Wild Lochaber Blogs
The latest bleats from the sheep on the street...
Blogs (web logs) and blogspots provide a unique insight into Highland life and nature in Lochaber and The West Highlands.
We have put together a collection of Lochaber blogs to highlight the traditions, culture and wildlife in the various regions, including the West Coast Islands.
We show entries from the last 100 days, organised by region, topic and blog. The titles and text snippets 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.
Simon Willis
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Last December when I wrote about my plans to tackle a 'special' challenge each month in my 60th year, I listed swimming The Sound of Harris as a possibility.We came close. We swam IN the Sound of Harris. yeah, OK - not close at all.I was nowhere near swim-fit enough to manage the crossing and...
Alan Kimber Mountaineering
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This day evolved into good distance and some speed. Plenty of paved surface and a wind astern was welcome. Leaving the Oykel Bridge Hotel, a short seven mile downhill section on the A837 leads to Rosehall and the entrance to gentle and quiet Glen Cassley and the Achness Hotel Rosehall for...
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Another day of mixed, showery weather to start with, which gently improved and by the time I arrived in the beautiful Glen Alladale Estate the sun was shining. The large groups of Highland cattle are no doubt being used to improve the landscape Gleann Mor in it’s lower areas...
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After a good night’s rest, day six produced some Dreich weather, defined as: …”Wet, dull, gloomy, dismal, dreary or any combination of these. Scottish weather at its most miserable”….This prevailed until Contin and after lunch at the filling station, the...
Treshnish Farm
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Summer has definitely lost out to Autumn, which to my mind started early. And today, there are only 2 Swallows left in the barn. The others have already flown. It feels very quiet around the farm yard without their graceful flight and calls.So the lambs are all sold. They...
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All of a sudden it is late summer. Early autumn. The rowans are dripping with red berries and the heather has been flowering for weeks.Farmer is busy getting ready to gather for lamb sales.The Salen Show has been and gone. A lovely day was had, and a second place and a third...
Marc Calhoun
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Last month I made a three-day hike into the interior of Lewis. I was searching for beehive cell dwellings, and found plenty: the most amazing at Loch a' Sguair, Gearraidh Ascleit, and another place further south called Airidh a' Chlair Mhoir. Along with the delight of finding intact cells,...
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I was about to give up the search. I'd hiked southwest for nearly an hour from the road at Cairisiadar; first along an old peat track, which had petered out after a half-mile, and then up the slopes of Cleite na Crich, one of the outlying foot-hills of Suaineabhal. I had a grid location for what I...
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During our stay on Lewis we paid a visit to the memorial to the Flannan Island lightkeepers. Built by Seamus Crawford of Uig, it was dedicated on December 15, 2017.The memorial is in Breasclete, a few hundred metres east of the pier used by the lightkeepers, and an equal distance west of their...
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My wife and I are just back from a visit to the Western Isles. We had 15 days of rain, and one of sun. Even so, we had a great time. I managed to do four day hikes, and a three-day trek in the Morsgail moors to search for beehive cells. All in all I visited 10 settlement sites, finding, in the...
Plants of Skye, Raasay & The Small Isles
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I found this on dead stems of Schoenoplectus lacustris (Common Club-rush) at Loch Lonachan last month: Fungus on Schoenoplectus lacustris Bruce says it “seems to be the imperfect stage of Myriosclerotinia scirpicola. This is rare and most interesting.” The Crinodendron hookerianum (...
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On Thursday I joined Skye Nature Group’s excursion to look for fungi, though as usual we looked at other things as well. Near the Crinodendron hookerianum (Lantern Tree) we found a fairly mature Cupressus macrocarpa (Monterey Cypress) and a Laburnum looking pretty sick with fungi growing out...
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Glenmore, south-west of Portree, is in a tetrad that needed more work so yesterday I had a go. The Glenmore River joins the Abhainn an Acha-leathain to form the River Snizort within the tetrad of interest and there is the roadside and an extensive area of bog, so even though it is now September I...
Sunart Community Company
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Although Local Development Officer Angela Williams has left the company, her grand finale was to help secure £41,000 from the Scottish Land Fund to help with our attempt to purchase and run the former Visitor Information Centre in Strontian. Sunart is the only group in Lochaber to receive a Land...
Ardtornish Estate and Gardens, Self catering holidays Scotland
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What’s the one thing better than relaxing over a dinner of the finest fresh produce Scotland has to offer? It is of course tucking in to your feast knowing that you foraged everything you are eating yourself. Fresh and free, are the bywords of the recent renaissance in foraging and...
Glenloy Wildlife
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Just completed a late summer holiday with Glenloy Wildlife. The temperatures were much more suggestive of autumn than winter, and the radiators have definitely been in action in the Lodge. Nevertheless, we managed to stay dry most days and had a great week for sightings. The heather is in full...
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Holiday dates for 2019 with some new holidays and short breaks added. For more details click here to download 15/3/19 – 19/3/19 (4 nights) Winter Wildlife £520. 5/4/19 – 9/4/19 (4 nights) Otters and Eagles £520. 26/4/19 – 30/4/19 (4 nights) West Highland Spring Break £520. 4/5/19 – 11/5/18 (...
Craigard Croft
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Owlets 3 - 4 weeks old Adult delivering foodTonight it will be dusk at around 8.30 pm. if you wait quietly outside my barn you will see two adult owls swooping in with food for their young that hatched about six weks ago. Three owlets hatched from a clutch of five eggs.We have had a nestbox up...
Guy Steven
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This is what it was all aboutFirst day out as a guide, however, I wasn't guiding, just a nice day climbing with Lou who is recovering from ACL reconstruction surgery! The summer has flown by. Last thing I remember from Scotland seemed only a couple of weeks ago but the last 3...
The Rum Ranger Diaries
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Come to the Isle of Rum this August Bank Holiday weekend! Ranger walks all weekend to take in the stunning scenery and wildlife, plus an amazing castle and wonderful craft shops to visit. Calmac ferry from Mallaig port, Rum Bunkhouse for accommodation. Trudi Clarke Rum Ranger August 2018
