Alternative Ulster - Alternative Energy

On Wednesday, I had the good fortune to be delivering a Scorpio to one of our customers in Lisburn. She'd arranged with a few other members of one of the kayaking clubs that she paddles with for me to bring some demo boats across. We had a mixed bag, including the Rockpool Taran, P&H Cetus MV & Tiderace Xplore. One of the guys paddled across from the other side of the lough at Portaferry in his Nordkapp Jubilee which he 'kindly' allowed me to paddle while he tried some of the demo boats. They also had a chance to try some wing paddles from Schwarzer the Zasteras and our best sellers from Mitchell Blades.



We paddled out from the ferry terminal at Strangford, past the Turbine. There were a number of whirlpools forming behind this, but it strikes me as a very reliable form of renewable energy, after all the tide has been running in and out twice a day for as long as I can remember...


A quick run down the lough to Angus Rocks where we stopped for a brew and then it was back up to Strangford so I could reload the boats and get back to Dublin to cross the Irish Sea the easy way.

I really enjoyed paddling this stretch of water, it was reminiscent of the southern end of the Menai Straits, but the abundance of wildlife didn't seem to have been disturbed by the new energy generation scheme in place here. Thanks to the members of Belfast Kayak club for their company and Navarat for making it possible for me to discover this gem for myself.