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Ladies’ Climbing
Julia Bradbury is in Glencoe discovering the challenges faced by women climbers a century ago. She meets two members of the oldest women’s climbing club in Scotland – the Scottish Ladies Climbing Club - including Rhona Weir, who at 92 years old is still active in the hills. Then, led by climbing archivist Alison Higham, Julia takes on the challenge of scrambling in a skirt and hat, as ladies would have done in the early 1900s. But she quickly discovers that skirts and climbing are not an ideal partnership.
Find out about Scottish ladies’ climbing -
Matt On The West Highland Line
Matt Baker boards the West Highland steam train at Fort William and travels in Victorian style to Banavie and then Glenfinnan. On the way he passes over the towering Glenfinnan viaduct, which was made famous by the Harry Potter films. At Banavie he visits an eight-gated lock, the “Neptune’s Staircase”. This is a vital part of the Caledonian Canal, a continuous waterway of canals and sea lochs connecting Fort William to Inverness. At Glenfinnan, Matt climbs an ancient Lochaber pine to harvest pine cones.
Learn more about the Caledonian Canal -
Adam And The Alps Part Two
This week Adam continues his journey in Switzerland. Every year more than 1000 sheep are brought down off the Swiss Alps in Valais. As Adam’s been discovering, they cross some treacherous terrain and finally reach the homecoming festival that is celebrated by lots of spectators. The flock spends the night in an old stone enclosure and the following day the farmers sort through and claim the sheep that belong to them. The black-nosed ewes are unique to this area and have a thick long fleece that has allowed them to survive the harsh mountain conditions. Adam manages to get up close with the back-nosed sheep which are unique to this area.
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Jules Seeks Out 'Scottish Coral'
Jules Hudson heads to the Sound of Arisaig to discover one of the Scottish west coast’s best-kept secrets. Maerl is a red coral-like seaweed which thrives on the sea bed of the shallow coastlines and lochs of the Western Highlands. It plays a vital role in nurturing young fish and scallops. Jules explores this protected maerl habitat by sea kayak. Then he meets marine biologist, Jane Dodd, as she surveys the Sound of Arisaig using an underwater camera. Jules also finds out why maerl plays a part in creating west Scotland’s iconic white sandy beaches.
Discover more about maerl -
Kids And The Countryside
The National Trust is running a campaign to re-connect children with nature, but how easy is that going to be? To find out, Tom Heap heads to Plymouth to meet the Carrington family. They’re too worried to let their children go and play in the woods on their own, but Tom finds some other safe and supervised ways that can enjoy the great outdoors, whether that’s on the land or in the sea. But will they like them?
Find out more about the National Trust’s campaign
IMAGE: Courtesy of the Carrington family -
Crofters And Bothies
While walking near the Duror Forest, Julia takes shelter from a storm in a traditional bothy, which provides simple overnight accommodation for walkers. She learns bothy etiquette from the Mountain Bothies Association’s John Arnott as well as some of the history of the buildings they renovate for use by hill walkers. Many bothies used to be crofters’ dwellings, but were abandoned over the years as shepherds deserted the hills. Julia discovers that the tradition of crofting, or small scale farming, is one that many in Lochaber are keen to preserve. She meets Ian McTaggart and his apprentice Seymour McLeod, as they herd their cows on the common grazing of Glencoe village.
Find out how to become a crofter
Credits
- Series Producer
- Teresa Bogan
- Presenter
- Matt Baker
- Presenter
- Julia Bradbury
- Presenter
- Tom Heap
- Presenter
- Adam Henson
