tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53519946564811419202024-03-19T05:00:49.816-07:00Love of ScotlandTo convey my impressions whilst wandering about Scotland. Companion site to www.loveofscotland.com.Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.comBlogger575125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-48782801926883589382024-03-11T00:28:00.000-07:002024-03-12T02:28:14.799-07:00The People You KnowThe people you know will get you into all sorts of scrapes and adventures. After all, they form a large part of who you are. People talk about nature or nuture, but it's not just your parents or your innate personality that moulds you. The people you surround yourself with are also crucial.The reason I know this is rooted in an event over four years ago, when I got a nasty case of sciatica. I Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com017 Links Rd, Port Seton, Prestonpans EH32 0DU, UK55.9726666 -2.952403455.970265098435974 -2.9566949344238282 55.97506810156402 -2.948111865576172tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-36657638339391315482024-01-17T08:20:00.000-08:002024-01-18T00:54:34.920-08:00Scottish Race Events That Should ExistScotland is home to many races and events, from The Cape Wrath Ultra, a largely pathless 250-mile ultramarathon fom Fort William Cape Wrath, to the Subcrawl, a largely pissed circuit of Glasgow pubs. But what races should exist that don't? Here's a few that come to mind:The Royal Mile Mile. A mile race uphill from Holyrood Palace to Edinburgh Castle. The winner gets to activate a plunger in Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Physic Garden Edinburgh, Abbey Strand, Edinburgh EH8 8DU, UK55.952761499999987 -3.173808755.951560121738382 -3.175954467211914 55.953962878261592 -3.1716629327880859tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-78985734902071452692023-12-10T13:50:00.000-08:002024-01-17T08:28:04.908-08:00A History of Scotland, Book Two: Covenant - out now!How long does it take to write a book?It depends who you ask.George RR Martin has taken over a decade to write his next book, with no sign of it appearing.Whereas Barbara Cartland could churn one out every few weeks.And for me the answer is three years.Three years ago I released Scotland's Story, Book One, a history of Scotland from the Ice Age to the Battle of Flodden in 1513.Book Two is finallyRobert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com032WR+H2 Leven, UK56.0964411 -2.959998155.94319965472846 -3.234656303125 56.24968254527154 -2.685339896875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-85861981681649283442023-12-06T07:05:00.000-08:002023-12-06T07:05:52.496-08:00The Seven Tops of Holyrood Park: Part 2 In Part 1, we visited the first two tops of Holyrood Park: Haggis Knowe
and Salisbury Crags. It's time to take a wander over the rest!From Salisbury Crags, a memorable vista of central Edinburgh opens up. Yet above you is a higher top, Arthur's Seat -
the summit of Holyrood Park. It's twice as high above the city, so
surely the views from up there are twice as good? They aren't, Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0WRWX+7H Edinburgh, UK55.9457138 -3.151027555.943310688211753 -3.1553190344238282 55.948116911788247 -3.146735965576172tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-65556598488106216412023-09-02T14:36:00.007-07:002023-12-06T07:06:23.571-08:00The Seven Tops of Holyrood Park: Part 1My colleague and I were cooking up a plan. Leave work in Edinburgh - run over Arthur's Seat - a couple of pints in the Sheep Heid Inn in Duddingston - taxi home. Yes! And have you noticed there are seven tops in Holyrood Park - let's do them all! Yes! And make sure we do it on a fine evening! Yes! And let's invite a few friends to make it even more fun!Yes! And let's hold off until Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Haggis Knowe55.9509346 -3.164205555.949733180152514 -3.1663512672119141 55.95213601984748 -3.1620597327880859tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-89308511940705966472023-07-09T15:27:00.006-07:002023-07-09T16:00:28.531-07:00The National Library of ScotlandIt's mind-blowing that someone like you or me can walk in off the street and consult original 17th century source material at the national library!
Yet that is what membership of the National Library of Scotland gets you. Membership is free and open to all, and so long as you can get to George IV Bridge in Edinburgh during opening hours, it is yours to enjoy. The library has a legal right to Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0George IV Bridge, Edinburgh EH1 1EW, UK55.9485782 -3.191972227.638344363821155 -38.3482222 84.258812036178853 31.9642778tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-36589108300287272952023-05-27T00:20:00.007-07:002023-07-09T15:38:41.849-07:00Morven: The Serpent at the BreastI always thought Caithness was a flat county, beyond the hills. Morven, Scaraben, and Maiden Pap beg to differ.Approaching Braemore:Maiden Pap must be one of the most distinctive small hills in the country, yet it is virtually unknown.From some angles it looks like the Roseberry Topping of Caithness (which itself is the 'Matterhorn of Yorkshire').
From other angles it lives up to its name, an Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Morven, Berriedale KW6 6EX, UK58.2342222 -3.6967529.923988363821152 -38.853 86.544456036178843 31.4595tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-55415762367701490512023-05-08T10:50:00.010-07:002023-07-09T15:40:11.399-07:00Where is the Real Stone of Destiny?We have a king, and his name is Charles - Prince Charles, if you must know, which I can't stop calling him. I know it's wrong, but whenever "King Charles" gets mentioned I pause, just for a second, to figure out who they are talking about. Remember as a child forgetting the new year had come, and by sheer force of habit, writing the old year in your jotter on your first day back at school after Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com09748 Abingdon St, London SW1P 3JY, UK51.4993588 -0.126494351.498690904912628 -0.12756718360595704 51.500026695087378 -0.12542141639404297tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-45779208011992942712023-03-18T05:33:00.001-07:002023-11-12T12:36:36.275-08:00Kilantringan BayKilantringan Bay has haunted my dreams for the best part of two decades. We'd driven to the lighthouse for sunset after the Stranraer half marathon. Ireland lay clear across the water, velvet on gold as the sun sank. The breeze whipped up a wee bit colder, sea air in our lungs, as the lighthouse above us began its revolutions. Away in Ireland, other headlands winked back.
Leaving Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Kilantringan Bay54.861208 -5.144716954.8216882680383 -5.21338145078125 54.900727731961695 -5.07605234921875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-83266576209198966302023-01-03T13:27:00.003-08:002023-01-03T13:34:02.720-08:00Top 10 Scottish Deaths: Part 34. The Black Dinner. One of the most infamous incidents from Scottish history, the 'black dinner' of James II was gruesome enough to inspire George RR Martin's 'red wedding' in the Game of Thrones novels. When James I died (see previous post), his son and heir, James II, was only six years old. The keepers of the two most powerful castles in Scotland, Stirling and Edinburgh, connived to increase Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Cromarty, UK57.680609 -4.03467811.369963511296611 -74.347178 90 66.277822tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-40756693938651378262023-01-01T13:36:00.006-08:002023-01-03T13:28:17.256-08:00Top 10 Scottish Deaths: Part 2Happy New Year! Last time, we looked at three notable deaths. Today let's continue the countdown of top ten Scottish deaths with these memorable moments from history: 7. James I.James died for a game of tennis! Having annoyed and alarmed his nobles with persecutions and land grabs, aggrandising his own position at their expense, James probably should have preferred the stout walls of castles to Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Grand Ave, London EC1A 9PS, UK51.519402799999988 -0.101403729.40604763803184 -35.257653699999985 73.632757961968139 35.054846299999987tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-73370836076851716202022-12-31T12:55:00.008-08:002023-01-01T13:39:35.163-08:00Top 10 Scottish Deaths: Part 1 It's Hogmanay - the biggest Scottish festival of them all - so how better to mark it than with a countdown of the most notable deaths in Scottish history?10. The Bonnie Earl o' Moray. The 2nd Earl of Moray, if the ballad written in his honour is any guide, was considered one of the most handsome men in Scotland. This did not protect him from being pursued in a vendetta by the Earl of Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com029327 Teba, Málaga, Spain36.9833293 -4.91886658.6730954638211557 -40.0751165 65.293563136178847 30.2373835tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-57666193225727649582022-12-27T14:35:00.007-08:002022-12-28T12:29:32.053-08:00Big Walk DreamingWinter may seem a fallow season for outdoor adventures, but it is the season when seeds are planted, when dreams of future expeditions take shape. Reading Alex Roddie's The Farthest Shore recently rekindled my own plans and awoke a hunger I forgot I possessed.Ardnamurchan Point:Alex's book is the story of the Cape Wrath Trail (CWT), except he starts at Ardnamurchan Point instead of Fort William. Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com2Portuairk, Acharacle PH36 4LN, UK56.734325 -6.1919728.424091163821153 -41.34822 85.044558836178851 28.96428tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-11643216848149975992022-12-13T08:17:00.005-08:002022-12-13T08:19:18.852-08:00December SnowAfter the floods, the freeze.
The first inkling of the coming cold snap came on my morning commute. Snowflakes driven onto Edinburgh pavements, tourists stopping to photograph the scene.
We went next day to the local woods, crystals gleaming on moss.
Driving home I stopped to help an African fellow who had crashed. His car was bent, but fortunately he was OK. The magic of seeing snowRobert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com1232 Canongate, Edinburgh EH8 8DQ, UK55.95081 -3.182443727.640576163821152 -38.3386937 84.261043836178843 31.9738063tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-6620520011914901932022-11-18T04:34:00.003-08:002022-12-13T03:56:02.196-08:00November RainThe ground can't take any more.Splashing through a field with the dog, glad of wellies. Earthworms drowning, writhing out the ground. Thousands of them. It's been raining for weeks. The water flowing on any slope, the local burn with its banks burst, water swirling around the base of lampposts on the path, now underwater.My jacket hasn't dried out properly for days and it's started to smell.Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com2Lochgoilhead, Cairndow PA24 8AQ, UK56.1703376 -4.900575756.160780540401468 -4.9177418376953126 56.179894659598538 -4.8834095623046876tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-30946818764622738692022-11-02T14:08:00.003-07:002022-11-02T14:08:31.770-07:00The Four Seasons: SummerThe fact is all seasons are wonderful, for different reasons.
So before we talk about summer, let’s look at them.
There’s autumn, the time of year for waterfalls and forests, leaves sun caught in beautiful death, of roaring stags dark with peat...
Winter, the time of year of drunken oblivion in the dark, the flashing of a woman’s eyes in a whirling dance...
Spring, the time of year for colour Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Newgale Beach, United Kingdom51.851631300000008 -5.125311223.541397463821163 -40.2815612 80.161865136178847 30.0309388tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-91258928959021937852022-10-26T07:53:00.002-07:002022-11-02T14:09:26.232-07:00The Four Seasons: Springthis is the time of year for colour to return, splashes of wildflower like herbs for the eyes,
clouds white as newborn lambs scudding across a fresh scrubbed sky, wind tousling your hair,
the time for wild camping and weather as changeable as a girl’s fancies,
the time of the apple and cherry blossom,
lovers hands strolling lightly,
the time when the whole world opens up.
Listen to spring Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Castle Douglas DG7, UK54.940415 -3.93141426.630181163821156 -39.087664000000004 83.25064883617884 31.224836tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-65206232172605276142022-10-18T12:18:00.007-07:002022-10-26T07:54:14.548-07:00The Four Seasons: Winterthis is the time of year of drunken oblivion in the dark, the flashing of a woman’s eyes in a whirling dance,
Listen to winter tune: Salsa Celtica — Auld Lang Syne:
the season that family gathers, rain hammering the windows as darkness falls,
trees bare sketches bent in the wind,
the time we crave sunlight and climb snowy mountains to be nearer our God,
Sunset from Ben Lomond:
the time ofRobert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com02 Sauchiehall St, Glasgow G2 3NY, UK55.864361499999987 -4.252901899999998615.616135885462484 -74.5654019 90 66.0595981tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-23936658556288831982022-10-06T01:35:00.002-07:002022-10-18T12:21:19.219-07:00The Four Seasons: AutumnThis is the time of year for waterfalls and forests, leaves caught in beautiful
death,
Falls of Feugh:
of roaring stags dark with peat and shaking with desire,
the season of bounty, of foraging for berries and mushrooms, of bramble picking,
hands bloody with juice and sharp thorns,
of the striking of the first match of the first fire of the season,
grateful for the rain for driving us Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Glen Tanar, Aboyne AB34 5PB, UK57.016666699999988 -2.937.583374257491982 -38.05625 76.449959142507993 32.25625tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-38907810066018425522022-09-28T04:32:00.000-07:002023-11-12T12:54:50.247-08:00A Callander Autumn Another beautiful sunny morning, heavy with autumn dew.The first leaves turning, a fire of bracken on the hillside.Do you ever associate certain seasons, weather, or times in your life with a particular place? I do. And for me, September is redolent of Stirlingshire. Drymen, Kippen, the Trosachs, Dumiyat - I am not sure why. Meeting cousins as a child, easy daytrips from Glasgow, Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-9753626289500526302022-08-26T05:55:00.009-07:002022-08-26T06:02:53.486-07:00Ben Wyvis: Return to my Last Munro<!---->
May 1997. My hillwalking friends were doing their final exams. I was at the Aultguish Inn with three who weren't. It was a day of stair-rod rain and a cloud base two feet above sea level; but we were there, so might as well climb the thing. A boggy path led to an eroded zig-zig up a steep shoulder and the summit plateau, a revelation of beautifully soft moss. Ben Wyvis, 1997:A Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com2Ben Wyvis - Glas Leathad Mor, Dingwall IV14 9AE, UK57.6788888 -4.579277729.368654963821157 -39.7355277 85.989122636178848 30.5769723tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-59395178907658453772022-06-28T05:57:00.005-07:002022-06-28T07:31:50.163-07:00A Midsummer MunroI never thought I would be using a headtorch on a hill on midsummer's day!But that's what happens when you climb that hill for sunset.Ben Lomond from Beinn Chabhair:
<!---->
The walk started with an early finish from work. Lorry and tractor filled roads brought me to Inverarnan, and a rendezvous with the friends who had organised this. At 17:30 in the evening the heat and humidity were Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com1Beinn Chabhair, Lochearnhead FK8 3UB, UK56.32575 -4.641528.015516163821154 -39.79775 84.635983836178838 30.51475tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-85251336334743829302022-06-24T08:00:00.021-07:002022-06-24T08:00:00.215-07:00Lowland Hills and Highland Hills: the HighlandsThree summer evenings, three hills, three geological divisions of Scotland.Across the Firth of Clyde from Tom na h-Airidh: Twenty-five years ago I searched for the best viewpoint of the Firth of Clyde, visiting various points like The Saddle on the Ardgoil Peninsula, Lyle Hill above Gourock, Dunrod and Hill of Stake. A strong argument can be made for Haylie Brae above Largs, but Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Tom na h-Airidh, Helensburgh G84 9QG, UK56.0364869 -4.753323627.726253063821154 -39.9095736 84.346720736178838 30.4029264tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-86994081847274839692022-06-22T09:56:00.004-07:002022-06-22T09:59:59.299-07:00Lowland Hills and Highland Hills: the Central BeltThree summer evenings, three hills, three geological divisions of Scotland.Sunset from Turnhouse Hill: In my last post, I described a Friday evening trip up the Moorfoots in the Southern Uplands. Less than half an hour's drive from my house, but a world away in terms of atmosphere.For Saturday evening I decided to go even closer to home: just quarter of an hour's drive gets me to the Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07479924424503608056noreply@blogger.com0Turnhouse Hill, Penicuik EH26, UK55.851106500000007 -3.256294855.841472500429433 -3.2734609376953125 55.860740499570582 -3.2391286623046875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5351994656481141920.post-30059148389699310942022-06-20T03:08:00.006-07:002022-06-22T09:58:03.210-07:00Lowland Hills and Highland Hills: the Southern UplandsThree summer evenings, three hills, three geological divisions of Scotland.Homeward bound:Everyone knows Scotland is split in two: the Highlands and the Lowlands. The geological fault line runs between Helensburgh and Stonehaven. Everything north and west is the Highlands: south and east, the Lowlands. But the Lowlands also have two faces. To the south and east of the Lowland boundary line, Robert Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010093936207550270noreply@blogger.com2Windlestraw Law, Innerleithen TD1 1TP, UK55.677499999999988 -3.000916627.367266163821142 -38.1571666 83.987733836178833 32.1553334