Knoydart cover

Knoydart, 2016

Knoydart is one of Scotland’s most beautiful but least accessible areas, where a difficult history of land ownership still casts a shadow over the community’s cautiously optimistic future. I spent a week walking, cycling and exploring there in May 2016. Here are a few posts from the trip.

The Scottish Parliament

A second referendum

The Scottish Government and Yes Scotland have made great efforts during the independence referendum debate to stress that this referendum is a “once in a generation” opportunity. They’re wrong: if we vote No there’ll be another within a decade. Here’s why.

Bealach na Bà

Applecross

A few words and pictures from a spectacular day trip to Applecross – surely one of the best places on the west coast of the Highlands.

Walking the Coulags circuit

The problem with agreeing to go hillwalking on a certain date is that you can’t wimp out when the weather forecast is rubbish. Our plan was to do the Coulags circuit, which runs northwest from near Achnashellach. According to MWIS the prognosis was not good, though: below zero temperatures at summits, and as low as…

The Scotophiles of Bucharest

“So… what is happening with Glasgow Rangers?” I laughed.  Partly it was out of surprise that this Bucharest taxi driver was aware of the collapse of one half of the Old Firm.  Partly, though, what I also found amusing was the tone of resigned bewilderment, making it sound like the sort of small-talk opening gambit…