Cape Wrath- The Hunt for a Black Box
A 4 day expedition to Kervaig Bothy, combining remote hiking and a search for a lost student rocket flight recorder.
Expedition Overview: Date: 14th July 2025 Duration: 4 days Location: Cape Wrath, Scotland Team: Archie, Harry Terrain: Remote Highland Hills- Pathless Boggy sections, rocky tracks, Coastal Cliffs Distance: 44.38km (Excluding Search) Elevation: 1044m Weather: High of 22C- low 9C, Mild Breeze, Clear Skies Accommodation: Kervaig Bothy
Purpose: A year after working together as canoe guides in Canada, Harry and I reunited for an expedition to test out different skills, such as planning and searching techniques, and give us a unique and unusual experience. The plan: To search for and retrieve the flight recorder from Leeds University Rocketry Association’s (LURA) attempt at breaking the student altitude record, which broke up above the launch site at Cape Wrath.
Route: After meeting together in Inverness and catching a bus to Durness, we got off early on the side of the road.
We walked from there around the Kyle of Durness to avoid waiting till the next day for a ferry. We then walked along the cut-off track to Kervaig Bothy towards the northwestern end of the area.
We spent the next couple of days doing a systematic search of the surrounding hills and valleys, focusing in on the predicted most likely landing spots of rocket parts.
On day 3 we journeyed over the hill on the west of the bothy and joined back onto the path to head over to the Cape Wrath Lighthouse.
On our final day we returned down the same path and caught the ferry back across the Kyle before being picked up by my brother for the journey home.
Expedition Outcome: The search was unsuccessful and the flight recorder was not recovered. However,the expedition provided a great opportunity to explore the Cape Wrath area,test out our equipment and search techniques, and gain experience working towards a specific objective in a remote environment.
Expedition Highlights:
Arriving at the bothy at midnight under a clear night sky
Searching an MOD testing site/firing range with a metal detector
Visiting the Cape Wrath Lighthouse and accompanying cafe
Several swims in the bay by the bothy, including at sunset
Exploring the coastal cliffs
Wildlife:
Group of seals and puffins on a small rocky island just off the cliffs
A porpoise and calf swimming in the bay by the bothy
Two sea eagles flying together in patterns above the coastline
Expedition Notes:
- Logistics:
- Cape Wrath is an actively used MOD site, dates needed to be planned around their operations
- Transport in and out is limited, walking around the Kyle better suit our plans than the ferry times
- Equipment:
- Extra searching equipment was required for our plans but was a lot of extra weight to carry into such a remote place
- Sleeping bag was not necessary inside the bothy with proper role mat and good weather
- Tent wasn’t required but bothy became busy so wouldn’t rely on finding space inside
Places worth returning to:
- Sea cliffs east of bothy
- Lighthouse
- Beach and bay by the bothy-side