Highland Games
We had heard before of the notable history of the Highland Games of Scotland. And as we had learned from the harbour master in Tobermory, that they will be taking place here on Thursday, there was no way for us to miss the chance out to see for ourselves.
As the event was still 2 days away, we decided to sail over to the island of Coll. Here we hoped to see something of the wildlife of the Hebridies.
Coll
On this remote island of Coll we anchored in Loch Eatharna, noted to have a good holding ground. We used our stern anchor, which can be released and pulled in without a winch. We expected a quiet island with a variety of birds and this is what we found here. It was a pleasure watching how the pretty sea swallows, in spite of their small size, dive down on seagulls to startle them to release their catch. And on our way we were once again accompanied by a group of dolphines.
Highland Games
We followed the bag pipers marching from the harbour to the games field, where competitions in piping and dancing of Highland reels and all sorts of sporting competitions had already started. The most iconic event on the field was the throwing of heavy weights such as actual canonballs, huge hammers and even tree logs by sturdy men in kilts. These games have a lot to do with the Highland clans as the tradition goes back to the time of Bonnie Prince Charly and the Jacobites. In those days men competed in athletics while passing time between battles. This kept them strong and healthy, both in body and soul. Their defeat in 1745 brought with it the ban on many cultural traditions like playing bagpipes, wearing kilts and it included the highland games.
We are now about to round Ardnamurchan Point, the westernmost point of the Scottish mainland. Here opens up a new landscape for us: the Small Isles and the Cullins of Skye. These are even more remote islands of the Inner Hebrides. I guess there won‘t be any internet coverage… so it will take some time untill you will hear from us next.
4 Gedanken zu „Highland Games“
Ihr habt etwas sehr Besonderes gesehen. Wir wären gerne dabei gewesen. Mit meinem Glück, hätte ich wahrscheinlich eine Kugel abbekommen.
Es macht große Freude, Eure Berichte zu lesen… weiter so!
Ich wünsche Euch weiterhin einen positiven Verlauf Eurer Reise.
Liebe Grüße von Heri
Thank you for the desription of your impressions and the amazing pictures! Above all the seagulls, sea swallows and dolphins made my biologist heart beat faster.
I often remember the novels „Outlander“, which I read several years ago, nowadays filmed by Netflix. It’s good to see, that my imaginations correspond to the reality.
I’m looking forward to your next post.
Sincerely
Angelika
Thank you again for your info and pictures! Very interesting! Although interesting, that people can try to ban or even destroy your culture and just a couple of 100 years later it can be reestablished! Never give up!