Performance Sea Kayak2
Sea Paddling Excellence...
Crossing:
St Kilda
Route Distance: ~36 nm / 66.7 kmPrevailing direction: E >> W
Record: 1992 - 09:30:00
Solo: 8
Team: 5
Records
| Adrian Tyrrell | K1M | 09:30:00 | 1992 |
| Anne Gow Hamish Gow | K2 | 1965 |
Saint Kilda is a small and isolated group of four islands lying nearly 40 nm west of the the Outer Hebrides. The limited size and isolation meant that on St Kilda it was increasingly hard to maintain a viable living and in 1930 the final inhabitants were to evacuate to the mainland. This left the islands to be sold and later passed onto the National Trust, they are now known for their bird-life.
From the sea kayaking point of view this crossing is a committing trip, with few 'Plan B' options. St Kilda is a long way out and a small target to aim for. It has been undertaken a number of times over the years, the first crossing possibly as far back as 1965.
Crossing: St Kilda
Solo
Click column header to sort.| Posn. | K1W | Cat | Paddler | Elapsed | Date | Start | Finish | Boat | Verified | Note | Link1 | 1 | K1M | Adrian Tyrrell | 09:30:00 | 27-Sep-92 | Hosta Beach North Uist | Village Bay Hirta | -- | 2 | K1M | Norbert Ziober | 10:13:15 | 24-Aug-21 | Hosta Beach North Uist | Village Bay Hirta | Rockpool Taran 18 | Yes | 3 | K1M | Giles Trussell | 10:33:00 | 07-Jun-18 | Village Bay Hirta | Hougharry North Uist | P+H Cetus HV | Yes | 4 | K1M | Tim Haines | 11:42:45 | 05-Jul-24 | Hogha Gearraidh | Village Bay Hirta | NDK Romany Excel | -- | 5 | K1M | Tim Haines | 13:04:56 | 08-Jul-24 | Village Bay Hirta | Hogha Gearraidh | NDK Romany Excel | -- | 6 | K1M | Giles Trussell | 2 days | 05-Jun-18 | Hougharry North Uist | Village Bay Hirta | P+H Cetus HV | Yes | 7 | K1M | Roland Arnison | 3 days | 14-Jul-25 | Village Bay Hirta | Scolpaig Bay | SKUK Explorer | -- | 8 | K1M | Dave Clement | ? | 06-Jun-12 | Scolpaig North Uist | Village Bay Hirta | -- | Article |
|---|
8 solo paddlers
Teams
Click column header to sort.| Posn. | Cat | Paddler | Elapsed | Date | Start | Finish | Boat | Verified | Note | Link1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Team | Eurion Brown Alex Wainwright | 11:36:00 | 20-Jun-14 | Village Bay | Hougharry North Uist | P+H Cetus HV Tiderace Xcite S | Yes | ||
| 2 | Team | Eurion Brown Alex Wainwright | 12:20:00 | 17-Jun-14 | Hougharry North Uist | Village Bay Hirta | P+H Cetus HV Tiderace Xcite S | Yes | ||
| 3 | Team | Michal Madera Natalie Maderova | 13:41:00 | 15-Jun-15 | Hougharry | Village Bay | Tiderace Pace 17 Tour Tiderace Pace 17 Tour | -- | Blog | |
| 4 | K2 | Dolina Swanson / Christine Stewart | ~14:00:00 | 06-Jun-12 | Scolpaig North Uist | Village Bay | -- | Article | ||
| 5 | K2 | Anne Gow / Hamish Gow | 1965 | -- |
5 Teams -- 10 Paddlers
Notes
Roland Arnison (14-Jul-25)Roland's crossing was over 3 paddling days, with an elapsed time of 56:00:33 - stopping over on Haskeir on the way.
From Roland: "I paddled from Scolpaig Bay to Haskeir on 14 July 2025 and then Haskeir to Village Bay on Hirta on 16 July when the weather improved.
I did not paddle back as I couldn’t find a good enough weather window. Instead I hitched a lift on a visiting yacht, Taeping, owned by Ocean Sailing Scotland.
The crossing to Haskeir was fast – around 3 hours – due to a fresh wind in my favour. Landing on Haskeir, even on the west side which was sheltered that day, was tricky as there are only steeply sloping rock slabs to land on and there was a good meter swell. I managed it eventually without mishap and stayed on Haskeir two nights.
The main crossing from Haskeir to Hirta took almost 15 hours including regular breaks. I will write a blog or article in due course which will tell the full story including my kit, tactics, contingency plans and psychological preparations. But I can mention now that I had good weather, with only a F1 or 2 wind from the south, low swell and reasonable visibility (although St Kilda was only visible for the last four or so hours): the crossing went well.
I carried out this crossing as part of a bigger expedition. The Call of the Loon expedition is my solo quest to find and record the calls of all of Scotland’s seabird species, travelling solo by kayak. More details on the website – link below.
I did conduct a comprehensive seabird survey as I paddled between Haskeir and Hirta, recording the numbers of all seabird species I saw during each hour, as I paddled. This must surely be the first ever seabird transect survey carried out between Uist and St Kilda, by kayak. I will publish the results in a research report in due course."
Dave Clement (06-Jun-12)
Details taken from a news article - The Herald
Tim Haines (05-Jul-24)
Tim also paddled the return journey!
Tim Haines (08-Jul-24)
Tim paddled out and back, this is the return journey.
Dolina Swanson / Christine Stewart (06-Jun-12)
Escort Boat
Giles Trussell (07-Jun-18)
A 4 day round trip - 2 days out via Monach Islands and then a single day return
Summary:
Crossing: St KildaSolo paddlers: 8
Team paddlers: 10
Teams: 5
Recorded Start Points:
- Hogha Gearraidh (1)
- Hosta Beach, North Uist (2)
- Hougharry (1)
- Hougharry, North Uist (2)
- Scolpaig, North Uist (2)
- Village Bay (1)
- Village Bay, Hirta (3)