I love the Lake District. It’s where I grew up, where my family live and in my opinion is the most beautiful part of the UK. What’s great about the Lake District is you can get around it in a day. You can get most places pretty easy and regardless of your ability or patience there are amazing things to be seen from most places you can visit. Scotland on the other hand is vast. It’s wilder and more rugged than the Lake District and in parts you can be alone for days.
I could quite happily live in Scotland, in fact you could dedicate the rest of your life to exploring and capturing Scotland and possibly never see all of what it has to offer. I’ve visited several times now and always get excited about spending time in Scotland. It’s just a shame it’s for a week here and a week there. In 2015 I’ve been lucky enough to visit Scotland and more specifically Glencoe and the Isle of Skye twice. Once in April for the week of my Birthday and here in October for an Autumnal look at these amazing scenes.
What I saw and captured is too extensive to post in one post alone so here is my first full day in Scotland having spent the night at the Kings House Hotel on Glencoe. This post covers Glencoe to Elgol on the Isle of Skye, future posts will cover the rest of the time I spent in Bonnie Scotland.
I produced this short video to accompany these images from Glencoe.
Buachaille Etive Mòr probably one of the most photographed mountains in Scotland if not the UK. You can see why.
I was hoping for even just the briefest glimpse of warming light this morning, but the cloud had other ideas. In the video you’ll see the conditions I was faced with, considering such conditions I think these images have turned out well.
A wider view around the northern side of Buachaille Etive Mòr. You just don’t get this openness and vast wilderness in the Lakes.
Lewis entertaining himself.
Mist above the Three Sisters of Glencoe.
Loch Slapin on the Isle of Skye with Blavin above in a rain shower.
Home for the week in Elgol. It was wild when we arrived.
Rum in the distance behind a rain shower…
…which in typical Scottish fashion blew out of the way in a few moments.
Now that is a mountain. Sgurr na Stri
Sgurr na Stri the amazing backdrop to this fine Scottish cottage.
Details of Sgurr na Stri.
Details of Sgurr na Stri.
I love this image.
and this.
Rum and the changeable weather.
Rum and Bloodstone Hill below amazing rays of afternoon sun.
You don’t get this ruggedness in the Lake District. Sgurr na Stri and the Black Cuillin behind.
The magnificent Gars-Bheinn
Heaven…
A distant lighthouse on Canna I believe.
I’ve not unpacked the car yet…
The Black Cuillin. The finest Mountain range in the UK.
The variety of conditions is truly amazing.
The Cuillin.
Not bad for my first afternoon on Skye. I could have left at this point and I’d be happy with what I’ve captured so far. True Mountains and a beautiful journey up through Scotland from Glencoe. There are amazing scenes and images to be captured around every turn. If I even needed a reminder of why I love Scotland so much today was it. If the rest of the week turns out like today I’ll be extremely lucky.
I have made some of my Scottish landscape Photographs available as high quality framed prints which you can see on this link.
