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My Adventures

Glen Docherty Viewpoint, 3 Lochs, Blackwater Falls and Fyrish…


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part Fifteen

6 August 2020

I didnt know it in the morning as I awoke, but today was going to be a bumper day of energy, beautiful sights and renewed enthuasium.

It started off cloudy, but was dry, and held a bit of promise in the air. I took my time getting sorted and as I did, I saw the skies clearing, and then spotted patches of sunlight begin to dance across the landscape. It looked stunning… and these patches of light gradually increased in duration until eventually, I found myself jumping out of the camper, camera in hand, to capture the view properly. I was so glad I did, because the shots were incredibably pretty and totally varied depending on where the light was dancing.

Glen Docharty Viewpoint, looking perfect this morning

I managed to get several photographs of the viewpoint before a tour guide stopped by with a mini bus full of excited Japanese girls stopped by. He told them that Queen Victoria had visited here, that it was used in an advert and had been in several films, so is a very popular spot for tourists. I cant say I would disagree, and today was a particularly pretty demonstration on how it can look here. They snapped loads of photos, petted River and photographed themselves with her too before they all moved on. I eventually left too, revisited Loch Maree quickly to try and capture some shots that I had wanted, and then headed off to find more of my Ross and Cromarty locations.

First stop was Loch Clair. There was a nice easy hike along the side of the Loch, and after I found a good parking spot River and I headed out for the first long walk I’d had in days. By now the temperature had increased, and the day was proving to be a glorious sunny one. It was one that my spirits desperately needed, but not one that was quite so good for photography, as the strong sun simply washed a lot of the shots out or left me with harsh shadows. Regardless of the photo opportunities, the hike was really peaceful and enjoyable, and I was just so happy to be able to soak up the calm gentle beauty here. I walked by the side of Loch Clair, and then the path continued on to go alongside Loch Coulin. A two in one hike, bonus!! This loch had a different character to it, and was filled with plants. It wasnt quite as clean a sight as I had hoped for, but it was really pretty nonetheless. I found myself a small rocky outcrop and sat with River for a while, and took a shot from there. I wondered if the greenery would be in the water over the winter/early spring. This one would definately be worth coming back to to check, as it would be really nice if it was possible to get a reflection in the water of the white house with the stunning Beinn Eighe behind it. There’s no bridge here for a better angle, so it might not be possible, but a return trip would answer that question I guess…

Loch Coulin. I would have loved a much cleaner reflection, but it wasnt to happen today.

 

The walk (or the boots I was using today) had began to hurt my feet giving me a blister, so I had to turn back from here rather than investigate the route further. I love it when you go back on yourself on a route though, you see everything differently, and by the time I got back to Loch Clair, I spotted a small boat house with some perfectly still water in front of it. I have been dreaming of a shot with a glass like reflection, and though this wasnt the ‘mountain in the water’ shot I dreamed of, it looked really nice. (header pic) Loch Clair itself would also have had the shot I hoped for, but the light breeze kept sending random patches of ripples across different sections of the water, so I couldnt get it all in one on this visit. Another time right?!

I hobbled back to the camper when I was done, and stripped everything off my feet. Luckily I have a good supply of blister plasters, so I put one on, some nice soft socks, and popped my super comfy sketchers trainers on to ease the foot a little. Next it was cup of tea time, and then I looked at my list for a nearby location that wouldnt involve me walking for miles. On the map, I spotted Blackwater falls, so decided that this would be my next stop. I had forgotten what these looked like, so I drove in the direction without knowing exactly what I was looking for and was really surprised to find it right on the side of the road. This meant that it would be very easy on my foot, as the walk was minimal.

It was so beautiful here! The car park was quite spacious, and free so I was able to just park up and come out for a walk first without the weight of a camera bag. What a treat met my eyes when I got to the falls!!

Blackwater falls. An absolutely gorgeous location. I could have stayed for hours here!

Here was a fall that was quite open and accessible. There was a purpose built platform, a bridge, and all down the side were rocky flat outcrops so you can get right down to the water. Spots to take photos here were plentiful, and with the sunlight now easing a little behind blobs of cloud, I found myself like a child in a candy shop stopping every few feet to take photos from a slightly different perspective. My favourite spot by far was along a huge slab of rock where the water formed two amazing whorls in the water. They changed constantly, spinning and undulating, growing and shrinking in both size and character, non stop. With the sun popping in and out over the scene I found my self chilling here for an age just watching the pattern, and happily snapping to get a bunch of constantly changing views.

When I eventually finished here, my foot felt considerably better, it was still only 4.30, and I wondered if I might be able to catch a nice sunset somewhere. Once again I consulted my map and decided to head for Fyrish monument. This had intregued me massively, because it looked different, and had a lovely history/myth about it. In 1783, The highland clearances were underway, and the local land owner Sir Hector Munro felt some pity for the poor and starving villagers who had been moved off the land for sheep farming. When they refused his charity, he commissioned them to build this Folly instead. It was a representation of the Gates of Negapatam, in Madras, India which Munro had, as a General for the British army, successfully siezed from the Dutch in 1781. As the villagers toiled in their work, the myth has it that Munro would roll the boulders back down the hill, so that they would have to do double the work to bring them back up again… therefore earning double the pay.

What I hadnt read about, was the walk to get there.

When I arrived I found that the carpark was a good 2 miles earlier than the sat nav was telling me, so I parked in this spot. Then I read on the board that the walk to the monument was 2 miles. 2 hours to go, I am sure I can make this, I thought.  Chatting to a man coming down, this was the only car park, so no idea what Google maps had marked up..! 2 Miles was OK I thought, I had a blister plaster on by now, and different footwear, so I headed off into the woods with River… to hike 2 miles completely uphill – with all my kit on my back(!) Maybe the gradient was really hard, maybe it was because this was a second big hike in one day, maybe it was the weight I was carrying or maybe there WAS a second car park closer, but no matter what, I found this walk extremely hard work. Halfway up, I paused by a small pond, and River, herself very hot by this climb, immediately ran for it for her now obligatory swim. I couldnt stop her getting in, but I had to call her out quickly, as it was thick with a green black algae. When I got her back, I had a hilarious looking half black, half white dog. Chuckling at the sight, I snapped a quick photo and sent it to the children, but to avoid the temptation of River getting back in, I no choice but to push on. When I finally got to the top, my angst at the walk melted away because the view was gorgeous and the monument bathed in a lovely evening light. I got my camera out and immediately started taking pictures. Within 6 and a half minutes the sun disappeared, but I had just about managed to take 5 good shots from 2 positions… this was the last, and my favourite.

Fyrish Monument. Much harder to get to than I realised!!

When I looked skywards, a huge black cloud had blotted the sun out to my total disappointment. I waited a while, then had a wander around the top of the hill, which was pretty flat and had little else to look at other than the view behind the monument. River on the other hand, found herself another puddle, and full of bold enthuasiam, didnt just step in, she full on jumped – and disappeared completely (!!!!) A pair of girls who had just arrived, had been watching and burst into laughter at the dog, but it took several (frantic and endless for me!!) seconds for her to resurface, bobbing up and looking completely shocked. She frantically paddled to the edge, and couldn’t get a footing out, so I quickly grabbed her collar and gave a quick hoick so she could get her paws on the ground again. My heart was pounding, but she just shook herself down, gave the pool a distainful look and happily wandered off to explore a different area. I waited 45 minutes until the sun set, but the cloud didnt move. There wasnt a single breeze to get it moving. The sun set behind me which didnt alight any of the cloud either, to my disappointment, but I felt that perhaps a sunrise silhuette shot might look much nicer, especially if the sky was on fire. The way I felt right now however, there was no way I was gonna attempt this hike again anytime soon!

Full of sadness, River and I took another full hour to get all the way back down again and at 10.15, it was far too late to cook, so we both had something to drink, and settled into bed instead, totally exhausted.

…only… I couldnt sleep…

My Adventures

Bucholi Castle, Westerdale Mill and Achscrabster Quarry


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part Six

Today my first stop was to head back over towards Bucholi castle. I followed the route I took home last night, and found my way there a fair bit easier, although I still managed to take a slightly wrong turn across the field. When I arrived, I realised that I still had the timing wrong and this wasnt a sunrise site after all, so by 8.30 it was still in shadow. Despite a rainy dawn, the sky was now mostly blue, so the shadow across the castle was quite harsh, which didnt look especially nice in the viewfinder sadly. I did what I could, and thought that this would be a better site another time, when conditions were a little more interesting. I love the history here though.

It was built. like Girnigoe and Wick on a large promontory jutting out safely away from the land, offering 3 sides of impenetrable 100ft rock face, and only one narrow bit to enter or leave the castle. This needed a drawbridge to cross, since even that had steep sides, and right in front of the main entrance, a big trench. Today I think it is only the gutsy or stupid that cross that bit… it looks scary looking down and on a windy day this would be extremely dangerous to cross!! This proved to be a really useful location when the original builder, a notorious pirate, robber and ‘Ultimate Viking’ by the name of Sweyn Asliefsson ran into a spot of bother around  mid 1150’s when his lieutenant murdered a local nobleman. The nobleman’s son asked the local Earl, Rognvald, for justice and the Earl dutifully arrived with his forces to arrest Asliefsson. The Viking held the castle while the Earl and his men pitched outside, and a stalemate was had until Asliefsson and his 60 men started to run out of provisions. At this point, they planned a daring escape. One night, Asliefsson and his murderous henchman, Margad Grimson, lowered themselves down to the water on opposite side of the promontory to where Rognvald and his men were camped, and quietly swam away to their freedom. As a side note, from Sweyn, comes the surname Swanson, and his grandson Gunni was the founder of the Clan Gunn. Sweyn Asliefsson was in fact a very powerful man, disarmingly charming, and friend to anyone in power, (including Kings), but he was also self serving and brutal if crossed. Described as ‘the last great Viking’, this was a man you didnt really want to cross!

The lands here were eventually given to the Mowat family by Robert the Bruce, and the castle we see today was built here then, and renamed from the Asliefsson’s ‘Lambaborg’ to Bucholi.

Bucholi Castle in the morning light

I took a few photos, but neglected to take one that I had wanted from the other side to the one I have above… but this will be one I can add to my ‘next time’ list. I did what I could anyway, before returning to the camper, having breakfast and considering my next destination. I had two options, Duncansby stacks, and Westerdale mill. I really needed Duncansby to be a low tide, as I hoped for a lower viewpoint from the beach – but the timing meant that by the time I got there, the tide would likely be on the turn, and since I had no idea how long the walk from the car park would be, nor how long it would take me to find a spot I liked, I was a little concerned the rising tide might cut me off from getting back safely. Maybe tomorrow morning for that one I mused, and decided that Westerdale would be my next port of call. Decision made, I headed off.

Now Westerdale Mill was only a secondary addition to my list. There was a big area in the middle of Caithness without any points plotted, so I had searched for anything in the centre that might be worth visiting. By pure chance, I came across a fairly drab snapshot of the mill from a distance, and thought that maybe this might be worth looking at. Well, when I eventually spotted it and pulled up, I was amazed that this wasnt photographed far more frequently. It was gorgeous! Yes it is off the tourist path, but that’s what makes better sites for a photographer. They arn’t over run with people, and they are largely undisturbed. That was totally the case here. With just enough parking by the side of the road for Fred to park, I took River and went for an explore.  We were the only ones here for the whole of my visit. The mill was fronted by a river that tumbled past over rocks in a really photogenic way, and to one side, it had a waterfall just to add more beauty to the shots. In fact the only thing missing to make it a picture perfect image, were blue skies and the sun shining on it! Sadly the morning’s promise of a bright day had drifted away during my drive, and now there were only little odd bits of blue showing in amongst the grey. This didnt matter however, the whole location was still magical to my eyes!

Westerdale Mill

The photos here were very easy to capture, so it didnt take me very long to get everything I wanted. I waited for a little bit just in case the blue would return, but the sky just got grey and greyer. It was clear the glory of the morning wouldnt be returning. Since Duncansby was definately heading for high tide by now, I tried to find another location, and remembered one that had actually alluded me so far. I had seen a photo, several in fact, of an old quarry building adorned in ivy that I absolutely loved, but I had never found out where it actually was. When I had arrived here, I passed a quarry, and I suddenly wondered if it might be the same one. So I drove up the road for 5 minutes, and decided to have a look. Achanarras Quarry was easy to find, but boy it felt like a walk and a half from the parking spot to the quarry itself! I found it surprisingly exhausting, and by the time I got to the quarry, I realised that, no, this wasnt the same one. This one was one where you could go looking for fossils, and take them away with you! I didnt have any tools on me to hammer at the sandstone to seperate the layers, so couldnt join in on the fun sadly.  I kinda wish I had realised, because I might have been tempted to stay! As it was, I did little more than about turn, and sadly walk all the way back to the camper. Very confused now, I had a deep and thorough search on the internet, and eventually found an old map. Ah.. now there it was! The quarry I was after. Achscrabster.  (see! I knew it started with Ach…easy mistake…!!) I found it very strange how, even tho there are several photos of the quarry building I liked, noone actually said WHERE this place was! Turns out its literally right by the Achscrabster farm cottage that Google has clearly marked on its map, just 13 miles away from Westerdale, and a simple half hour drive. I didnt need to think twice, off I went!!

When I walked up to the building, I just stood staring at it. It looked exactly like all the pictures I had seen, and they had likely been taken over a period of years. The only change was a drop in the water level, but I guess thats seasonal, and this was summer after all. I loved it. I didnt quite love the bits of debris all over the water, nor the rain that was now falling however, and even less, I certainly didnt love the midges that swarmed right by the pool that I wanted to use for the reflection. This shot ended up a battle, with me ending up walking away (well running, flailing) on several occasions, and fighting drips down the front of the lens. My attention was on the tickling, biting midges in the end, and on most of the shots I clearly didnt wipe the lens properly. This is going to be equally hard work cleaning any of these shots up! After just a few tries, I literally had to abandon the shoot altogether. This was my first encounter with the ‘Wee Bitey things’… but it most certainly wouldnt be the last!! Welcome to Scotland’s most infamous summer resident!!

This one took a fair bit of work to clean up… but its come out better than I thought.

I drove on to Duncansby now, thinking that maybe I could at least have a look at the location ready for the morning, but the rain really wasnt letting up this time. I tried a brief walk over to the stacks, and think a photo on the beach would work really well. I wasnt too sure whether I could take River down there however, as it looks like you need a rope to get down! The rain was really coming down, and the wind was picking up quite a bit, so it was clear that it would be impossible for a photo from the top right now. I went back to the camper, and decided to wait for an hour or two to guage what was going to happen. There were ‘no wild camping’ signs stuck on plastic covered haystacks so I was feeling a little wary about staying overnight, but it might be, that my only chance to get out may be the very early hours of the morning.

Whilst having a cuppa, some dinner, and catching up with ‘paperwork’ (back ups/diary notes/watching cat videos…) I looked up ‘wild camping’ and the relevant laws in Scotland, and discovered that the term didnt actually refer to people in campervans, even though we use the term ‘wild camping’. The law refers only to those on foot or on a bike. It made sense that the land owner didnt want anyone pitching tents on the open land here, it was a perfect ‘campsite’ –  open, flat, and very spacious, but anyone pitching up here would not only ruin the look of the landscape and wreck the grassland, they would scare away any animals that might inhabit the area I imagine. Given my new understanding of the term however, I thought that it would be fine to wait here in the car park till morning after all. I saw another two vans here, and a third joined us a couple of hours later, so took that as confirmation on my understanding of the signs. By 10, it was still raining, tho not as heavily, but the visibility had dropped even more and the wind had really picked up. I checked the weather forcast (probably should have done this MUCH earlier!!), and it showed that sure enough the rain was due to die down by midnight – the wind however was going to pick up to around 30mph, with gusts much higher, and it was going to remain this way all of tomorrow. I hoped the reports were exaggerated, as I really didnt want to leave without a photo of this fabulous place! Having sat through winds of over 45 in Skye earlier this year, I settled in for a shaky night, but wasnt quite as fearful of Fred blowing over as I had been in the past, and I actually slept fairly well given all the rocking I endured!!

My Adventures

Whaligoe Steps, Keiss Castle and Bucholie Castle


Scotland Highlands 2020: Part Five

26 July 2020

Taking things a little easier, I found magic was to be found today..

Well, today was really pleasant after yesterday.  The sky was perfectly clear, and I started fairly early so that I could clear the Whaligoe carpark before too many people needed spaces.  River didnt want to come as it was early, and she may still have been annoyed with me for tying her up yesterday. In hindsight it was just as well, because the route to the peninsular for the shot I hoped for, ended up a little tricky!

I went through Sandys gate as he suggested, and found myself in a field full of sheep. As I made my way to the left I could see the first stile on Sandys land, but even from here, I couldn’t see the other one that should have been on the side of the Whaligoe steps car park, so I now assume the one over there has gone. I navigated round the edge of Sandy’s field, and kept clear of his sheep. Down the bottom of this, and the next, field however, there were no further stiles or ways to cross the fences, and I had to literally climb over the barb wire (despite there being a sign pointing you to the viewpoint in the second field!!). Sandy forgot to mention that…!! They were tricky but once safely over, I made my way down the narrowing finger of land, until I dared not go any further. When I looked at the view from there however, I was fully rewarded. It was gorgeous! I was very slightly disappointed that the waterfall was smaller than I had seen in other photos, and a second fall that Davy mentioned to me, was absent altogether. I guess this must be a winter/spring shot to get the best from it but nonetheless, the view was jaw dropping. I definately want to come back here when there’s more water!! As I took my photos, the early morning sun behind me beamed down onto the waterfall at just the right angle to create a rather sweet rainbow at the bottom of the falls. I was kicking myself, because, to save weight, and assuming I would just want big vista shots, I didnt bring the heavy zoom lens. Thankfully, my cameras file sizes allow for a tighter crop. When will I ever learn though?!! (at least I know for my return visit…)

The Whaligoe waterfall looking like it could be somewhere tropical!

Whaligoe by the way, gets its name from two words. Goe meaning inlet, Whali quite simply being Whale. When the place got its name there would be trapped or even dead whales occasionally, and the villagers would winch them to the top, using every bit of the corpses, wasting nothing. The steps were made back in mid 1700’s so that the locals could descend the 250ft cliffs to get to fishing boats. Herring fishing boomed shortly afterwards, and the local women would carry the fish up in heavy baskets when the boats docked. In all there are currently 339 steps, although apparently there were 365 at one point, ‘one for every day of the year’ – or so Davy informed me, and half way up you can still just make out a resting point for the ladies to rest the baskets on for a brief breather. One trip down these steps and you realise just how tough these women must have been… in poor weather at peak season, it must have been a hard task! Locals have maintained these steps for many years, and continue to do so, so that we can still enjoy the history of the place. The steps lead down to an artificial grassy area called the Bink, which was used to haul boats up for repair, as a docking point for loading and unloading, and as a safe store for boats in bad weather. Ruins down there were originally used to store salt, and the building at the top was used to make barrels (this is now a cafe, tho was closed when I went). Davy told me that his grandfathers boat, one of the last, was finally pulled from the water in the 1970’s.

Whaligoe steps with the bink at the bottom, showing the salt store, and the barrel making buildings.

After what felt like a pretty fabulous start to the day, I left in good time, and filled up with fuel at Wick before moving further round Caithness towards Keiss castle. I had originally hoped for a nice moody shot of this castle with a high tide crashing on the cliffs that it perched on, but the weather and tide were definately not on the same page as me. When I arrived the tide was out and the weather was very still and calm, although the blue from the early morning was beginning to break up, and the tide was coming in, even if it did have several hours to go. Since it was so pleasant, I thought I would simply go for a walk and explore first. There was absolutely no hurry or pressure today, and I had to remind myself to chill a little and to enjoy myself. The walk along the front was really pleasant, easy and flat, and I walked along the beach almost to the end. I stopped to look in some WW2 pillboxes that are sitting right on the front here, when I realised that basking on the rocks were a group of about 5 seals! Well forget about the high tide… I hurried back for my camera now!  It was about 15 minutes to get back and by the time I did, the tide had started to cover their sunbathing spots forcing most of the seals into the water, but I managed to catch a delightful shot of one sharing his seaweed bed with a duck, before he too eventually slipped quietly away. I didn’t worry too much about the ones I missed, (secretly hoping they might return of course!) but I was just happy to have seen them, as the sight had been so unexpected!

when you are happy to share your seaweed bed…

As I chilled on the pebbles after this shot, I saw behind me on the horizon a heafty black cloud heading my way. I might not get the crashing waves, but if I waited I might get my moody shot after all! It looked ominous, REALLY onimous, but remarkably, as it went over my head, obliterating the blue in one harsh line, it only rained for a little bit.. and not hard at that. I was fully expecting to be totally soaked. No idea who got the rain, but it was definately gonna be a wet one when it finally gave out! The cloud finally backed the castle, and I was treated to sun bursts that washed over the foreground, giving a really beautiful light across the scene. The first shots I took here had the light in patches, but then a long one swept over, and I managed to capture the whole of the mainland in light with the deep cloud behind. There is something I adore about watching the clouds and sun dance over a scene, and I stood for ages watching it here until eventually the blue sky took over again, and the tide started laping my tripod. Before I moved however, I spotted a familiar head bobbing up, and continually looking at me. When I moved to a slightly further position, and started taking pictures from this angle, the seal continued to bob up and observe my shenanigans. It was so adorable. He clearly didnt feel threatened in any way, and was quite obviously curious about me. I didnt realise it at the time, but he’d been doing this for some time as I found him in one of my earlier photos too! Eventually he left and I could see that high tide wasnt going to be especially dramatic, so being very content with my castle (and seal!) shots, I packed up, and wandered up the hill to get a closer view of the structure.

Keiss Castle

I was struck by its shape, as it reminded me of the folly, Broadway Tower in Worcestershire that I visited last year. That one came from an idea by Capability Brown and was built in 1794. Apparently its called a ‘z-plan’ design, and on reading further its not an unusual design. I havent seen any others myself yet. Keiss has two round towers built either side of a diamond central tower and each floor had only one room. Originally there were 4 floors and an attic, although the upper parts are now gone. As I got closer I could see it was fenced off as it is currently a dangerous structure, with bits still falling off. You can see the interior from the side where some of the North Eastern walls are now gone though. It looked intreguing. Having fallen into disrepair by the 1700’s, The land was purchased by Sir William Sinclair, 2nd baronet of Dunbeath and he built a manor house just across the field in a much safer spot. For me its really nice that he left this structure, rather than reuse the stones as was the norm, because I felt it was facinating to see this shape rather than the more ususal square tower, or sprawling encampment types of castles and homes.

I walked back to Fred, then walked on a little to see Keiss Harbour. It was a sweet one, but not terribly photogenic due to the number of cars parked all around it. So after a brief visit there, I left and headed to Bucholie castle, the next one on my list. Again, it wasnt too far, but as I approached its location according to Google maps, I realised that a) it wasnt signposted, and b) there was no parking. I drove past the area twice before I realised, and headed back to a derelict old cottage I had spotted, to work out what I wanted to do. I’d noticed parking spots for about 2 cars that took me safely away from the road on my last pass, so parked up there for now to look at my map.

Curious, I had a quick look around the cottage. There’s an idea for a photo that I have had in my head for a while now that I really want to try in one of these, but it all depends on what belongings are still available. Sadly, other than sheep poop, rubble and broken glass, there was nothing in this one, but it was lovely to walk around inside and imagine how the residents might have fared. As I got back to the Fred, I noticed fresh tire tracks on the ground so realised that others had parked here. Tired and hungry, I decided that maybe this should be my last stop for the day, with the idea of checking the castle out in the morning. I ate, and rested, but as the evening drew towards its close, it looked like it might be a nice sunset, and since, so far, I havent had a good one, I thought that maybe I should drag this tired old body out after all, just in case. So, off I trundled..

Turns out that there were no real foot paths, and only a pointer on Google maps that I could follow to get me there, so I was actually very glad I did this first visit to find it!  I struggled to find the way over, travelling down one field too far, then missing the lightly trodden route across another. Eventually I found my way there, and as there was enough light to show where the cliff edges were, I didnt fall to my doom either! (Yay!) The sunset didnt flare up, and the light that did, came from the wrong direction putting the castle into darkness, so I wondered if this might work for a possible dawn shoot. For now there was just enough light for me to have an explore for viewpoints for the morning, and a quick videoed message for the kids to tell them a little about the history, (as this one is quite facinating..)

Bucholie Castle, looking very shocked at my presence this late into the evening!

As I walked back, I passed a group of derelict houses together, maybe three of them? Some cars were pulling up outside and a group of youngsters were piling out of each for an evening of fun no doubt. I followed the single lane track/road they had used, back up towards the main road, and realised it came out near to where I was parked. It was pretty dark by now, but I wondered if that might have been a better parking spot. Another time maybe – tonight I really didnt fancy moving any more. I was too exhausted and once tucked up in bed, fell to sleep very quickly!

 

 

My Adventures

Wick Lighthouse, Lifeboat House and Old Castle, and Whaligoe…


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part Four

25 July 2020

What happens when you dont listen to your exhausted body?… Today I was going to find out.

Having stayed right by the harbour overnight, I was in a really nice place to explore Wick South Pier Lighthouse (a cute diddy one!) and the lifeboat house. Turns out I was the wrong side of the bay, and on top of this, I totally missed a second viewpoint I  had hoped to use, that WAS on the side I was on. (ugh! Great start!) As the light wasnt exactly exciting,  I guess it wasnt a real issue in the big scheme, since I could always try again on another trip. I drove the short distance to a road nearer the lifeboat house, and took the short walk down the hill to explore it. The tide was out as I explored, and it quickly became obvious that it needed to be in to make any nice shot work. I looked around anyway to find a nice viewpoint, and took pictures on the phone as a memory aid. The weather was very still, but a flat grey, so I decided to try again a bit later in the hope that I might have better luck. For now, I drove to Wick Old Castle instead, to while away the time. I was so glad I did, because I found the boards giving its history to be quite facinating!

The castle is on a bit of land that juts out into the ocean, pretty much the same as Castle Sinclair Girnigoe, (and as it turned out, several others) Much of it has fallen and disappeared, leaving just a square tower, but there are areas that are unexcavated, so there may be more footings under the ground. Its history is pretty obscure, but the bit that caught my attention was that its likely builder, way back in the 1100’s was half Norse. Apparently during this time, Caithness, Sutherland and all of the western Isles islands were actually under control of the Norwegians (or more accurately the Norse, whose land back then included areas we now know as Norway, Denmark and Sweden) Their ownership of this part of Scotland followed a treaty that had been passed shortly after Edgar became King in 1097. It wasnt a hard fisted control, with the local land owners being pretty much left to their own devices, but I found it facinating to consider that the far north east of Scotland may have been ‘Norwegian’ at one point nonetheless. Harald Maddadsson, the likely builder, was Earl of Orkney and Caithness, and this castle may have been built to mark his territorial rights on the mainland. As I hiked over the peninsular, I took a photo of the remnants of the castle looking back along the path I had just walked, but I was really nervous of River on this peninsular as she seemed intent on exploring the edges. Eventually I moved back to the mainland bit, and walked along to an end viewpoint instead.

Wick Castle

I loved the view from here and took several photos, waiting in between each for the few tourists to clear the scene. It was quite relaxing, and by the time I had taken a few, I happily went back to the camper for a nice cuppa. There were still a couple of hours until high tide by this point, so I chilled even more by having a nap! Totally unheard of for me, but well needed obviously, as it was no effort to fall asleep.

When I awoke, the sky was even more grim looking but I made my way back to the Lifeboat house determined to try a shot there. The grey meant that no sunset would be likely, so I didnt think it would be worth waiting for that, and I was just going to have to try and work with the flat grey look and the high tide. I could see the weather working for the shot I hoped for however, so wasnt deterred. As soon as I was in position though, it seemed everything started to work against me. The best position to photograph the lifeboat house was right by a tall wall with a ledge that was just the right height to see over, but that was as far as my luck went. I couldnt work out which lens was best, as none seemed to do what I wanted – turns out I needed a lens in between the ones I owned (something that covers a 70mm-100mm focal range!) The wall itself proved to be a really complicated issue, with it being too high for the tripod, (even at its lowest position) and too low to work without one. It didnt help by forcing me to balance on a slim ledge while I worked either. I tried putting the camera directly on the wall, nope, it tipped downwards to the sea only. I tried propping the lens a little with all my drying cloths to get the house in position, then I couldnt see clearly enough to focus properly, because I was too high to view it without crouching (on a thin ledge remember). I tried handheld. That was a disaster, as I really struggle with that even in the best conditions. I tried all sorts, but simply couldn’t get my head around it! I just got myself rialed up and angry instead!

Then River began playing up. She ran off into the road eventually, resulting in me having to climb back down, tie her to a lampost and feeling really guilty for doing that. It started drizzling, so I then had to try and keep the lens dry (with the  very cloths I was using to prop the lens up on) – off came my jacket (to use as a prop up tool instead) as I continued to fight with myself for this shot. Eventually it just out and out rained. I could feel a fierce temper rising inside, borne out of the feelings of complete frustration and inadequacy, and then I finally realised that today, this wasnt going to happen if I continued. Irritated with myself and River, and now completely angry and fed up, I packed everything away and stomped back to the camper in the foulest of moods. What I really needed to do was to just jump over the wall, and take the shot. But the rain, River, and a high tide all prevented me from doing that, so I left it before I ended up throwing stuff around!!  On looking at the photos after the event, none of them are even in focus. I have absolutely NO idea why even THAT failed, as I was sure I had it pin sharp in the viewfinder. (probably where I couldnt see the screen properly now I think of it)

poor focus, too low, too high, and finally, rain… just a handful of the frustrations!

The South Pier lighthouse was equally uninspiring now the rain was here, so I decided to abandon the shoot altogether, leaving Wick completely. My mood was that low.

Once away from the area I paused to look at my map and have a sensible think about where I wanted to go from here. I thought I might try Whaligoe steps as my next destination, as I knew it wasnt too far, and that there were some lovely shots taken here by other photographers. If I was lucky, there may be parking there for the night so I could simply chill out and explore in the morning.

When I arrived I realised that parking was very limited…maybe 6-8 vehicles, less if big ones pulled in. As I had arrived later in the day, most tourists were already gone, so parking wasnt an issue for me thankfully. In the carpark I was met by local resident Davy (David Nicholson) If you have ever been to these steps I doubt very much if you missed this man! He is an absolute character, and we stood chatting for an absolute age, with him telling me all the history of the area, and the steps. He invited me over to his cottage (right by the steps) and pulled out a photo of his grandfathers boat, telling me what to look out for while I was down on the bink (the area where the fishermen pulled their fish and boats to) He excitedly filled me in with so many tiny facts, that by the time I went down the steps it was edging into evening, but I was too excited myself, to see all the little bits he had told me about! His manner is really joyful and infectious and it totally washed all the Wick frustrations away. I asked about staying overnight, and he really kindly told me to move the camper over to a residents spot, so that getting out in the morning after my photographic shoot would be far easier, then added that ‘if Jimmy asks, you are an old friend’. Apparently Jimmy tries to manage the car parking to mixed success, and he didnt want to see me getting stuck trying to get out. At that point Jimmy came over, and Davy immediately went into a big spiel about me being his old friend who he hadn’t seen for 6 years (giving me a massive wink) Playing along, I added ‘well lets make sure I dont wait another 6 years eh?!’ Jimmy nodded and walked away again.  I moved the camper over then went down the steps. I totally forgot to bring the camera in my excitement, but sent a video to the family speaking in a very similar, excited manner to Davy, missing half the facts, and not finishing sentences where I was talking so fast. Davy knows how to entertain a crowd, and talk for England (Scotland??) thats for sure!!

I found this on you tube…seems everyone gets the same exciteable, informative chat!!

Once I had been down the steps, I was quite pleased to realise my climb back up all 339 steps went without too much effort (woo go me, I’m getting fitter!), and with a little daylight left, I thought I might try and see how to get to the end of the peninsular on the opposite side, as from there I knew you could see a waterfall.  This wasn’t as easy as I hoped. The path from the carpark was really overgrown, and trying to find the stile Davy told me about, proved impossible. I walked round to the houses that fronted the peninsular and tried to find a route there. There was none. As I explored however, a man came out and asked if I needed any help. As we got chatting, he told me he was the landowner, and that for tomorrow, I could use his side gate, tho he was sure the stile from the car park was still there. (I did try a second look to no avail however) As we chatted, he told me his name was Sandy and that he was a farmer here, farming sheep, telling me a little more about the area. It was quite facinating to hear how his family lived in days gone by. We chatted for a while and as we did I found out that he only farms sheep for lamb these days, as wool didnt even bring enough money to cover the sheering of the sheep. I thought that was so sad to be part of a dying industry that I guess wool must be these days! I thanked him in advance for letting me use his gate, and went back to the camper, where Jimmy found me again. He looked a bit shifty, until he suddenly (and rather shyly) went ‘here you are!’ handing me a pack of cakes. ‘as you are a friend of Davy’s I thought you might like this to go with your tea’. Caught totally off guard, I thanked him as he scuttled quickly away, and I entered the van feeling really guilty.

All in all these 3 encounters cheered me up completely, ending the day on a far more positive note and I couldnt wait for the morning so I could shoot the waterfall and continue my adventure. And for those wondering how I didnt loose any weight with all this hiking… I blame Jimmy. ;-p

 

My Adventures

Noss Head Bay, Dunbeath Strath, Broch and Prisioners Leap


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part Three

24 July 2020

Peaceful bays, Escaped prisioners, and perilous river crossings.. today was gonna be a good one!

This morning when I woke, I realised there was still no chance of a nice sunrise, so I had another fairly easy start. I looked at my map and wondered where I should go today. As I looked at it, I realised I had driven past a location I very much wanted to find, so thought that maybe I might backtrack a little and go back to Dunbeath. This would leave me the upper part of Caithness in one easier trip, rather than me driving back and forth, top to bottom.

Before I left here however, I was determined to find that little sandy bay I missed yesterday! There was no fog this morning, so my first port of call, was back out to the cliff face to find out where it was, and today it proved much easier to find. I walked/climbed down the equally steep slip way to the one I did yesterday, and when I finally got down to the beach bit, I was really, REALLY pleased I bothered. It was absolutely gorgeous, small, cute and SO incredibably peaceful! I guess this wasnt a regular beach for visitors, as it was so unspoiled, and other than one couple, River and I had it all to ourselves for the complete duration of my visit.

I had a little explore first, and River had a refreshing paddle in the gently lapping waves. There were more rocky outcrops, and the beach itself was made of a really interesting blend of yellow, red and black grains. Normally you only see one of these, so finding a beach with a mix, felt unusual – it was quite lovely to look at though. I found the rocks that curved out to sea to be the most interesting this morning, and wondered if a minimilist treatment might work here since they were far more picturesque than yesterdays ones. As I got the camera out, I became mindful of the tide. If it was coming in, I had to be aware of it because there was a chance I could get cut off from my exit route if I missed my timings! As it goes, the shot wasnt very inspiring because the tide was so gentle and didnt splash on the rocks in the way I envisioned. Its strange how a view can be gorgeous to the eye, but to the camera, it just doesnt quite work for you. In the end I tried to capture the one little area where the water seemed to flow over the rocks instead. Looking at the back of the camera I didnt feel too excited by what I was capturing and was not totally sure if the shot was any better than yesterdays one in the end, but I certainly had a lot of fun trying, perched up on some other rocks as I was!

Peace

Once I had tried a few different shots, I noticed that the tide was definately coming, in, and I was also aware that Dunbeath was calling. I had seen only one or two shots of the exact area I was looking for online, so wasnt totally sure how to find the specific spot. Without that knowledge, I didnt know how long it would take me to find either, so I decided that I should head off, quite excited at the prospect of trying to explore a location! This bay however, would easily be one I might try again. maybe focussing on the dramatic diagonal of the rock striations next time?

The prisioners leap at Dunbeath has a great story. Legend has it that way back in the day, an Ian McCormack Gunn was held prisioner by the Clan Keith at Forse Castle, some 6-7 miles away. He escaped and ran as far as the gorge at Dunbeath with the Keiths hot on his tail. Once there, he was trapped, so they jeered their taunt of ‘jump, Jump!’ then he was told, rather mockingly, that if he could jump the gorge he would earn his freedom. I assume they thought that one way or other, this man would be no further bother after today, fully expecting him to die of course… It IS quite a leap – but I guess Gunn had little choice but to either try, or die by the sword.  So he jumped… and miraculously, made it to freedom.

Aside from the story, the location had struck me as stunning in one particular photo that I had found by photographer Gordon Mackay. I desperately hoped to find the same spot, and some 50 minutes or so later I was parked up in a small carpark by the old mill at Dunbeath, and excitedly preparing to follow the walk up. I had found a walking guide online (walkhighlands.co.uk – my new best friend!) that apparently went to the leap, and was hoping to follow that. In theory this should be pretty easy. The walk was lovely, as was the weather! The sun was now beaming down on me as I walked alongside the river flowing down the strath, and the peace was so perfect I couldnt help but stop and take a few photos on the way. (including the header pic) Before long the path turned into a little track, then into a well trodden trail. It took me over a bridge, past a turn off to a broch, and then through some gorgeous trees, that I now know were Rowan, Hazel and Birch. I dont know my trees, but together this section was so full of character, that I kind of regret not stopping to take a picture. I have no clue how to shoot woodland effectively though, so just left it for my eyes to enjoy. I continued on, and then the internet suddenly cut out. Thankfully, I had memorised the next bit, but it had me concerned that I might not find the spot I was desperately looking for. As I reached the end of my memorised bit, the internet briefly came back, so I quickly did a couple of screen shots of the instructions to the remainder of the route and ventured on with greater confidence. Eventually the route started a steep climb, and I found myself at the top of the gorge looking at the likely spot of Gunn’s leap. From here I doubted his success.. it looked like quite a stretch!

Prisioners Leap viewpoint from the top, where Gunn is likely to have jumped

I pulled up the photo I hoped to capture for myself, looked down at the river and tried to work out the spot that Mackay had stood, realising to my disappointment that he was likely on the other side of the river.  I had two choices, give up, or cross. Like Gunn… I opted to cross. Well… I was here wasnt I?! Soooo.. Should I jump…??? Errrmmm…maybe not! (well… you now, I had the dog and all…)

I hiked back down, and timidly struggled over to the other side of the river. At points it reached well above my ankles, and was fairly fast moving water, so I was very grateful for the choice of wearing my new hiking wellies. River crossed dutifully behind me, but she didnt seem altogether confident – once over she was much happier however. We walked for a bit up the other side then realised we couldnt get any further because of an ajoining river this side, and a deep pool. I looked at River, apologised, then proceeded to cross the river again… then when passed that point.. crossed a third time. I started to struggle a little. It seemed that no matter what I tried, I couldnt marry up the shot Mackay had taken to the area I was walking in. I eventually found myself back on the original side again, close to the gorge. Whilst here I spotted a gorgeous reflection in the water. I was having a break for a snack, a drink and a think, so I decided to take this photo before trying to continue looking for the other spot – it was rather eyecatching!

Prisioners Leap from down by the river.

We rested a bit longer before I tried the crossing yet again, and made my way up on the other side until I was directly underneath the place where Gunn had likely jumped. It had also started getting to a point where River thought she couldnt manage the climbs, and was very reluctant to try swimming in other parts, so kept crying until she realised she could do it after all. I chuckled as she overcame her fears, because it was clear she was more than capable! When we found ourselve underneath the leap point, I looked up at the sight. As I did, I thought that perhaps this jump, legend or not, might actually have been possible after all. Not easy – but possible!! The distance across didnt seem quite as great from down here as it was from the top. For River and I down here however, it became clear I wasn’t going to get any further. Both sides of the gorge were now steep without any chance of walking/climbing points either side, and there were deep, fast moving pools lining the cliff edges of both sides. I couldnt understand this… where WAS this photo taken then?! I sat for a bit gathering my thoughts, and looked at the picture yet again… and then I spotted it. The water wasnt coming towards me in the photo… it was going away! This was taken from the other side of the gorge completely!!!! (DUH!!!) I looked up the gorge, following the river with my eyes, and immediately managed to spot where Mackay had stood… a nice, clear, easy spot… but from here, there was no way I was going to get there. I was gutted!!

I remembered that when I had stood at the top looking across, there was a meadow with a clear trodden trail on it. THATS where he must have come from! With no idea where he might have started the trail, I decided to backrack and head back up the hill to where I had turned around. Maybe I could find a spot round from up there? I climbed it all the way back to the top again, and followed a wire fence along away from the river. This led me to a private road with a huge gate across it and a smaller kissing gate next to that. Going through there I followed the road for a bit, suddenly aware of how exhausted I felt. I tried to cut across the hill, but it seemed to go into some more of the hazel/birch/rowan trees, to another steep drop, and another river. I looked at the distance, and had to stop for a rethink. I could go back to the road and continue following it even more, but I had no idea how far it would go before it led past the second river, a way down, AND all the way back to the gorge. I was already exhausted, could I realistically get all the way down there and back to the camper again easily??  My sensible head took over. No. I was totally on my knees already. I’d (stupidly) brought no food or drinks with me, so had no source to replenish my energy. Very sadly I sat for a bit, and decided that I would have to do this trek another day. For now, I’d had an awesome time, but I was really just TOO tired to keep pushing forward, and I didnt want to spoil such a great day.

Rather than just go back the way I had come however, I looked on google maps which thankfully had a good signal up here, and it seemed there might be an easy route back following this road. So River and I trudged at a much slower ‘Sandyplod’ speed back along here. I kept checking my position on Google maps, feeling like this road was endless, but eventually I found my turn off, and cut across a field towards Dunbeath Broch, which I knew had a route back to the original path I had taken. When I found myself at the Broch, I was quite taken aback. I had seen some of these in my research, and tho interesting, they hadnt quite caught my imagination enough for me to plot any of them onto my map. To be fair, there are hundreds in Caithness, so I had an inkling I would likely pass some on my routes regardless. I clearly wasnt wrong. This one however, still had a lot of bricks in place, and had had some repairs done to give a better idea of what I was looking at. The circle of the lower part of this tower was still pretty much clear, and signs of where a second floor might have been, an entry point, a small guard cell, and back chamber were all clearly visible. Given this was an iron age structure (historians seem torn as to their actual purpose) I felt this was really well preserved. It peaked my attention and I had an interesting time exploring the ruin, reading about the changes it had experienced over time, and finding out about the preservation they had been doing to keep what is left, safe enough for people to explore.

Dunbeath Broch, an Iron age round house or tower.

The exploration was pretty restful, so once I had seen enough, I felt energised enough to get myself back to Fred and a well earned cup of tea!! As I sat drinking it, I pondered my next options, and decided that rather than cook, it might be nice to try some local fish and chips. The next port of call for me was Wick Lifeboat house tomorrow, so it seemed sensible for me to go Wick for the takeaway, and for the night, in readiness for a possible dawn shot there. I had no idea where the sun would rise, but it seemed like a good plan at least. The drive was very chilled, and I found the takeaway easily in the harbour, opting to have a ‘fish supper’ and to try one of the rather infamous ‘battered mars bars’ as a desert on top! (Ohhh YUMMY indeed!|!) THAT was interesting… warm and gooey is the best description there…and rather oddly, the batter complimented the chocolate! The food was really tasty, and the portion huge. Lucky too, because I was ravenous!

After eating, I found a spot for the night, parked up behind another motorhome, and went for a short walk to explore the area I was in. On my return I collapsed into bed for a very well earned sleep!

Today felt amazing.

My Adventures

Noss Head Lighthouse, Geo bay and Castle Sinclair Girnigoe


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part Two

23 July 2020

I woke up at 4am to the sound of rain. Glanced outside. No chance of sunrise. I went back to sleep.

What a good start!! Actually the sound of rain on the camper roof was really, REALLY soothing, so going back to sleep was incredibably easy. Also, without any pretty sunrise sky, I could do so without feeling any guilt. I am prone to inflicting guilt on myself, as are many of us I guess. Its a weird thing we do to ourselves, and I had many conversations with myself about the pointless ideas, ideals and emotions I had unnessessarily forced upon myself over this trip. Hopefully with all that admonishment I have learned a thing or two about being kinder to myself…

Anyway, when I eventually did get up, It looked grim, and visibility was poor, so I was very reluctant. I made myself breakfast, and a cuppa, and having a pretty chill start really. The time came eventually however, when I finally made myself go out. Intitally it was just for a walk to look at Noss Lighthouse, which was also on this site… but after one look of the misty light house, I hurried back to get my camera. Why on earth was I being so silly? I should be looking for a shot, not just waiting for one to jump out at me… and if it didnt work? So what? Its the experience of looking that I was hoping to learn, on top of reminding myself of some of the basics. Here I go again, telling myself off…

What drew my attention, wasnt just the lighthouse, faded a little in the now rising mist, it was actually the really pretty grasses in front of it, heads hung with the weight of the water droplets that dripped from them. I thought I might try a low shot, taking in the grass as a featured foreground, having the lighthouse, almost as a second thought in the background. I wasnt altogether sure whether the idea would work, but it was worth a try at least. I was kinda shocked that I was actually thinking this through… thats not a normal trick of mine!  I took several shots, both in Landscape and Portrait orientation, (but I much preferred the portrait ones) then I tried 3 different focal positions, foreground, mid, and background so that I could attempt a photoshop merging with everything in focus front to back. The merge didnt come out too bad for a first attempt, although, in future I probably need to make more focal points if there are a group of plants. It didnt come out 100% sharp in a few areas between the focused areas. but its good enough for a first effort I think!

Mists lifting off the Noss Head Lighthouse

 

After that I wandered around in the mist, (which had dropped again and reduced visibility quite considerably) looking for a sandy bay that was apparently here. I entered a field, but really struggled to see very far, so abandoned that search for now. I didn’t quite feel up to blindly walking off a cliff this early in my trip! As I headed over towards the castle, I got sidetracked by a little bay I thought might be it after all.  It seemed a little steep getting down at first, but in hindsight, I suspect it was just me not used to the outdoors after such a long time in lockdown!  There wasnt much to see down there really, and it certainly wasnt the bay I was thinking of, with no sand at all and the view narrowing down because of the high cliff edges. The sight in front of me only showed a small rocky area further out in the ocean. It was completely facinating to see all the layers of rock though, layed down in some long distance past and highlighted by the light hitting all the seperated levels. Little critters scuttled in among the crevaces, and I spotted what looked to be a giant Woodlouse, about the size of my index finger scurring to hide as I got near (eek!!!) I also spotted dense spider webs in several areas, which surprised me. I didnt think they would build those in such a damp area, which may well be under water as the tide came in. Slightly creeped out (not a bug person!!) I decided to focus on trying to get a photo instead.

With such a restricted view, I thought I would try a fine art type of minimilast slow exposure shot. I really like these, I think they are just beautiful, and could hang on any wall without issue.  What a dream to be able to perfect that style myself. But it all starts with the landscape of course and I thought that this might possibly work. I took several shots trying to get it right, but was very unsure whether this rock was interesting enough in the end. I vowed to try some other locations as the trip progressed, perhaps I could find the dream rocky outcrop somewhere else if this didnt work for me.  I did chuckle at one shot with two young seagulls just staring at me though, and wondered whether I might be able to merge a shot with them still in. This was also something I hadnt really had much experience in, but I thought it might be worth considering at the time.

Seagulls on the rocky outcrop

As I finished these photos, I spotted River laying on the boulders behind me, and felt terrible. She was shivering quite heavily, and hadnt bothered me one bit while I was working. I immediately packed everything up, and we climbed back out. Instead of going to the Castle, I thought she should get in the warm for a bit, so I went back to the camper for a warm cuppa, some lunch, and for both of us to get out of the wet for a bit. To be fair once she got moving she seemed much happier, but I felt much better if I gave her a little break from the cold.

After a bit, the sun started coming out and the mist finally lifted for good, so I changed into dry clothing and ventured out to the castle for a second go. There were quite a few tourists there by now so I decided to just walk along the cliff edge to see the view from there. I met a sweet young chinese chap and we chatted for a while. Seems he was very well travelled for a man his age, (just about to go to uni in Europe) but his journey had halted here when we went into lockdown and he hadnt managed to get home, or anywhere else, in months. Like me, Scotland was his bid to get out with a camera. It was this young man that gave me the now familiar ‘ What? You are on your own? Thats quite brave!’ question/statement, only here I was able to express that I was no braver than he was with his global travel, which he understood as a fair comparison. After we had taken a few photos of this viewpoint together, he wandered off to the castle, and I walked over to a nice viewpoint of the Lighthouse, and the rocky stack near it. (see Header Pic)

Castle Sinclair Girnigoe from the cliffs

Once I was done there, I finally wandered back over to the castle. There were still several tourists milling over the site, so I narrowed my vision, taking a photo of an interesting derelict window that really grabbed me. As I continued round the edge, I took several more pictures, patiently waiting for people to clear the frames, and I ended up in a corner surrounded by tall grass. River loved wandering through this, and I was reminded that I needed to keep an eye open for tics, and to treat her with some nice smelly repellant mix before coming out. Perched in the tight corner, I changed lenses to a wide, and somehow lost my lens cap in the process. When I had taken the shot, I searched everywhere, confused how it could have disappeared so easily. In the end I gave up. There was another grey cloud coming, and I really wanted a shot from a further perspective before that cloud decided to relieve itself of its load on top of me! I continued the walk round, and found a nice spot after trudging through lots more tall grass. It occurred to me that during lockdown, without tourists to tread well worn paths, nature had been given a bit of a breather, and as such, many little people paths may well be absent while I continue this adventure. Thats going to be interesting! The shot from my final position was quite nice, but would definately be better with some interesting light, so I made a mental note of that for future reference for a return trip sometime.

I finally decided to stop there for the evening. The cloud was looking more and more grim, and I didnt want to get wet again. My drying spaces in Fred were limited, and I had no idea how long drying might take so I definately didnt want to add to the problem just yet – instead, lets get these wet socks sorted first….

…it starts…..
My Adventures

Achnambeithach Cottage, Corpach and Castle Sinclair Girnigoe


Scotlands Highlands 2020: Part One

22nd July 2020

The adventure begins! A month to tour the highlands, what will it bring?!

With Daughter all settled into her new digs in Glasgow, it was time to leave for the Big Tour! Using the NC500 route as a basic starter for all the locations I was hoping to try and find, all I had to decide was which way to do it. East or West. I actually had no idea, so decided to try and retrace my steps from a family holiday from back in 2012, in the hope of identifying a loch I had photographed that I desperately wanted to re find. I wanted to retake this picture as a RAW file, so that I could enjoy a better quality version. This meant that if I started in Fort William, and drove towards John O’ Groats, I would hopefully recreate the route I took back then and come across it. As it goes, I didnt, so that mystery remains unsolved, and I am still confused by where it might be! –  but at least it gave me a start. East to West, with Caithness being the first Highland county to cover.

Unknown Scottish Loch captured in 2012. I hoped to find this! I didnt… 🙁

As I got to Fred, I picked up a bit of litter by his front wheel, and saw it was a £20 note (!!) so this felt like a fantastic start to the day… yes it was raining, but it didnt bother me one bit. Off I headed, with a big happy and excited grin on my face. The drive was easy, with some lovely sights by Loch Lamond (I really need to work out what that big stunning waterfall is that you can see across the Loch between the trees), and before I really knew it, I was driving through Glencoe. I had had a pretty grim time here in January, but I felt no bitterness or reluctance to visit here again, tho it didnt look much different today from how I left it back then!! Only the strong winds were absent. I drove past a little white building I didnt notice before, with a gorgeous reflection in the loch next to it, and I imagined the shot in my head, then the edited version, then I stopped myself. Why on earth was I only thinking this?!! I was on no time limit, or restrictions of any kind, so I stopped the camper, turned round, and went back to actually take the photo!

With the weather having been so poor last time, it was probable that I hadnt noticed this beautiful reflection, so when I stopped at a good parking spot, I took the dog and my kit out, and walked back to it. I found it to be a very enjoyable walk and  beautiful sight.

I didnt know it at the time, but this was Achnambeithach Cottage, one of the cottages I had been trying to locate when I first visited Glengoe. I had gotten confused, and mixed the name up with what I now realise was the equally photographic Lagangarbh hut. Achnambeithach Cottage dates back to around the 1900, but I can find nothing else about it!  Is it a home? is it a rented holiday cottage? is it a bothy?  I will have to see if anyone else knows!! Whatever its history, this area was SO peaceful today, that I took some time to just stand and take the scene in before I picked a couple of spots to take some pictures. As I started to set up the tripod and camera, I framed up and took the scene in again, before turning to River to say ‘isnt this just the most beautiful sight?’ to find my dog nowhere to be seen. In a slight panic, I strained my eyes looking in every direction, fearful she might have wandered to the road while my attention was diverted. I stopped and really considered the options, then realised I needn’t have worried – I just needed to look at the obvious spot…and sure enough a moment later I saw where she had gone. My perfect flat reflection started to slowly disappear in a growing cascade of ripples coming from one spot. Aha… there’s water – and if this dog loves one thing over anything else… its water.

Hmmnn… I wonder where the dog has gone…??

I snapped the shot quickly before the ripples affected my framing and called her name. A second later her head popped up from behind the reeds and she bounded back to me all happy and dripping. I kept her near me while I took some other shots, and prayed hard that the cloud would lift just a little to reveal a hint of the mountain behind. When it did, just for a couple of minutes, I really felt my luck was in, and finished when both a truck pulled up outside the cottage, and the cloud started decending again. I walked down to the waters edge, and allowed River a proper swim until she was happy. This felt like a good start.

Achnambeithach Cottage

From there I drove to Corpach, just a bit north of Fort William and had a look at 2 shots I hoped to take here. The boat was as boring to me as the photos I had seen, and had lots of people milling around it. However, as a ‘bucket shot collector’ I knew this was one I would need to pick up on. I saw a nice possible shot by the nearby waterfall which I’d not seen before in photos (or hadnt noticed it) so was pleasantly surprised to see it. As I tried potential shots with my phone, I realised I would need to navigate weeds and chicken wire holding rocks in place, but thought I might be able to make something of it if the light and tide were right. I also found the little lighthouse/pier bit, and worked out how to get the nicest viewpoint.  I found the spot but was disappointed to see there was building work going on, so diggers, and fencing, and piles of hard core littered the view. This might spoil the final image I hoped to get in time, but I would just have to work with it, or come back another time completely. I decided I would try again on my way back through at the end, as right now both shots needed a high tide for the best view anyway (or one that wasnt fully out as it was right now), and the light was looking pretty flat and lacking. I noted it all, along with a good parking spot for them and went back to the camper.

I pointed the sat nav to John O’Groats, and started the drive to Caithness to start the first leg of this trip proper. I hoped to pass the loch I was looking for so drove back through Fort William, around Loch Ness to Inverness, and all the way up the coast road towards Wick. I didnt see it anywhere along that stretch, but loved the coastal views that I had going this way. The temptatation to keep stopping was huge, but I kept going very mindful of the time and my aim to cover each county in turn, rather than darting between several. I hadnt really thought of a specific location I wanted to start with, and as I approached Wick I saw the time was getting on, so plumped for Castle Sinclair Girnigoe.  I picked this simply because it was out of a town, and more likely to have a parking spot where I might be able to rest up after the long drive. I got there easily enough, but it was nearly 9pm by the time I arrived, so after parking up, I decided to just stretch my legs with River, and simply scout the location for this evening. If I was lucky, there may be a nice sunrise that would give the ruin a nice glow in the morning. The castle was very easy to get to, and really nice to look at with several boards showing how it used to look in its day, and giving a good idea of the history of this place. I read each one, and walked all over the location, finding some nice points of view that offered a variety of shots. As I did so, I realised the sun was setting, and that it might actually be visible from under the blanket of clouds, with some colour off to the far horizon. Gutted I hadnt brought my main camera, I took what I could with my mobile and hoped the file size on this new phone would be good enough to work with. It seems the castle had a warm glow after all!

capturing the last bit of the setting sun at Castle Sinclair Girnigoe

Back to the camper for some well earned food and sleep followed and noting a couple of other campers here, I felt safe. With my first night on the road, my latest adventure began.

 

 

 

Review

Isle of Skye, Highlands, Scotland


 

This will be my first review of a location. I aim to tell you more in depth stories of each individual adventure in seperate posts, but for here, this will be my thoughts on the actual location as an overall whole. If you want to read the individual stories, and see the photos from there, check out the blogs, starting from the first one at Neist Point and Blackhill waterfall.

Well, lets kick off with my most memorable first properly organised and planned trip. The Isle of Skye in Scotland. Without a doubt, one of the most photographic, and photographed, locations in the UK that I have visited so far. It’s highly unlikely anyone could get an original shot any more, but it’s one of those places that every photographer will have (or should have!) on his or her list… simply to see some of these locations with their own eyes. And rightly so, because the whole island really is stunning.

Classic view from Old Man of Stor

For myself, I first had the opportunity to visit Scotland when my daughter needed to move out of her halls at the end of her first year in Uni. My choice was to tour a handful of key sights all over Scotland, or to stay local to a smaller area. I opted for the smaller area so I could hopefully get a more in depth view of a place, with the possible options of returning to a site a second or more times. I plumped for Skye because of the sheer number and variety of sights I could add to my ‘to do’ list within a small area. I hoped it would keep my busy! Decision made, I visited Skye, between 19th -24 June 2019, and drove everywhere in my campervan. Because of this, I cant comment on any places to stay, but can speak of my experiences of Skye from a tourer’s perspective.

If you come in a car, I hear Portree has some very comfortable places to stay, and some cracking restaurants.  I tended to cook in the camper so havent experienced any of them, apart from ‘The Chippy’ in Portree Harbour, who served up a deicious fish and chip supper one night. If you are in a car and Tent, I did stay at a site in Sligachan. It wasnt huge, but it was comfortable enough. There was electric hook up available, and a clean, and comfortable shower/toilet block, but very little else. The chap taking payments, was very friendly and informative, and I was pleased to see the showers were included in the pitch price, so I would give this site a thumbs up for my needs, but those seeking a full on campsite with a shop/clubhouse/childrens play area et all, will have to look elsewhere I am afraid….and I cant actually say I saw another site…tho since I wasn’t actually looking for one, it has to be said that I would be surprised if there wasnt one somewhere!! There is nothing else at Sligachan but a hotel/pub/restaurant, which unfortunately for me, was hosting a wedding on the night I stayed, so the restaurant was closed…I therefore cant comment on the quality of that either!

Fred Parked up… somewhere gorgeous ready for the morning adventure

For the bulk of my stay, I had to stop in rather remote spots, purely because of the need to save money, and to facilitate getting to locations for really late night, and early morning photographs (meaning that getting to bed and up at…oh no,… wait..NOT getting to bed for anything much more than an hour, because SOMEONE forgot to check what time the sun sets and rises in Scotland during the solstice week (Duh!!)) Thankfully these spots were fairly plentiful, tucked away, and non obtrusive. When not out with my camera, I kept myself to my van, and left nothing behind at any location of course. I would urge anyone considering doing this, to do the same. As soon as people begin leaving litter, or soil of any kind, there will be a stop to this, and therefore any freedom to roam that we may currently enjoy. For us photographers, the biggest enjoyment, and some of the best photography, will naturally involve getting to remote locations very late in the day, or as early and as easily as possible, so PLEASE remain respectful, so that this may continue.

I found Skye to be largely unspoiled. I dont know how much longer it will stay that way, as even at this point, it was impossible to not notice just HOW MANY tourists were flocking to the area. I dont think I have ever seen so many people visiting such a tiny area at one time, and this wasn’t peak season! This did impact photo opportunities at some points, but you have to take the rough with the smooth,  and after all…I guess I was just another one wasn’t I? The saddest bit for me, was, that over my week, I think I heard a scottich accent on no more than a handful of occasions. There were numerous tour busses every day, at every location I visited, dropping at least 30 -50 people off at a location, who tramped everywhere (some without any consideration for the environment, I was sad to notice) for half hour or so, and then moved on to the next spot, just as another bus pulled up. I hope this will be controlled soon, as I can see another 10 years passing, and the gorgeous locations that are the core starting places for photographers to visit, being little more than wide expanses of trodden brown footpath.

View from Stor 2012
View from Stor 2019

The most noticeable place where this is seen is at Old Man Stor. I came here briefly with the children in 2012, and we walked through a lovely forest footpath to the base of the Stor, where we then found a few thin, single file foot path trails up to the Stor itself. This year, I was really sad to see all the trees had be cut down and were being replaced by ‘native trees’, which I get, as the trees that were there, were not apparently natural ones for this area. But it looked baron, and my heart bled in the silence. It felt almost morgue like, for the lack of birds, and wildlife which had now gone, having lost so much of their protective cover. I know the plan is good, don’t get me wrong, but I am unlikely to see it looking as beautiful in my lifetime again, as trees take years to grow, and I wished more than anything that for the sake of the wildlife, they had done it in stages, so the animals could have stayed. Anyhow, thats just a minor, personal gripe….I diverge…the tourist effect…The little narrow path up to the Stor had mostly gone, in favour of a huge brown worn path to the right, that led up to the photographers viewpoint. I can see where it started, but the numbers of people have clearly widened it immensley, to the point that as you get higher up, the route becomes completely unclear, as it’s all just a big brown trodden area. Where the path becomes less secure as it wears down further, and wet weather makes the muddy path slippery, people will naturally widen their route onto yet more of the grassy area, and the problem just gets worse. On the route lower down, the footpath that has been layed is already being ignored, with people cutting through, walking on the edges etc. This will only get worse I imagine as the numbers grow. My biggest fear for Skye, is that this will happen in other places too.

On the other side of the coin however, I was pleased to see that some locations are beginning to control crowds. Lealt falls is a good example here, with a purpose build viewing platform overlooking the falls, keeping people safer from the edge, preserving the landscape, but affording good views of the falls. Toilets are being planned for The Fairy Pools car parking area, and up at the Quiraing, it looks like a better car park might be being created too, just at the top and out of the main walking route and view that attracts everyone. I am reading online that there has been further funding (granted as of June 2019) for visitor access for Old Man of Stor and some for parking at Portree, including Motorhome day Parking (YAY!! – I couldnt park anywhere so ended up pretty much avoiding the place entirely).  (See  jan 2020 update below about these!) Its also really nice to see that (so far) Skye has staved off the usual trappings that come with hourdes of tourists…big ugly hotels, fast food chains, shopping /tourist malls etc. This helps Skye maintain its charm, so I really hope that it can keep them away, or find a small, tucked away area, where they might hide it all, should it become an absolutely necessity. It should be noted however, that the lack of a number of familiar shopping facilities will mean that should you loose your lens cap?, or smash your very expensive filter on your third day?, you can forget finding replacements for the remainder of your trip…because even Amazon wont deliver here in anything less than 3 days, and the nearest city is several hours drive away!! (hmmnn…unless someone opens a dedicated camera shop on the island….???)

one of the many passing places

On the whole, I found Skye to be an awesome place to travel around. The roads were fairly clear at this time of year for me, and even during (the few) busy periods, I found frequent passing places everywhere (with the very clear signs visable from a distance). These were an absolute boon that allowed for easy flow of traffic in the many areas that only allow for single lane roads. And by many, I mean nearly all. Well done to the road designers who thought that one through…there are many other places in the UK that could take a lesson on how you achieved that! My camper is Transit van sized, and it managed really easily…but as the season picked up I wouldnt like to comment on how it all might work with the growing numbers of tourists, and the ever increasing sizes of motorhomes, that no doubt headed that way.

Weather wise, my week was essentially cloudy. It didnt rain every day, but did most of them, and several days had a full spectrum of weather, bit of blue, plenty of cloud, a sprinkling of rain (and the occasional torrential downpour), so this actually makes Skye perfect for interesting shots rather than just the traditional postcard type ones. I am told this is normal for here, and that even a few miles can bring entirely different weather at times! I had several moody shots of mountains, and I know that there are often, still, calm days that afford beautiful reflection shots in Skye’s many Lochs. I wasnt especially lucky this time, as it was fairly breezy every day, but these shots are visible everywhere online, so they arn’t lying. With this variable weather pattern, you will need to bring wet weather clothing, sturdy waterproof footware, and some rain protection for your gear for the bad days. I had an old rain mac from a visit to Niagra many years ago…it did the trick, but I have since invested in other alternatives for my camera.

Duntulm Castle

As for locations, every landscape photographer is completely spoiled for choice. Mountains, rolling hills, coast, rivers, waterfalls, towns, villages, abandoned cottages, historic houses, castles, harbours, bridges, lakes, ponds, wild and birdlife… well just about everything I can think of, is here, within this tiny speck of land… all within an hour or two’s drive, a gentle stroll or a good hearty hike. Nearly everything is free to enter (for now at least!) with exception to the private houses/castles (one I looked at was Dunvegan Castle, which I ended up not doing on this occasion), and all I visited were pretty near the road side or car park, either the actual view, or the start to the official hiking path. You really are are totally spoiled for choice, making it a pretty impressive place to start landscape photography, especially if you arnt totally sure what your favourite type of shot might actually be. Here, just about every theme could be tried, and with quite a few experienced photographers around, you wouldnt be alone long if you needed a bit of advice either. Oh, by the way… this last point shouldnt lead you to think that ‘that shot’ is already over done because of the numbers of photographers here… ‘that shot’ changes every hour with the weather here… and YOUR shot, will be entirely different. It will have the light that was exclusive to the moment that YOU press your shutter, and it will have your memories, and your adventure in getting to that spot embedded within it. My advice would be to try not to plan a weather dependant shoot too much, but to remain open to whatever the conditions throw at you, and be fluid and adaptable around it. You will be less disappointed or frustrated if it’s left as a ‘surprise’ on the day, and it will help stop you restricting yourself on the amazing shots that ARE available to you.

Brides Veil Falls

 

My opinion ultimately is that Skye was pretty perfect for me. It enabled me to really improve my photography, offering views I was pretty familiar with, whilst giving opportunities and challenges that both stretched my existing skills, and encouraged me out of my comfort zone to try something new. Sometimes the weather, or the crowds, sometimes my own inabilities… the challenges are plentiful, but not insurmountable. I was able to be entirely alone in the moment, and yet I was able to mix and chat with individuals or groups of people around me. I am fairly confident that this stunning place would do much the same for any photographer, be they a day tripper just taking snaps. amateur photographers hoping to get themselves off the auto setting, or highly skilled pros looking to build their portfolios.

My score?

***** Highly Recommended!

Update from Jan 2020… the car park at the Quiraing is indeed in place, and a really good one too, if you are in a car. Its very unclear where my camper should park however… I assume its to park up in the bus spots, which I feel very loathed to do.  I cant get into the car park itself due to the height barrier… and the sign is hilariously confusing….

Quiraing car park conditions Jan 2020

Note that permitted vehicles include Motorhomes, but clause (m) says that vehicles made to sleep in are not… I’d love to see a motorhome that wasnt designed to sleep in!!!.. Either way, it left me unable to park in there, and very confused where I WAS supposed to park.

At the Stor there is definately work going on, a large area too, I am assuming a visitor centre will be made there – either that or its a VERY big car park… hopefully the signage will be clearer when they finish!! Portree was unchanged so I await a better camper experience there.

My Adventures

Eilean Donan Castle


Skye 2019: Part Twelve

24/25 June 2019

As I left Skye, I felt a weight lift. I am not at all sure why that happened, perhaps I was loosing the pressures I had been putting on myself or maybe it was just that I would be heading home. It was half past 7 in the evening when I left Portree, and after an hour and a half of driving, I passed by Eilean Donan castle.

The first time I had seen this castle in person was on my way up to Skye. I had only stopped off then for just under an hour, to see what this place was about, and it had totally captured my imagination. I can see why so many people photograph it. It’s set in an absolutely perfect photographic setting, jutting out into the loch, with a fantastic backdrop of the hills behind. The first flyby visit, saw the tide fully out, and masses of tourists… but as I headed towards it tonight, I could see that the tide was in, the sun was setting, that the castle lights were alight and it would likely be tourist free. I had to stop to investigate! I took a quick walk around, and realised that although I had just missed sunset, the shot that I wanted most was going to be a blue hour one (the name given to the period of time after the golden colour of a sunset had gone but before pitch black of night sets in. This happens just before dawn too). I had seen a number of these shots and really wanted to try one for myself. Another photographer pulled up, and also walked around for a bit. The light was still a bit too bright for me at the moment, so I thought that now might be a good time to grab a quick bite to eat and make a cuppa. Food at last… my body was extremely grateful – and as I calmly waited, I felt the whole world come to rights again.

I watched the other photographer for a bit, he took a few shots, disappeared into the back of his van, then reappeared in what looked like a complete beekeepers kit. When I eventually got to speak to him, I questioned the outfit. He explained it was to keep the midges at bay, as they normally cover him with bites and he suffered a lot with them… damned good idea that one, I thought, as I started scratching at my newest bites for this evening.  I didnt seem quite so plagued by them however, as I had been that morning, so maybe as the sun sets, they also drift off… anyway, as the sky darkened, I eventually got my kit out and walked over to my chosen position with River at my heels, firing off shots that I loved. This reflection was awesome, and the blue light just made it all the more magical. It was an easy shot to capture for once.

Eilean Donan castle at night

I think my only disappointment was that one of the lights seemed to be out of order, putting one of the buildings into darkness. It didnt spoil my time though, and after my fill here, I wandered around to the other side, and took a few shots from there. Unfortunately, although this would have been nice too, there were a small group of teenagers there dancing around in front of the beams of light. This cast great big people shaped shadows across the building, which tho, quite fun, wasnt really a shot I was after! As I finished my wander around the second side, I went back to the car park side, and joined the other photographer again. He was out of his midge prevention kit by now, and looking a little more like a regular photographer, perhaps the net facemask had been getting in his way.  He told me he wanted to try something different, that this location would be perfect, and on seeing that my curiosity had been peaked, asked if I could I watch his camera while he picked up a few bits from his van. I did so, highly intregued by what he was hoping to do. When he came back, I knew immediately what he was hoping to do.

Fire spinning!!!

Now I have experienced this once, as part of a big group some time ago, so I recognised his equipment… a balloon whisk, steel wool and a rope. Oh yeah, all highly technical equipment in this game you know! I was most facinated with his set up in doing this alone. He sorted out where he hoped to focus, set his camera on a timer, and did one test run. He used a lighter to set fire to the steel wool (which he had stuffed into the balloon part of the whisk), jumped into position, then started spinning it in a big circle. Where his camera was set on timer it meant he was in full spin when the shutter fired. Once lit, the steel wool burns in seconds. By spinning the whisk that you’ve tied to a rope (or dog lead), tiny hot embers flick out, giving us these awesome photos… but the time you have is very short, so working on your own is very difficult! How he managed this all on his own, was quite interesting, and it actually amazed me! I always assumed this needed to be a two person job but he proved me wrong here. I bet this wasn’t easy the first few times he tried! He repeated this twice more, and seemed happy with the shots, then as he loaded the last bit of wool into the whisk, he asked if I wanted to take a photo of my own. I had been so mesmerised, I hadn’t thought to ask! I said a grateful ‘OH! Yes please, thank you!’ and then realised I had no idea what I needed to set the camera to. With very little time to work it out and only one shot, I hastily set my camera up next to his, fumbled my way through the settings in the dark, guessing mostly, and pressed the shutter. I feel my shot should have ended up a longer exposure than I did, (15 seconds) and maybe it would have had more drama at the top of the circle, perhaps a 20-25 second exposure…and maybe a lower ISO at that speed to help keep the background dark enough to highlight the embers. (I took this with an ISO 0f 500) but all in all, for a sudden rushed shot, I cant say I was unhappy in the slightest! Perhaps I WAS learning after all!

Fire spinning

Once the last of the wire wool had gone, he packed up, said his goodbyes and went on his way. I had the place entirely to myself by now, so I took a few more photos from the car park, wondering whether the castle lights stayed on all night. As I wandered up and down, I decided to see what a low to the water shot might look like, so carefully stepped down the rocks to the waters edge… A few seconds later I heard a massive ‘SPLASH!’ to my left, and realised that River had decided that now would be a good time for a midnight swim. In any other lake, ocean or river this might have been ok, funny even – but this place was just FILLED with seaweed. Apart from feeling concerned that she might get snagged by weeds in the now, nearly pitch black, this place smelled anything but fragrant….!! I called her back out and as I did so, saw the lights at the castle wink out. Oh, ok, I assume the lights go off at 11 then! I looked down at the stinky dog that I assumed was next to me (judging by the smell) and packed everything down. I made my way back to the camper, and moved to a spot for the night. As I settled down into bed, I considered going back briefly in the morning before leaving for home. I was hoping a high tide may give a pretty daytime reflection. As I turned off the lights, River decided that I might need some extra company, and tried to jump on the bed. Wet and stinky, she had an almighty shove in the opposite direction… NO WAY was she getting in MY bed tonight!!! Sorry little girl….

I got back to the car park very early next morning, feeling fully refreshed (even with just 6 hours sleep) and was disappointed to realise that the tide had gone completely out. We were back to a castle surrounded by a bed of seaweed and mud. (I really should check these things out !!) Nonetheless, I took the opportunity of an unpopulated scene, and took photos from every angle. Where the tide was right out, I was able to get down under the bridge and on both sides, even crossing where the water would have been, onto a small bit of raised land. Whilst taking this shot, the sun beamed through the overcast morning clouds that hung behind me for a brief moment, to shine directly onto the castle with a soft diffused glow. I was grateful for that, as the castle had looked a little dull in front of the blue sky behind it. I finally felt that things were working in my favour again, and that maybe this photographic lark was a good thing for me to be doing after all….

Dawn shot at Eilean Donan

The great joy of photographing Eilean Donan was that there are still other opportunities I could try at another time – A daytime with a high tide, views from two other spots that I have since discovered, a proper moody, misty shot perhaps. I ended leaving on a high, and tho very tired as the day drew on, I didnt have a repeat of the mood overload I had suffered the day before.

I felt this trip had, after all that, been quite a success.

 

My Adventures

Loch Slapin, Elgol and Portree


Skye 2019: Part Eleven

24 June 2019

As I drove, I finally found myself at Loch Slapin.  Now here was a place worth stopping for, not least because I needed to stretch my legs. (well OK… that’s just polite speak for this old lady bladder needed emptying, alright…?!) As I rounded the bend and came down the hill, I saw a lovely big area where I could park safely off the main, single lane road. As I looked around me, I immediately noticed a white house across the Loch, standing alone with a gorgeous backdrop of trees and mountains. It was a lovely sight, and totally worthy of a photo for sure.  This would only serve me as a memory note however, because the light really needed to be much nicer for this to be anywhere near a stunning shot. But for me, I certainly felt it had the potential to be just that at some point. I took my photo and then went on my way again.  According to my satnav, I wasn’t going to get to Elgol until gone 4, so I didn’t want to waste much time here now I had noted it for future use.

Loch Slapin

As the hills climbed and dropped, I found myself squeezing past busses and other vans, but very few cars which surprised me because I thought this would be a really popular place for visitors. Maybe it was a little late in the day for them? It felt like a long trip down that road, and after Slapin, nothing particularly drew my attention. To be fair, I wasnt really looking… I arrived in Elgol and initially parked up just before really steep hill down to the bay. The sky looked pretty grim – not characterful grim, but certainly not pretty, and no way was there going to be any chance of a nice sunset. I felt tired, totally uninspired and his hill looked steep with the prospect of walking up it with all my kit on my back being the furthest from encouraging! My mood continued its route downwards and I just sat in the drivers seat considering my choices.  I could a) stay and see what I could do here b) go back toward where I had been or c) park closer…

I decided to see if I could park closer first, then consider. I had to drive down the hill as gently as I could, as this was, I think, the steepest one I had done in Fred (the camper) to date, and it worried me. I struck lucky and found that there was one small area that I might be able to squeeze into in the bay car park. From here you could easily see the rocky beach, and I decided that, as I had actually made the effort to drive all this way, I may as well stay and see what I might get. My seascape photography was still poor, as I hadn’t really tried it much on this trip, so here was another opportunity. I was here. Why waste the chance? It took a lot of persuading to get me out of the seat, but I did eventually get out.

An hour later, I left even grumpier than I had arrived and in a very similar mood to the one this morning. The same problems had returned in major style, and I didnt feel anything was working. Sorely disappointed that I had yet another view in front of me without clear mountains, or that fitted in with the shot I hoped for, I found it hard to see the scene. to see a composition I liked, to work the settings to my satisfaction or to enjoy anything about where I was. I basically felt like I was forcing everything, and struggled with it all.

In hindsight, all I needed to do was ease up on myself.  All this pressure to get something was hampering my enjoyment, and I struggled to see the wood for the trees. I didnt like anything in my viewfinder, and tho tried, felt like I was a useless, and terrible photographer, and I wondered what I thought I was  even trying to do. I forgot one of the golden rules. Slow down, take a breath, and just chill. This should never have been about ‘getting a shot’, but in checking this location out! It was about seeing what was here and taking it all in for what it was. I had totally forgotten. Being a subject I didnt consider as a strong one for me, probably didnt help, although on reflection, all things considered, and without my hopes for the day in my head any more, I really needent have been quite so uptight with myself…

Elgol

I feel now, that I had totally overdone everything and I had just ended up developing a steely determination to just get there and take the photo. This attitude stank as far as I am concerned. Thats definately NOT what I wanted this to be about. I feel that perhaps it was all part of the big bag of tiredness, lack of food (when had I last had a proper meal??) and over saturation from the days where I had been packing muliple locations in. This was a very bad habit I was to find myself repeating over and over whenever I went away. When will I ever learn?? Theres no rush, these places will still be here next time I come here…and I had every intention of coming back. I forget that rest, food and the enjoyment all add to the end product. I have still SO much to learn…

I got back into Fred, and headed back towards Portree, where I hoped to get a photo of the harbour houses, and find somewhere to stop for the night. As I drove my negative frame of mind hammered iat the nail, nearly sealing the fate of my Skye visit. I got to Portree, and (as I had experienced every visit to this small town) struggled to find anywhere to park. I ended up parked in one bay (residents only- oops) and wondered if I could even get find where the shot I had been seeing online had been taken. I walked up and down, and back up again, but to no avail. The only shot I eventually got was looking down from the roadside and when I looked, was absolutely no better than the tourist shot I had caught way back in 2012. This just crippled me, and I snapped.

I got into the camper and left Skye.

This was all just too much.

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