Last Few Days & Exciting Things to Come....

13/11/10

Well with only a few days left on Easdale it is time for my final blog instalment from Scotland, until next time I am up here in this wonderful landscape which I am sure won't be long!!! Before we get started some exciting news, my photo of the Corryvreckan whirlpool will be published in Yachting Monthly, out on November 16th.

Well, the last couple of weeks have seen plenty of autumn storms bringing strong winds and more than enough rain! In between the storms we have been finishing off clearing the paths around the island, putting the boats away for the winter and packing. But, it has not all been work, work, work; I have managed to escape for a few days here and there. I spent two days on the Morvern Peninsula looking for otters, eagles and deer. Unfortunately the otters remained invisible on this occasion, but it makes a great reason to go back! I did see a pair of golden eagles, a roaring red deer stag, some stunning scenery and saw my first ever wild pine marten which I will never forget and has certainly fuelled the fire to photograph then in the future. I also managed to steal a few days away to see Chris before he headed off on the bobsleigh season.

Halloween saw another first for me, I carved my first pumpkin, but decided to go for the cute happy face rather than scary and one of the photos for this final instalment is of the cute and happy Pumpkini as she was named! I finally managed to get a photograph of the otter that frequents the back of the island, only taken nearly 8 months!! Well that is it from the island, so what next?

Next year is already shaping up to be a very exciting one, our trip to Madagascar is confirmed, so will be heading off to this magical island at the end of September to experience and photograph the fauna and flora. Next year will also see the first trips out to Romania for the Transylvanian Wildlife Project I am chomping at the bit to get going and hopefully get some beautiful images while the next couple of months will also see an article on lynx appearing on the website! There are also another couple of very exciting expeditions being discussed as you read this, but I am afraid I will keep you guessing for now, but keep an eye out for more details in the coming months. Right, dates have now been confirmed for the 2012 exhibition at the Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury, 3rd March to 9th June, put the dates in your diary now, it promises to be bigger, better and more exciting than ever, including some more artistic photographs of some of our favourite British wildlife!!! The next few months will also see a revamp of my website, so look out for new images etc.

If you have not read it yet, the review of the Kata elements covers that I have been trying out is now online to read, just click on equipment and scroll down to the bottom I can definitely recommend them to anyone that takes photos outside! A review of a bag coming soon. If you are on facebook and have not joined my facebook group yet, WHY NOT? Come and join in the discussions (which will be re-started once I am settled back at home). Do not forget you can also follow me on twitter, at www.twitter.com/vikspics.

Well onto the photos. A bumper set for this final instalment from Scotland including: Pumpkini, Easdale otter, a waterfall from the Morvern Peninsula, a beautiful reflection looking up Loch Sunart and a wonderful autumn image of an island in the early morning mist. That is it from Easdale, I have definitely loved my time here and made some wonderful friends that I will miss greatly and can’t thank enough for accepting me into their community, but I promise to visit soon. So until my next adventure.