landscape

I mourn your passing

In the words of Jim Crumley (The Great Wood)

There are many good reason to plant more trees and to take the time and trouble to do it well. They create the most benevolent of all nature’s habitats. They create opportunities for a greater diversity of wildlife species of all kinds. They create a counterbalance to greenhouse gases. They create stable and long-term rural employment for people…and if rural people are employed they create the circumstances that bond people closer to their place on the map, giving them a stake in the environment of that place. They create opportunities for recreation in a beautiful environment. And they matter for their own sake. And they should matter to us because of the debt we owe.

The Rhinns Complex

Everything on Islay seems flighty - from nervous sheep, scattering brown hares, endlessly lifting geese and a very anxious wind blowing from all directions - as if everything has a need for counselling. The only things that seem stable are the rocks where they connect with the earths crust. This geographical area hosts a geological phenomena known as the Rhinns Complex. The only part of Islay that doesn't seem to have a complex.

Orkney Stories 5 - Towards Hoy

Continuing my series from my visit to Orkney in October 2020. The ever present brooding skyline of Hoy is a dramatic contrast to the soft rolling emerald hills of the mainland agricultural land. Chambered cairns are numerous and in their own way the ancient equivalent of the burial ground of traditional farming practices.

Two Tides

Once again I am drawn to the River Add estuary with its extensive sandbanks that stretch out into Crinan Bay. Watching the tide return from two different directions creates a sense that messages and stories are being transmitted as the ripples collide before reaching the end of their journey.