Tag Archives: trail

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Loch Ness From The Great Glen Way

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Loch Ness From The Great Glen Way
“Loch Ness From The Great Glen Way” — The view of Loch Ness from the high route of the Great Glen Way between Invermoriston and Drumnadrochit/Lewiston.

Scotland’s Great Glen Way, an 80-mile walking route between Fort William and Inverness, follows a nearly-straight valley or glen that runs from the southwest to the northeast. There are three lochs (or lakes) along the Glen — from south to north they are Loch Lochy, Loch Rich, and Loch Ness. They are interconnected via the remarkable structures of the Caledonian Canal, and watercraft can travel from end to end. Loch Ness, at the north end, is both the largest and the most famous of the lochs, in part because of the “Loch Ness Monster” tales. (I marvel at how the Scots can build an economy around Nessie, a non-existent thing!)

On this day’s walk — a long and exhausting one! — we traveled from Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit and its neighbor, Lewiston. This was one of the four days on which we had Loch Ness to our right. (Well, on one of them we hiked the section in reverse, so the loch was to our left.) Yes, it is that long! This view is from a section of the path that rose into forests high above the valley.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: People In Landscape, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Hikers, Great Glen Way

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Hikers, Great Glen Way
“Hikers, Great Glen Way” — Two hikers at treeline on. a foggy morning along the Great Glen Way, Scotland.

This photograph comes from a section of Scotland’s Great Glen Way between Fort Augustus and Invermoriston This segment includes one of the two highest points on the walk, and is also known for including the “View Catcher” structure. I made the photograph close to that actual high point, on a morning when it was trying to rain and fog was drifting around the peaks and the valley, occasionally blocking the view entirely. As we paused to make photographs — and catch our breath! — another pair of hikers walked by.

The Scottish weather on our trip was actually quite varied. At the start it was, or so we were told, unusually warm and sunny with highs around the 70 degree mark at times. The Scots seemed pleased, if a bit surprised. But things changed a few days into our trek, and there was a fair amount of walking in full rain gear. We hear that this is more typical weather in this part of Scotland.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Forest Trail, Great Glen Way

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Forest Trail, Great Glen Way
“Forest Trail, Great Glen Way” — A section of the Great Glen Way trail passes through forest between Fort Augustus and Invermoriston.

One of the strongest impressions from our visit to Scotland in May was the color green. Lush, green growth was everywhere, at least by our California standards. Right now, with this summer’s heat in our state, those cool, damp, green days in Scotland are a very pleasant memory! This little section of the trail between Fort Augustus and Invermoriston is typical — green on the ground, dense green forest on either side, and fog and mist in the air.

This day’s Great Glen Hike hike was a bit surprising in that much of the first part was on alternate routes. One thing we learned about the “Way” is that it isn’t really a single trail like, say, our John Muir Trail. It is more of a general route, with lots of variations and sections that are closed for various reasons — always with alternatives provided.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Old Trees, Stone Fence

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Old Trees, Stone Fence
“Old Trees, Stone Fence” — Old trees grow against a moss-covered stone wall in the forest along the Great Glen Way, Scotland.

From years of hiking in California and backpacking in the Sierra Nevada, I’m familiar with hiking in wilderness terrain. In those places the signs of human visitors are mostly subtle: a cleared area where people have camped, trails, blaze marks on trees, and occasional rustic dam raising a lake’s water level by a few feet. The experience is very different along Scotland’s Great Glen Way, the 80 mile trail between Fort William and Inverness. Here the marks of human presence are almost constantly visible. It isn’t all bad — each evening we stayed in nice lodging and ate great meals!

I made the photograph on the final day of our weeklong walk. We had assumed that it would be an easy day, since it would bring us to our final destination, it didn’t cross any high mountains, and it seemed (in a somewhat misleading way) to be short. We started in pasture-land and then entered forest… as the rain began. It continued for hours, all the way into Inverness. Here the route skirted a private forest (see the barbed wire!) lined with a very old, moss-covered rock wall.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.