Scottish Outdoors

Seeing the Scottish mountain ranges was a welcome relief after months of gentle rolling hills in England. Nevertheless, I didn’t manage to get out as much as I hope to, largely due to the cold & gloomy winter days. Went on a day walk with the local Ramblers club and spent most of the time hiking in the rain.

There were still some great day outs during my 2 months stay at Ardersier. Went on a Winter Skills clinic around the foothills of Cairngorm mountain with 4 other participants. Condensed version of a similar course I did last year at Plas y Brenin. This time round I had more snow to play around with. First part was familiarizing ourselves with the proper use of crampons and ice axe as we moved safely around the snow slopes. Best part was learning the different techniques of ice axe arrest – we had to throw ourselves down the snow slope from various positions and learn how to stop with the ice axe. Was wearing my old waterproofs – so didn’t mind going overboard with the speed.

(Posing for the camera with my full kit)

Managed to finally experience my first outdoor climb in UK after being here for over 1.5 years. My climbing guru for the day was Michael, friend of the farm. We were climbing the sandstone sea cliffs and outcrops in Cummingston, 30 miles east of Ardersier. Great place for bouldering, as the place was littered with different rock formations. Haven’t climbed for over 9months – so was not in the best form. Thankfully Michael was a patient man and we spent the day tackling several boulder problems and 2 higher climbs with Michael leading the way with nuts & cams.

(One of the huge boulder for climbing with the sea in the background)

(Me tackling a boulder problem)

Didn’t leave Scotland too disappointed as I managed to bag another Munro (collection of mountains in Scotland over 3,000 ft) just a day before I departed. Woke up to a glorious morning and knew it was a perfect day to get out into the mountains. It was a challenge getting to Aviemore, one of the gateways to Cairngorm National Park, since the public transport was limited on a Sunday. Finally reached the start of my walk up to Cairngorm at around 1.45pm, had to cheat by coming up the mountain halfway with the bus due to time constraint.

Was sad to learnt that the gusty winds of 30-40mph and snowy conditions towards the peak will make the journey quite challenging. Coming all this way, and not being able to reach the top was heartbreaking. Despite the negative news, I started the walk up and decided to push as far as I could go. The strong winds did slowed down my progress. Along with the fact that I have not been doing much rigorous exercise for the last 6months left me gasping for air towards the last stretch.

It was indeed my lucky day when I bumped into Michael, my climbing buddy, inside the restaurant+ski centre towards the top. He was there with some friends, and was about to leave to walk the last bit up to the final summit. Thank goodness he was there to lead the way, as the final section was covered with thick snow and slippery icy patches.

Standing at the summit of Cairngorm was magnificent. The stunning scenery with clear views of the mountain ranges stretching to the horizon and great outdoors everywhere made the painful journey up worthwhile. It is really tempting me to return in July to the farm for strawberry harvesting and opportunities to experience more of the Scottish wilderness.

(Enroute to the top of Cairngorm mountain – view of the mountain range around us)

(Michael & his friend posing on top of the peak marker at Cairngorm)

Life on Scottish farm

It was simply fabulous spending the last 2 months of winter up in Scotland from Feb-Mar. Fell in love with Scotland the moment I saw the snow-covered mountains as my overnight train passed by Cairngorm National Park in the early morning hours.

I came up to volunteer at my 2nd organic farm in Ardersier, small town 17miles from Inverness. Donnie, a 60yr man who still possessed the energy & alertness of a teenager, manages the farm.

(Taken with Donnie in his traditional scottish kilt)

The first 2 weeks at Ardersier was filled with snow-filled days. Apparently it is quite unusual in this part of Scotland, since it stays relatively warmer due to the Gulf Stream influence. Managed to find some time off to enjoy sledding & playing with the snow amongst the other farm volunteers.

(Overview of farm from nearby hill)

(Storehouse and 2-storey farm house at the back – housing for Donnie & volunteers on the 1st floor)

(Main polytunnel & fields for berry bushes covered with Feb snowfall)

Change from my previous farm host in Nottingham was the mixed livestock on the farm. We have over 500 egg-laying chickens, 6 pigs, couple of sheeps and cows. Volunteers mainly deal with the chickens – taking turns to feed them in the morning and collect the eggs in the afternoon. It is always a joy watching all the happy & healthy chickens roam freely. Don’t think I will be able to stomach the thought of eating any chickens or eggs from intensive farming methods.

(Feeding all the hungry chickens in the morning)

(Happy hens enjoying the great outdoors)

(Cows enjoying their daily carrots feed to supplement their grass grazing)

Another change was living with a bunch of young volunteers in a proper house with the farm owner. It felt like living in a university dorm again, as most of the volunteers are in their early twenties. One of the main challenges is meal times – not uncommon to cook for up to 9 people. Have taken aboard cooking or leading the prep as most of the other volunteers are less experienced in that arena. Don’t mind it since I enjoy cooking and the challenge of jazzing up the meals with the limited ingredients on hand.

(Group pic with rest of volunteers piled on the quad, mini workhorse we used to get around the farm area)

(Bunch of us having a night out at the local pub in Ardersier)

Speaking of food, I had the pleasure of enjoying haggis and the Robert Burns’ poem that is read before it is ceremoniously stabbed and revealed to the diners. Not forgetting several rainbow trouts; sweet fleshy river fishes caught by one of the farm worker and the occasional wild rabbits shot on the farm. Plus savoring different types of whisky – liquid gold of Scotland.

A first for me was making marmalade from Seville oranges. By the end of my stay, I made about 60 jars which was quite popular amongst the customers. Reminded me of my childhood days when I helped my grandma prepared kaya (coconut jam) and the hours spent stirring the pot. I always look forward to the end when I was rewarded with the opportunity to clean out the freshly made jam from the pot with pieces of bread – delish!

(Jars of marmalade with my very own name on it – yeah!)

Learnt how to play bridge from Donnie, the farm owner. Quite an interesting card game, involving fair bit of brainwork and plenty of guesswork as us farm volunteers, being the novice players, grappled with the art of bidding at the start of each game. Spent plenty evenings with bridge till late into the night.

We do ventured out on the occasional weekends to enjoy the local pub scene. Really enjoyed the live bands playing great Scottish music – incredible music with only the fiddle, accordion, guitar and occasional drums. Can’t help but get on your feet to dance when the band plays a lively jig, especially when it involved the bagpipes. Experienced some great musicians – North Sea Gas at Hootananny pub, both Martin Stephenson and MacGregor, Brechin & O hEadhra (www.myspace.com/brucesandybrian) during the Northern Roots music festival.

(MacGregor, Brechin & O hEadhra performing at Northern Roots Festival 2009)