What Capercaillie Mean to Me
What I can’t face is the thought of walking through Highland forests, knowing that these majestic birds are not silently … Continue reading What Capercaillie Mean to Me
Up and Down Days, Part Eight: Commitment
“…one never quite knows the mountain, nor oneself in relation to it.” “One walks among elementals, and elementals are not … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Eight: Commitment
Up and Down Days, Part Seven: The Bad Day
I think that when people talk about having ‘adventures’ we generally mean doing something active, bold, possibly a little risky, … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Seven: The Bad Day
Up and Down Days, Part Six: Cold Forged
The day I enjoyed on An Teallach with Doug, Jack and the others was one of the best hill days … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Six: Cold Forged
Up and Down Days, Part Five: The Smiddy and The Forge
Part Five: The Smiddy and The Forge In the morning gloom of another tiny hut somewhere in the Highlands, I … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Five: The Smiddy and The Forge
Up and Down Days, Part Four: Cold Mountain
Cold Mountain’s full of strange sights Men who go there end by being scared. Water glints and gleams in the … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Four: Cold Mountain
Up and Down Days Part Three: Zero to Hero
The annual Burns Night trip to Skye was usually the highlight of the mountaineering club calendar. The third weekend in … Continue reading Up and Down Days Part Three: Zero to Hero
Up and Down Days, Part Two: Muppets on a Mountain
If you’re going to do any hillwalking or mountaineering at all in Scotland, then one of the most fundamental things … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part Two: Muppets on a Mountain
Up and Down Days, Part One: The Bay of Water
For many years I’ve liked to tell people that I have an ‘up and down’ relationship with Scotland’s hills. Partly … Continue reading Up and Down Days, Part One: The Bay of Water
Lost in the Highlands
Scotland’s mountains have the power to make you feel a certain way, a way many describe as magical. The way … Continue reading Lost in the Highlands
The Silence of the Birds
In June, 1960, a group of Moray House students from Edinburgh University went on a week’s field trip to Glenmore … Continue reading The Silence of the Birds
The House of the Father, in the Valley of the Mother
David Lintern makes a personal journey to the oldest surviving Celtic ritual site in Europe, and bags a few Munros … Continue reading The House of the Father, in the Valley of the Mother
My Heart’s In The Highlands
Reflections on my Art December 2020 If you are fortunate enough to be away from cities and COVID clusters, the … Continue reading My Heart’s In The Highlands
Thoughts on The Darkest Day
Hi. If you’d rather listen to this post than read it, then here is an audio recording. The full text … Continue reading Thoughts on The Darkest Day
A Winter Camp in the Cairngorms
The night was cold but still as we left the Sugarbowl, crossing the rushing Allt Mor in darkness. Nothing stirred … Continue reading A Winter Camp in the Cairngorms
Connecting with the Mountains – A Personal Journey
“Traditionally approached from either Speyside in the north or Deeside in the south, I would not have to think too … Continue reading Connecting with the Mountains – A Personal Journey
Adventures in Miniature
No no nooooo! Arms windmilling wildly, I pull my left foot out of the thick goopy bog and try to … Continue reading Adventures in Miniature
Today Was a Gift
A few days ago the first snows of winter arrived on the mountains. There was a hard edged clarity of … Continue reading Today Was a Gift
A Glorious Cairngorms Trip Above The Clouds
Sometimes tiny details in the weather forecast are worth pursuing. Towards the end of last week the gloomy outlook was … Continue reading A Glorious Cairngorms Trip Above The Clouds
Stealing Adventures from my Back Yard
Since moving to Strathspey from Wester Ross I have taken many overnight bike trips to the glens, rivers, moors and … Continue reading Stealing Adventures from my Back Yard
Music Transcends Borders
The relationship between Scottish heritage and landscape is heavily romanticised, and it only takes a glimpse of Scotland’s beautiful locations … Continue reading Music Transcends Borders
Fishing Rods and Paintbrushes
My elder son is now old enough that I can take him out on a boat and share one of … Continue reading Fishing Rods and Paintbrushes
Swimming High in the Cairngorms
The Cairngorms National Park is a wild swimmer’s paradise. Famous for having some of the cleanest rivers in Europe, as … Continue reading Swimming High in the Cairngorms
Come Further Up, Come Further In
“Over the garden fence, behind the railway and the cherry trees, the Cairngorms are waiting. They should be more than a mere background to life.” Continue reading Come Further Up, Come Further In
Thoughts on Launching the Caledonia Collective
It’s a few days since we launched this new thing called the Caledonia Collective. After months of chat, set-up work … Continue reading Thoughts on Launching the Caledonia Collective
Kirklandbank: Our Rewilding Story
The process of rewilding is no quick fix. It’s a slow process. Rewilding is handing the reins back over to … Continue reading Kirklandbank: Our Rewilding Story
Upstream, Downstream
“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it attached to everything else in the universe.” John … Continue reading Upstream, Downstream
If You Look Deep Enough You Will See Music
The relationship between landscape, nature and our own human creativity has always intrigued me, it has indeed formed much of … Continue reading If You Look Deep Enough You Will See Music
Woods, Wood and Woodwork.
If I source, cut, split and stack wood myself, I feel I’ve earned the right to be warm in winter. … Continue reading Woods, Wood and Woodwork.
The Rothiemurchus Rant
The tune that you hear in this video is a strathspey called the Rothiemurchus Rant, taken from Angus Cumming’s book, … Continue reading The Rothiemurchus Rant
The Elder has Flowered!
Another magical tree of the Scottish Highlands, the elder has just come into bloom in Strathspey. Elder is represented by … Continue reading The Elder has Flowered!
The Oaks of Sunart
As soon as the man on the phone stopped shouting at me and hung up, I made up my mind … Continue reading The Oaks of Sunart
The Grey Coast
The Cateran Ecomuseum · The Grey Coast by Hamish Napier A poem about where my father’s side of the family … Continue reading The Grey Coast
Land the Person
It occurred to me the other day, while I was walking up a hill through long grass beneath shady birch … Continue reading Land the Person
Summer is Here
‘The House in Rose Valley’ & ‘This is July’ It was wonderful to join ace Highland fiddle player Duncan Chisholm … Continue reading Summer is Here
Glen Torridon and the Awe of Time
On a cloudy October morning in 2008, I quietly opened the door of Ling Hut, where we had arrived in … Continue reading Glen Torridon and the Awe of Time
The Whirlpool
Looping, Eddies & Pictish Words Writing about your creations and how they connect with nature inevitably throws up some unusual, specialist … Continue reading The Whirlpool
Looking Closely at Things
One of the great joys that photography can bring you is the ability to notice things that other people can’t … Continue reading Looking Closely at Things
Elm: The Tree of the Underworld
The Woods by Hamish Napier Hmmm, I wonder what kind of tree that is? The one on the corner of … Continue reading Elm: The Tree of the Underworld
A Portfolio of Water
A while ago I wrote about the wonderful way in which looking at the natural world will teach you to … Continue reading A Portfolio of Water
‘The Woods’ Video – A Collaboration between David and Hamish
This is where it all began, the first collaboration between David and Hamish on Hamish’s latest album – The Woods. Continue reading ‘The Woods’ Video – A Collaboration between David and Hamish
Wood and Water: A Passion Project from the Caledonian Forest
Over the course of a year I collected footage from the Caledonian Forest of the Cairngorms National Park to compile into a short film. I wanted to show the unbelievable diverse beauty of Scotland’s ancient woodlands, in every season and type of weather. Continue reading Wood and Water: A Passion Project from the Caledonian Forest
Introducing The Caledonia Collective
Well hello there! We figured we have to start somewhere, so we decided to write a post about who we are, how we came together, and what this is all about. Continue reading Introducing The Caledonia Collective
The Caledonia Collective 