Sea kayaker to catch his own food

Mr Pendrey will burn driftwood for fuel during the expedition

A sea kayaker intends to catch his own food, burn driftwood for warmth and power equipment using a solar panel during an expedition.

Tom Pendrey, from Barra, on the Western Isles, has won a grant from the John Muir Trust charity for his venture.

He hopes to set out this weekend to paddle the length of the isles.

Ilya Maclean, from Edinburgh, has also secured funding to train Tanzanian villagers in bird identification and monitoring techniques.

The men have been given the awards under the Bill Wallace Grant scheme for expeditions that raise awareness of, and help to conserve, wild places.

It will take Mr Pendrey about a month to kayak about 150 miles from Castlebay on Barra up the west coast of Lewis and Harris.

This is sure to be an adventure that I won't forget Tom Pendrey

During the trip, the sea kayak guide will catch his own food whenever he can and get weather forecasts on a wind-up radio.

Safety equipment will be charged using a solar panel bought with the grant funding, all in an effort to avoid creating a carbon footprint - a measure of damage caused by travel and lifestyles on the environment.

He said: "I am proud to be sponsored by the John Muir Trust for paddling in what can be one of the most challenging kayaking environments and a stunningly beautiful location.

"This is sure to be an adventure that I won't forget."

Meanwhile, Mr Maclean hopes the skills he will give villagers greatly enhances their prospects of securing future employment.

The project is in line with his life-long passion for wildlife and extensive research in Africa as part of his PhD in ecology.

He said: "I feel very pleased and honoured that my project has been awarded the Bill Wallace Grant, to go out and do what I believe in: conserving wildlife whilst ensuring that people benefit too."