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February Report 2018: Kylesku Project & “Painting with Sound” Exhibition

There has been a lot happening since I last updated this home page back in November. 

The most significant happening, although not really art related ……. was that after just over 30 years of being together, Nita and I finally got married!  That was back at the start of December and we spent a fabulous week away staying in one of the old lodges in the Brodick Castle estate on the Isle of Arran.  We had magnificent weather the whole week and actually arrived as snow was falling.  We managed to get several good short walks done, enjoying the cold crisp weather and the amazing views of the snow covered Arran peaks.  Since returning to the studio, I’ve completed several new 30 x 30 cm paintings and one of them tries to capture the scene looking into Glen Sannox….see below.

'Glen Sannox, a December morning', Acrylic & Pastel, 2017, 30 x 30cm

“Glen Sannox”

 

'From the Devil's Staircase, winter', Acrylic & Pastel, 2018, 30 x 30 cm

‘From the Devil’s Staircase, winter’

1s 'A Coigach landscape, January', Acrylic & Pastel, 2018, 30 x 30 cm

‘A Coigach landscape, January’

1 Towards the Arran mountains from Brodick Castle ground

Towards the Arran mountains from Brodick Castle ground

Of course, much of my time has been taken up with the larger and more experimental audio paintings.   As you know, the first of these, called the Kylesku Project, has been on the go since the summer and in October we were able to test out the partially finished piece for a few days in the magnificent space at the Barony Centre in West Kilbride.  The work was only up for a few days, but it gave us a chance to assess how effective the 5.1 soundtrack was and how well it worked with the 120 x 120 cm Kylesku painting.   We were all very encouraged by this first test and especially by the response we had to the work from visitors and staff at the centre.  It was so positive that we have been invited back to the Barony for a full exhibition early in March.

 

The exhibition, which we are calling, “Painting with Sound”, will open on Monday 5th March and run until 22nd March.  Below is the exhibition poster with all the relevant details:

A2 Painting with sound poster 600px

“Painting with Sound”

“Painting with Sound” is an exhibition of work by Ayrshire artists and sound engineers, Keith Salmon, Graham Byron and Drew Kirkland.

The focal point of the exhibition is the “Kylesku Project”, the trio’s latest audio visual collaboration.  Created from a series of sound recordings made on the shore of the sea loch near Kylesku in Sutherland in May 2017, the work consists of a 120 x 120 cm oil painting, produced by Keith Salmon and inspired by a 30 minute long 5.1 surround-sound track. Engineered and installed by Graham Byron and Drew Kirkland, the sound track will be playing throughout the exhibition and contains sounds from the natural Kylesku environment, sounds recorded as the painter works in his studio and a unique selection of computer generated tones.  As a viewer looks at the painting and moves in front of it, different elements of the soundtrack are heard through the five surround-sound speakers.   The Kylesku Project is the first in a series of evolving and uniquely Scottish sound / landscapes.  

 The exhibition will also contain around 25 of Keith Salmon’s Scottish landscape paintings, along with drawing, text, video and projected film footage that will plot the development since 2014 of this new and exciting Ayrshire based audio visual collaboration.

 

Although we are only just about to exhibit the Kylesku Project for the first time, we have already started work on our second audio piece.  This will also focus on the dramatic coastal scenery of Sutherland in north west Scotland.  A week after New Year, Nita, me, Graham and his wife Tracy, headed up north, aiming for the Stoer Head lighthouse that is situated on the prominent and rugged Stoer peninsular about 10 miles to the north of Lochinver.  It’s a wild spot at the best of times and Nita and I had visited it on several occasions in the past.  On one such trip last year, we had seen a notice at the lighthouse saying that the two flats adjoining it were available to rent.  Now, just for instance, if you wanted to make sound recordings of waves breaking and crashing against huge cliffs…..where would be better? So that was our destination….. both cars arriving at this lonely spot just as the light was fading and the lighthouse was doing its business.  It was quite amazing unloading our gear and carrying it up the spiral staircase to the top flat….. with the sound of the waves crashing below.

 

We stayed there for a week, each day heading out, armed with a variety of sound recording equipment and cameras.  While Graham organised and set up each of the recordings, Tracy filmed everything so that we had a record of this part of the work for future promotional material.  It all worked very well and we were especially lucky with the weather, it not only being dry all week, but also not that windy.  On the Wednesday and Thursday it was very nearly calm….. but with a big swell rolling in that made for some great sound!  At the end of each afternoon we would retreat to the warmth of the flat and then spend several more hours checking through the sound and film we had recorded.  Beer, good food and conversation added to the enjoyment and the week raced by.  Before long it was Sunday morning and we were packing the cars for the journey back to Ayrshire.  Only then did the weather break and we had to battle our way around the side of the lighthouse in a howling gale to get to the cars!  It was certainly a dramatic departure and my final sound recording was made of the wind howling in the stairwell leading down from the flat.

We got some very good recordings from the trip and Graham has already edited the film footage Tracy took, into a series of short clips which we’ll be projecting onto a large screen as part of the “Painting with Sound” exhibition.  I do hope you can get along to both see and hear our work…. it will, I’m sure, be a very different and hopefully, thought provoking experience.

Ghlas Bheinn – what a difference a few months make!

It has all been work, work, and work these last few weeks and so it was great to have an excuse to stop for a couple of days last weekend.  Some friends of ours from Germany are over visiting Scotland for a couple of weeks and have hired a camper van for the duration.  On Saturday we drove up into the Highlands with them and did a gentle tour up to Arrochar, over the Rest and Be Thankful, past Loch Fyne and on through Tyndrum and Bridge of Orchy to Rannoch Moor.   Our visitors first few days in Scotland, spent exploring Edinburgh, were spent under cloudy skies and in wet conditions but on Saturday the conditions in the West Highlands were superb ….hot and sunny and the landscape looked at its very best.

vacation in Scotland

Andrea, Rudi and Nita on Ghlas Bheinn

Andrea and Rudi were keen to do some walking so long as it wasn’t a huge mountain hike and so our first thoughts were to take them for a wander along the Bridge of Orchy to Victoria Bridge section of the West Highland Way.  The path climbs a little but not much and reaches the most magnificent view point high above Loch Tulla…..we thought that this would be ideal.  And it would have been except that the annual West Highland Way race was taking part that weekend and as we arrived at the Bridge of Orchy…..the runners were passing through.  There were dozens of cars and vans and numerous people and stewards ….all very exciting but not the peaceful place we’d imagined we’d be able to show our friends from Germany!  We extricated ourselves, the camper van and our car from the mayhem and after a short re-think drove the few miles further on to the big view point on the road leading up onto Blackmount.

vacation in Scotland

Away from the crowds, a perfect summer evening in the West Highlands

We normally park here for our annual winter wander along the undulating little ridge leading to Ghlas Bheinn and this suddenly seemed to be the perfect solution for a walk now.  And so it was, with huge views and a good cooling breeze to keep the midges away, this short walk gave Andrea and Rudi a chance to experience a little bit of the Highlands off-piste as it were ….no paths and no other walkers.  For Nita and me it was great to see this familiar place under beautiful summer conditions with different colours and light.  We got back to the vehicles around half past eight in the evening and drove back to the Bridge of Orchy Hotel for food and refreshment ….a perfect end to a very enjoyable day.  My thanks to the staff at the hotel.  They must have been completely shattered by the time we wandered in at just after nine in the evening ….but they very kindly agreed to fix us some food despite us arriving after they had officially finished serving.  Great service and very friendly and if you are heading up or down the A82, this hotel is highly recommended.

A day exploring Beinn Toaig in the Blackmount, West Highlands

About 10 years ago, my good friend Guy, led me on a walk up the Munro Stob a’ Choire Odhair in the Blackmount region of the Scottish West Highlands.  Guy, never one to just follow the standard routes up hills, suggested we climb this Munro by way of its neighbouring top, Beinn Toaig.   We did this and it made for a very good route, but on that day, it was a very good route in thick cloud and we didn’t see very much.  Since then Nita and I had been back on two or three  occasions, and on one of them, we enjoyed hot clear conditions ….but still didn’t see much  because of very thick heat haze!

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‘In the Blackmount, the Scottish West Highlands’

Yesterday, with the weather once again set fine for the West Highlands of Scotland, we decided to go back to Beinn Toaig, but this time, spend a few hours exploring it and enjoying the fine views we expected to get.    That said however, it didn’t look too hopeful as we drove up the side of Loch Lomond at about eight o’clock yesterday morning.  There was thick dark cloud and it all looked very dreary.  We shouldn’t have worried however, the folk at the Mountain Weather Information Service had got it right and by the time we’d had a coffee and breakfast at the Green Welly, the thick cloud was breaking up and clear blue skies were taking over.

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‘In the Blackmount, the Scottish West Highlands’

We parked the car at the end of the road near Victoria Bridge on the West Highland Way and following the broad track through the trees until we reached the open moorland.  The views were already stunning and our hill, Beinn Toaig, looked very inviting with plenty of snow still on its steep upper slopes.   We weren’t really sure what the conditions would be like higher up as, after many weeks of freezing temperatures on the mountains, spring had suddenly arrived and the temperatures were quite high.   After a couple of kilometres on the WHW we turned off and made our way across the edge of the moorland, heading for the lower end of the broad ridge leading from the summit of Beinn Toaig.  I can’t quite say how wonderful it was to be out here with the mountains all around and the huge space of Rannoch Moor stretching out  below us.  Wow!   There was a lot of snow higher up but despite this there were still areas of snow free ground and for the most part we were able to follow these up the steep slopes leading onto the ridge.  By the time we needed to get onto the snow, the slopes were very gentle and the snow underfoot, fairly soft.

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‘In the Blackmount, the Scottish West Highlands’

I had hoped before setting out, that the views from the ridge into the heart of the Blackmount, would be good.  When we gained the height and could see into the main group of mountains ….well, it was just breathtaking, especially so in this clear crisp spring light.  We spent so much time just stopping and looking and taking photographs and our lunch spot was one of the most enjoyable and spectacular we’ve had for a long time …..and that says something.  We could hear the distant roar of the river rushing through the glen below heading for Ba Bridge and Rannoch Moor and there were the occasional sounds of Raven, Plovers and at one point, high up, two Golden Eagles.  Nita watched them for quite a while but they were too high up for me to make out ……but it was great to know they were there.

scottish mountains

‘In the Blackmount, the Scottish West Highlands’

We didn’t quite reach the summit of Beinn Toaig in the end.  We carried on until about three o’ clock and still a short distance from the top, decided it was probably sensible to start heading back ….I really am very slow on the descent!  It was probably a good decision as in the end we only got back to the car at about half past six and the sun was down by then and everything was getting a little dark.  What a day though …… my jaw was aching from smiling so much!

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‘In the Blackmount, the Scottish West Highlands’

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From spring to winter in just a few metres – the Ochil Hills

We had a fabulous day last weekend walking up in the Ochil Hills near Stirling.  We visit these hills most years at some point and they make a great short winter day ….as we experienced on Saturday.

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Spring ….. looking towards the summit of Craighorn

We weren’t planning to go far as once again Nita had to work a 12 hour shift at the hospital the following day so we decided to walk up onto Craighorn, the 583 metre high top that we returned over on our last visit to this area.    As we drove over towards the Ochil’s it certainly looked like being a very fine day with clear blue skies and stunning early morning colours and as we got closer Nita said she could make out a little snow on the upper slopes ….but not much.

Scottish Landscape Photos

Winter ….near the summit of Craighorn

We started walking from the small car park near Alva and were soon far too hot as we plodded up the steep twisting estate track that climbs up towards The Nebbit……it was the perfect early spring day.  The track splits after the initial steep bit and we took the one that contours around the side of The Nebbit and above the impressive Alva Glen with it’s even more impressive gorge……it looked beautiful in the bright sunshine.  Once beyond The Nebbit we left the path and headed straight up the front of Craighorn on steep but very pleasant grassy slopes.  This was quite hard going in the warm sun and jumpers, jackets and hats were being stripped off in order to keep reasonably cool…..I was even worrying about not having any sun-block for my head!  We gained height fairly quickly and as we did, the views opened up.  Looking south we could see the big sweeping lines of the Forth and off to our right, considerably more snow than we’d anticipated from the road side view earlier.  It was still nice and warm though and with the shelter given by the near by hills, there was very little in the way of wind.  We sat down and enjoyed the warm sun, the great views and the peace and quiet.

Scottish Landscape photos

Ben Ever from the perfect lunch spot

As the steep slopes gave way to the broad gradually rising ridge of Craighorn however, we finally found the wind and saw the extent of the snow over on Ben Ever and Ben Cleuch …it was really quite white and I was already thinking about putting the jumper back on ….but while we kept going, it was fine.  By this stage we must have been above 500 metres and although there was an occasional patch of snow, it was still mainly open grass ….and it appeared to be like this all the way up the final slopes.  Then, within just a few metres of both ascent and distance, what had been a pleasant early spring day, turned into winter!  Suddenly there was quite a lot of snow around.  It was still quite thick in places and icy too …… and the temperature seemed to suddenly have plummeted. In all honesty this was more down to the fact that as we had been walking, dark heavy clouds had appeared and the wind had picked up considerably too.  We had a mad dash to get all our warm gear on ….and then we were fine!  Even having walked the hills all my adult life and been out in some very unpleasant conditions over the years, it never ceases to amaze me quite how quickly you can go from having a warm pleasant wander ….to being seriously cold ….and needing all the gear.  We always tend to carry quite large and heavy rucksacks, even in the summer and sometimes when I see other folk walking along with tiny light weight bags and very little gear, I do wonder. That said however, I certainly wouldn’t be without all the gear I carry.  It’s so much better to have the gear and not need it than to be caught out and get seriously cold or wet ….or worse.

scottish landscape photos

The Nebbit and the Forth from the sunny slopes of Craighorn

We wandered along the length of Craighorn before finding a sheltered spot for lunch ….and then simply retraced our steps.  It was so beautiful and although Nita could see plenty of other walkers over on Ben Ever and Ben Cleuch, we only saw one other person…. a hill runner who was moving far too fast to get cold I guess.  I really like these little hills and next time we visit we’ve promised ourselves to explore some of the many other tops and glens in the area.  Anyway, they are well worth a visit, especially so on a crisp winter day.

scottish landscape photos

Early spring colours, the Ochil Hills

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A sound plan – my new Loch Lomond National Park drawing project …… and more?

Yesterday we were out walking in the Luss Hills again. These fabulous steep sided, mainly grassy little hills are situated on the edge of the Loch Lomond National Park and give fabulous views in all directions. As you know, we are particularly keen on walking the two hills of Beinn Dubh and Mid Hill that sit behind the village of Luss and over the 15 years since our friend Guy first introduced us to the hills, (on a cold, damp, misty day) we must have been back at least a couple of times each year. In the summer they make for a very pleasant short day …perfect for ambling along and sitting just looking and enjoying the scenery. In winter they are a perfect place for the short daylight hours …especially if like me, you can’t see too much and move very slowly.

Beinn Dubh

Beinn Dubh and Glen Luss, Loch Lomond National Park

So then, we were back there yesterday in what was, for this last few months, a rare day of calm and bright conditions. This time though, we didn’t just go for the walk and the scenery; this time it was for me, a working walk.

Glen Luss

Overlooking Glen Luss from Beinn Dubh

Since completing the big Glen Rosa drawing project at the end of 2014, I’ve been keen to do another large drawing project and as you may know, I’ve been starting to work on using sound with my paintings and drawings. I was very kindly lent a sound recorder by a local theatre sound engineer and told to go out and just see what happened. For most of last year I was taking the recorder with me on our walks into the hills and just seeing what kind of sounds I captured. I didn’t really have much idea of what I wanted or what I was doing ….just that I wanted to capture sounds that conveyed something of the place we were in. I have to admit that I made many really poor recordings during last year but that said, I have started to have a better idea of what I’m after now and have several quite interesting recordings.

Beinn Dubh summit

From near the summit of Beinn Dubh

I decided a few months ago that it was important for me to fix some kind of actual project so that I wasn’t just going out making random recordings. I wanted to do a piece of work that was based on somewhere I knew really well and that we could reach fairly quickly without too long a drive …. and somewhere that we could go throughout the year and in all sorts of conditions. Beinn Dubh and Mid Hill seemed to fit the bill and so this new large drawing / sound project is to be based on these hills.

Loch Lomond

Over looking Loch Lomond

With the Glen Rosa piece I wanted it to be one large drawing and this meant ‘borrowing’ the local Harbour Arts Centre gallery wall to do it. That drawing was done in graphite and as it turned out only took 17 days to complete. But of course, I can’t keep on borrowing the HAC gallery wall every time I want to do a big drawing and so I’ve decided that this new project (to be completed in pastel rather than graphite) will be done in sections or panels, each one being based on view points on Beinn Dubh and each one based on the scene viewed under different light and conditions.

I started the first section back before Christmas and am about to start the second piece shortly. I think that the completed work will be made up of around 7 sections. I am now in process of trying to gather sound recordings and to work out exactly how I might use them when the finished work is finally exhibited. At the moment I’m working along the lines of having a different recording for each section of the drawing and these to be played as a loop during the course of the exhibition. But, as you know, most of my work evolves and so these early plans may well change. I haven’t yet got a way to share these early recording with you but am planning to seek advice soon.

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Section 1 of new drawing

Finally, as you know, I’ve been working with US landscape photographer and film maker, Daniel Thornton over the last couple of years. He is making an hour long documentary about my work and this project is still in progress. A few months ago he put me in touch with some colleagues of his who work for a very big software company and who are working on new technology to help blind and visually impaired people appreciate two dimensional images ….. paintings, drawings, photographs etc. They are keen to work with an artist and when Dan told them about my own work they were interested in discussing some kind of collaboration. The discussions are at an early stage but I think we all feel that there is huge potential. It would be great to have the opportunity to create another large sound / drawing work based on a landscape in the US and combines it, not just with a background sound but also with different levels of audio that would help other visually impaired people enjoy the work. Perhaps the new Loch Lomond NP / Beinn Dubh work could be exhibited alongside a new American work? A long way to go in more ways than one, but it is really interesting and it may allow me to continue working as a professional artist even if my sight deteriorates further in the future. I’ll keep you updated with developments.

Light and subtle sounds …….back on the hill again

It’s damp, grey and dark here in Irvine today, but on Sunday last, Nita and I caught the end of the fine weather and made the most of it with a working walk in the hills.

We hadn’t been out for a week or two so it was with a real sense of excitement that we drove north through the beautiful scenery of the Loch Lomond National Park.  Huge banks of fog lay over the loch, sometimes shrouding everything including the road, sometimes pulling back out onto the water to give amazing views of the summit of Ben Lomond sticking out above it.  The colours were superb in the bright early sunshine and I had the feeling that even if I didn’t get any sound recordings made during the day, I’d certainly see some great views and maybe get some new ideas for paintings.

Hills around Bridge of Orchy

The Bridge of Orchy Hills, morning

But that said, you do have to get your priorities right and as we drove through this spectacular autumn landscape our minds were firmly fixed on breakfast at the Green Welly and one of their fine bacon rolls!  Once this was accomplished I’d put my mind to work ….but not before!

One of the problems I’ve encountered during my first attempts at making sound recordings in the wild is that there can often be a lot of background man-made noise.  I decided therefore to head back to a small hill we’ve walked several times in the past and one that is set well back from the main roads and isn’t an ‘anything’ …like a Munro or Corbett or Graham.  Being unclassified it, tends to be less frequented by other walkers.   The wee hill in question was Ben Inverveigh……rising between Glen Orchy and Loch Tulla.  I hoped that from its broad rough summit ridge I might be able to capture something of the wild in a recording.   It’s difficult to explain quite what I’m after except that there are wonderfully subtle sounds of space and quiet when you’re up in the hills ….and these are what I want to try and capture with the sound recorder.

View from Ben Inverveigh

From Ben Inverveigh

Ben Inverveigh is only around 650m high but even so its upper slopes were periodically shrouded with cloud and it made for quite a strange atmosphere as the mists came and went, sometimes reducing the visibility considerably and sometimes breaking so that we could see the bigger hills around us.   We stopped by one of the two small cairns marking the official top and after a quick bite of lunch, I set the sound recorder working…..propped on a small rock with its microphone sheltered from the cold breeze.  Over the ten months I’ve had use of this recorder, I’ve made quite a lot of recordings, but most have failed to capture quite what I want.  Many of them have as I said, captured the background noise of traffic or passing aircraft…..or me sneezing or Nita eating a bag of crisps as happened on one occasion!  Recording sound is not easy you know!  Anyway, on Sunday we did seem to have perfect conditions and when I switched the recorder on I felt rather more optimistic about the results than normal.  I’d have to wait until I got home to have a listen to the recording, if for no other reason than that it was bloody cold up there and we needed to get moving.

WHW & Beinn Dorain

Beinn Dorain from the West Highland Way, late afternoon

The walk back saw conditions improve considerably and before we were half way down we found ourselves in bright late afternoon sunshine.  The colours were once again, very beautiful and quite intense.  The spiky clumps of grass that made up much of the covering vegetation on this hill were a strange mixture of colours, ranging from a reddish brown at the tips, to a rich straw colour and to a vivid yellow green at the base of each blade of grass.  This meant that the overall colour seemed to change depending on which way the breeze blew.

By the time we got back to the car the light was fading fast but we’d had a great little day.  Not only did I get some ideas for new paintings, I also, it turned out, managed to get my first half decent sound recording.  I haven’t worked out yet how I’m going to use these recordings ……but it’s a step forward and quite an exciting one too.  At some point in the future I’ll get some of these recordings on-line so that you can get an idea of what this crazy painter is trying to do!

Refuelling!

I’m late writing this blog again and am sat in my studio this Sunday with Sea Sick Steve blasting out!  Suffice it to say ….I’m the only one here at the Courtyard so far today…. I might get some complaints otherwise.  Oh well, sometimes its great having the music up loud and in a strange way it can be almost as relaxing as being out in a wild and quiet location.

I think I’ve needed a bit of both of these to be honest, after what has been a very busy and quite stressful last week.  It’s been a good one though and very enjoyable too …but I needed a break at the end.   Our plan had been to get up at 5am and drive up to Glen Coe to walk Stob Dubh, one of the Munro summits of Buachaille Etive Beag.  Trouble was that by the time we got to Thursday evening both Nita and I were completely shattered and even the thought of walking in what must be one of Scotland’s finest mountain ranges couldn’t cut through the weariness.  But we did need to get out and Nita suggested we head back to Beinn Odhar near Tyndrum.  It’s a regular in our hill walking diary as it makes for a great half day but with plenty of steep and ‘up’ to give the legs a short but sharp work-out.  It also had the advantage that we didn’t have to drag ourselves out of bed until 08.30!

View from Beinn Odhar of the old mines

From the old mine workings on Beinn Odhar

Have to admit we hadn’t checked the weather forecast for a couple of days but had seemed to remember that there was a nice splurge of high pressure lurking somewhere close to Scotland and so imagined we’d have fine weather.  We did, but not in that clear blue skies kind of way we had expected.  By the time we were driving along the shores of Loch Lomond it was dark and threatening rain and a good number of hills had cloud shrouding their tops.   It was, however, a rapidly changing scene and in the hour it took to drive the remaining way to Tyndrum we’d had a bit of almost everything from bright sunshine to heavy bursts of rain.  This was to be the story of the day.

Part of the enjoyment of a half day in the hills is that you have time to stop for coffee and a snack before setting out and we did just this at the very popular watering hole that is The Green Welly.  And then we were off, heading up the West Highland Way for a kilometre or so before turning off this popular track and making our way up the steep grassy slopes of Beinn Odhar.  There is no messing with this hill.  You gain height quickly and the views behind you are always impressive.  On Friday this meant a stream of fast moving dark clouds passing by at about 850m and the summits of the larger hills regularly disappearing and then re-emerging into bright patches of sunlight.  For me, this was perfect and I felt a painting coming on almost as soon as we gained some height!

View from Beinn Odhar

From the slopes of Beinn Odhar

This is the hill that has old mine remains high up on the slope and it never fails to amaze me to think that people used to trudge all the way up there  before starting a day’s work.  As we picked our way through the rocky outcrops marking the mine workings the cloud descended and it was time to get the water and wind proof gear out ….suddenly it was cold with that very definite hint of winter being just around the corner.

View from Beinn Odhar

Landscape patterns, from the slopes of Beinn Odhar

We reached the wee loch tucked under the final steep and boulder covered slopes leading to the summit and decided to sit and enjoy this incredibly peaceful spot.  We’ve been here many times before and this really is one of my favourite places in the Southern Highlands.  It is so unexpected and despite this being a Corbett it is a rarely visited spot.  I guess we sat sheltering from the wind and occasional drizzle for about 50 minutes…..just watching the clouds come and go.  This really was a perfect place to re-fuel.

A quick dash to the top of Beinn Ime and back!

The title for this blog probably breaks most if not all of the trades description act for as most of you know, I don’t actually dash anywhere, especially when I’m on a hill!  That said however, our trip to Beinn Ime yesterday was in a sense, a bit of a dash as up until mid afternoon the day before, we had no intention of going walking.  The forecasts seemed to have been suggesting wet and very windy weather for Thursday but when Nita double checked early Wednesday evening…. it seemed like the rain wouldn’t actually arrive until the end of the day.

Not wanting a silly early start as Nita had been working a night shift on Tuesday and didn’t get much in the way of sleep on Wednesday, we opted for going for a walk in the Arrochar Alps ….not much more than an hour and a half drive from Irvine.  The forecast had actually suggested there would be 90% chances of a cloud free Munro, but when we reached the side of Loch Lomond at just after 9am, everything was dark and gloomy with heavy banks of cloud shrouding all the hills above about 500 metres.  I have to say we weren’t at the time too happy with Geoff Monk at MWIS….. but we should have known better as, given another hour and the tops where clear.  And we used that hour by stopping at Luss and treating ourselves to a bacon roll and a cuppa ….so not bad after all!  My apologies to Geoff and his team at MWIS for ever doubting them!

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The Cobbler

Our target for the day was Beinn Ime, a hill we’d first climbed back in 1998 and one we’d revisited on five or six other occasions over the years.    It makes for a very pleasant wander through spectacular scenery and as you start at sea level and end up at just over 1000 m ….it gives your legs a good stretch.    We haven’t actually walked the path up past The Cobbler and Beinn Narnain to Beinn Ime for probably four years and it was amazing to see how much the lower sections of the path had changed in this time.  What had been saplings have grown and the big views you used to have out over Loch Long, have for the most part, been hidden behind foliage.    What you lose on the bigger scale however, you make up on the smaller scale.  Numerous wild flowers decorated the sides of the path almost all the way up to the edge of the forestry and from that point the views of The Cobbler and Beinn Narnain grab your attention.     The path itself has eroded quite badly in places despite it only being a little over 10 years old I think.  The top surface seems to have been washed away in places but it still makes a pretty easy way to gain height and get up into these spectacular mountains.

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The Cobbler from the upper slopes of Beinn Ime

I had expected the path to be quite busy at this time of year but in fact we only saw a few other folk throughout the day and the busiest spot was actually the summit of Beinn Ime itself.  Even so, there was only a few folk and they soon headed off back down and Nita and I had this lofty quiet spot to ourselves …… with the exception of one lone sheep and a couple of Ravens.  It had taken us about four and a quarter hours to the top and so we had plenty of time to sit and enjoy the views which, despite the generally grey skies, were pretty extensive.  Nita could make out Ben Nevis to the north but it still had its head in the cloud.  Most of the rest of the hills were clear just as MWIS had forecast.

scottish mountains

At the summit of Beinn Ime

Our return back down to the car was in increasingly gloomy light but the rain held off and I have to admit that I felt quite smug…. our lazy start and second breakfast in Luss paid off…. cloud free tops by the time we started walking and still dry eight and a half hours later on our return to the car.  A perfect day in the hills.

Revisiting Beinn Bhreac

Several years ago Nita and I walked the three hills to the north of Glen Douglas on the west side of Loch Lomond. For what are relatively small hills this is a surprisingly strenuous walk as there is quite a lot of steep ascents and descents. As such, by the time we’d climbed back up to the second hill, we were running a little late and so rather rushed over to Beinn Bhreac, the last and highest of the three hills. We subsequently didn’t have much time to enjoy the big views out over Loch Lomond or to explore the rocky little tops.

On the steep slopes of  Beinn Bhreac near Loch Lomond

On the steep slopes of Beinn Bhreac

Yesterday, with the forecast looking fine, we went back to Glen Douglas, only this time, to walk Beinn Bhreac and to explore it and its neighbour Ben Reoch. We’ve done several walks this year in these hills around Luss and on each occasion it’s been quite dark and hazy. As we arrived in Glen Douglas yesterday things were looking very similar with cloud misting the tops and fine drizzle falling. But even so, the glen was looking fantastic.

Approaching the summit of Beinn Bhreac near Loch Lomond

Approaching the summit of Beinn Bhreac

The route up from the glen to the summit of Beinn Bhreac is pretty direct and like most of the Luss Hills, steep and generally grassy. As we gained height the drizzle stopped and the cloud lifted, giving fine views back into the glen and across to the surrounding tops. I have to say that it’s been three weeks since we were on the rocky tops around Conival in Assynt and my legs were complaining as we made our way slowly uphill. With the sun starting to come out it was quite warm and it seemed to bring out the wild life…. flies and midges and … a lizard, which was hopefully eating some of the latter!

After so much grass, the summit of Beinn Bhreac is a pleasant surprise, being made up of a series of rocky outcrops and crags, the highest of which gives an amazingly large view over Loch Lomond. You can see a long way north up the loch and right down to the southern end. Directly opposite is the Munro, Ben Lomond which was looking great, although no doubt, it was a lot busier than on our side of the loch! We had seen no-one and that was to remain the same for the rest of the day.

Rock crevice near the summit of Beinn Bhreac near Loch Lomond

Rock crevice near the summit of Beinn Bhreac

As I said, on our previous visit to these hills, we had kind of rushed on our way over from Ben Reoch and had by-passed it’s more interesting and craggy little subsidiary top. Yesterday, we decided to make our way over to it and enjoy exploring around the crags. On leaving Beinn Bhreac however, we came across an amazing crevice in the rock. It looked like the side of the mountain was breaking away and would, sometime in the distant future, collapse down into Loch Lomond. It was surprisingly deep and offered shelter for many plants which were somehow clinging onto the ledges of the rock.

By the time we reached the rocky top near Ben Reoch, the sun was bright and hot and after picking our way around and through the crags, we settled down for a very pleasant rest, enjoying the views and the sight of four Ravens that seemed to occupy this lofty little top.

Beinn Bhreac

Beinn Bhreac from the rocky summit near Ben Reoch overlooking Loch Lomond

It was certainly a fine walk and it was well worth while revisiting and spending time exploring these tops. As you know, I’ve recently been doing some drawings based on our earlier visits to the Luss Hills. I think I may well get a couple more done based on our wander yesterday.

Diary of a trip to Assynt – week 2

Saturday May 30th

This middle Saturday of our holiday saw us packing up, cleaning the cottage and moving a few miles south to the beautiful sandy bay of Achmelvich where we’d booked a caravan for our second week.  It was kind of strange as we normally stay in one place for the two weeks.  As it turned out, it was of course, one of the best days, weather-wise, of the whole holiday but as we had the car packed full of our gear we weren’t keen on leaving it in a lay-by all day while we went on a big walk. Instead we had a very lazy day, visiting the fabulous bookshop and cafe a few miles outside Lochinver and then having a very relaxed lunch at a fine restaurant in the village.    By the time we’d finished there and done a bit of shopping for the next week’s food supplies, it was time to move into the caravan.  The weather was starting to deteriorate as we unpacked the car and we decided to grab a quick walk along the fabulous beach before the much forecast heavy rain and unseasonable gales arrived!

Sunday 31st May

Rain and much rattling of the caravan as the forecasted winds wiped out any chance of heading into the hills again.  More reading, eating and drinking ….well, it was a holiday!

Monday 1st June

Still the forecasts were for high winds up top and heavy showers, so, determined to get some walking done, we headed into the wonderful “rock garden” country just to the north of Achmelvich.  It’s a wild, rocky and complex area of low hills and lochs.  We clambered up four of these little rocky hills, each one giving fine if rather grey views of the famous Assynt sky-line.  Despite the blustery conditions all of these amazing hills were clear.   We spent about five hours wandering through and over this strange little landscape and never got higher than about 120m…. just shows you, you don’t always need to be up a big hill to have fine views.

Assynt sky line from a hillside

Assynt sky-line

Tuesday 2nd June

Yet more heavy rain, very low cloud and high winds.  Another inactive day saw us drive down to Ullapool, for more food and bookshop visiting!  Had some amazing views on the way back, with the huge dark clouds eating up the familiar Assynt peaks.  Very dramatic at times ….and very wet too!

Towards Cul Beag,

Heavy weather, towards Cul Beag,

Wednesday 3rd June

Finally a hint of slightly better conditions, especially on the lower hills to the west.  Decided to enjoy the fine views from the path that circles the rocky little peak of Stac Pollaidh.  We’ve walked this before and it’s a very popular walk…. but what the heck ….the views are just spectacular.  We certainly made the right choice as the bigger hills of Conival and Ben More Assynt were shrouded most of the day and the winds, even at the modest height we reached, were very strong.

From Below Stac Pollaidh

From Below Stac Pollaidh

On the north side of the hill I stopped and tried to make a sound recording.  We’d found a sheltered spot but could hear the wind rushing and roaring around the rocky towers that make up Stac Pollaidh.  It would have been perfect…..except that as I said  earlier, it is a very popular place and of course, just as I got the recorder working, several other walkers came along, talking at what seemed to be the top of their voices!  On my second attempt, I thought all was going well, only to hear the voices of some serious climbers making their way along the ridge above.  Hopefully everyone enjoyed their time on or around this amazing hill ….it just wasn’t the place for recording silence!

Stac Pollaidh

Stac Pollaidh

Thursday 4th June

At last, at last, we had a break in the low cloud, high winds and rain.  We decided to head up towards Conival, (one of the two Assynt Munros) but instead of following the main path we’d taken back in 2006, Nita suggested we cut up the side of an adjoining hill and make our way to a prominent point at 850m that I’d painted on several occasions in the past.  It would give big views into the north east facing slopes of Conival and Ben More Assynt.  According to the forecast, we had until about 16.00 before the cloud and rain returned and so an early start was required.  We started walking from Inchnadamph at just before seven o’clock in the morning and after a kilometre or so we left the main path and struck up the side of the hill.  As with much of the Assynt landscape the ground was very rough but I always prefer walking across open hillsides and away from paths so this was just fantastic.  We quickly got huge views back across the beautiful Loch Assynt to Quinag ….and all this in patchy bright sunshine…..couldn’t believe our eyes!

Overlooking Loch Assynt, June 4th 2015

Overlooking Loch Assynt

Higher up, the slopes became very steep and rocky, with Nita picking a careful route through the worst of these.  It was a long hard haul before finally the angle of the slope eased and we emerged onto a wild broad rock strewn ridge.  It was difficult up there to walk in a straight line as we had to follow leads of grass and moss to get through the boulder fields.  Slowly though we got closer to our objective and despite the weather starting to close in much earlier than expected, we got some great views across to the two Munros.

The rocky landscape of Conival and Ben More Assynt

The rocky landscape of Conival and Ben More Assynt

Before the rain started, we grabbed some photos and donned the waterproofs and made our way across to the main walker’s path.  This lead down through a very steep rocky little section and we found the rock very slippery here once it was wet.  Not sure what the rock was but it was certainly different to the stuff we walked on the previous week just across the way on Canisp …that was like walking on Velcro!  Not wanting to tramp back on a busy and eroded path, as soon as we were down the steepest bit, we abandoned it and made a circular route back before regaining the main track not far from Inchnadamph.  This wasn’t without concern however as it meant we were on the wrong side of a big stream and relying on the footbridge marked on the 1:25000 to still be in place.  As experience on Canisp the previous week had shown ….footbridges aren’t always permanent fixtures.  Luckily on this occasion ….it was still there.  A great sigh of relief as we saw it and a very pleasant if damp walk back to the car.

Below Conival, a steep descent

Below Conival, a steep descent

Friday 5th June

Yes, you’ve guessed it, more very heavy rain and so a return to the restaurant in Lochinver and then an hour or so packing.  Towards the middle of the afternoon the rain finally stopped and the sun came out.  We were able to enjoy a final walk along the white sandy beach ….a fine end to a fine, if rather damp trip to Assynt.  It was a holiday of much weather which if not so great for the walking, will definitely give me some new subject matter for paintings.