Highland man holding Guinness world record for paddleboard crossing of Loch Ness sets sights sights on new challenge
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An Inverness man hopes to claim a second Guinness World record next month when he attempts to cross the sea strait between Northern Ireland and Scotland on a paddleboard.
James Fletcher plans to make the 21-mile open sea crossing of the North Channel, or "the Sheuch", from Donaghadee to Portpatrick while raising money for Highland Hospice.
If successful, it will be a second world record for the 39-year-old who last year set a new record of four hours 33 minutes for a prone paddleboard crossing of Loch Ness.
He said although there had been a couple of paddleboard crossings of the North Channel, no one had yet established a record time.
Mr Fletcher, who lives with his wife, Kate, in Blackpark, hopes to do the challenge some time between August 8 and 15 depending on weather and conditions.
"I am hoping it will take about four-and-a-half hours, but it is so unpredictable," the planning manager for Forestry and Land Scotland said.
"It will really depend on the tide and weather conditions on the day.
"I have a support boat and they will look at what is the best day in the week."
He said the Atlantic tides made the strait a challenging route to cross.
"It is quite an interesting stretch of water," he said.
"It is the deepest part of the European continental shelf and about 1000ft deep at its deepest.
"Parts of it were an old World War II munitions dump, it is used as a submarine training area and it is a ferry route."
Mr Fletcher, who said there was also the prospect of encountering dolphins and whales, has been training in Loch Ness as well as sea lochs near Ullapool, including Loch Broom.
Although he hopes to set a world record, he said the paddle was mostly about the adventure, the personal challenge and raising funds for Highland Hospice which he described as a "fantastic" charity.
Mr Fletcher, who lives with a heart condition, undertook last year’s Loch Ness paddleboard challenge to raise awareness for the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young, raising more than £2500 then.
"Loch Ness is a huge stretch of water, but the North Channel will be a bit more of a challenge," he said.
"There are so many variables.
"It is a lot more unpredictable. By no means am I guaranteed a world record.
"But you have to try your best and see what happens."
Mr Fletcher has set up an online fundraising page at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/northchannelpronepaddleboardchallenge.
