Posts Tagged ‘Scotland’
Cold British waters are rich for wrecks and seals
The British coastline has thousands of historical shipwrecks to discover, you may encounter playful seals or experience beautiful drifts through glorious underwater scenery full of soft corals and plentiful marine life. Always go well prepared and do the research required. One of the biggest factors to take into consideration are the huge tidal variations. Visibility can be very good but it can also be fairly diabolical – like the weather we cannot control that element.
With so many sites to dive all around the country we have chosen some examples of what you might experience.
Scapa Flow, Orkney Islands, Scotland
35m- 50m
Scapa Flow is a natural harbour providing shelter to the worse of the weather and one of the hotspots for UK diving. It is visited by divers from all over the world who want to explore the sunken World War 1 battleships of the German fleet – puposefully scuttled under command of the German admiralty in 1919 to avoid surrendering the ships to the British.
It was not only the German fleet that lost ships in Scapa Flow – there were successful German U Boat raids in World War II with the loss of many British lives and as a result the British also scuttled vessels to prevent further submarine attack. One example is the blockship Tabarka, a 2000t steamer built 1909 with boilers and reciprocating gear intact. It is covered inside with marine life, anemones, lobsters, starfish, urchins and wrasse. This is an easy penetration dive with the hull very open and many access points, light streams in and is a wonderful dive
The video below from Diverstime shows what wreck diving at Scapa Flow is like.
The Hispania, Sound of Mull, Scotland
15m-32m
There are many wrecks off Mull but it is perhaps the Hispania which is the most famous.
The Hispania was built in 1912 in Belgium and traded for 32 years until 1954. Whilst passing up the west coast of Scotland on a voyage from Liverpool to Gothenburg she attempted to navigate through the narrow stretch of treacherous water that separates the island of Mull from the mainland, the Sound of Mull. A fierce winter storm of driving wind, rain and sleet had reduced visibility practically to nil and in these atrocious conditions she ran onto a notorious reef, the Sgeir More or Big Rock where she stuck fast.
Strong currents provide excellent visibility and there is loads of life on every inch of the wreck. This is still a very intact wreck and the superstructure can be explored as though you’re walking down the corridors (assuming you and your rig are small enough). The Hispania had a weather deck so there are interesting overhangs in the holds and some swim throughs for the more confident diver.
Here is a quote from a divers recent experiences of the Hispania:
‘I’ve been diving for a few years in various parts of the world and if you don’t mind the cold then you could do much worse than dive the wrecks of the Sound of Mull on the west coast of Scotland. There are lots of dive operators and lots of dives for people of various experience. Lots of wrecks: The Hispania, Thesis, Shuna and Rondo just to name a few. The best part is even if you’re not into wreck penetration the life on the wrecks is just as worthwhile.’
The video from scubadooby shows the action from the Hispania
The Persier, Eddystone Reef, Plymouth, England
8m – 50m
Eddystone Reef lies several miles offshore from Plymouth and is a series of pinnacles, ledges and gullies. The viz here is usually over 15m and can be 25m. This area is covered in life with sea fans, jewel anemones, dead men’s fingers and plumose anemones and it was here that the Persier ran into some unwanted attention.
The Persier was a 5000 ton British merchantman, built in Newcastle in 1919 and then sold to Belgium shortly after. She traded all over the world, and even took part at Dunkirk in 1940. She nearly sank while on convoy duty from America to Britain in 1941. She remainded stranded off Iceland for over a year until she was towed back to Britain to be repaired. In 1945 she set off from Cardiff on convoy duty. Off Eddystone she met her nemesis from a couple of torpedoes from UB-1017.
From Plymouth you can also dive at Scylla and Hands Deeps Reef. The video from inspodiver shows a dive on the Persier.
The Farne Islands, Northumberland, England
5m- 25m
Moving on to the north east coast of England you can find one of the best places to dive with friendly seals. The Farne Islands residents may not be quite the same as dolphins and the water may not be quite as blue or warm but it is an unforgettable experience as this lucky person recounted from a recent visit to Knivestone – the furthest of the Farne Island pinnacles
‘At the end of my right leg there was a plump young seal chewing thoughtfully on my lime green Mares Planar’.
The video from carlrachelboslem shows the action.
Amazing and exhilarating no doubt – we shall continue with this theme of where to go diving – perhaps its time for some warmer waters!
No Comments »
4 of the 8 most extreme golf courses in the world…
So who says golf can’t be extreme? If you’ve seen our past 2 articles (and I’d better warn you that there are likely to be more in the pipeline) you, too, might be revising your opinion of golf and golfers… here’s the last 4 of the 8 most extreme golf courses in the world…
Ushuaia Golf Club, Argentina.
This is the world’s sourthernmost golf course and the tmeperatures reflect this. Ushuaia has a maritime subantarctic climate. Temperatures average 1 °C (33 °F) in the coldest month, and 9 °C (48 °F) in the warmest month. The record low is −20 °C (−4 °F) (July), and record high 31 °C (87.8 °F) (December). The record low ever recorded in summer is −6 °C (21 °F) (February). It is a short, difficult and windy 9-holes links course. From October to April, days are longer and one can play between 6 AM and 10 PM. It is not a championship course. It is different. Created in 1992, the first 9 holes of the Ushuaia Golf Course are located at the door of the Lapataia National Natural Park nearby the ancient convict train station on the steep hills along a mountain stream, el Rio Pipo. Between snow-topped mountains and the cold waters of the Beagle Channel, the course ambles from the steep slopes, over the small tumultuous river and back up and down the hill again. There is a touch of the wild Scottish Highlands here. The holes are short but not straight with narrow fairways, small greens near the stream and the ever-present winds. There is no sophistication, just a lovely natural place with a warm welcome at the club house.
North Cape Golf Club, Norway.
And once again from once extreme to the other – from the southern-most course to the northern-most one… this course is 280m north of the Arctic Circle. The typical golfing season in Norway ranges from early May until the snow comes (mid/late November). Golfing in many locations is possible twenty four hours a day between the middle of May until the end of July. A golfer’s paradise? or a non-golfer’s nightmare! This is not a challenging golf course, with its 6-hole course, 2 par 4’s and 4 par 3’s and quantities of mud, but it has one lovely oddity – with the Arctic Circle Norwegians having little sense of territory, and obviously a great sense of sportsmanship, if the ball lands in one of the unfenced gardens that border the course, you are allowed to lob it back into play! Although North Cape is on the list of 8 most extreme golf courses, it is now no longer the most northern -most. It has been superceded by Hammerfest Golf Course – also Norway.
Ko’olau Golf Club, Hawaii.
This is reputably the toughest golf course in the world. Carved out of the topical rainforest on the windward side of the 2,000-foot Ko’olau Ridge mountain range, Ko’olau encompasses three distinct climate zones and features winding ravines, extreme elevation changes, and breathtaking views of cascading waterfalls – all on one golf course!. Situated on eastern Oahu, the rugged landscape of this tropical jungle course uses ravines as the target for holes and boasts lush vegetation and huge sand bunkers. The course was built in 1991 as a private Country Club for the high rollers, located just over the Pali Highway from Honolulu. You can’t beat this golf course for beautz. It has breathtaking mountain views, spectacular fiarwazs surrounded by rainforest, and dramatic sights of the Pacific Ocean. The rule of thumb here is to bring the same number of balls as your handicap. The 18th hole has two carries over a giant ravine – both the drive and the approach shot… you have been warned!
And last, but not least, the world’s oldest and most famous course: Old Course, St. Andrews, Scotland.
If there is a single course in the entire world that most golfers aspire to play just once in their lifetime, it is the Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland – a course like no other and an experience like no other. Golf has been played on the Links at St Andrews since around 1400 AD and the Old Course is renowned throughout the world as the Home of Golf. Golf was clearly becoming popular in the middle ages, as the game was banned in 1457 by King James II of Scotland who felt it was distracting young men from archery practice. This ban was repeated by succeeding monarchs until James IV threw in the towel and in 1502 became a golfer himself. As the 600 year history of the Links has unfolded, one simple track hacked through the bushes and heather has developed into six, and now seven with the new Castle Course open, public golf courses, attracting hundreds of thousands of golfing pilgrims from around the globe. St Andrews Links is the largest golfing complex in Europe and all 18 hole courses can be booked in advance. In 1764 the Old Course consisted of 22 holes, 11 out and 11 back, with golfers playing to the same hole going out and in, except for the 11th and 22nd holes. The golfers decided that the first four holes, and therefore also the last four holes, were too short and that they should be made into two holes instead of four. This reduced the number of holes in the round from 22 to 18, and that is how today’s standard round of golf was created.
Please heed the warnings if you are planning on climbing in Scotland over the next few days.
Buachaille Etive Mor, near Glencoe in Scotland, was the scene of a triple tragedy on Saturday. Three other triple fatalities have happened in the area in the past 15 years.
9 people in total, in at last 2 separate parties, were caught up in the avalanche in the Scottish highlands.
Buchaile Etive Mor is known for its distinctive shape, which looks like a pyramid. The mountain’s highest point is at 3,352 feet (approx. 1.020m).
The route the climbers took yesterday is a popular walk in the summer for amateur hill walkers but in winter it is more difficult to ascend and is normally only tackled by experienced climbers.
The 3 climbers who died, brothers Eamonn Murphy, 61, from Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, and John Murphy, 63, from Portrush, Co Antrim, and Brian Murray, 46, from Monifieth, Tayside, were experienced climbers who were taking the “easy” way up Coire na Tulaich, a gully about 10 metres wide by 20 metres deep, when the avalanche struck at about midday on Saturday. The snow could have been moving at up to 75mph. They, along with 6 others, were engulfed by thousands of tonnes of snow.
Experts said last night that although the climbers had not been reckless, the deaths were a reminder of the dangers of the mountain. Hamish MacInnes, 78, a founder of the Avalanche Board, which assesses the risks of avalanches in Scotland, said: “There are a lot of avalanches on this particular mountain.”
“It’s a miracle we survived. We have never experienced anything like this in all our climbs on the mountains”, said Jim Coyne, who, along with his friend, David Barr were climbing together when the avalanche swept down the mountain. David was taken to hospital with a shoulder injury.
Police warned people to keep off the mountain amid fears of more avalanches. The avalanche risk at the time was “considerable”, a category 3 out of 5, according to Scotland’s official Avalanche Information Service. It rose to 4 today.
The mountains of Glencoe are built from some of the oldest sedimentary and volcanic strata in the world. They were subsequently moulded, sheared and repositioned by a geological event known as a ‘cauldron subsidence’ which took place 380 million years ago. The mountains which first greet the visitor arriving from the south are the strikingly beautiful and instantly recognisable peaks of the Buachaille Etive Mor and Buachaille Etive Beag, – ‘The great’ and ‘The little’ Shepherds of Etive.
Glen Coe is a very popular tourist destination; partly because of its scenic qualities and historical associations, partly because it is on the main road north, and also because of its attraction for walkers and climbers. It is famous for the quality, and variety of its winter climbing, most of its routes being comparatively easy of access from the main road.
Rock climbers concentrate on the Buachaille Etive Mor (1018 m), often called simply “The Beuckle”, and on the various routes on the Three Sisters (shoulders of Bidean nam Bian). For adventurous experienced walkers, the finest mainland scramble in the UK is the Aonach Eagach.
Our thoughts are with the families and friends of everyone affected by this tragedy.
Coast to coast on a mountain bike.
This great tale of a mountain biking adventure is brought to you by Rob Penn from The Guardian – it sounds like the kind of journey that you have to do to be able to call yourself a ‘mountain biker’. Pictured below is Rob at the head of Glen Cairn.
‘I have found a new place for my ashes to be scattered. It’s in heart of the Highlands, on the north-south watershed in the Cairngorms, at a glacial T-junction looking up towards the central massif. Such places may abound in the Australian Outback and Alaska, but on our busy little island they are rare. And this one’s a gem. The grid reference is NJ193026. Go there as soon as you can.
It’s not easy to get to, of course. Antony, Dave, Spencer and I arrived there under a lowering sky after two hard days in the saddle. We were a third of the way into a 200-mile, off-road, mountain biking ride from the North Sea to the Atlantic, across the broad waist of Scotland, an adventure billed by the influential American magazine Outside as one of its ‘10 trips of a lifetime’.
The Scottish coast-to-coast is an epic and deserves respect. We had assiduously planned our four-day ride from Aberdeen to Fort William following disused railway lines, Land Rover tracks, medieval drovers’ routes, forest footpaths, 18th-century military roads, canal towpaths and, inevitably, sections of road. We had carefully chosen the time of year (mid-May), plotted the route on a stack of OS maps, booked accommodation, serviced our bikes, bought the right kit and trained.
On the first morning, we sped out of Aberdeen along the old Deeside railway, lined with electric yellow broom. At Banchory, we crossed the tan-brown river Dee in sunshine. Climbing beside the Water of Feugh, we caught the first glimpses of the dark, heather-clad hills, burnt-back with rectangular shapes like a Rothko painting. The world seemed right; our progress was good.
But climbing into the Birse forest, there was a metallic crunch and Spencer’s bike stopped dead. The damage – a mangled chain and a shorn mech hanger – was beyond our limited tool kit. Salvation, however, came in the form of Moira Gray, a shepherd’s wife, who drove home to pick up the very tool we lacked. ‘Ah remember be-ann stuck ah Glenshee un a snowstorm wi’oot a chain tool,’ she said in her delightful brogue. ‘An ah heed ta help ya oot.’
But we were papering over cracks, and limping over the Hill of Duchery on the ‘Fungle Road’, an ancient drovers’ thoroughfare connecting Deeside with Glen Esk in Aberdeenshire, the bike seized again.
Next morning, the chef at the Loch Kinord Hotel drove Spencer into Ballater with the crippled bike. At Cyclehighlands, the excellent shop on the town square, Richard did his best, without success. He was, however, so keen for us continue on our adventure, he agreed to rent us a bike and drive to Fort William to collect it.
By midday, we were heading up Glen Gairn into the mountains. The gentrified scenery of the Dee valley gave way to rough farmland, stone walls and granite cottages with antlers above the porches. Beside the humpback bridge at Gairnshiel, we turned north-west onto the moors, passing flocks of plovers, curlews and oystercatchers on the flats beside the peaty river. Lapwings with their conspicuous, wavering flight, flapped and ducked overhead. Further up the glen, the air was filled with the liquid song of skylarks, and approaching Corndavon bothy we put up the first grouse: the plump, slightly comical bird sprang from the heather beside the track and wheeled away from us, cackling.
After two days of almost unbroken sunshine, the sky darkened as we neared the snow-dappled mountains. ‘This is big country,’ Dave said tremulously, at the confluence of Glens Gairn and Builg, where I would like my ashes to be scattered. On the footpath past Loch Builg, a section that tested our riding skills, the first pellets of rain began to fall. Descending steep-sided Glen Builg, the intensity redoubled and roared back and forth across the Builg burn; we were soon soaked. At Inchrory, a grand Highland stalking lodge above the river Avon, the track improved dramatically and, with the scent of a pub apparent, we tore through the last eight miles to Tomintoul.
Grey skies, stiff bodies and perhaps a dram too many made for a slow start on day three. Snipe zigzagged out of the rushes as we struggled across a bog to reach the river in Glen Brown, but the avian highlight was passing through a picturesque rock-cleavage in the delightfully named Braes of Abernethy. Dave and I were waiting in the heather when a golden eagle with a 2m wingspan wafted silently overhead. It was an electrifying sight.
Descending from the braes, we made our way into a stand of Caledonian pine forest. The like covered most of Scotland at the end of the last Ice Age; less than 1 per cent remains. This landscape of scattered birch, rowan, juniper and statuesque Scots pines has a profound sense of antiquity. ‘You half expect to see a grey wolf bounding up the hill,’ Spencer said.
Hunched over our bikes, we hurtled down the track past Ryvoan bothy into the Rothiemurchus forest. Increasingly confident in our mountain biking skills, we negotiated the fine mix of single-track and forest rides to reach the river Spey as the lights illuminating the Ruthven Barracks by Kingussie began to glow.
Our last day was always going to be a struggle – 70-plus miles, crossing the Monadhliath mountains via the 750m Corrieyairack Pass. The Hermitage Guesthouse set us up with a mighty breakfast and the first 20 miles, following the Spey through Newtownmore and Laggan, were a good warm-up.
The English General Wade built the road in 1731 as part of a grand scheme to suppress Jacobite rebellion in the Highlands with troop mobility and good communications. It didn’t work, of course – the Jacobites rose again in 1745 and, ironically, passed this way.
Yet Wade’s roads are enduring feats of engineering, expertly tracing the contours of the land, and they’re as busy today with walkers and mountain bikers as they were with English soldiers 250 years ago.
Evans Cycles had generously leant us bikes for the ride, to assess whether a full-suspension or a hard-tail (front suspension only) was most suitable. On the long, tough ascent to the Corrieyairack Pass, much of it pushing the steeds amid patches of thick snow, we concluded that the lighter, hard-tail bikes were ideal for a multi-day adventure in Scotland. We gave the bikes, and our back teeth, a rattling on the hour-long belter of a descent from the pass down to Fort Augustus in the Great Glen.
As we reached Loch Oich, the sun was waning slowly, like us. We had three hours to cycle 30 miles to reach Fort William and catch the Caledonian Sleeper. As lambent light filled the glen, we raced beneath Ben Nevis, dreaming of being lulled to sleep by the ‘ta-dum, ta-dum’ of the lolloping train.’
Essentials
Wilderness Scotland (0131 625 6635; wildernessscotland.com) runs seven-day guided and supported coast-to-coast trips, from Aberdeen to the tip of the Ardnamurchan peninsula.
First ScotRail (08457 55 00 33 ; firstgroup.com/scotrail) operates a daily sleeper from Fort William to London Euston; one-way ‘Bargain Berth’ tickets, booked in advance, cost from £19.
The Hermitage Guesthouse in Kingussie (01540 662137; thehermitage.clara.net) has five en-suite bedrooms and serves a great cyclists’ breakfast (from £28 per person).
Granny’s keep life extreme
Last month we brought you some stories of octogenarians still practicing their extreme sports – well today here are three ladies, all of whom are over 60, who are still getting up and getting out there in their chosen arena. Thanks to the Mirror.co.uk.
“It’s freedom really. Surfing takes you away from the daily grind”
Gwynedd Haslock, 62, is Cornwall’s veteran lady of the surf. She has been riding the waves for more than 40 years…
“As surfing hunks in their twenties swagger into the sea I probably cut quite a different figure. I was splashing around in the surf while most of my fellow thrill-seekers were merely a twinkle in their parents’ eyes and it’s still my favourite pastime in the world.
Growing up in Truro, I started surfing in Newquay as a teenager and was soon addicted to the exhilarating experience of riding a wave. Back then we had short, stubby, wooden boards so you’d paddle along on your front. But in 1966, huge 10ft boards came into fashion and it was so exciting. I started to surf standing up and never grew out of it.
I find it’s a great way of unwinding. I usually go out on my own, although occasionally my brother and his family will come with me, but I meet up with lots of people of all ages. Everyone is respectful of each other and respectful of the sea. When you’re in the water on your board you’re aware of just how powerful the ocean is. Although I once had my daredevil days tackling massive waves, I now stick to nothing bigger than about three foot. Years ago, I got dumped by a horrific wave. It was quite big and heavy and I got caught under it. It rolled me over and over and I didn’t know which way was up.
When I was younger and fitter I’d take risks, but now I know my limitations and stay within them. I really don’t know if I’ll still be surfing at 80. I live for today as you never know what is around the corner. While I’m able, I’ll carry on. If people comment that I’m too old to surf then I really don’t care. I do what I want to do. It’s freedom, really. Surfing takes you away from the daily grind.”
“The hardest thing at my age is climbing in and out of the cockpit”
Kathy Lawrence, 76, from Melton Mowbray, gets her thrills flying high above the Leicestershire countryside…
“Other grannies might be content to take it easy, but I’m never happier than when I’m gliding through the sky. I’ve been piloting gliders for 27 years and although some people probably think I’m past it, I have no plans to hang up my flying goggles just yet. It’s too much fun!
I first got the flying bug in 1959 when I was five months pregnant. I’d always wanted to do it and went on my first flight in an open cockpit glider side-by-side with a pilot. I absolutely loved it. But it took another 20 years before I finally took the plunge to learn to fly independently. I enrolled in a course at Buckminster Gliding Club in 1981, where I have been a member ever since.
Over the years I’ve flown in New Zealand, Spain and the Canadian Rockies, and have not been without my hairy experiences.
Once, during my early training days, a cable broke, I panicked and did the wrong thing and got us into a spin. It was only the instructor’s quick thinking that saved our lives. But it didn’t put me off! I’m always learning. Only recently I made a navigational error while taking a passenger on a trial flight. I realised we’d gone off course and had to look for a field to land in. Thankfully, we got there safely and the glider was taken to pieces and transported back to the airfield. My passenger even said he’d like to fly with me again so he can’t have been too upset.
My dear school friend often teases, ‘It’s time you gave this up!’ but I say, ‘Not likely!’
I have an annual medical check, and have to prove my flying ability regularly, so while I continue to pass it I’ll carry on flying! I really believe that doing something you’re passionate about keeps you going. For me it’s a passion rather than a hobby. The hardest thing at my age is climbing in and out of the cockpit!”
“Dancing has given us all a new lease of life”
Grandmother Dot Bremner, 69, from Keith, Scotland, is the founder of Hip Bumpers, a different kind of dance troupe.
“At 69, the last place I expected to find myself was swinging round a pole in a lap-dancing club – but since I set up Hip Bumpers anything goes!
The idea is that us ladies of a certain age meet every Monday to try out a different dance routine. Some we make up ourselves, others are taught to us by teachers we’ve been able to hire thanks to a National Lottery grant – and it only costs our members a pound.
We’ve tried cheerleading, line-dancing and belly-dancing, but the pole dancing came about by complete accident. I’d actually suggested Polish dancing but one of our ladies misheard me. When she revealed the mistake I just laughed and said, ‘Why not?’ So, decked out in shorts, T-shirts and cowboy hats, myself and my friends were soon scaling the pole at a local club in Elgin. I was hopeless at it and soon collapsed in a fit of giggles. But I have to say it’s a beautiful art. The girls who do it are very, very fit.
Our members are aged between 40 and 80 and Hip Busters has given many a new lease of life. They dance, but it’s also a social thing, which is important. Since the group began in September 2006 we’ve been inundated with requests to perform. We do all kinds of appearances and recently performed to 120 adults with various learning disabilities, showing them the South African Gumboot dance. It was just wonderful.
We’ll often help charities, collecting for Marie Curie or other causes, and this year we raised around £1,500 for good causes. We don’t put ourselves up to be anything special. We’re just ordinary people enjoying ourselves because that’s what life is all about.”
Respect ladies – such a positive attitude is not only good to hear about but it is the way everyone should live their lives.
4 Comments »