head and over the top of the island. This means I have now kayaked the whole west coast of Ireland, the length of Ireland (Mizen to Malin), and the Wild Atlantic Way (minus a short stretch near home which I’ll finish on the last day of this trip.

The Atlantic ocean, with its big swells, committing crossings, and tight weather margins, is now behind me. I’m on to calmer waters with more tidal assistance, in the North Channel and the Irish Sea.

Storm beach short of Malin Head, waiting on the tide to ease

Getting around Malin only took an hour, but it was some of the most technical paddling I’ve ever done. If the rest of the trip was like hiking, Malin was ice climbing. Big spring tides and a long-period swell made for powerful and complex currents and eddies around the head.

My window to get around started at 20:30, so I would be chasing the last hour of daylight. Riding a fast-moving eddy from Port Ronan, I was too early and bailed to a storm beach just short of the Head when I saw a morass of whitewater extending way out and blocking my way. If you’ve never seen a tide race, picture white water rapids running through the ocean. I bailed to a storm beach inside the head and climbed a bluff to get eyes ln the tide race (hence the zig zag lines on shore on the GPS tracker)

According to my tidal atlas and local knowledge, this race would drop around 20:30. With it still looking pretty rough, I went for it. The north-going eddy shot me through the turbulent water at 6-7 knots—my normal boat speed is 3.5-4 knots.

I found a line through the chaos and crossed into the eddy running along the head, where a current going the other way was standing up the waves rebounding off the head, creating rough, confused seas. Before long I was out of it, the head now blocking the whole Atlantic.

The arrow is the north-going eddy. The squiggly lines are the tide race.

It was a calculated risk to go when I did, and I made the right choice. The weather everywhere but Malin is going to be perfect this week. But if I hadn’t gotten around last night, my next opportunity might have been Saturday.

This was one of those “I’d hate to be here on a bad day” places. Malin is notorious, and getting around it has been a big deal for as long as people have sailed these waters. One sailor in the 18th century wrote a hymn about the experience of making it around Malin and finding salvation on the other side: “Amazing Grace.”

I arrived at dusk to the harbour on the other side of the head. At Ferren’s Bar, I had a cup of tea and dried off and let the adrenaline settle so I could sleep. That was another milestone—the northernmost pub in Ireland.

Thank you to my buddy Cathal who shared a post about this trip in Irish:

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Thank you to everyone who donated to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research!

P.S. When I’m not having adventures, I’m helping other people write about theirs. If you or someone in your circle has an amazing story to tell, I'd love to hear it. I have some availability for new ghostwriting and editing projects.

— Charlie

Kokatat is the official gear sponsor of The Lap.

The lap will be fueled by Resilient Nutrition’s Long Range Fuel and bars.

CH Marine will be providing a VHF radio and other safety equipment.

Camp kit and cooking gas provided by Paddle & Pitch. Wool baselayers by Aclima. Trolley by KCS. REAL Field Meals at a discount from Adventure.ie. Discounts from GreatOutdoors.ie. Expedition coffee by 3fe.