Mark Gillespie of WhiskyCast is probably mainly known for his whisky related podcasts. However, he also produces videos and I think I probably have shared one or two of his videos before. Recently he published a video about a visit to the Port Ellen Maltings, a place not many get to see, although he kind of picked the wrong day (for reasons explained in the video):
In the video Mark mentions that today only a handful of distilleries do any of their own malting. If memory serves me right there are only about six or seven distilleries left in Scotland who do this, three of them are actually on Islay: Laphroaig, Bowmore and Kilchoman.
As during every winter Islay is being battered by storms again. Donald and his dog Lady were visiting over Christmas, just as two storms were passing over. So Donald picked up his camera and went out to film some of the action. And Lady just enjoyed being out to investigate what the storm brought:
I’ve lost count how many times a team from Islay High School / Àrd-sgoil Ìle has submitted an entry to the annual FilmG (GD/EN) competition, it’s certainly been many times. It’s an annual event where young people write, film and edit a short film in Gaelic (hence the G in the name). This year’s entry is called ‘Air Splaoid’ and many will recognise events portrait in the movie:
For those who (like me) don’t have the Gaelic, here’s the English description:
Five school friends are all packed ready to go to FilmG Awards in Glasgow when they discover the ferry’s cancelled. They set off on a trip to find alternative means of transport to the mainland and some funny things happen on the way.
You can do this on the two pages for their submission, Air Splaoid GD and Air Splaoid EN. They are both for the same film, just the text on the page is in Gaelic and English respectively. Click on the yellow ‘Vote’ button and you’re done. You can vote once a day, voting is open until February. Hopefully we will see Islay High at the awards ceremony in Glasgow on 17/February.
I must admit I’ve got mixed feelings watching this video. Over the years I’ve visited the now closed Jura House Gardens many times. I’ve walked along the shore at Ardfin at least twice. With the new private golf course (at least that’s my understanding, it’s a private course with no or only very limited public access) this is all history. At the same time the views in this video look spectacular:
So those privileged few who play golf and get a chance to play this course will certainly have a fantastic time. The ‘common’ people as well as people who prefer a rugged more natural landscape will almost certainly lose out.
A bit stuttering, a bit improvised, but I hope it gets the message across. My first attempt at New Year’s Greetings in video format. I think they call it a vlog (from video blog). I hope it’s not too embarrassing:
The first excursion to one of Islay’s neighbours since relaunching the blog and I think I’ve got a real treat for you. Jonas Igel takes us on a beautiful sightseeing tour around Colonsay with his drone, sharing some really amazing views from a two week stay:
They were filmed 10 years apart, but both are a bit older, showing Islay 33 and 43 years ago respectively. The first one seems to be some old TV footage filmed in 1983, showing Port Charlotte and a few other places on Islay in a short clip:
Going back a further decade to 1973 we can watch some fascinating old footage with some long gone history, starting with the MV Arran ferry (not to be confused with the MV Isle of Arran, which was much later) leaving from the old West Loch Tarbert pier:
The rest of the film shows a variety of familiar places, some in a way now gone: The Oa with the American Monument I believe before it became an RSPB reserve (not sure which year that happened?). Port Askaig long before it was redeveloped to what it is today. Ardbeg distillery with smoking pagodas. A brief glimpse of what I think is Western Ferries’ MV Sound of Jura. An excursion to Jura with of course plenty of deer.
The filmer seems to have also had some interest in birdwatching. I think there were a number of Whooper Swans (the quality of the footage isn’t great, making it difficult to see) and there’s some footage of the Barnacle Geese as well.
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.
Mark Gillespie of WhiskyCast is probably mainly known for his whisky related podcasts. However, he also produces videos and I think I probably have shared one or two of his videos before. Recently he published a video about a visit to the Port Ellen Maltings, a place not many get to see, although he kind of picked the wrong day (for reasons explained in the video):
I’ve lost count how many times a team from 
I must admit I’ve got mixed feelings watching this video. Over the years I’ve visited the now closed 
The first excursion to one of Islay’s neighbours since relaunching the blog and I think I’ve got a real treat for you. Jonas Igel takes us on a beautiful sightseeing tour around Colonsay with his drone, sharing some really amazing views from a two week stay: