These blogs feature my writing and photographs from my experiences out in the Caledonian Forest and other natural ecosystems. Please subscribe to receive automatic notifications when new blog posts are added.
Alan’s blog
Alan’s blog
Life on a log
Yesterday I was back in Glen Affric again, at the same spot I’d been to a week before. Then, I’d finished the day off by taking some more photographs of one of my current favourite subjects – slime moulds. When I sent the images to Bruce Ing, the expert on slime moulds who helps me with identifications, he said that it was too early to identify that species, as it wasn’t at the spore-producing stage yet, but it could be one of three species, all of which would be interesting records for the glen. So, a week after I’d last been there, I found myself back at a small Scots pine log by the roadside, overlooking Loch Beinn a’Mheadhoin. [Read more…] about Life on a log
A great night at the art exhibition!
On Thursday 3rd November I went down to Edinburgh with my colleague Lisa Mead to attend the Opening Night of the special charity art exhibition that Trevor Jones, a Canadian-born artist who has been based in Edinburgh for 8 years, has organised to raise funds for us. Inspired by the declaration of 2011 as the International Year of Forests by the United Nations, Trevor sent out a request for donations of artworks on social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter. Over 150 artists from around the world responded, donating 191 works, each to be sold for £45, with all the proceeds going to support our work to restore the Caledonian Forest. [Read more…] about A great night at the art exhibition!
More slime moulds & colourful lichens
On Saturday I made another trip to Glen Strathfarrar, hoping to catch the last of the autumn colours at their best, as the birches had hardly started turning, during my previous visit, three weeks ago. Instead of going up the road in the main part of the glen as I usually do, I decided on impulse to go up a Hydro track on the north side instead. I had only been up in that part once, about 10 years ago, and had always wanted to return, so this seemed like a good time to do so. [Read more…] about More slime moulds & colourful lichens
A tale of two burns, part 2
On Sunday, the day after I’d been up the Allt a Choire Bhuidhe burn on Dundreggan, I went across to the other (south) side of Glen Moriston, where the Allt Phocaichan burn flows down through a native pinewood remnant on Forestry Commission Scotland’s Inverwick site. I don’t know that area as well as Dundreggan, and there’s much of the length of the Allt Phocaichan that I haven’t explored yet, so this was a good chance to see it in its autumn finery. [Read more…] about A tale of two burns, part 2
A tale of two burns, part 1
I usually aim to get out for a week-end in the forest in late October each year, to make the most of the autumn colours of the trees when they’re at their peak. So, last week-end I stayed at Dundreggan, and on the Saturday I decided to go up the Allt a Choire Bhuidhe burn, which rises between the peaks of Binnilidh Bheag and Binnilidh Mhor and flows down to a spectacularly-cascading waterfall on the new all-ability footpath we’ve created on the Estate. [Read more…] about A tale of two burns, part 1
A windy day at Dundreggan
It was another Sunday to head out into the forest, and like last week, I was seeking some good displays of autumn colours – this time I was going back to Dundreggan. However, as it turned out, like the previous Sunday, it was very windy, which I was slightly dismayed about, not only because of the difficulties it poses for photography, but also because it meant that the leaves would be blown off the trees more quickly than they otherwise would. [Read more…] about A windy day at Dundreggan
A day in Glen Strathfarrar
On Sunday I spent the day in Glen Strathfarrar, which contains one of the least-known, but also one of the best large remnants, of the old native pinewoods of the Caledonian Forest. Situated two glens north of Affric, it is much less-visited than that more iconic site, which gained its National Nature Reserve in the same review that led Strathfarrar to lose its previous NNR status. However, the quality of the pinewood habitat in the two glens is comparable, and both are outstanding not only for their conservation value, but also for their scenic beauty.
Over the past 25 years I’ve visited Strathfarrar regularly, and although I’ve been there a couple of times in the past year to look at a potential forest regeneration project, it had been several years since my last dedicated photo trip to the glen. My main reason for going there now therefore was to photograph the autumn colours of the trees. [Read more…] about A day in Glen Strathfarrar
Webs of delight & fungal galls
Last weekend I went to Glen Affric again, camping there overnight. On Sunday morning it was very still, and there were perfect reflections in Loch Beinn a’Mheadhoin, with the mist adding a very special atmospheric quality to the scene. The trees and their reflections seemed almost to be hanging in mid-air, as there was nothing else visible to give a sense of perspective to the view. [Read more…] about Webs of delight & fungal galls
Tooth fungi and slime moulds
On Saturday 24th September I went to a public talk given by Paul Stamets, a mycologist from Washington State in the USA, who was visiting Findhorn for a couple of days. I had seen him give a lecture at Findhorn last year, and he’s a very inspiring speaker, speaking from the perspective of over two decades of studying and working with fungi, which he is convinced can be used to help address many of the environmental and health-related problems in our society today.
Paul is a wonderful character and gives his talks whilst wearing a hat made from a fungus – the felt-like material called amadou that is extracted from the tinder fungus (Fomes fomentarius). He lives and expresses his passion for all things fungal, and when I went to Glen Affric the next day I therefore had fungi on my mind, especially as this year has been such a good one for them. [Read more…] about Tooth fungi and slime moulds
Fabulous fungi and slug-fest at Dundreggan!
In the last 10 days I’ve been out twice to Dundreggan, meeting up with some specialist biodiversity surveyors from the British Myriapod and Isopod Group. That rather cumbersome title refers to centipedes and millipedes (Myriapods) and woodlice and pill bugs (Isopods), and the group had chosen to spend a week at Dundreggan, contributing to our biodiversity surveys of the estate, for their annual field trip. [Read more…] about Fabulous fungi and slug-fest at Dundreggan!