Thursday 31/08/06

Reasonably nice morning, which preambles the second day of lectures on the Hebridean Book Festival. Mrs B is not joining me on the two sessions I booked on. After updating the journals regarding Hurricanes John and Ernesto, I am still waiting for confirmation by the Walking World crowd that they have actually reserved a number for my latest submission, the walk round the Castle Grounds I mentioned two days ago (29th). At 2pm, I sit down in An Lanntair to listen to Adam Nicolson, the owner of the Shiant Isles. His subject matter is Hebridean Seas, his experiences with his first boat and the man who built it. Adam also discusses at length the Stream of the Blue Men, the strait between Lewis and the Shiants (8 miles wide), which is notoriously difficult and dangerous. Apparently, a submarine ledge juts up from the seafloor (450 ft down) to just 70 ft below the surface of the water. The body of water that comes down through the Minch has to squeeze itself over said ledge, so you can imagine what the water looks like. He also tells the tale of the birlinn [old age boat] which crossed from Lewis to Skye, a distance of 30 miles, when a crow alighted on the beam of the boat. When someone shooshed it away, the boat came to sink in short order. A crow is a symbol of death in the islands. After Mr Nicolson finishes, I return to Newton to read papers and do shopping. The second session includes Bill Lawson, international expert on genealogy; John Love, a representative of SNH (Scottish Natural Heritage) and John Randall. Subject matter here is myth and fact around St Kilda. This archipelago was evacuated in 1930, at the request of the inhabitants. An extensive cloud of myth has blown up around life on the island prior to their abandonment, and it depends quite heavily whose books you read as to the perspective. The concept of Noble Savages crosses the table, and there is always this appeal of the distant island and the primitive way of life. The issues of infant mortality (lack of hygiene), which families lived there before and after an outbreak of smallpox nearly wiped everybody out. John Love had a meagre 10 minutes, after John Randall started off with a 30 minute talk - bit too long. Bought a book about the Highlands & Islands clearances, which will be discussed on Saturday. Another quiet evening is spent reading papers. Summer is over - tomorrow, it'll be September.