Category Archives: Outer Hebrides

Callanish Standing Stones

Callanish-Standing-Stones Callanish Standing Stones

Circles of stone
The main monument is extraordinary – a cross-shaped setting of stones, centred on a circle of tall stones. At its heart stands a solitary monolith 4.8m high. Lines of smaller stones radiate from the circle to east, west and south. From the north runs an avenue 83m long, formed by two lines of stones that narrow as they approach the circle. Within the circle is a chambered tomb.

Numerous other ritual sites lie within a few kilometres. These are mainly more modest rings of standing stones, or single monoliths. The most impressive – Cnoc Ceann a’ Ghàrraidh and Cnoc Fhillibhir Bheag – lie just over a kilometre SE of the main Calanais ring, and originally consisted of rings of stones at least eight in number.

Ancient centre of power
Archaeological excavation in the 1980s proved that the main circle was erected 4,500–5,000 years ago, and the chambered tomb a few generations later. Around 3000 BC the climate in the Western Isles was warmer than it is today and the sea-level lower. Salmon ran in the rivers, deer, sheep and cattle grazed the surrounding hills, and barley grew on the broad ridge where Calanais stands. A cult or religion seems then to have swept through the British Isles, involving the building of large earthen enclosures (henge monuments), and impressive circles of timber or stone.

Astronomical observatory?
Why did our Stone-Age ancestors build Calanais? Our best guess is that it served as a kind of astronomical observatory. Patrick Ashmore, who excavated at Calanais in the early 1980s, writes in his insightful guidebook Calanais: The Standing Stones, published by Historic Scotland in 2002: ‘The most attractive explanation … is that every 18.6 years, the moon skims especially low over the southern hills. It seems to dance along them, like a great god visiting the earth. Knowledge and prediction of this heavenly event gave earthly authority to those who watched the skies.’

Lost and found
Around a thousand years after it was constructed, Calanais was abandoned. The area inside the circle was levelled. This may have been just ordinary agriculture, but it may conceivably have been ritual cleansing, ensuring that no inconvenient ancestors would return! The climate was changing around then too, becoming cooler and wetter. Gradually a blanket of peat covered the site, drawing a veil over the ancient power centre.

Renewed interest in the ancient circles emerged in the 17th century, by which date the people of Lewis were calling the standing stones fir bhrèige (‘false men’). Gradually a more scientific attitude took hold, and in 1885 the main circle was taken into State care.

 

Info from historic Scotland

Barra Sunset Rays

Barra-Cemetary-SunsetHi all

finally getting round to doing something with all the images I took from the Outer Hebrides trip, thank goodness for a bit of time and rain to make me sit and sort them. This one Barra Island walking across to the Commonwealth Cemetary.

 

Anyway as for my good news first which as some of you are aware i took my CAA permission  to fly unmanned aircraft (drones) to most of you but essentially a quadcopter less than 20kg, I passed with a mark of 95, still don’t know quite how I managed it but hey I’ll take it and will be very happy with it.

Part of the future of my business will be aerial footage, I won’t go too much into it but a smidgen of it is wedding , surveying, estate agency and sports to name a few, probably about another 10 things but that will come later as well as my own footage and stills to give a new twist to my work.

As more and more people take to the skies with unmanned aircraft I’m sure it will become more legislative to have a license of some kind in order to use on at all, the qualification I am in the process of assures clients primarily I’m a safe pair of hands and that I am insured against accidents and damage, we are seeing more in the news everyday about hobbyists accidents and near fatal collisions. The sooner the better the CAA legislate against this activity in areas where potentially accidents can have sever consequences the better.

Anyhow apart form my little rant I have thoroughly enjoyed my course, very expensive it was too but I’m sure this will be recouped in future work, I already have a few promises of work for my 2 DJI Inpire 1’s just in the process of insuring it all, again very expensive and time consuming.

Will catch up with more images later when time permits.

Adrian

Annie Jane Monument – Vatersay

Annie-Jane-Monument---VatersayHappy Friday all

Sun is shining and the skies are blue, what more could you ask for…apart from the usual more money less work etc etc

Today’s image is of the monument on Vatersay which is linked by a causeway to Barra Island Outer Hebrides.

The monument is one of the saddest events to befall the island when the Annie Jane, a three-masted immigrant ship out of Liverpool bound for Montreal, Canada, struck rocks off West Beach during a storm in September 1853. Within ten minutes the ship began to founder and break up casting 450 people into the raging sea. In spite of the conditions, islanders tried to rescue the passengers and crew.[11]

There were only a few survivors rescued. A small cairn and monument marks the site where the bodies recovered from the sea were buried. An inscription reads:

On 28th September 1853 the ship Annie Jane with emigrants from Liverpool to Quebec was totally wrecked in this bay and threefourths of the crew and passengers numbering about 350 men women and children were drowned and their bodies interred here.

Two Chinese seamen from the SS Idomeneus, which sank on 28 September 1917, are also buried somewhere near the monument. There is a commemorative headstone in Cuier Churchyard.

The remains of a Catalina flying boat that crashed on the slopes of Heishival Beg in 1944 lie in a stream bed near the shore.

Catalina-Flying-Boat-2The monument erected to those who died in the crash, this is yards from the roadside.

Catalina-Flying-Boat

I’ll be going “dark” as they say for a while now as I have a lot on over the next week or two. Will catch up hopefully with some good news mid August fingers x’d

Have a great weekend and next few weeks all

 

Adrian

Our Lady of The Isles

Our-Lady-of-the-Isles Morning all

 

raining cats and dogs here again and it looks like it’s set in for the week! British summer at its best hey?

Today’s image is Our Lady of the Isles, a sculpture of the Virgin Mary, on South Uist in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The statue is situated on the western slopes of Ruabhal, a hill near the northern end of South Uist. It’s a bit of a walk up from the main road, well the only road and this sculpture dominates the area predominately inhabited by sheep.

The statue was commissioned following proposals from the Ministry of Defence for a large missile testing range. This would have covered much of Uist, and involved construction of a military town as well as facilities for building missiles. This caused concern it would destroy much of the island’s way of life, culture and language. Resistance to the proposals was led by Canon John Morrison, the local parish priest. He commissioned and raised funds for the construction of the statue. The statue was completed in 1957, and dedicated in 1958.

The statue was designed by Hew Lorimer, and sculpted from granite. In 2007 the statue was listed as a Category B listed building.

Our-Lady-of-The-Isles-Portrait-BackView from behind looking out to sea.

Our-Lady-of-The-Isles-Portrat-FrontAnd from the front, had to remove a telegraph pole and fence post processing on this to make it look half decent.

Adrian

Vatersay Pebble Beach Stump

Vatersay-Beach-StumpFriday woohooooo!!!!!

Thought I’d finish the week off with a beautiful shot from Vatersay Beach on Barra Island, Outer Hebrides. Probably one of the most beautiful of all the islands areas Vatersay has white sands, stunning pebble beaches and green blue seas all round it, I couldn’t resist the sea washed stump, I’d have brought it home if I’d the space in the Husky MoHo.

I didn’t realise how many decent shots from this area I had taken as the weather wasn’t exactly perfect but at least it wasn’t boring blue skies. I also managed to get the MoHo stuck in the sand dune, thank goodness for a lovely couple from Bristol and a retired gen t who together with Jo managed to help rock the van free, still don’t know how they managed it and I really didn’t fancy my chances with telling Green flag where we were stuck…..15 miles down a single track road/lane!

Anyway flying practice with the drone this weekend weather permitting and donating platelets on Sunday, haven’t done this for a while because of my knee op so it will be nice to catch up with the nurses my reading and choccy biscuits, oh yes choccy biccy’s, has to be done

 

Adrian

 

EOLAIGEARRAIDH (ST. BARR) OLD CHURCHYARD, ISLE OF BARRA

Barra-CemeteryEOLAIGEARRAIDH (ST. BARR) OLD CHURCHYARD, ISLE OF BARRA

A  beautiful evening on the even more beautiful Isle of Barra. The commonwealth cemetery is at the north of the island and is accessed from the main road then through a field down towards the beach. It’s uncertain as to who owns the land but from what I have read it is looked after by the Parish Priest of Barra.

A note of caution should you decide to try this walk, COWS and BULLS, yup everywhere and a little too friendly for my liking especially with 4 huskies, we came back round the coast climbing and passing the dogs over barbed wire fences to avoid the interest shown on our approach……a little unnerving.

The cemetery is only about  a quarter of a mile from the camp site as taking a car here is a definite no no, there isn’t any parking and the main road is single track, at worst you could park a little further down the road at the hotel.

Adrian

Clachan Sands Sunset

Clachan-Beach-SunsetTraigh Hornais, Clachan Sands

A straightforward walk along a beautiful wide sandy beach backed by Machair which is a riot of colourful flowers. Was really tricky to find this place and a lucky spot from the main road which says Cemetery & Beach.

Pretty hazardous drive down a dirt single track heavily pot holed. The cemetery is sort of built above ground in a mound which if I’d more time would have made a fabulous backdrop to a spooky type shot.

This place is a must for a stop over on North Uist, really quiet and peaceful with the most amazing views along the shoreline of an award winning royal beach.

Adrian

Beautiful Barra

Barra-Drive-Round As the title suggest the Isle of Barra surely is the most beautiful of the Outer Hebrides, blue seas and white sandy beaches that go on for miles and as long as you get the weather then it’s as close to paradise as you’ll get.

If its beautiful scenery and peace and quiet you need then this is the place, you may come across the odd cyclist or other campers but apart from that it’s so peaceful and serine.

Today’s image is actually taken from the roadside, jaw dropping moment as we drove round a bend and this view came into vision, would have stayed there but we found and even more beautiful spot to wild camp, pictures to follow.

Very busy weekend ahead loads on and certainly not enough hours to cope with……

 

catch up Monday

Adrian