Rhodie Bashing and Farewell

Today was the final day of the Residential but before we said goodbye we headed up to see the NTS Rangers for a morning of rhodie bashin.  Rhododendron ponticum is an invasive plant that damages native ecology and the team at Brodick Country Park are engaged in a long running battle to bring the plant under control. We were happy to help!

On the way to meet the rangers we found a sleepy slow worm.

Some of the rhodie plants are absolutely huge.

We cut the brash and burned it. Later we toasted marsh mallows on the fire.

The team on their final morning before saying farewell.

Kings Caves and Blackwaterfoot

The day started with a one hour bus journey from Brodick to Blackwaterfoot along scenic roads including the Bogville pass and a little too many humps for our liking. On arrival Hannah from COAST (Community Of Arran Seabed Trust) asked us to make some model beach art sculptures which featured:

Sam the Seal

Sid the Starfish

Seb the Seahorse

and ...

Trevor the Turtle

By ten am the families descended upon Blackwaterfoot beach and began making sandcastles and even a sand whale. After this thrilling event we began searching the rock pools for marine creatures. Our findings included hermit crabs, jellyfish, whelks, periwinkle and swans (not in the rock pools)

Some of our findings

We then went on a beautiful coastal stroll towards Kings caves. We were inspired by the beauty and history of this natural structure.

The day ended with a turbulent, crowded but picturesque bus journey back to Brodick.

Holy Isle

Today we were inspired and we wrote this spontaneously:

Here, today, we traveled to Holy Isle,
On which we were met by the Abbess,
Lovingly we explored for a while,
You would find it a place you would miss.

I, myself, was grossed out by Lucy,
She was sniffing scat,
Later we learnt we would be building another Brucey,
Even you'll be excited about that!

Setting the mood for the day with a bright smile.

That is otter scat! (passionately sniffed by Jake and Lucy)

The sun delighted us with its beautiful rays and banter between us was thriving!

We would like to give a special thank you to Lucy for arranging this spectacularly fantastic day!

Chilling in the cave of St. Molaise. Check out the smile in the top left ;)

Seal Spotting

This morning we began by having breakfast followed by tidying the bunk house ready for our departure. After packing up we boarded the bus to Kildonnen. Once arriving in the coastal village, Lucy explained to use about watching marine life without disturbing the animals in the ecosystem. We were primarily looking for Eurasian otters and Common seals. Upon looking through our binoculars we managed to catch sight of seals and finally the elusive otter. Most of our group had never seen otters in the wild so this was quite a sighting, even from such a distance. following this we decided to walk along the beach in search of another otter family in the area. We spotted a variety of birds, resting seals and some otter tracks. just as we were giving up hope of finding anymore otters, Lucy caught sight of one swimming in a sheltered in-let.

Then we continued on to our new bunk house, Shore Lodge, situated in the surroundings of Brodick Castle. We decided to explore the gardens which housed a variety of both native and exotic plant. We even saw the rangers efforts to control the invasive Rhododendrons and seeing the damage this species causes, we felt inspired for Wednesday when we will join the rangers in "Rhodey bashing". We then saw the castle and ambled round the gardens taking in all of the wildlife and scenery.

Brodick Castle Posers

Bruce the Shark

The day began with a trip to the beach.  Our first insight in to Arran's wildlife came when we spotted a variety of bird life including swallows, wood pigeons, robin,wren, linnets, cormorant, oyster catchers. Our artistic skills were put to the test with the task of creating a piece of beach art better than the last groups (this was not quite the task!-Lucy) resulting in the formation of Bruce the Shark.

Initial stage...

Finishing touches...

Bruce the Great White Shark

Team Bruce

Ninety minutes of our hard graft had disappeared by the time we came back from lunch but it was okay because we had plenty to occupy us with the prospect of a big beach clean, using ltter pickers, gloves, and the motivation of the game "who can find the most random piece of litter". The day was topped off with a nice walk down the beach hoping the rain would abate. We almost got a bit of sun at the end of the day! Which was very rewarding, combined with the 13 bin bags full of litter we had collectively accumulated.

Hard at work cleaning the beach

Proud litter pickers.

A New Adventure

Kilmory Beach, next where we have been staying for the first part of our adventure.

Hi, its Lucy here again. A fantastic new team of young people have been staying with us on Arran this week, but due to the vagaries of the island's internet, we've not been able to update you about our activities until today.  So bear with us, while we update the blog with a flurry of photos and info about what we've been up to.  The first update is from Eleanor and Will:

Today our adventure began in Glasgow Central Station.  We met everyone and after an introduction we hopped on a train to Ardrossan Harbour where we caught a ferry to Brodick on the Isle of Arran, our home for the week.
An entertaining bus journey full of bumping into strangers took us to the Kilmory Bunk House where we spent the evening getting to know each other, sort of, bonding over Jake's cooking and Lucy's creative dessert.  It has been a long day for everyone traveling and people have come from all parts of the UK.  As we are all tired the evening has been quite calm and laid back.

The Arran Show

Hi, Lucy here again!  Today was the final day of our first residential and also the biggest day in the Arran calendar- the Arran Agricultural Show. The team spent the morning at the show, catching up with the rangers people from COAST that they'd been working with this week.  It was also a great opportunity to discover a bit of Scottish culture, with haggis burgers, dancing, and some spectacular beasties on show ( I don't mean the midgies). Finally, the team had a couple of hours in Brodick to get souvenirs, and for those going on to the Gold expedition, buys some supplies for the walk. I was sad to say goodbye to such a fantastic group of young people.  I wish them luck on their expeds and future plans.

Finding out about Bronze Age life with the NTS Rangers

Using a bowdrill to pierce items for jewelery.

Richard the Ranger dressed for the occasion

All of Arran was at the show......

Rockpools, marques and Colin

Beginning the day once more with a deliriously early start, we set off for Lamlash Bay in search of rockpools and the inhabitants thereof. After a short briefing by Stephenie we began our exploration of the beach.

Rachel, Becky, Jemima and Laura investigate a pool

Lucy finally makes an appearance on the blog

After a few hours of careful study, an examination of otter poo that was a little too close for comfort and a team photo we continued onwards to the site of Arran Agricultural Show to help COAST set up their marque.

A bit of manpower

 An additional unexpected task presented itself in the form of a mosaic of Curly the octopus, the construction of which tested our mental agility and physical strength.

Curly under construction

The finished article

Finishing unexpectedly early, we found ourselves once more on the Bus of Fun, this time headed back to the lodge and shortly after to the beach, where we were tasked with the construction of a team mascot. Under Lucy's masterful artistic direction, our plans began to take shape. We would construct a seal.

Adil measures out the foundations

After a laticework of rocks was designed to take the weight of the sand, work began on the sculpture proper.

Work begins

Soon, our masterpiece began to take shape.

Sophie and John begin work on the nose

After what seemed like hours of hard toil, our seal stood magnificent and proud, a testimony to our teamwork and artistic skill.

Our mascot in all its glory

And so our day drew to a close, and we retired to the bunkhouse for pizza and jelly, lovingly prepared by Jemima, Becky and Rachel.

Tom, Sophie and Alex

The fruit of our day's labors, AKA Colin

Otter Watching and cutting down Rhodedendrons

After a very unnecessary early start we caught the bus to do some otter watching with the renowned wild life explorer Lucy Wallace. We had the delightful pleasure of seeing seals,otters and lots of birds.

Sophie and Tom having a nice time

Lucy's amazing photography through the telescope. In case you are wondering it is an otter

We then caught the bus to Brodick Castle and had lunch at the adventure playground. We then proceeded to do what is described as Rhodie bashing. Which involves cutting down rhododendrons plants. This is the best fun we have had so far. And we were introduced to Richard, the Ranger.

As you can see there's nothing but smiles!

Look at that cheesy grin!

Hard at work.

The whole group

We tried to get the mighty Richard in the photo but unfortunately he didn't want to be in, but the rest of us decided to go in the picture anyway.

Laura and John

Holy Island and Kilmory Beach Clean

After a much-needed night's rest we set of on the bus (of fun) for Lamlash. From here we took the ferry over to Holy Isle where we were greeted by one of the volunteers on the jetty. Outside the Centre for World Peace and Health we were also privileged to have an audience with one of the temple's senior abbess. She told us a bit about the Island, its history and the work of the Buddhist monks.

 (For more information about the Island, click here)

We then headed up the side of the island up to the first crest, Mullach Beag, (759ft) stopping occasionally to view and discuss the local flora and fauna. After stopping for lunch we then headed to the top, Mullach Mor (1026ft), and took advantage of the stunning views. It was especially rewarding getting to the trig point here, as we were slightly disappointed not to reach the top of Goatfell yesterday due to the weather.

At the trig point at Mullach Mor

From here we made our way down to the coastal path, stopping briefly to look at the square lighthouse on the East coast. The walk was lovely and as we passed the Buddhist retreat we even heard some chanting!

Walking along the Holy Isle coastal path

As we walked back to the Centre for World Peace and Health we came across the rock paintings depicting various deities, including Green Tara.

Green Tara represents compassion and readiness to help. She is seen as a mother figure and protector for journeys.

We had a well-deserved drink back at the boat house, before catching the ferry back to the main island.

Leaving Holy Island

We then took the bus (of fun!) back to Kilmory where we had a brief stop at the bunkhouse before heading down to the beach. We then spent a couple of hours conducting a litter survey and beach clean for the Marine Conservation Society as part of their 'Beachwatch' program.

(For more information about the Marine Conservation Society and the work they do, click here)

A small selection of some of the litter we collected...

...although sometimes a dead jellyfish is more exciting than litter...

Happy litter pickers!

We then headed back to the bunkhouse for a much needed dinner cooked by our fabulous team of Sophie, Tom and Alex. Thanks guys!

Adil & Lucy

Goatfell Walk

As part of the discovery module of the John Muir award, we planned to climb Goatfell: the highest mountain on Arran.

The team at the bottom of Goatfell

After a bumpy bus ride to the start of the 3 1/2 mile track, we began the ascent. We experienced typical Scottish weather starting off sunny with a relatively warm temperature to taking a turn for the worse - with heavy rain and winds up to 50mph.
But before the rain began, we had the chance to encounter the stunning Arran scenery and got some brilliant photo opportunities.

Once back in the sunshine, we took advantage of the change in weather and the local cheese shop, where we treated ourselves to some well deserved ice cream. After a rather tiring day, we are having a high-calorie tuna pasta bake and we look forward to preparing for tomorrow's activities.

By Rachel, Becky and Jemima