Another drone video of Islay, some nice beautiful sunny views in this one. Good views of a big surf in Machir Bay. Interesting views from under some of the old bridges, something not seen before. Enjoy:
Tag: Machir Bay
A belated look back at the Islay walking week 2017
In April I went to Islay for the Islay walking week and more. For various reasons I haven’t got round to write about the week so far, better get my act together now. As hoped it turned out a great week, even the weather largely held up.
Not having been on Islay for a year due to my heart operation I only went on three walks this time, freeing up some time for other activities. One was taking pictures of the remaining red phone boxes on Islay before they disappear. Here’s one of them at Ardbeg:
But back to the walking: As mentioned I went on to three walks, the opening walk on the Oa, the long walk out to Bholsa and the excursion to Jura. I had considered going to Colonsay and Oronsay, but having been so many times already I changed my mind and in the event the ferry was cancelled that day anyway.
The walk on the Oa was beautiful, the weather turned out better than expected and the Sun came out for the most important part of the walk along the steep cliffs (a very heavy rain shower arrived just as we got back to the road and were arranging transport back to the cars, couldn’t have timed it much better). While it was hazy for most of the time the views were impressive. It even cleared up for a short time and we could see over to Ireland.
The walk to Bholsa in the far north of Islay was educational, as it was led by geologist and book author David Webster. He explained how the landscape had formed, where the rock formations came from and much more. Some of the rocks are of volcanic origin, were once 1,800°C hot and located in what’s Iceland today (hope I remembered that correctly).
The last day took us over the Sound of Islay to Jura for a walk north along the shore. From Carragh an t-Sruith lighthouse we looked over to the construction site of the future Ardnahoe distillery. Unfortunately some quite heavy rain set in soon after we left the lighthouse after lunch, ruining some of the best photo opportunities. I’ll have to revisit this during my next visit. Luckily the rain stopped and by the time we returned to Port Askaig the Sun had come out and we could sit out in the garden for an after walk drink and look back at a great week.
On my non-walking days I was busy with a variety of other activities, including catching up with friends, visiting Bruichladdich and Laphroaig distilleries, visiting Islay Ales brewery, trying out the new Peatzeria pizzeria, walking on the beach in Machir Bay as well as Saligo Bay and birdwatching at Gruinart.
In summary, a great week! Looking forward to both my next Islay visit in June as well as the Islay walking week 2018.
New video: Beach walking on Islay
Just back from Islay, a report from the walking week and what else I was up to last week will follow in the coming days. For now just a very simple video, the views when walking along Kilchoman Beach in Machir Bay on the west coast of Islay:
Yes, over 5 minutes of not much happening (well, apart from the waves rolling into Machir Bay and breaking as they approach the beach). I hope you find it enjoyable and relaxing. In a way a follow up to the Do nothing on Islay for 3 minutes post from a few years ago.
New Islay video: A Whirlwind Tour of Islay
Announcing the relaunch of the blog this morning I hinted there might be a second ‘Christmas present’ coming up. Having only finished editing it late in the evening on Christmas Evening I still had to upload it this morning. But it all worked out and I can proudly present my latest Islay video. It’s a bit different from the videos I’ve made previously. To start with it has music. Then it’s monochrome. And it’s quite fast paced. A bit of an experiment, I’m very curious to see what people think. Here it is:
In 4.5 minutes I’m taking you on a quick journey around Islay, taking in as much as possible in such a short period. Admittedly some of the selections were influenced by the availability of footage, in other areas I had to make difficult choices what to show and what to omit. Here is a list of the places you can see in chronological order:
- Port Ellen buoy
- Port Ellen lighthouse
- Port Ellen warehouse
- Port Ellen houses with passing Islay Coaches
- Port Ellen Maltings
- Port Ellen pier/marina and village
- Laphroaig approach from loch
- Laphroaig smoking pagoda
- Laphroaig stills
- Dunyvaig castle and Lagavulin
- Lagavulin distillery
- Bowmore distillery approach from sea
- Bowmore Main Street
- Round Church
- Barnacle Geese in front of Port Charlotte
- Barnacle Geese at top of Loch Indaal with Paps of Jura
- Bruichladdich approach from sea
- Bruichladdich over distillery
- Bruichladdich spirit safe (making Port Charlotte spirit)
- Past Loch Indaal lighthouse to Port Charlotte
- Port Charlotte pier from above
- Port Charlotte Main Street towards Port Charlotte Hotel
- Loch Indaal lighthouse with breaking waves
- Waves breaking over Port Charlotte pier
- Saltire flying in Portnahaven
- Rhinns of Islay lighthouse and fishing boat
- Seal in Portnahaven
- Waves breaking near Port Wemyss
- Single track road towards Kilchoman
- Approaching Kilchoman Church
- Ruin of Kilchoman church from the air
- View of Machir Bay
- Beach view in Machir Bay
- Otter in Machir Bay
- At the wreck in Machir Bay
- Above the wreck in Machir Bay
- Breaking waves in Saligo Bay
- Waves blown back by wind in Saligo Bay
- View towards Sleeping Giant / Opera House Rocks in Saligo Bay
- Saligo Bay from the air
- Barnacle Geese feeding at Gruinart
- Barnacle Geese lifting off at Gruinart
- Barnacle Geese over the Gruinart marshes
- Barnacle Geese over grazing cows
- Approach to Finlaggan from the air
- View of the house ruin at Finlaggan from the air
- MV Hebridean Isles arriving in Port Askaig
- Passing McArthur’s Head lighthouse
I still think that’s quite impressive for 4.5 minutes, also a sign of how much Islay has to offer. It might be too fast and hectic for some, but then it might be exciting and fresh for others. I’m normally not a big fan of music for videos (certainly for my videos) and prefer more natural sounds, but here it felt appropriate so I used some. To avoid any rights issues (not to mention that the lyrics I feel often don’t really fit) I didn’t use any big hit(s) known to many but used some free music offered by Google. No lyrics, so no risk of conflict there either. The style of music will probably not be to everyone’s taste, I like the speed and energy in it.
Now it’s over to you, I hope you enjoy and like the whirlwind tour of Islay. Let me know what you think.