Ardnamurchan Area Blogs
Blogs (web logs) provide an ideal opportunity to explore the traditions, culture and wildlife of Wild Lochaber. We have put together a collection of local blogs and provide the titles and text snippets to give a taste of each entry with direct links to the main blog entry on the host website. We hope you will find time to explore the full articles and further information on the host blog sites.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any suggestions for blogs you would like to see here.
Otter Adventures
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One simple question was all it took to start an afternoon of exploring paddling techniques. The question was intended to challenge and stretch my understanding of ‘correct’ paddle technique. Which it did. And I’m still working out the answer. What was I doing? What was the...
Craigard Croft
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Colourful pre-industrial diversity surrounded by deep green desertIndustrialised agriculture in the UK began after WW2, until then we had traditional low input, low output farming, a time when farmers didn't have to keep accounts or pay income tax, yields were low, machines were powered by horses,...
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The goats don't seem to mind the squatters My brown egg laying hybrid hens lay an egg a day at the moment, there's over 14 hrs of daylight and it's warmer. So each day they go looking for a nest site for an hour or so then end up in the one they used yesterday.Research shows that hens learn...
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Day 2 of sitting on the nest and not moving.... definitely broody!It's the end of May....... the start of the "broody" season.... Hens now want to sit on a clutch of eggs and hatch them. The don't all go "broody" or start "clocking" some are keener than others but it can become...
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Humans domesticated by goats 11,000 years agoEstimates vary but it seems that humans were first domesticated by goats between eight thousand and eleven thousand year ago in the mountains of Iran. Being sociable, adaptable, intelligent and able to eat almost anything humans were an ideal subject for...
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I should know better but last month I slipped half a dozen fertile duck eggs under a bantam hen with little hope of any hatching after the long, rough journey by mail from Shetland. Then, one morning ten days ago there were four black and yellow ducklings under a fiercely protective hen. In the...
The Sunart Diaries
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Ardnamurchan has excellent birdwatching. In a relatively small area it has a variety of habitats – mountain, moorland, all types of woodland, raised bog, coast, sea and freshwater lochs, machair and just about everything in between. Bird Watching magazine published are article on birdwatching...
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Having discussed the Triffid-like rhododendrons that infest parts of Ardnamurchan and the tools needed to clear them, here’s a further instalment showing how to ensure they don’t re-grow. Rhododendron (Rhododendron ponticum) are relatively shallow-rooted woody shrubs. They can spread by...
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Give us the tools, and we will finish the job … Winston Churchill, 1941. Although this one might take some time … Sunart Diarist, 2019 Whatever the job, having suitable tools usually makes it much easier. And safer. One of my top priority jobs at the moment is clearing a large amount of...
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The plot on Ardnamurchan is south facing hillside and was originally probably a mix of scrubby birch and oak woodland with dense ground cover of bracken. Over the years rhododendron have infested the site and, despite being cut back severely 10-15 years ago, still predominate. I’m working...
Simon Willis
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We’re selling the superb campervan that has taken us on many adventures. She's priced at £23,000.It’s a long wheelbase with barely 64,000 miles on its T32 130bhp TDI engine since registration in November 2008.We’re near Fort William but could travel reasonable distances for serious buyers.We’ve...
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My wife is selling her little-used road bike which will suit someone 5'7"- 5'10" tall.It's an excellent first road bike or winter bike. In great condition, it was recently serviced with new kit costing £80. This is the 'women’s version' of the legendary Roubaix but that doesn't...
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This is my new gravel bike, a Sonder Camino Ti. That's the titanium version of Alpkit's popular Sonder gravel bike.Initial impressions are that it is staggeringly good value.I specified the top of the range build and it cost £2349. That's slightly cheaper than listed because I swapped the...
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We wondered how many people would turn up for Saturday's swim.45 had registered but, after a long period of settled weather, the forecast was not great. Two days before the swim, there was talk of having to call it off.So when 34 people turned up we were slightly surprised and completely...
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Buying bike can be a fraught experience. I've previously complained that you're not allowed to test ride bikes which shops don't stock. If you want something that's not in stock, then you have to pay for it before they'll get it in. I understand why they do this, but it's not great from the buyer's...
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Last weekend we went paddling again. This time, however, it was in a canoe. Our friends Colin and Katrina run Source-2-Sea canoe adventures. We introduced Colin to wild swimming and they volunteered to take us paddling. Again. The cross-over between canoeing and kayaking is...
West Ardnamurchan Community Council
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WEST ARDNAMURCHAN COMMUNITY COUNCILMINUTES OF MEETING HELD AT THE KILCHOAN LEARNING CENTRE, ON MONDAY 13th MAY 2019 AT 7PM 1. WELCOME AND APOLOGIES PresentGeoff Campbell Chair (GCC)Pat MacPhail Treasurer (PM)Stewart Connor Secretary (SC)Gill Calver (GC)Jessie Colquhoun (JC)...
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WACC Meeting Agenda, Monday 13th May, Kilchoan Learning Centre, 7pm (Wednesday, May 8, 2019 - 16:20)WEST ARDNAMURCHAN COMMUNITY COUNCIL A MEETING WILL BE HELD AT THE KILCHOAN LEARNING CENTRE, ON MONDAY 13TH MAY AT 7PMAGENDA1. Welcome & Apologies ...
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WEST ARDNAMURCHAN COMMUNITY COUNCILMINUTES OF MEETING HELD AT THE NADURRA NATURE CENTRE, GLENMORE ON MONDAY 8th APRIL 2019 AT 7PM1. WELCOME AND APOLOGIESPresent:Geoff Campbell (Chair) (GCC) May...
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WEST ARDNAMURCHAN COMMUNITY COUNCIL A MEETING WILL BE HELD AT NADURA NATURE CENTRE, GLENMORE ON MONDAY 8TH APRIL AT 7PM AGENDA 1. Welcome & Apologies ...
