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 on the day. The decision about the following days location is usually made the evening before when the most up-to-date weather forecasts have been studied.
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.
The circumambulation of Stac Pollaidh follows a well-maintained footpath which winds its way up the east side of the mountains and retuns by a path on its west side. A one hour walk will take us to the top where views over Loch Sionascaig, Quinag, Suilven and Cul Mor are amongst the finest in Scotland. We will spend the rest of the afternoon exploring 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.
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.
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 protected from wind and rain.
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 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 aluminium.
Lenses – like cameras, these come down to personal choice and ultimately 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 normally account for 90-95% of the images taken. Another popular combination is 24-105mm and 100-400mm. Some photographers prefer to work with prime lenses which can offer improved performance at their designated focal lengths, however, the penalty is increased weight.
If macro or photographing details within the landscape appeals to you then a 90 or 100mm Macro lens is 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 contrast locally. They come in a variety of gradations and in my experience, the most useful is a 0.6 soft and 0.6 hard. There are now many brands of graduated filters available, however, those manufactured by Lee Filters exhibit excellent neutrality. They also offer a professional filter holder which allows the gradation to be moved within the holder, relative to the horizon.
Backup and storage – Ensure that you have adequate memory cards and ideally a means of backing up your work, either to a laptop or iPad. This will also allow you to see what you have shot each day and will facilitate feedback on your images.
Remote release – essential to eradicate camera shake when the camera is mounted on a tripod.
Lens cloth – a lens cloth is useful for removing rain.
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.