Ribbon of Wilderness by Peter Wright sampler

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Ribbons of Wildness_2016_Layout 1 24/05/2016 19:26 Page 44 ribbon of wildness swoop westwards past Loch Arkaig and Glen Dessary into the area known as the Rough Bounds. On Sgurr na Ciche it turns northwards over a roll-call of the great peaks, including those on south Glenshiel ridge – Beinn Fhada, Stuc Mor, Sgurr Chaorachain and Moruisg, before dropping down close to Achnasheen. A circuitous route takes it to the Fannichs – by the loch first, and then to the fine group of mountains which are presided over by Sgurr Mor. Across the Dirrie More at Loch Droma, and north via Beinn Dearg, it leads on to Seana Bhraigh and into a vast emptiness of Rhidorroch Forest and the Cromalt Hills to the head of Strath Oykel. The magnificent wildness of Inchnadamph Forest takes in Breabag, Conival and Beinn Leoid, with the steep drop through rough woodland to the pass between lochs More and Merkland. And, with a final flourish, it takes in a great horseshoe over Carn Dearg and onto Ben Hee. The Northland March The Vikings came this way and left their mark in the place names, the Clearances came too and left the glens largely empty of people, and the wealthy from elsewhere sought a tax-break in the alien forests they planted. Neil Gunn celebrated the landscape in his writing though, and told us of the wide skies and light which this northland boasts. Whilst not the shortest of the Marches, at 180km, its average elevation of just 240m brings it down gently to the final headland, with its vistas across the Pentland Firth. The descent from Ben Hee onto the moors at the start of the Flow Country is steep and ragged; a last rocky encounter. There are fewer landmark hills here, though the scattered peaks make a bold statement in an otherwise flatter landscape. Some large peat bogs dotted with lochans take the Watershed on a southward line past Loch Fiag to Crask and its lonely but hospitable inn. Eastwards from there, it trails through Ben Armine Forest, which like so many such forests is more for deer than trees, and round above Loch Choire, to Truderscraig, with its many archaeological sites. Ben Griam Beg 44
Ribbons of Wildness_2016_Layout 1 24/05/2016 19:26 Page 45 introduction looks down over a large area of the Flow Country which the rspb has taken into its enlightened custody. The Knockfinn Heights follow, and then almost 30km of blanket bog with Ben Alisky barely rising above the heather before the a9 is reached just north of Latheron. A meander across the flat lands of Caithness by Spittal, Bower and Slickly follows, and the end is almost in sight, with the last 5km along the cliff tops leading to Duncansby Head itself. Ribbon of Wildness is offered as an introductory guide to the Watershed of Scotland, and also to the Ribbon of Wildness Route, with the identification of its place in the landscape and in history, and its unbridled value to us today. It teases out some of its characteristics, both simple and subtle, and maps out the many ways in which its wilder nature contributes so much to the wider Scottish landscape and, potentially, our understanding of it. This book poses many questions too, some of which are addressed within these pages, and some will come out of the response to Ribbon of Wildness, whilst others will find resolution at a highly personal level for each reader who treads lightly. The potential spiritual dimension to every encounter with wildness is both individual and unmistakeable. There is much in the way of both interest and incident to pull together and record for the first time; this book is a celebration of that diversity. In adding the whole of this major geographic feature and its highly distinctive character to the Gazetteer of Scotland, it will set out a process for popular involvement in building up a comprehensive body of knowledge about its largely continuous wildness; and the unique contribution it should make to the lives of the people of Scotland and our visitors. The following chapters invite you to make a journey for your - self, one which will certainly be novel, hopefully will be filled with interest and enjoyment, and resonate with the sights and sounds of all that is best in our remoter countryside. One frustration is that distances to be walked along the Watershed, and indeed the exact length of it, are hard to calculate with precision. The line is of course organic, as it flows with the 45
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Ribbon of Wilderness by Peter Wright sampler

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