Out & About …

… on the North York Moors, or wherever I happen to be.

Month: August 2017

  • Mo Buidhe

    Mo Buidhe

    An ascent of An Cliseam, at 799 metres the highest mountain on Harris and a Corbett to boot, a short ridge to the slightly lower Mulla Bho Dheas. Cloud base was at 600m so not much to see. Dropping out of the cloud on the descent down Mo Bruidhe ridge into brilliant sunshine, Bunavoneader on…

  • Lazy beds at Losgaintir

    Lazy beds at Losgaintir

    Lazy beds or feannagan in Gaelic are an ancient method of cultivation. Similar to ridge and furrow except lazy beds were dug by hand usually on the steepest slopes. The peat sods were cut into blocks and piled up in ridges inter-layered with seaweed fertiliser. Potatoes were the staple crop until the potato blight of the…

  • Bheàrnaraigh

    Bheàrnaraigh

    Fantastic rock strata on an un-named beach on the north coast of Berneray. Gneiss I understand, a metamorphic rock 542 to 4000 million years old. I thought geologists could be more precise than that. Berneray, Gaelic Bheàrnaraigh, is said to come from the Norse bjarnar and ey meaning island of the bear. Whether bears survived here is hard to…

  • North Uist Sunset

    North Uist Sunset

    An unexpected sunset after a day of winds and passing squalls. From a rocky headland called Raicinis on the northern end of Traigh Stir near the township of Hosta.

  • View from Sheabhal

    View from Sheabhal

    Castlebay, Barra

  • Bàgh a'Deas

    Bàgh a'Deas

    The south beach, one of three on Vatersay, clean, white and sandy; and the least frequented.

  • Sheabhal

    Sheabhal

    Sheabhal, the highest hill on Barraigh.

  • Falls of Falloch

    Falls of Falloch

    Parked up hoping for a brief wander on the hills but scope restricted by rivers, roads and rail to within 50 metres of the car park. 

  • CCTV operating

    CCTV operating

    The Inglorious 12th minus one, to borrow from the title of Mark Avery’s book. Tomorrow will mark the beginning of the annual slaughter on the moors. On Farndale Moor signs have gone up advising of CCTV monitoring. No matter I don’t own a horse and have no intention of biking along the track, I find these…

  • Blue sky, golden fields

    Blue sky, golden fields

    Harvesting at Aireyholme Farm. Wheat I think. The skyline is the escarpment to Great Ayton with Gribdale Gate to the right.