It was through poor choice and unlucky timing that I sat in Bristol airport departures awaiting an aircraft due to depart over two hours after its scheduled time. Poor choice because it was the start of the school holidays and thus busy with families and board children; unlucky timing as the French air traffic controllers were on strike. Headphones on, listening to Expeditionary Force, Book 4 by Craig Alanson time quickly passed tho. Tip: If you like your sci-fi saga’s – check it out…
In a car collected at Inverness airport it was about 1.5hrs drive to where I was staying. A small village with hotel, bar and shop – what more could you want – called Shieldaig in the North West Highlands near Torridon.
The roads in the North are quiet but especially so away from Inverness. Notable was the 15km of A896 winding its way below Beinn Eighe and Liathach as it’s single track and unlit. Being unfamiliar with the road, in darkness thanks to the delayed flight, with headlights that only seemed to illuminate the road just in front of the car and with the ever present risk of deer lurking on the road it was a demanding but thankfully uneventful drive. During the week I travelled the road several times and it became less scary but it certainly wouldn’t be a road on which to have an accident or breakdown during the night.
The North West Highlands are very special; It and its Northern neighbour, Assynt, are two of the few remaining truly wilderness landscapes in the UK. The area can be bleak and imposing but it most certainly always forces you to appraise your significance in the environment. They are a wonderful juxtaposition of craggy coastlines, turquoise waters and white sandy beaches with dark and imposing expanses of impenetrable moorland separated by large mountains and rivers. With a low human population it’s easy to feel small in such a vast natural environment. Beyond being stunningly beautiful, I find the Highlands relaxing, calming, almost spiritual – although I wouldn’t consider myself religious in any way. This is why I love to photograph the Highlands and why – note to self – I should visit more often.
I had originally thought of staying at The Torridon hotel as it was central to the area I planned to photograph; But a cheaper alternative, and where I stayed, was the Tigh an Eilean hotel in Shieldaig. This had the distinct advantage of being within walking distance of an area I planned to photograph. I’m happy to write that it was a great small hotel with friendly, welcoming staff and so I can recommend it to readers.
The prime objective for the trip was to make images to expand the selection of greeting cards in my Christmas card range. Here in the UK that means snow, although we seem to get precious little these days. Hence going mid-February, traditionally the coldest of the winter months and the most likely to have snow. During the drive-in on that first night it was too dark to see any snow on the mountains but there was none at road level for sure. My suspicion was confirmed the first morning. No snow; Only traces of white high on the mountains where snow lay in deep gullies. The area is on the North West coast so snow wasn’t guaranteed but I was hoping for some on the mountain tops at least. Time for another plan.
The fall-back plan was essentially the original plan but without snow and switching from cards to photographic prints. Unfortunately, cards will have to wait for another year. With the exception of the first day, the weather was forecast to be mostly cloudy, dull and wet for a few days followed by stormy weather, storm Otto a strong subject in photographs was important. There was a chance of snow late in the week, on the mountain tops at least. The plan was to concentrate on Scots Pine trees and an area just North of Alligin Shuas where glacial erratics lay on a hill with good views to the South.
The Erratics
The afternoon of the first day was spent in an area North of Alligin Shuas with the intention of identifying one or two compositions for late afternoon when a break in the cloud was forecast. Parking by the roadside was easy but I was immediately reminded how difficult boggy Scottish hillsides are to traverse but keeping to rocky areas, going was easier.
The area has many glacial erratics, some in precarious positions and which, some day, will surely roll. There were so many that I considered it a ‘target rich environment’; Numerous compositions are possible given the ‘right’ light. Light which I did have, momentarily, near sunset.
Being a hillside roughly 300m above the sea with no significant features to the West there is little to no protection from whatever weather comes off the sea. That afternoon was cold with a biting Westerly wind forcing the use of rocky outcrops and large boulders as shelter just to keep the camera stable. Even then I pushed the ISO just to keep an appropriate shutter speed. Whilst exploring the area it became clear that to make it work photographically, good light was especially important. I knew further visits would be necessary.
What I really liked about the area was the staggeringly beautiful views to the South across Upper Loch Torridon to Loch Damh and the Ben Damh Forest. Although 300m is not high, the area feels much higher and it’s almost unimaginable to think that glaciers once covered the area. Now that, I would like to photograph!
A second visit was equally as cold but a little less windy; But there was a little snow on the high mountains. This time I spent the morning exploring the area to the East of the road finding more erratics and a composition which I think is my best one from the entire trip. After returning to the car to warm-up and a bite to eat, the afternoon was spent exploring the West side again.
By late afternoon thin cloud covered the sky providing a very soft milky-white light not sufficient to reveal the shapes and textures of the ground. Half my brain was saying you are cold, tired and with these clouds there isn’t going to be any light at sunset. The other half was saying, you are here now and are not going anywhere until that sun has set! I’m sure all landscape photographers know those mental shenanigans! Happily I stayed put and right on-cue the skies cleared just as the sun set. The half that said ‘stay put’ was now saying ‘I told you so’!
Scots Pine
The Scots Pine, Pinus sylvestris, is a fantastic tree, their trunks can have some great shapes and they have the most amazing greens and reds all year-round not to mention the landscape in which they grow. It’s those characteristics that attract me. They seem so right, so at home in the Highland landscape.
The light at the very start and the very end of the trip was good but other days were mostly dull with thick grey clouds and, on some days, frequent rain showers. Being on an exposed hillside getting wet and cold didn’t sound like fun so, on such days, I explored woodland/forests in search of Scots pine compositions. This had a couple of advantages: shelter from the weather and stronger compositions, compositions better suited to the conditions.
After poring over Ordnance Survey maps the West of Loch Maree looked interesting. Following a Beinn Eighe path the woodland was dense and way too compositionally complex. Knowing that eventually I’d reach a level were the woodland stopped and the mountains began I kept ascending. Sure enough at the upper edge of the woods were widely separated Scotch pines on grassy/heather-covered slopes with Loch Maree and distant hills in the background. Not that the backgrounds were that visible through the rain! But the rain, like fog, added separation between the subject and background plus a little atmosphere. Sometimes a little too literally for my liking! The hillside faces North East with big mountains to the South West so the best light would probably be during the morning or possibly evening if the setting sun lit clouds overhead; But with thick cloud overhead the light was very diffuse.
Woodland on the side of Ben Shieldaig was an absolute must being so close to the hotel and thus within easy walk. But what was the best way of enter the woodland? Locals suggested the track on the Northern end, the Shieldaig end. Suffice to say I didn’t return that way, instead exiting just to the South of the Applecross road junction opposite Loch Dughaill then walking back to the hotel along the road. Surrounding the woodland are tall deer fences but fortunately there are gates through which access can be gained. They are widely separated tho and are not marked on maps so some exploration is needed to locate them.
The woods are on the Western side of the 516m high Ben Shieldaig. Most of the hill has steep sides but there are a few more level area’s opposite Loch Dughaill which can be reached on foot. Finding compositions that minimised the complexity of surrounding trees and vegetation was difficult, especially given the available flat light. I feel it’s a location with potential but that it needs a significant investment to identify compositions and have appropriate light.
On a wet and windy afternoon in the wake of Storm Otto I explored the track that follows Abhainn Coire Mhic Nòbuil through woods above Upper Loch Torridon. Only one successful image, that to the left, was made but the curvy tree, its leaves and the flat light evoke the conditions nicely.
The area to the South of the A’Ghairbhe river near Kinlochewe has many fine looking Scots pines. At first sight the area looked hard to access but closer inspection identified it to be straightforward with simple parking and access to the woodland; although off the forestry tracks it was much harder underfoot thanks to the rain. What I liked about the area were the wonderful pine trees and the opportunity to place the Beinn Eighe range in the background. Whilst there I was fortunate that the clouds broke for a short while bathing the woodland in bright, directional light.
Conclusion
Overall the week was quite challenging due to the weather and light and some nice photographs were made. The choice of hotel was a success as were the travel choices of flying and car hire. Would I go back again. Absolutely!
Andy
All images are copyright Andy Gawthrope Photography.
