Pagaia sea kayak symposium 2025 in Llançà

Do you fancy some pre-Easter sea kayaking in the mediterranean, good food & vino after a grim Scottish winter? Then join Ana and me for the 2027 Paigaia (=sea kayak club) sea kayak symposium! We would love to see some Taysiders there... 

This is a write up of the 2025 sea kayak symposium that we attended so that you can get an idea. Do not hesitate to ask Ana or myself if you have questions. We are actually now members of the Pagaia club. 

Llançà is a wee coastal city on the Costa Brava ("wild coast") just south of the border to France and north of the Cap de Crues (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cap_de_Creus) peninsula and national park. Every second year they organise a sea kayak symposium in the week before Easter. This year Ana and I took part. We highly recommend it if you want to paddle in typically good mediterranean weather and want to meet fellow paddlers from all over Europe (=Bretagne/France, Italy, Germany, Spain).

Travel: a) By plane: Fly to Barcelona or Girona and then take a rental car which is cheap (we paid 200 EUR for 2 weeks). You can hire sea kayaks in Llançà. b) By car & ferry: There are many car & ferry combinations and the advantage is that you can take your own kayak. However, if the ferry goes to San Sebastian then you must still drive many miles to Llançà.

Accomodation: The Pagaia sea kayak club offers free camping (rustic in the dust, noisy but fun, place for camper vans, non-luxury facilities of a sports club, most folks do this). There is also a camp site in town plus plenty of holiday lets plus hotels. Costs are moderate as it is pre season. 

Kayak rental: Available in Llançà and at other places. No problem to attend the symposium without your own kayak. 

Impressions: Below are some images from the symposium. There are close to 200 participants and instructors from Wales (Nigel Dennis came with 10 of his kayaks and several instructors), Germany, Netherlands, Spain and France. The Mediterranean is non-tidal but expect the tramontana wind that blows down from the Pyrenees some days. The coast is beautiful with a mix of beaches and rocky bits but there is little wildlife (we saw some sun fish though) and there are no islands. Nonetheless, the good weather and the international, middle-aged crowd makes up for it. The first three days of the symposium were skills (you can book groups that develop specific skills) followed by four days of tours.

We had 2 overcast days, one rainy day and the rest was sunny. Generally the 2025 spring was wet for Catalunya (in Scotland it would have been considered as dry). The locals are happy about rain because Catalunya is just recovering from a draught due to several years of very little rain. 

Here is our wee Fiat 500 and Ana sorting out kit. There is lots of parking 

and here is a group discussing the plans for the session or trip.

Here we leave Llançà harbour for a trip towards Cap de Creus. I think we saw two sun fish during this trip.

Here is Ana as part of a Spanish-Belgian-Dutch-German team during a navigation exercise

During the three training days, people could leave their kayak on the beach. The club had organised security to look after the kayaks over night.

Here is folks landing after exercises. 

Cap de Creus has dramatic rock formations but unfortunately no sea caves.

Landing on a beach in the Cap de Creus national park.

Blue water during the lunch break. You could book your lunches and breakfast which we did. It made things super easy. 

And finally: Nigel Dennis with the 22 kayaks that he built and transported all the way from Wales. 

Other things to do? Of course, this is Catalunya. Many places for sightseeing, shopping, good food & drink. If you into cycling bring your bike. There are also many great walks. 

Here are some ideas:

Barcelona: Just 200 km away, you can go by car or train. Gaudi architecture etc etc. Just buy a Barcelona guide. 

Girona: Just 62 km away. medieval city and the home of many professional cyclists. A tour de France winner overtook me on Christmas eve twice!

Figueres: The town of Salvatore Dali with a Dali museum is right around the corner.  

Pyrenees: They start near Llançà but the high Pyrenees will be snow capped around Easter. It is a beautiful sight coming from the coast and seeing the Pyrenees in the distuance. Great for walks. 

Cadaques: Arty town just a short drive away. 

Calella, Llafranc, Tamariu, Roses, Pals, Tossa de Mar: There are many beautiful villages and wee towns on the Costa Brava which starts at Blanes and goes to the French border.  

Ana and I hope to sea a large Scottish delegation at the 2027 Llançà sea kayak symposium! Pencil the pre-Easter week into your calendar now. Do not hesitate to ask us if you have quesitons. 

HW

Stelvio triplo by bike

The Stelvio (Stilfser Joch, 2758 m) is the most famous Italian mountain pass. It is located in the Ortler (3905) mountain range and connects Prad in the Vinschgau with Bormio in Veltin (Lombardia). A third ascent starts in Santa Maria in Graubünden, Switzerland, and is known as the Umbrail pass. Doing all three climbs in a day is the Stelvio triplo or gran Stelvio challenge for hobby cyclists. Here is the Komoot track: https://www.komoot.de/tour/1253100196 

Initially Dietmar, a cycling friend of mine, and I wanted to do it at the beginning of August but I came down with a cold and so we had to call it off. However, I recovered and could take the 10.08.2023 off . So I booked a hotel in Pfunds for the night before and then in the morning of the 10.08.2023 I drove to Prad and got onto my bike.

The first ascent from Prad to the Stelvio is 1800 altimetres of climbing and I had optimistically planned to cycle with 220-240 W. The legs are fresh and this power output feels easy at this stage. Here it goes up straight and there many cyclists, motor cyclists and cars on the road. It is just about OK on weekdays but hell for cyclists at the weekend, so avoid. 

Here, a little higher up comes the village of Trafoi with a view to the retreating glaciers of the Ortler... 

... and here two cyclists are just ahead of myself. 

It is never too steep but sustained with 23 uphill kilometres. After half of the ascent you cross the tree line and then climb the famous "tornantes" (German Serpentinen) or hair pin curves all the way to the summit.

I reached the pass roughly at noon. Up there are shops, food stalls and good fun Italian chaos and noise.   

As it was only 6 degrees, I put my jacket on and quickly descended 1500 metres of altitude to Bormio in the South. Plenty of motor bikes and cars. 

Here is the market square of Bormio. I sat down in an outside restaurant and ordered something starting with "T", expecting Tagliatelle or some similar form of pasta. However, it was a plate with Italian ham and some cheese. Not the fuel I wanted and needed but better than nothing. 

Back on the bike and 1500 m back up to the Stelvio. Choosing the right clothing is tricky because it was above 20 degrees in Bormio and only 6 degrees at the top. I was wearing an undershirt, a merino cycle jersey and opened it for the sweaty first part of the ascent. The climb from Bormio is long but only 1500 m altitude, so 300 m less than from Prad. 

Here a vulture near the summit... 

... and here some Alpine gentian (German: Enzian). 

Again the Italian circus at the top and back down. At around 2500 m of altitude there is a T-junction and this time I turned right. A wee ascent to reach the top of the Umbrail pass. 

From there a long, curvy descent to Santa Maria in Graubünden, Switzerland. 

The climb back up is steep and mainly hair pins but there were fewer cars than on the main road. I also was mentally tired at this stage and lay down on the grass for 10 min to refresh myself. Here, a descending cyclist near the top of the Umbrail pass... 

... and here is the T-junction where the Umbrail meets the Stelvio. The bealach of the Stelvio is behind the house in the distance, just 250 altimetres more. 

I stopped to take photos of these pretty cows, named Balu Beatrix...

... and Casper Candy .

At this stage my legs were heavy and I only managed to produce 160-180 W, far below the expected 220-240 W. Cycling mountain passes is relentless because there is no descent or opportunity just to roll a bit and so this makes you more tired than when cycling in the plains. 

By the time I reached the pass for the final time, people were packing up. 

I again put my jacket on and descended all those tornantes back to my car parked by the side of the road. 

Here is the altitude profile of the day. It was 4664 m of ascending and I felt it. 

I drove past Nauders with the much photographed church tower in the reservoir... 

... and ordered a take away Pizza Magherita and an alcohol-free beer and drove all the way back to Munich. 

In summary, the Stelvio triplo is a great challenge for hobby cyclists. Get plenty of training in and get used to pace yourself up a long mountain pass. Nutrition and drinking is important. I made rice cakes using this recipe https://www.siroko.com/blog/c/how-to-make-bike-ride-rice-cakes-and-how-to-wrap-them/. Highly recommended as you get plenty of carbs in and as they are easily digestable and not too sweet. You should aim for probably 60 g of carbohydrates per hour of ascent (= 1 Muesli bar or 1 banana is roughly 30 g). You do not need a super bike but a disc brake makes the descents much easier and arguably safer. I used 30 mm Continental 5000 tyres with inner tubes inflated to 5.5 bar. These wider tyres are great on the sometimes bumpy road and add safety. Finally, plan your clothing well. Prad is below 1000 m and the summit is at nearly 3000 m, so expect a temperature difference of more than 10 degrees. A light rain or wind jacket is essential for the first part of the descent. Good luck for your attempt!

HW

Mike Hamment's last Munro on the 27.05.2023

The Munros are Scottish hills over 3000 feet (914.4 m) and when I did them in 2005 there were 284 of them. However, two were downgraded since then and so there are 282 left. On Saturday, the 27.05.2023 Mike Hamment compleated his round of the Munro and this blog entry is about Mike's compleation. 

So what are the Munros? In the late 19th century, Sir Hugh Thomas Munro from Kirriemuir near Dundee visited higher Scottish hills and measured their height. He then published a list of hills over 3000 feet in the 6th issue of the Scottish Mountaineering Club journal in 1891. Munro climbed all but two of them. Hugh Munro's list soon became known as "the Munros" and "bagging the Munros" is today the most popular challenge for Scottish mountaineers. Reverend Archibald Eneas Robertson was likely the first to climb all of the Munro's in 1901 although some question, based on his notes, whether he had actually climbed Ben Wyvis. Today, the Scottish Mountaineering Club maintains an online list with all the "compleators" (the "ea" is not a typo!) which is here https://www.smc.org.uk/hills/compleators. To date 7422 mountaineers have compleated.

So how did Mike from Oxford start his round of the Munros? Mike was a close friend of the late Roger Ramsbottom who was my best friend  in the UK. After I moved to the UK in 1997, I met Roger during an exercise physiology conference and Roger and I soon started hillwalking in the Lake District, in the Alps and we had one winter trip to Scotland where we failed to ascend neither Ben Nevis nor Sgurr nan Gillean on Skye, due to a gale and verglas, respectively. However, I realised that Scotland had stunning scenery and that the Scottish Munro's were a real challenge even for someone who has done several 4000ers in the Alps. In 2002, I started as a lecturer at the University in Dundee and one evening with Roger and Mike before that I bet that I would do the Munros in three years. For three years the Munros became my obsession and I compleated in 2005 as Munroist number 3346. 

Roger got married to Waew but Mike had caught the bug and in 2007 he declared that he was now a Munro bagger. For him this was a much bigger challenge than for me because he lives in Oxford and had to travel to Scotland for each Munro trip. Roger and I joined him frequently and there are stories, stories, stories, and even more stories. 

Fast forward to 2023. In February, Roger had died because of melanoma which was a great shock to us. Roger was our Munro brother and we despite his cancer diagnosis we hoped that he would be there with us when Mike would do his last Munro. It was not to be. And then Mike set the 27.05.2023 as a date and declared that the Cairnwell, the easiest of all the Munros, should be his last Munro. This is where the story of this blog entry starts. 

On Thursday the 25.05., I first flew to Frankfurt and then on to Glasgow where I arrived very late. Because of the queue at the taxi stand, I decided to walk a bit more than a mile to my hotel in Renfrew and went to bed long after midnight. In the morning of Friday the 26.05., Isabelle, a french Munro bagger who had done Blaven on Skye with Mike and Roger picked me up and we drove to Glen Lyon to meet Amanda and Mike at the dam to climb Stuchd an Lochain (960 m), Mike's second to last Munro. It was great to see Mike and to walk the Munro in perfect Munro weather with great views to e.g., Buachaille Etive Mor. It was as if I had never left. 

Here are Isabelle, Amanda and Mike setting off at the dam... 

... and here we are already some metres up the hill with the lochain below.

After the steep part of the ascent the angle flattens and you can just see the corrie with a loch plus the summit of Stuchd an Lochain.

Also, in the distance are the hills of Glen Coe. We could see Buachaille Etive Mor. 

We finally reached the summit cairn of Mike's second to last Munro. Here we are!

Here, Mike points towards Ben Challum, the last Munro that Roger Ramsbottom climbed in 2019.

On the way down we saw a ptarmigan...

... and had good views towards Glen Lyon. 

Here is Mike knowing that there is only one Munro left!

In the afternoon we drove to Ballater near Balmoral not far from Aberdeen. Here is the main street.

Ballater is probably the most royalist place in Scotland because the locals benefit from all the Balmoral visitors. Here is evidence for that...

... and here is the beautiful Dee valley from the local hill. 

We then drove to Ballater youth hostel, had a rip off price but average food menu in the Clachan grill (avoid unless they come to their senses) and after wine and some Arran whisky we went to bed and the Saturday arrived. 

We drove to the Glenshee ski resort where Mike's family, his Munro companions and James the piper were meeting at 11.30 h to start at 12 h. I also met my winter climbing partner Simon and his wife Christine who joined Mike's big day. And roughly at noon our group  of 40 walkers, from children to seniors, women and men, started to ascend the Cairnwell (930 m), Mike's last Munro. 

Here is Mike in front of Ballater hostel dressed for his last Munro...

... and here James the piper and all others set off. Mike walked with the people towards the back so that everyone would have a chance to see him compleating his round of the Munros!

Here is Mike higher up...

... and here is James the piper, piping half way up and near the summit with 360 degree views to the other Glenshee hills, Lochnagar and the central Cairngorms. 

Finally the big moment arrived. We all formed a guard of honour and Mike walked in the middle and ascended the cairn whilst everyone cheered him on and whilst James was piping. 

Who has just compleated the Munros? It is Mike Hamment, Munroist number 7000 and something!

After champagne, tablets and cookies we all descended, returned to Ballater and met at the golf club dressed with at least a wee bit of tartan. James piped again, we had a photo on the golf course...

... Mike got an award...

... and after wee talks by myself and Simon, Mike presented photos of his round of the Munros mentioning everyone who joined. I am sure the Hamment family has a new hero now and understands why Mike was obsessed with compleating his round of the Munros. All of us also thought of Roger Ramsbottom who seemed to be Mike's twin brother. 

Finally on the Sunday, Mike had organised a trip to Balmoral castle. What a great idea as I had never visited it despite living in Aberdeen which is down the road. Here is the castle...

... and when we arrived there was an oldtimer meet with many Rolls Royce parked outside. 

Here is another one in front of the tower. 

... and here is the spirit of ecstasy, the figure on the bonnet of a Rolls. 

On Sunday I went to Glasgow and had to visit the Duke of Wellington now with a traffic cone on the Duke and on its horse. The Duke-traffic cone combo is now a sign for Glasgow. 

Finally a visit to George Square, a bus to my hotel in Renfrew, a very early start and 6 am flight first to Frankfurt and then home to Munich.

Congratulations  again Mike, compleating the round of the Munros is a bloody hard thing to achieve! It was a fantastic time and I am looking forward to seeing you again soon. 

HW