North coast Wester Ross, Scotland Flood
The Summer Isles: fifteen islands, a drowned landscape and a sea eagle or two
The Summer Isles are a scatter of about fifteen islands at the mouth of Loch Broom in Wester Ross, formed by the same drowned landscape as the rest of the Scottish west coast: a plateau that was cut by glaciers and then flooded by the sea, leaving steep-sided channels between low, green islands. Nine miles from Old Dornie covers the best of them, and the whole archipelago shelters a kayak from almost any wind.
- Distance
- 9.0 nm
- Tide window
- 3.4-5.0 m springs, 1.8-2.7 m neaps
- Wind limit
- 12 kt
- Grade
- Intermediate
- Published
- 1 Oct 2026
A drowned glacial landscape
The bedrock here is Torridonian sandstone, around a billion years old, sitting on top of Lewisian gneiss that is older still — some of the oldest rock in Europe. The glaciers that covered this coast until 11,000 years ago carved deep channels along the fault lines, and when the ice melted and the sea rose, those channels became the sounds you paddle today.
The practical effect is that the channels are deep right up to the shore, which means there is no shoal to break the swell and no shallow water to worry about at any state of the tide. It also means the islands give real shelter: even a force 5 from the southwest produces flat water in the lee of Tanera and Isle Martin.
The islands and their landing places
Tanera Mor is the largest and the only one with a permanent pier, a seasonal cafe and holiday cottages; it also has a post office that issues its own stamps, which is the kind of thing that makes this archipelago famous out of proportion to its size. Tanera Beag, Isle Martin, Priest Island and the Horse Island group are all uninhabited.
Priest Island is a nature reserve with a large storm petrel colony, and landing is discouraged during the breeding season. The other islands are open, the landing beaches are mostly gravel or rock on the east sides, and camping is possible on several with the landowner's permission — for the uninhabited ones, that means asking at the Achiltibuie estate office.
Wildlife
White-tailed sea eagles were reintroduced to Wester Ross in the 1970s and are now regularly seen over the Summer Isles, usually as a pair working the channels. They are the largest bird of prey in Britain, with a 2.4 m wingspan, and they take fish and seabirds off the surface, which means a kayaker sometimes gets a very close view of a very large bird.
Both species of seal are common, with harbour seals on the sheltered island shores and grey seals on the outer skerries. Porpoise are resident and usually seen in the channels between the islands. The usual rules apply: 100 m from any haul-out, and no approach between an animal and the water.
Wind and the outside route
The Summer Isles are a sheltered destination but the surrounding water is not. The outside route, past Priest Island and the Horse Island group, is fully exposed to the Atlantic, with a fetch of several thousand miles and a swell that arrives undiminished. The inner route through the archipelago is 9 nm and can be done in almost any conditions up to force 5.
The tides here are moderate: 1.5 to 2 knots on springs in the main channels and less between the inner islands. That makes the archipelago one of the few places on this coast where the tide is a help rather than a hazard, and the standard day is to work north on the flood, lunch on Tanera Mor, and come back south on the first of the ebb.
Plan table
Before departure
- 01
Check the Minch forecast and the swell direction
The inner route is fine up to force 5; the outside route past Priest Island is exposed to the full Atlantic.
- 02
Confirm the Tanera Mor pier and cafe season
The pier and cafe are seasonal; outside the season the island is a landing beach only.
- 03
Check the Priest Island reserve rules
It is a storm petrel reserve and landing is discouraged during the breeding season.
- 04
Ask the estate office before camping on any uninhabited island
The Achiltibuie estate manages most of the group and permission is expected.
En route
- 01
Work north on the flood and south on the ebb
The streams run 1.5 to 2 kt in the main channels and are a help rather than a hazard.
- 02
Stay inside the archipelago if the swell is over 1 m
The outside route past Priest Island has a fetch measured in thousands of miles.
- 03
Keep 100 m from every seal haul-out
Harbour seals use the sheltered shores and greys the outer skerries.
- 04
Watch for sea eagles working the channels
They take fish from the surface and can appear without warning at close range.
Key numbers
- 9.0 nm through the archipelago from Old Dornie, 3 to 4 hours.
- Spring stream 1.5 to 2 kt in the main channels; less between the inner islands.
- Wind limit 12 kt inside the islands; the outside route needs 8 kt or less.
- About fifteen islands, only one with a pier; camping on several by permission.
- White-tailed sea eagles are resident and regularly seen over the channels.
Bail-outs
- B1 Tanera Mor pier, the largest island, with a seasonal cafe and moorings
- B2 Ullapool harbour, 8 nm northeast, a deep-water port with all-tide access
Return leg：Return south on the last of the flood or the first of the ebb, keeping inside the islands. The outside route past Priest Island is exposed to the full Atlantic fetch.