Highland Thoughts

[Mathos]

Footloose to Harris and The Outer Isles.




It certainly gets about this Cruise Ship.

I can sense the gentle rolling around the Islands,
the sightings of Porpoise, Whales and Seals
to say nothing regarding the famous Basking Sharks
which frequent our shores in these superb locations
and amazingly beautiful waters.


Musn't forget, Her Majesty The Queen hired the Hebridean Princess for a holiday.

Interesting link here:-





The Queen hires a car ferry for family holiday - Telegraph

1. 22 Jul 2006 ... The Queen boards the Hebridean Princess. In pictures: The Royal Cruise ... The Royal Family, weaned on bracing breaks in the Highlands, ...
   The Queen hires a car ferry for family holiday - Telegraph - Similar pages

You can always rely on the media to look for rubbish in everything and print it.

It's a pity.




I wonder if Paul McCartney ever went on board.

This next photograph:-




It beggars description.

Absolutley fantastic.

[Mathos]

Speaking to a friend over the weekend and talking about the threads, he asked how long threads like 'Highland Thoughts' and 'Beautiful Lancashire' could really last for.

Interesting point.


I gave it a little thought and in all honesty, there is no such thing as an end to them in a manner of speaking.

Not until I'm either incapable of going out for the photographs, asking questions, doing a little research etc. As long as I can function in that manner.

They should last.


There are so many things to see and write about.

Look at this, The Bridge Across The Atlantic.



I'm enjoying the hobby.

Check the link out:-

Atlantic Bridge, Scotland
Atlantic Bridge print to view or buy. ... western end of Seil and from the southern end of Seil a small car ferry operates across the Cuan Sound to Luing. ...
Atlantic Bridge, Scotland - 7k - Cached - Similar pages


From the Bridge across this narrow stretch of The Atlantic Ocean.



An additional angle.



Another good link:-


Seil Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland

Ten miles miles South of Oban on the A816 you come across a minor road heading west signposted to Easdale and, more intriguingly, to the Atlantic Bridge. ...
www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/seil/seil/index.html - 18k - Cached - Similar pages

Sheer beauty, whichever way you turn.



They appear to have these fantastic 'Beasties' all over the place.

What a beautiful and magnificent creature they are.


The small petrol station with kiosk (not so many of these left are there) and the adjacent hotel.



Judging by the clutter of signs, they didn't want you to miss anything.




So much information all on the spot.



Brilliant.

[Mathos]

Tigh an Truish - 'The House of the Trousers'

Tigh an Truish is a 18th Century Inn sitting next to the famous Bridge over the Atlantic, on the beautiful Island of Seil. We are open all year, ...
www.tigh-an-truish.co.uk/about.html - 7k - Cached - Similar pages
More results from www.tigh-an-truish.co.uk »


The above link is excellent.




Some of these views are amazing.


The Bridge itself is a decent work of art.




We are indeed extremely fortunate to have so much beauty and so much history
attached to our shores.



As you drive around Seil Island, there are 'Ferry Points' to other Islands.

There's the Isle of Luing Ferry and The Easdale Ferry from Ellenabeich.

Busy places as well, you can see that.


Had to add this photograph of the Bridge, it shows a convenient slipway to launch your boat, straight into The Atlantic.




What a place.





Sensational.



I liked it.

[Mathos]

We had noticed several projects being undertaken with regards to re-inforcement and or protection of the coast from water erosion. Again, simply talking about the same one night ewith locals in the Crinnan Hotle, we were given some information. This is a useful bit of detail with regards to the same at Cullipool.

Coastal Protection for Cullipool Village

Every year, winter storms have eroded back the edge of the platform of loose slate waste on which much of Cullipool village and the land to the north sits. The ‘once-in-a-hundred-years’ storm has occurred several times in the last 10 years, and as the ocean warms as a result of climate change, such storms will remain a more common occurrence.
When The Community Trust bought the remnant estate of land and mineral rights of the former quarry owners in 2006, it acquired a vast pile of loose slate, varying in size from fine sand to large blocks. One of the purposes of this, and one for which the grant to purchase was awarded, was to use this slate for coastal protection work. But carrying out that work would be a costly exercise itself, and at that time there was no further money. However in 2008, negotiations with Argyll and Bute Council led to a grant being awarded from the Council’s limited budget for flood protection. With private funding making additional work possible, the work began in the autumn of 2008.


Now at the start of 2009, the work has been done. A considerable amount of the Trust’s reserve of loose slate has enabled a much more extensive bank to stretch around the edge of the bay, protected by an array of large rocks buried beneath smaller slate, which should provide protection for many years to come. Below this, the beach will still be accessible, though the bank may take a while to settle into a new profile.


It isn’t possible to provide permanent erosion and flood protection, even if the millions required were available. The aim has been to provide a defence that can be renewed from time to time as needed, using further slate from the waste slate pile. In the longer term, there are more unknowns relating to the prediction of rising sea-levels.


We have recently been advised that the present rate of sea-level rise in the Oban area (about 1.5 mm per year) is roughly compensated by continuing post-Ice Age rise of the land surface. It might be 50 years before sea-level rise in this area outpaces the rise of the land surface sufficiently to demand more drastic and expensive remedies. For the time being Cullipool folk can sleep safer in their beds on wild winter nights.

Damage from a previous severe storm; loose slate from the beach covers the road.
Work begins in October 2008; one of the two diggers at work on the beach.

The other digger excavates the pile of waste slate to be used on the bank.

This photograph shows how the bank was built up by creating a core wall of large blocks which are then covered with waste slate.

Close up of the core wall shows how carefully the blocks have been placed to create a strong core.

The covering of the core wall progresses from south to north.

One weekend, a storm tested the defences so far completed – and the defences withstood the assault well!

Towards the end, the smaller of the two waste slate piles has disappeared completely, revealing the solid rock that had been long buried beneath the pile.

A view along the top of the completed bank. The steep slope to the beach will slowly be washed down to a gentler profile by wave action.

General view of the completed work. Access to the beach is now down the concrete strip to the left of the picture.

It's amazing just how much work is undertaken that the average visitor doesn't really appreciate or notice.

They are of course very fortunate in having so much rock and slate to hand.

Brilliant link here:-


The Slate Islands and the Sea - Seil, Luing & Easdale
The Isle of Seil, Easdale Island, the Isle of Luing and Belnahua are the Slate Islands, once known as the Islands That Roofed The World. ...
seil.oban.ws/islands.html - 13k - Cached - Similar pages


Many years ago, I think about 1983 we had a weeks holiday in these parts of Scotland.

We rented a small bungalow at Oban. Myself Flobo and our two girls, The Elder was 17 years old at the time and had recently returned from a period of working in The USA.

The younger was 12 years old.

Amazing now when the elder daughter is 43 years old this year and the younger will be 38 in a few weeks.

How time passes.

I've spent a bit of time with the elder son of the younger daughter today, he has been doing some road running (I paced him on the push bike) and a little bag work.

He's going to be seventeen this year.

I'm feeling old

No I'm not I'm young.

The bugalows, are no longer holiday homes, they are now private residences.




We had stayed in the first one on the right.

They are at the rear of The Soroba House Hotel.





Nice place it was as well.

We didn't call in, simply drove around and took a few photographs to show the girls.

They were glad we had done so.





Flobo reckons we have some old photographs from that holiday and she is going to find them.



Nice roads.

Attic here we come..


Nice stone Cross here as well.




Religion has certainly played an extremely important and very beneficial part in our development as a brilliantly civilised nation.

[seamusogin]

wonderful thread, both words and picture's. I've found that the scenery in both northern scotland and north/west Ireland to be quite stunning. buildings + house's so similar in style and materials. Also the shared weather ! Make's me want to
go there again

[Mathos]

wonderful thread, both words and picture's. I've found that the scenery in both northern scotland and north/west Ireland to be quite stunning. buildings + house's so similar in style and materials. Also the shared weather ! Make's me want to
go there again

Cheers Seamus, it is a brilliant part of The UK.

Some of the mountains especially are fantastic.





Everything is fantastic when you think about it.

[Mathos]

This particular bridge acted as an overflow outlet from the canal into the sea.



I reckon the walk-way was to enable removal of debris which may well have cause obstruction and consequential flooding.



Quite amazing really how the land structure in general has an effect on making decisions regarding the route for a road.


I couldn't really appreciate why the large outbuilding was painted two tone though.




Some of these lochs are sensational.

None of them were idle, The Crustaceans must be breed fast.

Quite a nice looking building here.





The Cuilfail Hotel.

It had actually just been purchased by a young couple from Yorkshire.

We had a sandwich each and a pot of tea. Would you believe it £13..00.

Ridiculous.

They'll learn when the trade goes down the plug-hole though.

Interesting link however.

Cuilfail Hotel
A 12 bedroom Victorian hotel set in the village of Kilmelford near the shores of Loch Melfort. Bar and restaurant facilities also available.
Hotel accommodation Oban hotels Kilmelford romantic country inn B & B Oban Argyll Highlands Scotland - 10k - Cached - Similar pages
Area Attractions
The Islands
Travel tips
Calmac Ferries
Romantic Breaks
More results from cuilfail.co.uk »

[Mathos]

This was a really superb solid bridge.

Majestic.





Gorgeous town further round the bay.




Must compliment the planning in these areas.

Nothing is really out of the general keeping.

Nice to see care taken and the blending in with nature.



What a spectacular view.



The land locked lochs were very beautiful and of course were in general much quieter.


On a personal basis, I preferred those which linked to the Atlantic.




You never really knew what to expect.

Far more interesting.

[Mathos]

Another really beautiful town Lochcarron.


Really attractive nestled by the Loch
below a beautiful range of mountains.




Isn't that gorgeous.

This is a nice link too.

Lochcarron Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland
Lochcarron Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland: The Ultimate Online Guide.
Lochcarron Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland - 18k - Cached - Similar pages

Some of the beaches in these locations.




You wouldn't find cleaner or nicer looking
sand or more clean and clear water than that,
anywhere on the planet.




The shed by the coast here, it really caught my eye, propped up back and front!

"In Case of Strong Winds'

You can bet your life it'll go flying one of these days.

I think the house below was the cutest little
residence I ever came across in my life.

Brilliant.

One thing for sure.

We will be going back here next winter.

[Mathos]

I bet you thought I had forgotten about this Happyman?





I have struggled to get the location.

I'm pretty confident the building is on the shore of Loch Assynt.

Could be along The A387 as well.

Sorry for the delay.

I struggled to pin point where we were, but I'm certain I'm right on this.



Now you tell me who did all that damage.

It's very serious is this.

What, with the housing shortage and problems with mortgages.

[Happyman]

It is either Calda House A ruined Georgian mansion located on the eastern shore of Loch Assynt, a mile (1.5 km) north northwest of Inchnadamph in the NW Highlands, Calda House was built in 1726-27 for Kenneth MacKenzie of Assynt, who loved at nearby Ardvreck Castle. His wife, Frances, had persuaded him to construct a modern replacement for the cold and austere castle. This substantial rubble-built house once comprised two storeys and a large attic within a double-gabled roof. It was the first mansion in the area - designed for comfort rather than defence, even including a garden - and was very grand, so much so that it put the family into debt. They were forced to put the house up for sale and a struggle for control of Assynt ensued between the MacKenzies and the Earl of Sutherland.
In 1737 some MacKenzie supporters set light to Calda House to prevent it being used by the Sutherlands. It burned to the ground and was never re-built. In 2004, Historic Assynt completed the consolidation of the ruins.



Or
Ardvreck Castle


The castle is thought to have been constructed around 1590 by the Clan MacLeod family who owned Assynt and the surrounding area from the 13th century onwards. Indeed Sutherland, the area in which Ardvreck is situated, has long been a stronghold of the clan MacLeod. The most well known historical tale concerning the castle is that on April 30th 1650 James Graham, the Marquis of Montrose, was captured and held at the castle before being transported to Edinburgh for trial and execution. Montrose was a Royalist, fighting on the side of Charles I against the Covenanters. Defeated at the Battle of Carbisdale, he sought sanctuary at Ardvreck with Neil MacLeod of Assynt. At the time, Neil was absent and it is said that his wife, Christine, tricked Montrose into the castle dungeon and sent for troops of the Covenanter Government. Montrose was taken to Edinburgh, where he was executed on 21 May 1650, using the traditional method for traitors: hanging, drawing and quartering. Ardvreck Castle was attacked and captured by the Clan MacKenzie in 1672, who took control of the Assynt lands. In 1726 they constructed a more modern manor house nearby, Calda House, which takes its name from the Calda burn beside which it stands. The house burned down under mysterious circumstances one night in 1737 (see below) and both Calda House and Ardvreck Castle stand as ruins today.[1]

[edit] Architecture


Ardvreck Castle ruins


Ardvreck Castle was a rectangular-shaped keep comprising three storeys. Under the castle the vaulted basement is pierced by gunloops and the round stair turret is corbelled out to support a square caphouse. Despite the small size of the ruined tower, Ardvreck was originally a large and imposing structure and it is thought that the castle included a walled garden and formal courtyard. The remains of the foundations can still be seen and cover a large area. Unfortunately, all that remains today is a tower and part of a defensive wall. When the waters of the loch rise very high, the peninsula on which the castle stands can be cut off from the mainland.

[edit] Ghosts and legends of Ardvreck

The castle is said to be haunted by two ghosts, one a tall man dressed in grey who is supposed to be related to the betrayal of Montrose and may even be Montrose himself. The second ghost is that of a young girl. The story tells that the MacLeods procured the help of the Devil to build the castle and in return the daughter of one of the MacLeod chieftains was betrothed to him as payment. In despair of her situation, the girl threw herself from one of the towers and was killed.
The nearby ruins of Calda house are also supposed to be haunted. The legend says that the Mackenzie family organised a family gathering there one Saturday and that the celebrations continued past midnight into the Sabbath day. At some point a fire broke out, possibly caused by a lightning strike, and all the inhabitants perished as the house burned to the ground. The causes of the fire are uncertain, but inhabitants of the Assynt area state that it was a manifestation of divine wrath as the family had been merry-making on the Lord's Sabbath day. Indeed, stories are told that there was a survivor of the fire, a piper who was spared the flames because he refused to play the pipes past the midnight hour.
A number of ghost sightings have been recorded around the area of the Calda ruins, including that of a ghostly woman who haunts the site itself. Strange lights have also been seen there at night, and several people have claimed that they have seen car headlights approach them on the road there at night, but after waiting for the vehicle to pass, no car has appeared.

Trying to find a pic of the house !




Found one !!!
Looks like this is it !

[Mathos]

Happyman wrote:-

It is either Calda House
Trying to find a pic of the house !




Found one !!!
Looks like this is it !

Brilliant..

I think you have some form of ESP Happyman.



Thanks..

[Happyman]

Still digging for that other one near Crinan - I will get there , no worries !

[Mathos]

Still digging for that other one near Crinan - I will get there , no worries !

I'm a little concerned, I may have given you the wrong information on that building with regards to the road it was on.


I'm going to re-check..

However, it isn't very far out if the details are not so precise as I thought they were.

Leave it with me.

[Happyman]

Thanks - that one has me really interested !

[phuketbound]

Had to add this photograph of the Bridge, it shows a convenient slipway to launch your boat, straight into The Atlantic.




What a place.


Sensational.



I liked it.

Awesome bridge, Mathos. It must have taken a lot of work to make this stone bridge. Just looked at the new pics that I missed. Tremendous pics, and I want to visit again someday! What a place it would be to retire in. Thanks for the the tour.

[Mathos]

Phucketbound wrote:-

Awesome bridge, Mathos. It must have taken a lot of work to make this stone bridge. Just looked at the new pics that I missed. Tremendous pics, and I want to visit again someday! What a place it would be to retire in. Thanks for the the tour

It's a spectacular area, but wouldn't you find major problems with the language?

SeeyouJimmy and a bit more of course.

[Mathos]

Thanks - that one has me really interested !

I'm checking.

[Mathos]

This was different.




No it isn't Switzerland either.





Fantastic place.





Well built.





Amazing how much beauty these shores of ours really have to offer.



It seems to get better as well.




Anybody, and I mean anybody, riding a bike down that sheet of ice deserves a medal, or a stint in a lunatic asylum.

Trust me.



What a mountain.





You would never climb that in your lunch break,


Spectacular bridges.





You might have to enlarge this to read all the detail



Well worth it though.



More snow required.


It all blends in as one.




Mountains and lakes.


Very special.

[biff]

Hello Mr Mathos,
Thank you for your great thread on Scotland, what a beautiful place.
You certainly are a good photographer sir, would make good travel books.

The older threads have lots of info in them, informative, colourful, to good to be tucked away.

Have you been to Durham, grandparents came from there.

Cheers

Biff

Australia

[Mathos]

Hello Mr Mathos,
Thank you for your great thread on Scotland, what a beautiful place.
You certainly are a good photographer sir, would make good travel books.

The older threads have lots of info in them, informative, colourful, to good to be tucked away.

Have you been to Durham, grandparents came from there.

Cheers

Biff

Australia

Thanks for those kind words Biff, I'm glad you enjoyed the thread.

County Durham BTW is on the agenda.

[Mathos]

I was just looking through the Thread here,
as I'm sending a couple of links out to friends and family.

Good memories rekindled of 'Happyman' RIP Peter,
you are missed old friend.

[Carnwadrick]

As a boy I used to trek the Cairngorms and Glencoe pissing off the skiers by glacading down the slopes that they had to hike up without chair or rope lifts.
Love your pictures and narative, takes me back a long way.
Thank you

[Mathos]

As a boy I used to trek the Cairngorms and Glencoe pissing off the skiers by glacading down the slopes that they had to hike up without chair or rope lifts.
Love your pictures and narative, takes me back a long way.
Thank you

Good to know it aroused the memories of your youth
Carnwadrick.

It is a beautiful country, The Highlands especially are
extremely unique, in a class of their own.




Must say we enjoy visiting in the late winter, it always
come across as the best time, the environment is
exacerbated by the climate. Perfectly.



You couldn't dream up scenes like these.

[Mathos]

Duplicated Post.