Easy straightforward hiking generally over good trails with no major ascents. The days are fairly leisurely and we spend about 6-8 hours outdoors. Terrain is mainly on paths or hill trails which may be muddy underfoot in places. Daily walks are mainly glens or coastal hikes with some ascents up to 450m (1500ft).
Ardvreck House is modern, spacious property with a large lounge area and which commands great views across Loch Broom to An Teallach. Bedrooms are located on the upper level and each guest will have private accommodation with en-suite facilities. Dinner is at The Ceilidh Place where the best seasonal produce from the Highlands is served. The restaurant has a ‘Fairtrade’ status and a policy of buying the best of local produce too. The restaurant offers an excellent choice of wines, beers and whiskies.
The particular feature about the mountains in this north-western world is their individuality. The most famous lie north, such as the jagged Quinag and the ancient mass of Ben More Assynt, with Canisp and Suilven beyond Inchnadamph. Suilven is a remarkable mountain, and anyone with a taste for geology could spend a few days here in a dream of Lewiswian gneiss, Cambrian quartzite, and Torridonian sandstone.
Overlooking An Teallach, our base at Arvreck House is perfectly situated to access the landscapes of Assynt and Coigach. Locations have been carefully chosen to provide a blend of landscapes and seascapes which often bestow ethereal beauty and provide the photographer with rare opportunities. During the course of the workshop, there will be tutorials and a group critique session.
Below is a typical itinerary, which inevitably will change to take advantage of the optimum weather conditions each day. The decision about the following day’s location will be based on the forecast that evening. Should weather conditions preclude a pre-dawn ascent of Stac Pollaidh we will ascend when conditions are more suitable.
Colin will meet you underneath the main display board in the arrival hall at Inverness Railway Station at 0830 on Wednesday morning. Inverness is a small station so it will be easy to identify Colin. On the final day of the workshop, we will return you to Inverness Railway Station at 1500, allowing clients to connect with the rail services south.
After the group has met, we will head for Torridon where we will spend the morning in Glen Torridon. After lunch, we will continue to Loch Maree where we will have the opportunity to photograph Slioch from a variety of locations. We will depart around 1530 for Ullapool following the coast road via, Gairloch and Poolewe, to arrive at Ardvrek House around 1730.
Today we will drive north to Clachtoll where the white sandy bay gives way to a rocky foreshore. The beach is partially composed of beautiful boulders composed of Torridonian sandstone and Lewisian gneiss – the building block of the north-west Highlands. After lunch, we will head for Stoer Head Lighthouse and take a short walk across the moorland, which gives superb aspects back towards the lighthouse and the cliffs. If weather permits, we will continue on to the Old Man of Stoer. On our return, we will stop at a high-point which overlooks the mountains of Assynt and Coigach – Canisp, Suilven, Cul Mor, Cul Beag, Stac Pollaidh and Ben Mor Coigach can all be seen, linearly, on the horizon.
An early rise for the pre-dawn climb of Stac Pollaidh. A well-maintained footpath winds its way up and takes around one hour to reach our location on the north facing slope. Views over Loch Sionascaig, Quinag, Suilven and Cul Mor are amongst the finest in Scotland, particularly at sunrise. We will return to Ardvreck House for breakfast at 1000 and in the afternoon will explore the headlands and coral sands of Achnahaird Bay.
After breakfast, we depart for Garvie Bay – a 45-minute walk across the moorland takes us to a secluded beach where Suilven creates the perfect backdrop to the foreshore. After lunch, we will head back to Achnahiard follow the path along the cliff-tops overlooking Enard Bay. Here the views across the sea towards the Assynt mountains create a spectacular backdrop – Suilven, Cul Mor, Stac Pollaidh and Ben Mor Coigach punctuate the horizon with their enigmatic shapes.
After checking out, we will drive to Dundonnell and ascend a high point, which gives unbroken views towards An Teallach. The well-wooded area has stands of mature trees, which eventually give way and the An Teallach Massif is revealed in its entirety. A 1300 departure will facilitate arrival at Inverness Station around 1500 where the workshop will conclude.
An early rise for the pre-dawn climb of Stac Pollaidh. A well-maintained footpath winds its way up and takes around one hour to reach our location on the north slope. Views from the top, over Loch Sionascaig, to Suilven and Cul Mor are spectacular and it is, without doubt, one of the best locations in Scotland, to witness a sunrise. We will return to Ardvreck House for breakfast at 1030 and in the afternoon will depart for a moorland walk which takes us to a secluded beach overlooking Suilven.
After breakfast, we depart for Achnahaird Bay where we will follow a path along the cliff-tops overlooking Enard Bay. Here the views across the sea towards the Assynt mountains create a spectacular backdrop – Suilven, Cul Mor, Stac Pollaidh and Ben Mor Coigach punctuate the horizon with their enigmatic shapes. After lunch, we will take a moorland walk to Garvie Bay where a variety of photographic opportunities await.
On our final morning, we will ascend a high point, which gives unbroken views towards An Teallach. The well-wooded area has stands of mature trees, which eventually give way and the An Teallach Massif is revealed in its entirety. A 1300 departure will facilitate an arrival at Inverness Station around 1500 where the workshop will conclude.
This trip starts and finishes in Inverness. For train time-tables, costs and reservations follow these links:
Colin will meet you underneath the main display board in the arrivals hall at Inverness Railway Station at 0830 on Wednesday.
At the end of the workshop on Sunday, we will return you to Inverness Railway Station at 1500.
The trip price is £1450 per person
THE PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE:
The ability to respond to Scotland’s changeable weather with appropriate clothing will enhance your enjoyment. The key is to bring comfortable clothing, which will maintain your body temperature under a variety of weather conditions.
If you are at all susceptible to the cold, a down jacket or windproof fleece is the most effective way to keep warm and can quickly change your mental outlook.
Cameras – Camera equipment is very much a personal choice and is dependent on individual preference, budget, and experience. Whether you shoot with a 35mm DSLR or a mirror-less system is unimportant. What is important, however, is that you are familiar with your camera’s layout and menu structure and the difference between shooting modes. An understanding of the relationship between shutter speed, aperture and ISO is essential.
Camera bag – bring a camera bag that allows you to comfortably carry your equipment over rugged terrain. Backpacks distribute the weight between your shoulders and hips making walking much easier than a bag with a shoulder strap and are normally weather-proofed.
Tripod – the ideal tripod needs to be light enough to carry comfortably but sufficiently robust to be used in winds. A tripod engenders a more contemplative approach to the photography and allows the use of slower shutters speeds. A wide range of models are available from Manfrotto and Gitzo and for more advanced photographers, carbon fibre tripods offer a lighter weight solution but essentially do the same job as those made from aluminum.
Lenses – like cameras, these come down to personal choice and will be determined by the type of subject matter normally pursued. Many photographers choose two zoom lenses; a 24-70mm and a 70-200mm, which will account for 90-95% of the images taken with only two lenses. Another popular combination is 24-105mm and 100-400mm. Some photographers prefer to work with prime lenses which offer improved performance at their respective focal lengths however, it usually means carrying more weight. If exploring the intimate landscape interests you, then a 90/100mm Macro lens can be ideal.
Filters – The most commonly used filters in digital photography are graduated neutral density filters. These differ from neutral density filters in that they allow you to control luminosity locally. They come in a variety of densities and gradations but in my experience, the most useful is a 0.6 soft and 0.6 hard. Several brands of ‘grads’ are available but by far the best is manufactured by Lee Filters. They also offer a professional filter holder which allows the gradation to be moved within the holder, relative to the scene. A polarising filter is useful for removing reflections from water and increasing contrast. Many photographers favour Lee’s ‘Big Stopper’ which transforms water and clouds into amorphous forms by increasing the exposure by 10 stops.
Backup and storage – Ensure that you have adequate memory cards and a means of backing up your work, either on a laptop, iPad or supplementary hard drive. Bringing your own laptop will allow you to see what you have shot each day and will facilitate critique sessions.
Remote release – essential to eradicate camera shake when the camera is mounted on a tripod.
Spare batteries – cold will adversely affect battery life so make sure you have extras.
Lens cloth – useful for removing rain or sea spray.
We accept bookings online, by phone and post. Booking online is straight forward and enables us to confirm your reservation immediately. Before booking, it is important that you read the relevant Trip Dossier and our Booking Terms and Conditions. If you have any doubts regarding your suitability for a trip, please contact us.
To book online, simply click the relevant link from the trip page on our website. You will then be asked to complete the online booking form and proceed to payment. All payments made are directly through Worldpay in a totally secure environment.
For online bookings we accept payment by Maestro, Visa Electron, Visa Debit and Solo debit cards or Visa/Mastercard/American Express credit cards. Please note that there is no charge for payment by debit card but a 2% surcharge for payment by credit card. A deposit of 25% is required at the time of booking unless you are booking less than 56 days before departure. In this case, full payment of the trip price is required.
Should you prefer, you can call us with your reservation and card payment. This will enable us to confirm your place although, in all cases, we require a completed booking form (either online or by post) with details of all persons travelling. If booking by post, we accept all of the above payment methods plus cheque or bank transfer. If booking online we will confirm your booking immediately, including a copy of the Trip Dossier and an invoice for payment of the balance. If booking by any other method, we will confirm your booking within seven days of receipt.
It is a condition of booking that you are insured against medical and personal accident risks. This must include cover for the activities to be undertaken during the trip. We also strongly recommend you take out cover for cancellation and curtailment and baggage cover. We work with and recommend Campbell Irvine Insurance whose policies are specially designed for adventure holidays and are underwritten by AXA Insurance.
Insurance can be arranged directly at Campbell Irvine.