Round Britain: Applecross

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, ScotlandLeave a comment

On our way to recommence our coastal tour we spent a night at a certified location next to the Inchbae Lodge Hotel at the foot of Ben Wyvis, just north of Garve in the Highlands.  Garve sits on the Black Water on the A835 just past Loch Garve. Although we arrived in sunshine and blue skies, the amount of lichen on the nearby trees suggest it is frequently wet.

This did happen overnight and we left in rain the next morning. Back in Garve we took the A832 west through Corriemoillie, Lochluichart, the Grudie power station and Achanalt. The road runs parallel to the railway line to Kyle of Lochalsh. We had had to stop at the level crossing on our way into Garve the day before when the two-coach Scotrail train passed through.

There is a lot of mostly coniferous woodland alongside the road. We stopped at the Midge Bite Café for a coffee in Achnasheen. It was busy with even the police coming in for take away snacks. After that we took the A890 down Glen Carron. There was another level crossing at Balnacra. When we halted at Lochcarron for supplies, the sun was trying to peep through the clouds.

Heading to Applecross we passed Loch Kishorn. The loch is 80 fathoms deep and was used to build exploration platforms for the North Sea oil fields. It began in the 1970s and employed 3,000 people at it’s peak. It since declined but is now known as Kishorn Port and Dry Dock and undertakes work for the renewable energy sector, decommissioning oil and gas and aquaculture.

The Bealach na Bà (pass of the cattle) at 626m is the longest steep hill of any classified road in the UK and the steepest road in Scotland. It runs over the mountains to Applecross and is about five miles from the start in Kishorn to its end.  The road was built in 1822 for stalkers to use on the Applecross Estate and was the only road into the town until the coastal road to Shieldaig opened in 1975. It meant that Applecross was one of the most isolated communities in Scotland. Before that the Bealach na Ba was a gravel road and even the CalMac mail boat had nowhere to dock because there was no deep water quay so a rowing boat had to ferry passengers and goods on and off the ship which lay off the slipway near Milltown. We got almost to the summit when it started to snow heavily. The snow gates were open but some people had got stuck so we had to reverse back to a wide bit in order to turn round and descend to take the alternative route. On our way down we pulled in to a passing place to allow the gritter to come down. Apparently, someone got stuck up there overnight. The rain returned and continued for most of our first night in the Applecross campsite. The following morning, we set off in the one dry hour to explore.

We set off along the Beechwood Trail towards the bay and the glen.

The name Applecross is derived from Apur Crossan and has nothing to do with apples.  Crossan is the river that flows into the bay near the monastery site.

The small church was built on a monastery at Clachan by the Irish Saint Maelrubha in 673 who sailed over from Ireland in his curragh. Sadly, in 794 and 795 the Vikings destroyed it. Saint Maelrubha is said to be buried here but which grave is his is unknown. The remains of an old chapel are in the graveyard at Clachan.

The church building here was constructed in 1817.

The nearby Heritage Centre is unfortunately only open in the afternoon. We walked back along part of the beach enjoying the views and then along the Beechwood Trail.

Here there are four Sweet Chestnut trees which commemorate four trees in Applecross which are linked to various stories. Superstitions meant that no-one was to cut them down and they had to be left to die naturally just after World War Two.

The Applecross Trust was set up in 1975. They own 64,000 acres of the Applecross Estate that used to belong to the Wills family. They contributed £5,000 towards the setting up of the community filling station 2010. They manage farming, conservation, tourism etc – replacing commercial Sitka spruce timber with native broadleaf trees. 250 people live in Applecross and many still work in fishing and crofting. There are many more paths and trails to explore with ancient remains but heavy rain continued so we had to give up and apart from a meal in the Applecross Inn, will have to shelter for the rest of the day.

A voyage around three islands in the Forth

On By Carol HenshawIn East Lothian, Scotland2 Comments

The Scottish Seabird centre in North Berwick run a number of boat trips from the harbour. We joined them for their voyage round three of the offshore islands; the Lamb, Craigleith and the Bass Rock which takes 90 minutes. Waterproofs and life jackets are provided. Fortunately, the day we went was very still and quiet in the East Beach.

We met our boat in the harbour.

The first island we visited was the Lamb. The small uninhabited island is home to cormorants, guillemots, puffins, kittiwakes, fulmars and herring gulls.

Ownership of the island traditionally lay with the feudal barony of Dirleton. In 2000, Brazilian businessman Camilo Agasim-Pereira bought the title and with it the island. Then, in 2009 it was bought by Uri Geller, who claimed it was the hiding place for a hoard of ancient Egyptian treasure. This theory was based on the fact that the layout of the islands of Lamb, Fidra and Craigleith seems to mirror the layout of the pyramids of Giza. From the Lamb you can see Fidra.

We then headed over to Craigleith which is visible from our house and is also is home to many sea birds.

In the 1990s it was home to 10,000 pairs of breeding puffins. But numbers reduced dramatically due the invasion of a non-native plant: Tree Mallow (Lavatera arborea) which grows up to nine feet high. It choked the puffin burrows and preventing the birds from nesting and rearing their chicks. To tackle this problem, the Scottish Seabird Centre set up a project called SOS Puffin in 2007. Work parties of volunteers make regular trips to Craigleith and the neighbouring islands of Fidra and the Lamb to cut down tree mallow. So far over 320 work parties have made regular trips to the islands to keep the tree mallow under control. This has largely been achieved. The northern half of the Island is now largely free of tree mallow, having been replaced with grasses, allowing puffins to breed again and numbers to recover. We saw some in the water as well as on the island.

The Isle of May which we visited in 2019;

https://carolhenshaw.com/2019/07/21/the-isle-of-may/  was visible in the distance.

The last island was the Bass Rock. I have photographed it several times from various points on the shore:

The Bass Rock

 but this was the first approach by sea. It has the world’s largest colony of northern gannets although numbers dropped last year due to avian flu. At this time of year, they are getting their nests ready for laying and we saw a few bringing sea weed back for them.

We sailed round the island

past the caves and the lighthouse.

The ruins of the fortress and the old chapel are on the rock. We then left the Bass Rock and returned to North Berwick harbour via Seacliff

Tantallon Castle

and Gin Head.

A new mural in North Berwick

On By Carol HenshawIn Art & Architecture, Beaches, East Lothian, Scotland2 Comments

The new mural sits on the wall of the old pier in North Berwick Harbour.

It began when Elizabeth Vischer, a local from East Lothian, set herself the challenge of carrying out 100 beach cleans during lockdown. She collected 26,513 pieces of plastic from Longniddry Bents. Plastic waste is a huge threat to wildlife and the environment. Currently, only 20% of plastic waste is recycled. Julie Barnes, a local artist was commissioned to build a mural with the plastic waste. 33,000 pieces were used. After being washed, the pieces were laid out on a sheet of 1m squared paper then photographed and sorted according to type and place found. As this progressed, they decided to take studio photographs of all the items found once sorted which took three weeks. Some things had to be discarded either because they were too dirty or too bulky to form part of the mural. This included sanitary items, bags of dog poo, wet wipes, ropes, netting and stoma bags. Julie Barnes then sorted the kept items by colour and size before completing the eight  pictures that comprise the mural.

The Scottish Seabird Centre is very close to the harbour and has a free exhibition of the studio photographs of the sorted plastic.

It is on from 25 March to 25th June 2023. I was there shortly after it opened at 10am and it was very quiet. One thing the Seabird Centre is asking everyone to do is to remove five pieces of rubbish every time you visit a beach and dispose of it properly. Apparently, there are more than 5,000 bits of plastic on every miles of the UK beaches.

A Night in Kelham

On By Carol HenshawIn England1 Comment

En route to visiting my brother in Norwich we had a break in our journey for a night in Kelham. It is a small village in Nottinghamshire; northwest of Newark which grew up around a crossing of the River Trent. Very early bridges crossed the river upstream of the present one, somewhere near the church. Evidence of foundations of buildings have been found south of the church, which suggests that the settlement was originally in this area, and that a major flood may have forced a move to the present site. We stayed at the 18th century Fox Inn which is in the Brit Stops scheme. Members can park their campervans for free behind the inn and there is electric hook-up for £10. We had a delicious evening meal in the pub.

The name was originally spelt Kelum in the 12th century. In the 2011 census the population was 207; almost a half of that of Smallwood where we used to live. Currently, a large proportion of the residents are retired, with the younger people working in nearby Newark. Very little development has been allowed. Kelham has some interesting history; when King Charles I surrendered at Southwell in 1647, he was held at Kelham Hall by the Scots. An information board in the village shows the Scots encampment being situated on the other side of the river. The bridge over the River Trent was constructed in 1856.

It is wide enough to allow two cars to cross at the same time but larger vehicles have to wait until no-one is approaching from the other direction. The A617 is a very busy road running between Newark and Mansfield. There was an interesting notice about fishing.

Kelham Hall is a is a Grade I listed building sitting within 52 acres of park land. The original gate is on the main road in the village

but the current entrance is further down the road. The hall is hidden by woodland.

It has had several incarnations: including being the home of the Manners-Sutton family but was destroyed twice and re-built over time. The second rebuild was after a fire by Sir George Gilbert Scot in 1863. From 1903 to 1973 it was the home of an Anglican order of monks led by Father Herbert Kelly, who founded the Society of the Sacred Mission or SSM. They trained men for missionary work and later for the Church of England ministry. They were known worldwide as ‘The Kelham Fathers’. Father Kelly was responsible for the planting of the extensive collection of trees in the hall grounds, some of which have grown into excellent specimens. The grounds are now one of three sites designated by the ‘Men of Trees’ for memorial planting by individuals. The SSM cemetery is just outside the church wall. During the Second World War, the SSM were host to many military and civilian groups including some Texans. The first drilling for oil in the United Kingdom was in a field in Kelham in 1919 by Thomas D’Arcy. Small traces were found, but lack of money forced abandonment. He then went on to found a worldwide oil exploration company, returning to Kelham Hills in the 1940s to find oil and a small field was established. Later the Hall became the main offices for Newark and Sherwood District Council which was formed in 1973 and was available for weddings and conference but the company went into liquidation in 2021 and now has a new existence with new owners.

There is no shop but one house had a notice suggesting it had been one in the past.

The village is an old farming community which grew up as part of the estate to serve the lords of the manor of Averham and Kelham, providing employment for most of the inhabitants. Some families have lived in the village for several generations. The farms have amalgamated since the 1950s. The Hall home farm is in the centre of the village

and another one is closer to the edge.

The estate was used to develop the technique of growing sugar beet when it was introduced to this country during the First World War. The Kelham sugar beet processing factory was built in 1921. It is now known as the Newark factory and is one of the largest and most modern sugar factories in Europe. After a quiet night close to this busy road we continued on our journey to Norwich.

Whitepark Bay in Winter

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, IrelandLeave a comment

 Whitepark Bay has a 3 mile long beach sitting on the North Antrim coast. It is a  site of special scientific interest (SSI) and has been under the care of the National Trust since 1938. We have visited it on many occasions when we have been in Northern Ireland visiting James’s parents but this was our first winter visit. The car park was unusually quiet.

A path and some steps lead down to the beach.

Walking down we saw lots of rabbit holes and several rabbits. Sheep and cattle can be grazed on the grass behind the dunes in the bay but there were none there on our visit. A notice on the gate said that the Northern Colletes, a coastal solitary bee; can be found here. At this time of year the only flower I saw was a primrose in bud so a bee sighting would be unlikely. It can be possible to see seal pups at this time of year but we did not see any.

The ruined white building is the old youth hostel, the current one sits higher up near the carpark.

The other ruins are the remains of an old ‘hedge school’. This 18th Century ‘school for young gentlemen’ is said to have included on its roll call Lord Castlereagh, for his early education years. 

Portbradden sits on one side of the bay and the harbour contains an ancient salmon fishing station. The village is said to have had the smallest church in Ireland.  The building in question was constructed in the 1950s as a cow byre but used as St Gobbans Church. It measured 11 feet 4 inches (3.45 m) long, 6 feet 9 inches (2.06 m) wide. The owner Rev Con Auld was an academic and held services in it but the church was demolished it in 2017 by the new owner after he had retired and sold it. 

At the other end of the bay is Ballintoy Harbour which we visited last August. The tide was ebbing and there is a notice warning that it is unsafe for swimming due to dangerous rip tides.

There was a solitary paddle boarder in the water.

The cliffs on both West and East sides of the bay are composed of Upper Cretaceous chalk. The chalk itself is a form of limestone composed almost entirely of Calcium Carbonate. It was  formed Late during the Cretaceous period, a time when much of the continents were under water including Ireland. There are several rocks on the beach among the pebbles.

The cliffs at White Park Bay are rich in fragments of the belemnite a relation of the ammonite.  I have found a few stones with belemnite fossils over the years and they sit on my mantelpiece at home. My beach combing did not reveal any shells or sea glass.

Christmas at the Botanics

On By Carol HenshawIn festivals, Flowers. plants & trees, Scotland1 Comment

We last visited the Christmas lights in the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh in 2017. This year I booked it again and we met up with a friend to visit it. The Christmas Light Trail runs from mid-November to the 30th of December. Entry is timed so we set out for 6pm last Monday. Weekdays are quieter than the weekends.  The trail starts by passing through the West Gate building and continues through various different sections with static displays like this green tree.

and  others with changing colours in time to the music

and video on one of the buildings. We walked through a tunnel of lights.

and continued on the trail. The Chinese Garden had lights hanging from the trees

Another area had light bulbs hanging from the trees.

One section had 2 metre UV feathers. which looked as if they were floating in the trees.

Santa was standing near the catering section.

There was a large variety of displays including some on water. This one on a tree looked almost abstract as the tree faded behind the lights.

The trail eventually wends its way back to the West Gate buildings and it was time for us to head home for an evening meal.

The Bass Rock

On By Carol HenshawIn East Lothian, Scotland3 Comments

The Bass Rock is one of several volcanic remnants locally. It sits in the Firth of Forth near North Berwick and is just over 106 metres high. It is visible from the East Beach in Milsey Bay

the West Strand

from Drift Café above Canty Bay

and from Seacliff Beach.

The Bass has the remains of St Baldred’s ancient chapel on it. He used it as a retreat until he died in 606AD. The chapel was consecrated in his honour in 1542 and used as an occasional place of worship until the Reformation.  From the 15th to the 18th century, it was used as a prison; not for ordinary prisoners but those held for religious or political reasons. The Scottish kings used it. In 1406 Robert III put his son, the future King James for safekeeping from his enemies. James later imprisoned one of his enemies, Walter Stewart Earl of Atholl for treason before his execution in 1424. In 1428 14 year old Neil Bhass Mackay was held there as a hostage before he escaped in 1437 and became Mackay clan chief.

The Stuart Monarchy Restoration in 1660 was more popular in Scotland than the reign of Cromwell. However, when the Act of Supremacy had been passed which made the King supreme judge in all manners civil and ecclesiastical, installing bishops and another act annulled the laws in favour of the Presbyterians, things changed. Nonconformist held what were called conventicles: meetings in private houses, churches or fields, sometimes at night. In 1670 an act was passed prohibiting house conventicles and making it a capital crime to preach at field canticles. It was thought that the Bass Rock would be an ideal place for the confinement of nonconformists so in 1671 the Crown bought the Rock and refortified it to be used as a prison. Between 1672 and 1688 several Presbyterian Covenanters were imprisoned there and from 1688 to 1692 supporters of the deposed Jacobite Kings James II and VII.

The government abandoned the Rock in 1701 and Sir Hew Dalrymple bought it in 1707. His descendants still own it. The lighthouse was constructed in 1902 on the site of the castle keep by David Stevenson who demolished some of the older buildings. It was automated in 1988. In normal times 30-40,000 pairs of  gannets nest there in summer making it the largest northern gannet colony. There are also razorbills, puffins, guillemots, cormorants, eider ducks and other gulls. Appropriately the Latin name of the gannet is Sula bassanis.

We moved to North Berwick in late 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. No boat trips out to the Bass Rock were running. When they commenced in 2021, they were all booked up. This year, most were cancelled due to avian flu which has had a major impact on the gannet population.

Round Britain: Kinlochewe to Shieldaig

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, Scotland, walksLeave a comment

The A896 which runs southwest of Kinlochewe to Torridon is single track with passing places. It runs past the Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve which has a woodland restoration scheme nearby. The road passes Loch Coulin and Loch Clair by which time it was very cloudy with drizzle. The Torridon Estate is owned by the National Trust for Scotland. There are lots of hillwalking paths and mountains to climb in better weather. The A896 enters Glen Torridon with the river running on the left and near the loch, a minor road runs into Torridon.

We stopped at the Community Centre which runs the Wee Whistlestop Café: a great place for a drink and snack. Upstairs is a gallery with art works for sale of many kinds by local artists. There is also a gym and some work spaces.

The minor road continues all the way up to Diabaig and from there is a path to Red Point. The first community it reached is Fasaig, a short distance away. Just behind the community centre are the remains of Doire na Fuaran which means ‘field of the springs’. 45 families used to live here. It was cleared in 1845 so that the landlord could use the area for more profitable sheep farming. Some of the residents moved to the seashore in what is now Fasaig, others emigrated. A path runs to the ruined former crofts on the hillside.

However, we carried on towards Shieldaig on the A road which was now two lanes. It passes through Annat and then there were two viewpoints overlooking Loch Torridon and the surrounding countryside.

A minor loop road runs through Shieldaig and we soon found our campsite with good views

and with neighbouring sheep.

After settling in we had a walk down to the seafront where most of the town lies. White-tailed eagles disappeared over 100 years ago but two returned to Shieldaig, nesting on the island in 2009.

Work is underway in conjunction with the RSPB to increase the population and has so far been successful. On the seafront was a Vintage Tractor Run which was raising money for the Highland Hospice.

We popped into the smoked salmon business to buy some. They are the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament people in town. The slogan translates as ‘I hope for a free Scotland without a bomb, without Boris’. We have got rid of Boris but no guarantee of getting rid of the bombs.

From the seafront there are views over to Loch Shieldaig which is an offshoot of Loch Torridon.

I found a huge amount of sea glass on the beach.

Later we took a walk up a short hill path past an abandoned church which gave views over towards Loch Torridon.

When we came back down, we had a good conversation with one of the locals. Tonight’s meal will be in the local hotel restaurant and we will head off early in the morning because there will be a cycle race on one of the roads we need to travel back home on and we need to get past that one before it starts.

Round Britain: Inverewe to Kinlochewe

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, roads, Scotland1 Comment

On another still morning we left Inverewe for our next destination: Kinlochewe.

The A832 crosses the River Ewe and continues south past Loch Tollaidh. At Strath we turned onto the B8021 which continues around the west side of the peninsula all the way to Melvaig. Our stop was Big Sand which is part way along the road. We parked up and had a good walk along the length of the large beach and back.

This is one of two dead jellyfish I found

and one dead starfish.

Longa Island sits offshore here.

After meeting a dog walker on the very quiet beach we had a long and very interesting conversation. Eventually we headed back to Gairloch where we had a coffee at the Gale Café and gift shop which is a community-run initiative. Next door is the farm shop which has a wide variety of products. There are views over the bay.

Strath was once the heart of the crofting community. There was a meal mill which fed them for 300 years, a blacksmith and a boat builder who served the cod fishing industry. In the 1840 potato famine the community was devastated. On 15 July 1842 215 people left Gairloch for Cape Breton Island in Canada. A town called New Gairloch had been previously been founded in 1805 in Nova Scotia. A little further along from the café is the War Memorial where there is a viewpoint over the bay

and the surrounding area.

The road continues on past a pier and Charlestown before running through Glen Kerry. We turned off to Badachro so that I could photograph the small distillery for James. They make single malt whisky, gin and vodka and there is an onsite shop.

Badachro also has a hotel and a kayak and canoe hire business. Back on the A832 we passed another hydroelectric scheme and near the dam some major road improvement works. The road then descends to Loch Maree through the Slatterdale Forest and then down to the shore. Much of the shore is hidden by trees but at one car park I managed to peek through them.

Loch Maree used to be called Loch Ewe which explains how Kinlochewe got its name. In the 17th century it was renamed in memory of Saint Maolrubbha who brought Christianity to the area and had a cell on Isle Maree. The northeast of the area was once a centre for the iron-smelting industry. It relied on charcoal which used up vast quantities of wood which destroyed much of the local Caledonian Pine Forest. Similar things happened elsewhere and now there are only 35 small remnants in the Highlands. A lot of the surrounding area near Kinlochewe is now part of the Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve. After we had settled into the campsite, we had a wander around the village. It sits astride the Kinlochewe River

and although we had had some sunshine the mountains were still covered in cloud.

Round Britain: Gruinard Bay to Inverewe

On By Carol HenshawIn Beaches, Flowers. plants & trees, Scotland2 Comments

Yesterday evening I had a short walk on the beach at Laide

Where a seal was sitting on one of the rocks.

The next morning was another quiet day.

After picking up supplies in Aultbea we walked to the pier

where there are views over to the Isle of Ewe.

Back on the A832 we passed Drumchork. Loch Ewe distillery was the smallest legally operated distillery in Scotland founded in November 2005 by John Clotworthy, the hotelier of the Drumchork Lodge Hotel in Aultbea and started its business in 2006. It lasted until 2015 when it was put up for sale, closing in 2017.  On a hillside further on was a viewpoint looking over Loch Ewe and an MOD pier and associated property.  After the Soviet Union was invaded by the Nazis in 1941, Loch Ewe was one of the Arctic Convoy shipping points to send supplies to the Soviet Union for the next four years.

The next viewpoint overlooked Loch Thurnaig.

We then entered Inverewe and visited the Gardens. Despite lying on the same latitude as Moscow and Hudson’s Bay, the Gulf Stream enables an amazing variety of plants from all over the world to grow.

Inverewe Garden was created by Osgood Mackenzie. His forbears were the lairds of Gairloch. It is said that he saw the barren peninsula and decided to build a garden there after acquiring the property in 1862. His first job was to plant a shelter belt of trees against the west and south-westerly winds. 15-20 years later other trees, including non-natives were planted. He had to import soil from Ireland. The first rhododendrons were acquired around 1890.  Osgood died in 1922 and is buried in Strath churchyard. His daughter took over the estate. His and her plant inspiration came from their many worldwide travels. Eventually the garden was given to the National Trust for Scotland. We began by exploring the walled garden.

Although in September many of the flowers, shrubs and trees have gone to seed, some were still in bloom.

There was a sculpture entitled Sheltered Existence by James Parker in 2014.

The house was built in 1937.

Some of the rooms are left as they would have been in Osgood’s daughter’s time.

Also on the ground floor is The Sawyer Gallery. The exhibition when we visited was by Pamela Tait and Erland Tait who are visual artists from The Black Isle and the Highlands respectively. Pamela’s work is in watercolour and monoprints.

We then walked around the forest and saw many different trees including eucalyptus

tree ferns from Tasmania

and Californian Redwoods.

On 30 January 2022, Storm Corrie with 90mph winds, felled 60 trees and destroyed 90 large shrubs. Work is still going on to deal with this. There is a jetty from which boat trips are run.

It had begun to rain so we walked back to the café to top up the caffeine levels and then it was time to check into our campsite which was just down the road. Before we had some quite torrential rain, I looked at the view across Loch Ewe.