NC500 The Land Weeps

18/06/2024

16/10/2023

A reminder!

CSRR: 01847 851927

BDMLR: 01825 765 526

SSPCA: 03000 999 999

Downloading the ‘What3Words’ app is a great way to easily get a location for any emergency.

13/08/2023

https://www.facebook.com/SingleTrackRoad

Single track roads with passing places have a single traffic lane for traffic flowing in both direct

18/07/2023

Useful information for those in Motorhomes and Campervans. It explains the rules to overnight parking.

Touring the NC500 by motorhome or campervan is becoming increasingly popular, read our top tips for motorhomes.

14/07/2023

A useful tip:
If you are ever lost while hiking, get stranded with a broken down car, etc and you notice your mobile phone is low on battery or you maybe have no signal, this tip may very well save your life.
Change the voicemail message on your phone to give your approximate location, the time, date, your situation (lost, out of fuel, car broken down, unwell, injured, etc) and any special instructions such as; you are staying with the car, you are walking towards somewher, etc, give as much information as you are able to do.
Even if your phone runs out of battery this voicemail will still work, when anyone rings you they will hear your message and know where to find you or where to send help.

04/07/2023

A very informative video.

Is wild Camping / off grid camping allowed in Scotland?To clarify a few myths, and to give advice on being responsible if you have to camp outwith a campsite...

04/07/2023

Contrary to popular belief grey waste water needs proper disposal not dumped where you like. Good for SEPA taking action!

02/07/2023

Fishermen at Keiss Harbour around 1933.

02/07/2023

02/07/2023

Dealbh Dihaoine: this week's photo was taken from Eilean nan Ròn, looking towards Eilean Niamh, or Coomb Island.

You can hear Donald Mackay from Eilean Ròn, born 1911, and recorded in 1977 by the School of Scottish Studies, speaking here in Gaelic about why the people were leaving Eilean Ròn: See rough translation below - any gaps filled or corrections welcome.

https://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/track/73732?l=gd

INT: A nis, carson na dh’fhalbh na daoine à Eilean Ròn?
Now, why did the people leave Eilean Ròn?

RES: O, uill, dh’fhalbh iad aig deireadh a chogadh, a’ chiad chogadh. Bha an t-iasgach
sgadan (chaidh e) a stad, bha e a’dol air ais. Dh’fhalbh teaghlaichean, dh’fhalbh
aid gu Astràilia, is dh’fhalbh aid ('s an eisg) bha e a fàs tearc. Sin agad mar a
bha aid. Bha aid airson (...) an uair sin, as deidh a’chiad cogadh.

Oh well, they left at the end of the war, the first war. The fishing – the herring, it
was stopping, it had gone back. Families left, they left for Australia, and they left
(because the fishing) was growing scarce. That’s how they were. They were (...),
then, after the First World War.

An uair sin bha Borgaidh briseadh a-bhàn is dh’fhalbh tri teaghlaichean do
Bhorgaidh.

Then Borgie was broken down and three families left for Borgie.

INT: Is an uair sin – Borgaidh, an robh e na thac roimhe sin, neo ciamar a bha e...’se
farm a bha am Borgaidh, an e?

And then, Borgie, was it a farm before that or how was it...it was a farm, Borgie,
wasn’t it?

RES: ‘Se farm a bha ‘m Borgaidh, chaidh triùir dhe teaghlaichean às an eilean gu
Borgaidh.

It was a farm, Borgie, and three of the families went from the island to Borgie.

INT: Dìreach. Is cia mheud croitean a rinn iad ann am Borgaidh nuair a bhrist iad e?

Indeed. And how many crofts did they create in Borgie when they broke it up?

RES: Uill, ‘se as na 1920s, ‘21 neo 23, a chaidh aid do Bhorgaidh, as deidh a chogadh.

Well it was in the 1920s, or 23, they went to Borgie.

INT: ‘S cia mheud croit a bh’ann uile gu leir ann am Borgaidh? Dè bheil (de na do)
lotaichean?

And how many crofts were there altogther in Borgie?

RES: Bha deichnear neo aon lot deug ann, ‘s e ex-servicemen a fhuair uil’..

There were ten or eleven ‘lots’, and it was ex-servicement that got them all.

INT: Tha mi tuigs, tha mi tuigs.
I see, I see.

RES: (...) is Earabol, chaidh e a bhriseadh a-bhàn (...) croitean.

(the same with) Eriboll, it was broken up into crofts.

(Photo: C MacLeod 2023)

02/07/2023

If bumblebees are your thing, why not join me on a bumblebee safari at Farr Glebe or Thurso Riverside.
Discover more about these fascinating pollinators, how to identify them and how you can help them.
Check poster for booking details.

02/07/2023

Find out more about Dingwall, its location on the River Peffrey, its 1226 royal charter, location and the people who have lived here. Do you have more information about Dingwall? If so, why not share it with us?

09/06/2023

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=641551991345461&id=100064719964713

Wildfires pose a significant threat to our wildlife and wild places. They can be devastating for rural areas and those living
within these communities. If you’re outside, please follow Scotland’s Outdoor Access Code outdooraccess-scotland.scot

31/05/2023

A basic guide to The Scottish Outdoor Access Code (SOAC).
The Act is very complex but this brief guide provides some key information for reference.

26/05/2023

26/05/2023

For those who say there is no trespass law in Scotland, we can assure you there is!

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/28-29/56?fbclid=IwAR2zLXwbfo2bk7QcAn0a7zUpuhJ8bmF0485KoxwL308FdtjMhoa3H9z6G48 -key-ac0695db8f58889ba14cdf9259c3be00

An Act to provide for the better Prevention of Trespass in Scotland.

26/05/2023

https://www.campa.org.uk/waste-disposal/?fbclid=IwAR1gFz3cSh4Nu_AFqcQ6gqhsz1NNcO3uLsb-5RGSCUKDfZ27CyLVilB4OgA

Whether travelling in your own campervan or motorhome, or in a hire vehicle, it is your responsibility to ensure you leave no trace of your travel and dispose

26/05/2023

https://www.highland.gov.uk/tourism

Tourism

26/05/2023

https://www.outdooraccess-scotland.scot/sites/default/files/2018-09/Scottish%20Outdoor%20Access%20Code%20-%20Annex%201%20Existing%20criminal%20offences%20created%20by%20statute.pdf

26/05/2023

https://www.highland.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/23767/enjoying_the_highlands_in_your_motorhome_or_campervan.pdf