With no SPL action due to the international break undoubtly Scotland's match of the day was first v second in the First Division.  The game was watched by over 4 thousand fans in Dingwall and the home side did not disapoint beating Falkirk 3-1 to extend their lead at the top of the table!  Its great being a Ross County fan at the moment as the team have won their last seven games and have only lost one all season in the league!  Long may it continue!

A visit to Stirling and a hotel just below the summit of the hill on which its built meant an easy stroll up to anicent Stirling Castle to explore its sites!  The Great Hall and the Royal Palace have been well restored and the view out over the city was exceptional even though it was shrouded in mist you could see the Wallace Monument across the river!  Stirling is an amazing ancient city with loads to see and do!  Before leaving Stirling we took a trip to Bannockburn with its rotunda and the monument to King Robert the Bruce!

The Fife College Leisure Management year of 1994 had their annual reunion in the city of Stirling this time!  So on a beautiful Autumn day it was only a short walk up to the Wallace Monument to climb its stairs through the different rooms and seeing the massive Wallace Sword!  The view from the top was obscured slightly by the bright sunlight but a nice afternoon out anyway.  Then it was an overnight at the Stirling Highland Hotel and a great meal and catch up for everyone who attended.  This annual event is one that is always so looked forward too!

We left Torrievja in the morning for a cruise north towards Alicante.  On the way we had great costal views, dolphins swimming alongside the boat and with the glass bottomed boat saw the fish swimming under the water!  Tabaraca Island itself is just 4km long, has no traffic and is surrounded by a marine park meaning fantastic marine life beneath the surface and your not allowed to fish!  This meant a great day on the beach, wandering the island in the heat and I just loved the snorkelling and swimming with the fish!

Scotland went into the final game of their European Championship Qualifying Campaign needing to beat the World and European Champions Spain in their own backyard!  Of course this was beyond us and as usual we were so near yet so far!  But it was outstanding day with the tartan army in Alicante with the sun shining, the drinks flowing and lots of fun along the way.  The Duke and Mulligans Bar were excellent crack, the march to the stadium uphill and through the park was quality and watching the Spanish play football was a joy to behold!  We lost 3-1 but its a game that I'll rememeber forever for the sheer class of our opposition team!

A fortnights holiday on Spain's Costa Blanca was just the relaxing holiday we were needing!  The weather was great with no wind or rain just high temperatures over 25 degrees for two weeks!  Stayed in Torrievja with is salt lakes, monuments, beaches, nations park and promenade and also did a day trip to nearby Alicante with its amazing castle high above the city and its town hall!  Staying in a relatives villa was relaxing and the perfect way to enjoy the sunny weather!

Day two of Loopallu 2011 started bright and sunny before a constant downpour made under foot conditions very wet and muddy!  But it was fine for those prepared and the partying continued with the beer tent hosting Hoodja and Torridon playing live between the main acts which meant a great party atmosphere in the smaller red tent!  Meanwhile in the main tent was Rachel Sermanni, the brilliant Skerryvore, Buzzcocks, Jon Fratelli and headliners Ash who last played a pub gig in Ullapool over ten years ago!  A great day of music and partying in a great location - roll on Loopallu 2012!!!

The always eargerly anticipated Loopallu Festival in Ullapool saw it sold out three weeks in advance before the headliner had even been confirmed!  With a new bigger festival site on the edge of the village and quality bands it didn't disappoint with the first day seeing me discover Bombscare plus enjoy the Bluebells, Kassidy and Friday headliners The Feeling were just tremendous live!  A great first day completed with the Lorelei playing in the Arch Inn!

Took the Badenoch and Strathspey Tartan Army bus to Glasgow for another must win game for Scotland!  Had a few sociable drinks at the Rutherglen Bowling Club singing along to Scottish songs on CD!  Then onto Hampden Park to see former Ross County captain Don Cowie start his first competitive game for Scotland on his sixth cap!  Scotland didn't disappoint this evening dominating the game from start to finish.  Eventually we won 1-0 following a lot of changes being wasted, but hey its a win and we celebrated as the game went on, cheering on the efforts of the players!  Two vital away games now await but it doesn't look like we'll get going to Poland/Ukraine next summer!

 

Having planned for a weekend in Glasgow round yesterdays Scotland match I gave myself the target of running the Great Scottish Run for the first time!  A good course and I beat my Inverness Half Marathon time of earlier this year finishing in 2hours and 13 seconds!  The course was good getting the chance to cross the Kingston Bridge without using a vehicle, going through Bellahouston and Pollock Country Park before finishing at Glasgow Green.  A lovely day for a run too and with over 11,000 participants it was the biggest running event I've ever been involved in!

A vital day in Scotland's European Championship Qualifying Campaign!  It all started with the usual great party at the Renfrew Ferry with Andy Chung and Torridon playing live!  A bus up to Hampden Park which was sold out for the crucial visit of the Czech Republic and a fabulous atmosphere ensued!  Scotland took a first half lead through Kenny Miller but conceded near the end, however captain Darren Fletcher put us 2-1 up with five minutes to go and it all looked good!  However a very debateable penalty was awarded and the game finished 2-2.  While very disappointed Scotland aren't out yet but it looks near impossible!  It really was a must win game!  The tartan army continued the noise throughout and it was good to see Highlanders Don Cowie make his competitive Scottish debut coming on for Charlie Adam during the second half!

Having grown up in the village of Ullapool I'd never actually walked to the village.  That all changed this weekend when we left from Croick Church near Ardgay on the East Coast of the Highlands and walked 30 miles over the hills to Ullapool stopping overnight at Knockdamph Bothy on the way!  It was a long walk over tracks that went up and down but the crack was good and there was a few good stops along the way, not least at the bothy which provided shelter and plenty of laughs in the middle of nowhere overnight!  The following day walked from Knockdamph Bothy to Ullapool in pouring rain but seeing our home town was most welcome knowing we'd achieved our goal and had a hot bath waiting!

I'd always fancied walking up Cul Mor, a corbett in Assynt but never got round to it despite it being close to Ullapool.  However with two old school friends, one home from Australia set off on a nice day to climb the 849 metres to the summit!  On the way up and from the summit cairn the views in all directions north to Suliven Mountain and Sutherland, west to the Summer Isles and south to Ullapool were stunning!  A lovely part of the country and one you don't appreciate when your young but grow to enjoy even more!  A great walk and one that will be done again and again!

Following the success of the Tall Ship Festival in Ullapool in July 2011 the village didn't have to wait long for another visit.  Only this time the tall ship that visited was the biggest of them all!  Teh Statsraad Lehmkuhl from Norway arrived in Ullapool carrying 150 sail trainees.  Its the worlds largest three masted barque with a length of 95 metres!  It was quite a sight high above the villages pier!

Took the BASTA bus down the A9 to the Rutherglen Bowling Club for a pre match party before going to Hampden Park to see an impressive Scotland performance against highly rated Denmark!  The crack on the bus south was great and then the pre match party with Amy Henderson on the box and Matthew Cameron singing was great plus plenty of tartan army tunes.  Then it was onto Hampden Park the national stadium to see Scotland play very well and win 2-1 with goals from Charlie Adam and Robert Snodgrass with their first ever international goals.  Highland hero Don Cowie came on the park after just 20 minutes and had a hand in both Scottish goals.  Great to see a Highland boy on his Hampden debut playing so well!  It sent the tartan army heading north after the game home delighted!

Day two of the Tartan Heart Festival at Belladrum 2011 and plenty of acts that were hughely enjoyable!  Starting in the Seedlings Stage with my friends band Torridon whose half hour set had the tent bouncing!  Also enjoyed Young Rebel Set, 3 Daft Monkeys, Newton Faulkner and the Dangleberries who as usual took the festival by storm.  Headliners Deacon Blue were a big name but rather disappointing with a very slow pace!  As usual there was plenty to do walking round the festival site and enjoying the amazing variety of food on offer!  Its always a great social occasion meeting friends - bring on next year!

One of the social events of the year - The Tartan Heart Festival at Belladrum by Beauly!  A great place for music, entertainment, fun, laughter and to see your friends.  Everywhere you go at this venue to bump into friends also enjoying the show!  Plenty of stages of music and debate at a great outdoor venue just a short drive from home!  I loved seeing Skerryvore again just a few weeks after their performance in Ullapool!  Also on the bill I discovered the music of Frank Turner and was blown away by veteran Scottish rockers Texas who headlined the Friday night on the Garden Stage!  Local acts Rachel Sermanni and The Stormchasers also were excellent plus debate in the tent seeing DJ T Coy interviewing Ross County manager Derek Adams! 

An afternoon at the Go Kart Track in Golspie with some work colleagues!  Hadn't been on a go kart since I left school but this was great fun!  North of Scotland Go Kart Track are fundraising to prevent costal ersoin at the Golspie track so we went for a corporate day out and enjoyed the crack tremendously!  There was some practise laps of the track before three heats and a final.  I wasn't great at it but it sure was fun going round the track at 60mph round the different corners!

The Saturday of the first Ullapool Tall Ships Festival and the carnival atmosphere continued with pipe bands, street market, ship visits on the pier, a massive Strip the Willow dance along the road, tug of war and lots more!  There was tall ships moving around the bay, a helicopter display, skiff racing and tremendous entertainment throughout which culminated with The Saw Doctors playing the Music Marquee on the pier at night!  The village was bursting at the seams and there was people in fancy dress, street entertainers and everywhere was busy.  A marvellous event which will hopefully come back again!

For the first time ever Ullapool hosted a stage of the Tall Ships Race and saw plenty of ships arriving in Loch Broom and hosted one massive party as a result!  Friday was the first day and saw the arrival of some tall ships that had been in Ireland and travelled up the west coast of Scotland from Greenock and they were heading to Shetland for the next part of the race!  Ullapool hosted a street market on the front and you could go onto the pier to view the tall ships moored there!  Took a boat trip out into the bay to the Columbian ship The Gloria for a visit!  Then at night was the music marquee with Skerryvore and The Vatersay Boys playing live!  What an amazing event with my wee home town of Ullapool just bursting at the seams with a carnival atmosphere throughout!

The Saw Doctors without a doubt one of my favourite bands returned to the Highlands to play the Ironworks in Inverness!  These Irish guys are amazing live and I last saw them just before Christmas in Glasgow!  They played T in the Park and English dates the last few night but were here in the Highlands tonight before a large Highland crowd!  A great night as always with all the classic Saw Doctors songs played!

The Scottish Golf Open was the most pretisigious event ever to come to the Scottish Highlands.  Played over five days at Castle Stuart Golf Links near Inverness Airport it saw some of the worlds top golfers perform in the Highlands.  Unfortunately the weather wasn't kind to the event but I loved the whole thing buying a season ticket in advance and enjoying watching these proffesionals ping their golf balls around the holes!  There was plenty of entertainment in the tented village and each of the 18 holes had different views to enjoy as the worlds best played!  Well done to World Number One Luke Donald on winning the event for the first time!

I've known my mates Kenny and Matthew for more years than I care to remember!  I remember their first gig as Torridon and how they developed and improved over the years!  They've played my wedding plus many amazing large gigs!  Their story continues tonight with a big crowd inside Ironworks to see them record a DVD of the show and with them live on stage including Highland dancers cavorting about the stage to their music!  Well done lads - you've come a long way!

Ed Stafford is the first man in history to walk the length of the Amazon River in South America.  From the mountain summit where the river starts through various different countries to the Atlantic Ocean over two years later he walked!  Tonight he appeared at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness to show slides and tell the stories of his amazing journey!  Also met the man and bought his book!  A true adventurer!

The first ever Inverness Boat Festival organised by a local rotary club!  It attracted large numbers to the Inverness Marina for events and stalls throughout the day!  There was lifeboats to visit, boats at the marina, balls to roll about in on top of the water, charity stalls and emergency service vehicles.  The highlight was the demonstration in the Moray Firth by the North Kessock Lifeboat and Stornoway Coastguard Helicopter which then landed on the pier so we could look round the chopper!

My first time running the Glen Moray 10 Mile road race in Forres, Moray-shire!  The race started at the leisure centre in Forres and went out into the countryside before returning to finish at the same location!  A couple of country hills along the way but good weather and arrived back in the time I predicted at 1 hour 30 minutes!  A good afternoons run!

Badenoch and Strathspey Tartan Army are ten years old so what better way to celebrate than a massive party at the Cairngorm Hotel, Aviemore to celebrate the occasion!  The party kicked with the cutting of the cake and a charity presentation before local band Tweed took to the outdoor stage to entertain the crowd.  They were followed by Adele Henderson, pipers and drummers, Bubbles the Clown, the legendary Andy Chung and the mighty Torridon!  It was great to meet up with old friends and enjoy the music and the crack!  After the outdoor stage finished it was inside to enjoy Andy Chung in the function room until late!  Definately a party that will never be forgotten!

Having been in Pittodrie Stadium, Aberdeen for many a football match it was amazing to visit to see a rock concert!  Having seen Rod Stewart for the first time last year in Inverness I was amazed to win a ticket for his only Scottish date in 2011!  So a quick journey down the A96 to see him in action did not fail to disappoint.  A great live performer singing out hit after hit had the audience well happy!  How much longer Rod will go on performing is anyone's guess but I'm delighted to have seen him play live twice!

Having made the journey to Dublin with the Badenoch and Strathspey Tartan Army it was matchday today!  Scotland and host's the Republic of Ireland battled it out for the Carling Nations Cup trophy.  A win for either side would mean winning the inagural trophy!  After a day at Oil Can Harry's pub in Dublin near the stadium it was off to the massive AVIVA Stadium to enjoy the match.  Though Scotland lost 1-0 and Ireland secured the trophy it was a good display by the team who created plenty of chances!  The AVIVA stadium is fantastic for watching sport and as we left the stadium the Irish team celebrated with the trophy!

Having flown from Inverness to Belfast the previous day it was the train to Dublin with my fellow tartan army football supporters for the Celtic Nations Cup at the AVIVA Arena in the Irish capital.  Went on a walking tour of Dublin starting at Trinity College and viewing the Old Parliament building, learning the history of the Irish, the Music Wall of Fame in Temple Bar, Dublin City Hall, Dublin Castle and its mighty cathedral!  An interesting tour learning lots about this countries amazing history.  Also visited the Book of Kells in Trinity College, Dublin which has on display books from the New Testament and the amazing "Long Room"  the biggest library in Europe which is quite something to see!  An enjoyable days walking around the sights before joining the tartan army and the locals to watch the Champions League Final on one of many massive screens in Dublin!

The plan was for a group of friends to summit An Teallach above Dundonnell in Wester Ross but the weather conditions put paid to that.  However it was still a good walk up Coir a Mhuilinn alongside Glas Mheall Mor before getting a fine view of this amazing mountain range An Teallach.  After photos and admiring the fine view for a few moments it disappeared back into the cloud and it was a walk back down with views over Little Loch Broom far below!

It was a drive north to Altnaharra before getting the single track road across to Hope!  Instead of doing the usual tourist path I took the less developed North West ridge of Ben Hope for the climb upwards.  It proved an act of genius with quality views all the way to the summit and the weather held till the summit cairn before soaking me to the skin going down the traditional trail!  This is Scotland's most northernly Munro and gave great views north out to sea including a distant view of Orkney, Ben Loyal, the village of Tounge and of course Loch Hope!  

A great day with Ullapool Hillwalking Club walking and scrambling in the Black Cullin Ridge on the Isle of Skye.  Having travelled to Skye for the weekend it was a drive this morning to Glen Brittle where the car was parked and the walk alongside the mighty Cullin ridge.  A steep walk up Coir a Ghrunnda with views behind to the Soay Sound with Eigg and Rhum islands on the horizon.  On reaching the top of the coir it was a great spot at Loch Coir a Ghrunnda before summiting Sgurr nan Eag at 924 metres!  Then went round Caisteal a Garbh Coire, up Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn before summiting Sgurr Dubh Mor at 944 metres!  This was definately the hardest Munro I've ever climbed with scrambling and pulling myself up rock faces to reach the summit!  There was fine views over the highest of the Cullins Sgurr Alasdair as well before heading back down after a great days walking!

Many times I've driven up the A835 road going to my home town of Ullapool and passed Loch Glascarnoch with its dam!  However I'd never climbed the munro mountain on its north end so today on a wonderful sunny day I scaled Am Faochagach and reached the summit at 954 metres!  Parked the car and crossed the track walking across an almost dry river before scaling the heights and enjoying the scenery below with lochs and sweeping valleys while all around was high hills and mountains of Wester Ross.  From the summit cairn could even see Suliven in Sutherland and the walk gave amazing views of the first Munro I ever climbed Ben Dearg when I was still at school many years ago!   A great walk and one I'd do again!

The annual Player of the Year Dance held for Inverness based County supporters took place in the Crown Court Hotel with Scott Boyd winning Player of the Year and Jonathon Flynn winning the young player award.  The night was supported well with virtually the whole playing squad attending along with manager Jimmy Calderwood and his backroom team!  The fans had a chance to get their hands on the recently won Challenge Cup trophy and dance the night away to the Impact band!

Scotland played England in a schoolboy international at Tulloch Caledonian Stadium, Inverness in the annual Centenary Shield and beat the Auld Enemy 1-0 with a goal from Stuart Love!  About 500 fans turned out to see the game in the Highlands and watched an entertaining game after the Sutherland Schools Pipe Band blasted out Flower of Scotland pre match!  There was wild celebrations with five minutes to go when Love scored the header and local boy Alan Duff from Tain was involved in the build up!  It was our first victory over England at this level in 8 years and of course any victory over the team south of the border is enjoyed by the tartan army!

After five years in the making Davy Cowan released his album "The Journey" at Ironworks, Inverness to a large crowd of supporters!  He performed with his band the Stormchasers and had former Alarm front man Dave Sharp on stage too.  It was a night to enjoy his new music plus old favourites from his days with Coinneach and his solo songs!

The Inverness Ross County Supporters Club travelled down to the Challenge Cup Final by bus to Perth for the match at McDiarmid Park.  We enjoyed mixing with the Queen of the South supporters in the 208 Bar in Perth before heading for the match.  County had won this tournament once before but I missed the final through being abroad so I was delighted when we won 2-0 so I saw the team win the trophy for my first time!  The team played brilliant and controlled the whole game!  So it was a happy atmosphere on the way home as the team took the silverware back to Dingwall!

A 4.6 mile walk from Scotsburn in Easter Ross, through the remote hills to Strathrory on the Struie road near Ardross on a beautiful Spring day.  A walk along country paths and hill paths through the Highland landscape alongside the River Strathrory was a good pastime on a nice day.  During the 17th century the route was used by farmers taking their cattle to market when there was none of the modern roads of today in use!

My mother was celebrating a milestone birthday in York with her friends so me and my brother suprised her and dropped in on them.  Enjoyed  a day catching up with them, walking the historic Old City Wall, viewing massive York Minster Cathedral and then enjoying a meal in Cafe Rouge.  York was a tremendous place that was easy to walk around and see historic buildings wherever you looked! 

Scotland played the mighty Brazil at neutral London so it was traditional for the tartan army to party the day away in Trafalger Square and sing and socialise together.  The atmopshere was so friendly and the Brazilian and Scottish fans mixed outside the stadium and produced a carnival atmosphere.  Inside the Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal the view was incredible in this new stadium and the atmopshere great.  Brazil as expected beat us 2-0 but great to see them passing the ball around!  Former Ross County player Don Cowie came on as a late substitute before I headed to a local venue to see the Tartan Specials play live.  A thoroughly enjoyable day in London following Scotland with many happy memories!

Wolfstone started their 22nd year on the road with a mini tour of Scotland which culiminated in a home Highland gig at Ironworks, Inverness.  Support were former band member Ross hamilton and a Skye based band "The Cherry On the Cream" who I saw for the first time and was very impressed by.  Wolfstone's sound quality on stage was excellent with some new songs that will recorded for a new album soon were enjoyed by the Inverness crowd.  Wolfstone played some tunes with former keyboard player Struan Eaglesham which produced more sound as the keyboards was retired by the band some years ago following the sad passing of a band member!

Had run the Inverness Half Marathon twice in my twenties but it's been some time since then!  I decided to go for it again this year and trained for this event.  However I didn't count on the weather being bad in March.  Rain, snow, wind in the Highlands made conditions difficult but delighted to finish in 2 hours 1 minute and 4 seconds which was around the same time as I managed the last couple of times.  Who says you slow with age!  The race starts and ends on the riverside taking in Torbrek forest and city streets along the way!  Delighted to finish in a similar time to last considering the conditions were bad!  Delighted to get my medal at the end!

Just south of the village of Durness in the far north of Scotland is the countries most northernly hills Bein Spionnaidh and Cranstackie.  Both are Corbetts and enjoyed some fantastic weather for this walk with Ullapool Hillwalking Club!  A walk up the corry between the two hills and then it was to the summit of Cranstackie at 801 metres, slightly the higher of the two!  Both hils have rock fields on the summit and the view from the top was outstanding.  These hills certainly exceeded expectation!

A few days break with the wife in Fort William enjoying a hotel and relaxation and a good day trip driving round Lochaber seeing the Seven Men of Knoidart memorial trees, Camusdarach Beach, Loch Morar and Glenfinnan!  Took the Corran Ferry over from Fort William and reach Mallaig before heading back.  Love a few days hotel break for some R and R!!!

The Carling Nations Cup kicked off for the first time ever involving Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and the hosts from the Republic of Ireland.  So it was a three day trip to Dublin for the tournament in the AVIVA arena!  It was gonna be a great trip anyway visiting the Irish pubs and visiting Dublin Castle, O'Connell Street and Croke Park, but I'd never have dreamed we'd win 3-0 against Northern Ireland and start this tournament really well.  Competitive competition certainly saw the team come out with all guns blazing!   The oldest pub in Ireland is the Brazen head and the crack was certainly good there too!  Look forward to our next two matches in Dublin at the end of May!

A winter walk through the snow high above the beautiful valley of Strathconon in mid Ross!  Two corbetts and another top as Sgurr a Mhuilinn, Meallan Nan Uan and Sgurr a Ghlas Leathaid were conquered on an excellent day out with the Ullapool Hillwalking Club!  Cold weather where came through every season but enjoyable walk with stunning views.  Looking forward to another year of quality hillwalks!

What an amazing celebration of Hogmanay from the Northern Meeting Park in Inverness!  A first class open air tarmacked concert venue saw three Scottish bands who travel the world playing their music came home to ensure a great night at the Red Hot Highland Fling Take Two!  Blazin Fiddles opened with an hours set followed by the awesome Red Hot Chilli Pipers!  The Isle of Skye's Peatbog Faeries completed the music and there was fireworks and a countdown at the bells.  A fantastic night and the weather was kind to everyone!  Happy new Year and best wishes for 2011!

Twis the week before Christmas when snow and ice covered the whole of Scotland!  Yet it didn't stop one of the best nights of the year!  Local favourites Torridon playing the Ironworks for an hour followed by top quality Isle of Tiree band Skerryvore for a further 90 minutes of quality Scottish Celtic music!  What a night in a packed venue.  Torridon played four new songs they will soon record for their new album while Skerryvore played all the tracks from their latest offering!  An amazing night out!  Merry Christmas to everyone!!  Best wishes for 2011!

The annual BASTA Christmas Party taking tartan army footsoldiers from across the country to Aviemore for a shingdig is always a great night and great company.  2010 did not disappoint with a great meal, fun games with red and yellow cards and Irish bingo, an auction and then dancing and socialising until late with a disco and the tartan army live songs of Davie Holt!  A great night and roll on next year when BASTA celebrate their tenth anniversary!

Following the release of "The Further Adventures of the Saw Doctors" a couple of months ago this was the bands festive UK tour and the return to the amazing Barrowlands Ballroom which always creates an atmosphere.  The band have mellowed over the years meaning not as much jumping about crazily at the front but I must have too as really enjoyed the gig to the full.  Their latest album's songs were mixed with classics from down the years.  Another amazing night from the best live band around!

I've supported English Premiership team Manchester United since I was six years old but have only seen them play in non competitive action up till now!  Tonight was different a Champions League clash against Scottish champions Rangers at Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow.  Great seats high up in the Club Deck at Ibrox as watched the teams warm up, line up while the Champions League theme tune blasted out from the speakers and then watched the entertaining match as both sides attacked each other.  Man United won 1-0 with a Wayne Rooney penalty in the closing minutes which meant I went home delighted!  Manchester United qualified as group winners by winning the game while Rangers clinched third to go into the Europa League in the New Year.  A great experience seeing Man United in the flesh!

An enjoyable day trip to Hastings on the southern coast of England with the English Channel lapping onto the beach.  Just a short journey from my brothers in Kent and enjoyed the day wandering along the seafront of this busy seaside resort.  Went to the Fishermans Museum and the Smugglers Cave deep in the cliff caves.  The castle was closed but is nice on top of West Hill and to get up there you need to go on a funniculur up through the cliffs.  The town is also famous for the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and there is lots of walks celebrating the battle!  A lovely town on the south coast of England!

While down on a long weekend visiting my brother I went to Vicarage Road Stadium in Watford to see former Ross County captain Don Cowie play number 7 for Watford!  My first English league match and thorougly enjoyed the 1-1 draw with the game played at a high tempo with lovely passing football throughout.  A great experience being in the players lounge, having a great view high up in the main stand and then Don giving me his Watford shirt at the end!  As the fans sing "Come on Watford!"

The annual extravangaza at Bught Park organised by Highland Council was again a great success.  An estimated 10,000 people attended the bonfire and fireworks which lit up the Inverness skyline on November the 5th!  This was the first event of the Inverness Winter festival which goes on with entertainment through till the massive Hogmanay Party at the year end!  The bonfire is one of the biggest in the country and FIreworks Scotland performed the musically choregraphed display!

Three indivdually talented musicans took to the stage in the Ironworks for a night of fantastic music.  The Ironworks, seated is an intimiate venue perfect for the vocals of Kris Drever and Idlewild front man Roddy Womble.  Backed up by fiddler and multi intstumentalist John McCusker there was songs, tunes and great entertainment.  My first time seeing these three perform together and I'd definately go back again!

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers returned to the Highlands for the first time in around a year with two new members for their Ironworks gig in Inverness.  The band performed to a full Ironworks venue with their dancers and brass section!  Always a good time seeing this band and they performed new tunes from their latest album.  They'll be back on the big stage in Inverness on Hogmanay!

Its not every day the European Football Champions of 2008 and the World Cup Champions of 2010 come to town!  But Spain the undisputed best football team in the world came to Hampden Park for  a European Championship Qualifying Match!  The day stared at our usual haunt the Renfrew Ferry in Glasgow where Andy Duncan and Andy Chung's band provided the entertainment and ensured the tartan army were in great form pre match!  Onto the sold out match at Hampden the atmosphere inside the stadium was tremendous as we ensured a hostile reception for the Spanish team.  It was no great surprise when the Spanish were 2-0 up early in the second half but Scotland launched a great comeback to equalise at 2-2 and had Hampden just bouncing.  However the class of the Spaniards told and the ran out 3-2 winners after a pulsating match!  Its no disgrace to lose to the Spaniards, the worlds best team and the performance of the team was very encouraging after the poor game in Prague last Friday!

Having seen the Powder Tower in central Prague went on a Communisim and Nuclear Bunker tour of the city.  The history of communisim was explained in the city, how people lived under this rule, tanks had been common in Prague as recently as 1989 and the Velvet Revolution saw the end of this dictatorship!  An interesting history and then toured a Nuclear Bunker far below ground where people would have hidden had nucelar war broken out.  Tried out some of the equipment used during the cold war while in the bunker!  Then had a ghost tour in the dark round the city's spooky sites and in the Prague underground!

Enjoyed an hours cruise on the River Vltava seeing the city's sights from the water and going under the famous Charles Bridge!  Then spent the afternoon in the Old Town Square where the tartan army took over and enjoyed the atmosphere before the big match!  A trip up the Clocktower showed an incredible view of the Scottish fan's in the square below!  Then it was onto the match at Slavia Prague's stadium but Scotland played an ultra defensive formation and lost 1-0 in one of the worst matches I've ever seen!  Just as well the holiday in Prague has been good as the football was terrible!

The spa town of Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic was a two hour drive from the capital Prague towards the German border passing hops fields and brewerys on the way.  First was a visit to the Moser Glassworks where we viewed the glass blowers in the furnaces and saw the amazing range of glass and crystal the company make and sell world wide.  Then it was a walk through the town of Karlovy Vary where every building is amazing to look at in the valley with the river of warm water from the spa's flowing through it.  We viewed the different spa water sources, stood under th 17 metre giant spring and then swam in a 50 metre swimming pool made up of 30% spa water and 70% normal water.  A great day out in a beautiful town!

I hadn't been in Prague in eleven years but what a beautiful city!  Amazing buildings, easy to walk round and enjoy the sights including the splendour of Prague Castle, the amazing footbridge at Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, the National Museum and loads more.  Lots to see and do and plenty of buildings to marvel at!

I

The sixth year of Loopallu and probably the best yet as Paolo Nutinin performed years after first playing the village pub when he was sixteen!  His performance was amazing and the crowd really took to him.  Add on the Vatersay Boys and Skerryvore plus loads of other bands, plus the festival fringe in the village pubs and it was another great weekend.  The social event of the year well and truly put on the map by Paolo!

An enjoyable few days break in Oban!  An open top bus round the area including the falls at Connell and crossing Atlantic Bridge onto the Isle of Seil completely surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean!  The island is a former slate mine so slate is everywhere and a great relaxed place to walk around.  Oban itself has iconic McCaigs Tower with great views and quiet gardens.  Finished the holiday off by watching Skerryvore at the Corran Halls for a great night of music and dancing!

Having a few days holiday in Oban on the West Coast of Scotland it was only a short hop on the Caledonian MacBraynes ferry for my first ever trip to the Isle of Mull.  And where better to start than the Clan Maclean castle - Duart Castle.  Signed the Macleans visitor book and saw round the inside of the castle before enjoying views for 360 degree's on the roof.  I'd want to visit here for years so it was great to finally do it.  The sail itself to Mull was excellent spotting a basking shark beside the ferry on the way back!

A pre match tartan army party on the Renfrew Ferry featuring Andy Chung had us all in good spirits and confident ahead of our first ever match against tiny Leichestein.  However we were 1-0 down agains them before winning with a seven minute of injury time header.  The place rocked at the final whistle though it was more relief than elation at not dropping home points to a minnow of the game!

The tradegy of the Ninth Fort in Kaunas, Lithuania where 50,000 Jews were exterminated during World War 2.  This place put life in persepective.  The most amazing memorial you'll ever see with faces all over stares at you at the top of the field where thousands of bodies lie buried beneath the grass.  The old fort itself has been rebuilt to look like it did when full of prisoners of war.  It is eerie and sad and makes you appreciate where you grew up!  After heading back into Kaunas it was an afternoon enjoying the tartan army build up to the match then the game itself against Lithuania though a 0-0 draw wasn't too exciting!

Having travelled to Lithuania for the Scotland match tomorrow night enjoyed walking round the old and new towns of Kaunas.  The new town features the Avenue de Freedom a pedestrianised street which is one of the longest in Europe.  There's the famous church and down the Old Town, down Vilinus Street (same as the modern version but much older) was the White Swan, Kaunas Castle and other old style buildings.  A great wee place to wander around and enjoy the history of the country!

Myself and three mates embarked on the Strathnaver Cycle Trail from Bettyhill to Crask Inn cyling through Mackay country and passing the old settlements uninhabited since the Highland Clearances.   Having stayed overnight at Bettyhill we visited the Strathnaver Museum there and saw the Farr Stone before the journey south stopping a various landmarks along the way!  Beautiful Loch Naver was great to cycle along and we enjoyed a fine meal and accomodation in the Crask Inn at the end!

Well these dates its hard to catch up with all your mates regularly for a laugh!  It only really happens at weddings and most of us have already sucummbed to this sentence!  So a few Ullapool mates from down the years decided to mark the occasion of Glenn MacRae returning on holiday from Brisbane, Australia and 19 of us had dinner in the Arch Inn Restaurant in Ullapool!  What a great night with the a la carte menu providing excellent food in our private dining room.  The laughs and memories were superb!  While around the village the annual three legged fancy dress pub crawl raged on we sat in style and had the best of laughs!  We'll have to organise it more often as it was definately one of the events of the year!

The final day of Belladrum saw Copperdrift from Ullapool followed by an amazing set by the Dangleberries on the main stage.  Old favourites Wolfstone celebrated their 21st birthday with their first appearance at the festival by booting footballs into the crowd!  Amy MacDonald had an interesting question and answer session it the small tent too!  The Burns Unit were a new band I enjoyed and discovered for the first time.  Amy MacDonald closed Belladrum with an amazing set on the main stage followed by a fireworks display!  Roll on next year - probably the best few days of a festival I've ever been at!

The 2010 Tartan Heart Festival at Belladrum outside Beauly was an amazing success.  It sold out weeks in advance and had a fantastic atmosphere with children and families mixing with groupies and music fans!  There was a vast array of things to do besides the music including interviews, small session stages, bar's, kids play areas and loads more!  Today featured The Vatersay Boys, Stornoway, The Levellers and Feeder to name a few!  Its always a great place to meet up with friends!  I also met actor David Hayman aka DCI Mike Walker from Trial and Retribution doing work with his Spirit Aid charity!

 

I've always wanted to go to Dun Canna beach north of Ullapool but it took me 36 years despite living in the local area for half of that time!  Its a long 4 mile walk from Glutton to the beach which my neice Canna is named after!  The beach is remote and quiet and has the remains of an Iron Age Fort at its northern end!  You also get a great view of Isle Martin an island I've visited many a time!

Famous singer and tartan army footsoldier Rod Stewart played Caledonian Stadium in Inverness to 19,000 fans on his only ever Highland gig.  Blasting out his classic hits for over two hours the singer enjoyed the Highland weather (it stayed dry) and the massive crowd danced and sang along to his music!  Rhtymn of My Heart, Maggie May and We are Sailing were brilliant and his back band and dancers kept everyone entertained.  He's been on the go for 40 years so he'll not go on forever.  But the Highlands enjoyed his only ever show!

A road trip north west to Handa Island just north of the village of Scourie.  A boat trip over to the island and a 6km walk round the scenic reserve seeing its amazing bird life on the sea stacks!  View after view round every corner despite pouring rain during my visit!  Saw a family of grouse walking through the undergrowth and enjoyed a long walk round viewing the amazing sites!

While in Aviemore for the World Cup Weekend (Gathering) decided to do some sightseeing.  Had a 6km walk round Loch An Eilien near Aviemore a superb walk along the flat path that surrounds the loch.  A castle on the loch's island gives a stunning view.  Then on the way back north after the weekend took the high Dava road home and visited Lochindorb with its historic castle on the loch!

With Scotland not qualifying for major tournaments since 1998 the tartan army gathering sprung up four years ago and was repeated two years ago.  Although smaller and different now with a World Cup Weekend organised round the quarter finals of this years competition around 300 tartan army converged on Aviemore to watch the games on the big screen in the Cairngorm Hotel and have some entertainment.  Smaller scale, a lot more relaxed but good company and good crack!

Though I stayed on holidays when a child in Portmahomack I'd never walked the penisula from Tarbet Ness Lighthouse along the coast past Ballone Castle to the village of Rockfield.  Then across country to Portmahomack and up the opposite coast back to the lighthouse.  A long walk in good weather with outstanding coastal views with the UK's second highest lighthouse marking the point of start and finish!   There was also fine views north to the high hills of Caithness and Sutherland!

The annual barbecue on Isle Martin off Ardmair near Ullapool organised by the Ullapool Diving Club.  Always a good day out and after leaving Ullapool by boat it was a spell fishing off Achiltibuie before heading to the island for the night.  A barbecue and laughs with the troops before kipping down in one of the islands croft houses!  A beautiful island and a night that is always a laugh and enjoyed to the full!

Down in Fife for a long weekend in Kirkcaldy went to the Secret Bunker which was a hideout for the government should nuclear war have broken out.  Just looking like a house outside in the countryside you went down steps and a long corridor before finding a massive underground area full of rooms should the worst have happened.  Then it was onto the Fife coastal town, historic St Andrews with its Castle and Cathedral which are ancient but interesting ruins!  Then it was back to Kirkcaldy to meet my old friends who all met in that town in 1993/94 to study at Fife College (now Adam Smith College) for a night out in a place I hadn't been to in years!  Plenty of old memories stirred and plenty to talk about!

A mountain range I'd always wanted to hike up was conquered today - An Teallach.  A dangerous mountain to climb with a terrible track record was not one I was going to do alone so I went up with members of Ullapool Hillwalking Club!  It was over an hour's walk to the mountains base and then a steep ascent to the summit of Sail Liath at 954 metres.  Then it was walking and scrambling up and down with some fantastic views between mist movements to Sgurr Fiona at 1060 metres!  Then the final and highest summit on the range at Bidein a Ghlas Thuill at 1962 metres after which was a long and steep descent back to the valley below.  A long but great day with the mist adding to the atmopshere and the views!

A day I would never have even dreamed off.  My wee team Ross County from the far Highlands of Scotland in the Scottish Cup Final at Hampden Park, Glasgow.  A visit to the Park Bar last night and then the Renfrew Ferry pre match today to see Torridon play the official Scottish Cup Final song "We're On Our Way".  Having sang and rocked the Renfrew Ferry it was off to the National Stadium for the match.  An amazing 20,000 Ross County fans fitted into the West Stand and the friendly atmosphere was amazing pre match.  The song went down a storm with everyone singing pre match and it was emmotional when the players finished their warm up and clapped the County fans before the game even started!  With it 0-0 at half time and County defending well things were going well but Dundee United turned the screw in the second half and proved why they are Scotland's third best side winning 3-0.  The sea of tangerine was amazing as their fans celebrated their goals and winning the cup!  Stayed behind to see the County team get their medals at the end before heading north again.  An amazing experience that will live with me forever!  The first Highland team to ever reach the Scottish Cup Final and played in front of over 47,000 fans the highest amount ever to watch a Ross County match!

The first ever Kilt Walk from Hampden Park in Glasgow to Balloch by Loch Lomond took place the day with me and my BASTA associates walking the 26 miles in 7 hours.  The walk started at Hampden Park and went along the River Clyde and then an old railway line to Clydebank where it joined the Forth and Clyde Canal to Dumbarton and then down the River Leven to the finish at Loch Lomond.  With some amazing views on the way and loads of landmarks passed including the Finnieston Crane, Clydebank Crane, Slinty Bridge and under the Erskine Bridge.  Thanks to everyone who sponsored me to over £500 which goes to the Tartan Army Children's Charity!

It was a delight to see my favourite Irish band The Saw Doctors back in the Highlands playing the Ironworks.  Last time they played this venue I was away and missed it so it was great to see them again.  They always get the crowd going and the sold out Ironworks didn't disappoint with the band and the crowd really up for it!  Great night with the normal classic songs and about four new ones off the new album that will be released shortly!  Haste ye back!

We went to Glasgow on the train hoping to see Ross County give a decent display in the Scottish Cup Semi FInal against Celtic at Hampden Park.  We came out of the stadium after a historic 2-0 win that sent shock waves around the world!  The wee team from Dingwall took a 7000 crowd to Hampden who were celebrating wildly after goals from Steven Craig and Martin Scott beat the 35 time Scottish Cup winners and meant we now face Dundee United in the final next month.  The cup run this season has been a dream and words can't describe what it was like to beat Celtic at Hampden Park in our first ever Scottish Cup semi final.  There was plenty of celebrations on the train on the way home!

The Dangleberries who I first saw at Loopallu last September returned to the Highlands to play a Saturday night at Ironworks.  Their 12 band members blasted out their pipes and drum tunes and songs in their usual high energy way.  Popular Scottish songs and tunes with their own rocky additions make their sound something new and their mad tamborine player fair got round the stage and indeed the crowd.  A great live band who put so much into their performance!

The Treacherous Ochestra a 13 piece band of musicans from various other bands played the Ironworks for the first time to pump out their unique sound.  Some quality musicians with different instruments including pipes, drums, fiddle, guitars, flutes, whistles, accordion and lots more gave their Highalnd audience a great night of instrumental music.  Their sound is totally unique and had the crowd in a frenzy!

The brilliant Scottish singer Amy MacDonald played her second gig at Ironworks, Inverness but it was my first occasion seeing her live.  I wasn't disappointed with her singing the classic songs that we hear daily on the radio to a sold out Inverness crowd.  The crowd went nuts when she sang the classic "Mr Rock and Roll".  It was the first night of her latest tour so she tried out some new stuff never seen by a live audience before and her singing was just like her CD - quality!

Dingwall went mad tonight as Ross County came from behind to beat SPL side Hibernian 2-1 in the Scottish Cup Quarter FInal.  Having won their first ever quarter final tie we now meet Celtic at Hampden Park next month in the semi final - amazing!  The pubs in Dingwall pre match were busy with noisy Hibs fans enjoying their first ever trip to Dingwall.  The atmopshere at sold out Viccy Park was amazing throughout with a noisy home support cheering on the team who played outstanding and had loads of possession.  County lost a goal a minute into the second half but came storming back to win with goals from Garry Wood and Scott Boyd.  The place went mad!  I've been to many football matches over the year and possibly the best feeling ever was Faddy's amazing long distant effort in Paris.  However I believe this topped the lot as against all odds County won through to a massive semi final tie!  Come on the Staggies!

Having enjoyed boating for some time but never having steered and driven a boat it was time to do a course to ensure I was safe.  Findhorn Marina run marine courses and they did the 2 day Level 2 Powerboat course at Inverness Marina.  I throughly enjoyed the course learing lots of new skills, water safety and also enjoying the fine scenery!  I now need to gain more experience driving boats - anyone trust me??

Having stayed overnight at Huntly in Aberdeen-shire visited the towns castle and Deans Shortbread Factory before heading up into Moray on the way home.  A relaxing but interesting few days holiday ended a Speyside Cooperage where you learn the history of coopering casks, see the coopers at work and learn how to do it yourself!  An interesting attraction to see an age old proffesion that has virtually gone now.  Its good to see a Cooperage working so well and supplying the drinks industry with their vital storage devices!

The holiday down the East Coast continued leaving Gardenstown and Cruvie two amazing small coastal villages which were fantastic for just wandering around.  Then it was onto Fraserburgh to the Kinnarid Head Lighthouse and its Scottish Lighthouse Museum.  An interesting tour of an old lighthouse seeing what the keepers had to live in and the interesting history of the job through the museum.  Then it was through Peterhead to Cruden Bay and a walk round the ruin of Slaines Castle said to have been the castle that inspired the film Dracula!  Also a visit to Bullers O Buchan an amazing natural coastal cliff cave system with stunning coastal views!

Having not visited the East Coast of Scotland since i was a young child myself and the wife decided we'd go for a few days holiday down the coast and enjoy the scenery.  We left Inverness and stopped in Cullen where the famous soup is made with its spectacular viaduct right beside the sea and then the short hop to Portsoy Harbour one of the oldest ports in Europe.  Then it was not the tiny seaside village of Pennan made famous by its telephone box in film "Local Hero" before settling for the night at Gardenstown!  A fine day out with great scenery and lovely little villages/harbours!  Its certainly an area that is well worth visiting again!

My friends in the Torridon band jumped onto stage at Ironworks for the venue's monthly "Offkilter" night in front of a hugh crowd.  All their popular songs were sung and the acoustics in the venue were excellent.  A great live show from the band in front of an appreciative audience.  One of the best I've ever seen the band perform!

The train to Glasgow then an outstanding afternoon catching up with friends in the Shed Nightclub with its pre match tartan army party!  This was followed by the short walk to Hampden and enjoyed watching Scotland win their first Hampden friendly since Ally McCoist's goal beat Australia in 1996!  It was a great start to Craig Leviens reign as Scotland manager and though the famous Hampden roar wasn't loud due to a midweek friendly not pulling the crowds everyone left very happy!

Hayseed Dixie took their blue grass music to the Highlands again with a fantastic show at the Ironworks in Inverness.  Playing their own music and their own sound to covers was hughely enjoyed by the crowd!  I thoroughly enjoyed hearing rock and heavy metal songs to acoustic instruments!  Their stories on stage between songs is also a great laugh!  The whole of the Highlands was cut off by heavy heavy snow yet the band made it to play Inverness!

I saw Scottish band Session A9 play for the first time in a number of years at the small theatre at Eden Court.  Playing their fiddles, keyboards, drums and guitars the band is made up of many members from other bands such as Charlie McKerron (Capercaillie) and Adam Sutherland (Peatbog Faeries) amongst others.  The night was excellent with fast and slow instrumentals and a few songs from Marc Clement who many years ago played at my 21st birthday party in Ullapool!  

A visit to Edinburgh and I'd never been up Calton Hill before so made the steep walk up to the Highest point and observed the famous monuments on the hill top with stunning views over the capital city!  On top of Calton Hill is the Parliament Cairn, National Monument, Nelson Monument and Observatory high above the city centre.  The views from the top over Edinburgh Castle, Princess Street, Leith Docks, out over the Forth and Holyrood were excellent on a clear day!  A quiet relaxing place to be despite being in a city centre!

 

Wolfstone celebrated 21 years in the music business with a Celtic Connections gig at the ABC in Glasgow tonight.  I made the trip south to see this occasion having watched the band actively since I first saw them in Ullapool Village Hall in 1990.  A great night of instrumentals and songs with plenty of stories in between each track and lots of old time favourites and their more modern sounds!  A couple of guests made the stage too including founder member Struan Eaglesham joining his brother and others on stage for a few tunes.  Afterwards it was onto the Celtic Connections Festival Club at the Glasgow School of Art which featured plenty great music plus another set from Wolfstone! 

Went to see Torridon perform their first ever gig at the Loft in Forres as part of the Old New Year celebration night.  The band opened the evening with their usual songs and tunes and were followed on stage by Skerryvore the Tiree band who then entertained with their songs and tunes!  A fine night of music in a great venue!  Both bands came on stage together to play Flower of Scotland then Auld Lang Syne!

 

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family.  Best Wishes for 2010 when it comes.  Have Christmas off work so went to Ullapool through the snow and enjoyed stuffing myself with turkey in the home town!  The weather has been unbelievable this Christmas and no signs of it going away.  A white Christmas everywhere! 

The Ness Island lights swung into action in Inverness tonight for the weekend.  Singing trees, santa on the throne, reindeer, lights and sparkling Xmas sculptures made quite a spectacle in the islands of Inverness.  The lights were made by arts in motion and Highland Council and it was a fun night with plenty to see.   You can tell its Christman time with all this dark winter night and lights everywhere!  Merry Christmas to everybody!

My works night out and an exclusive overnight stay at Glenmorangie Highland Home at Milton of Cadboll in Easter Ross.  An amazing house with the five star treatment and numerous awards and famous previous reisidents such as Kenny Dalglish, Ewan MacGregor and Sting.  A massive house with 4 poster beds, living rooms, honesty bar, large grounds and a short walk to the beach.  They even provide barbour jackets when going out for a walk plus get your bedroom ready for you while you eat your meal!  Quite a place where the hospitality was more than enjoyed!

The annual Badenoch and Strathspey Tartan Army Xmas dance was another great night.  A meal, auction, party games and dancing to a disco and tartan army favourite Davy Holt.  A great night catching up with friends in the great surroundings of the always hospitable Cairngorm Hotel!

We celebrated our second anniversary in Aberdeen with a nice Mexican meal at the La Bamba Restaurant before enjoying a night away in the big smoke and seeing the Christmas lights along Union Street and Castlegate.  The two years have flown by!

 

A fine tartan army weekend in Cardiff spoilt by the football match we attended.  A quick flight from Inverness to Bristol then a minibus party took us to Cardiff.  A fine night out in the city centre pubs before meeting the Scotland team in the morning (thanks to former County player Don Cowie).  The good time continued at the Tartan Specials gig pre match but was spoilt by a 3-0 defeat to a Welsh team which saw the Scotland manager sacked!  Even managed to visit the river named in my honour in Cardiff - The River Taff!!!

 

Inverness hosted Scotlands biggest bonfire (over 30 ft tall) at Bught Park for the annual November 5th Guy Fawkes night.  It was also the biggest crowd to ever attend an Inverness Bonfire on a still night.  The fire was lit by the Inverness Lord Provost and then a fireworks display followed choregraphed to music!

The annual Shinty/Hurling international took place in Inverness at Bught Park this year.  Just a short walk from my home and Bught Park was decked out in Scottish and Irish flags and the legend that is Ronnie Brown appeared to sing Flower of Scotland prior to the match.  The game was also televisied live on TV and was a close match with Scotland's shinty players better in the first half but the Irish hurlers having a better second half.  With just a minute to go the score was 11-11 which would have meant as holders Scotland held onto the trophy.  But a breakaway goal in the final seconds meant Ireland won the trophy for the first time in five years!  A great spectacle and fiercy contented match and great to see shinty get so much publicity!  Afterwards the pubs around Inverness were busy as we enjoyed watched Schiehallion and mixing with players and fans from both sides of the international divide.

Top Scottish band Franz Ferdinand returned to the Highlands for only the second time to play the Ironworks in Inverness tonight.  Having played two years ago on a small Highland tour which included headlining the Loopallu Festival this was their second visit to the Inverness and their first to the Ironworks which sold out within hours of going on sale.  The large crowd enjoyed the show from the famous Glasgow band!

Ullapool's Homecoming Event started today with the massed pipes and drums of the local pipe band.  Including former members of the band from 25 years ago marching along with the current pipe band it really was amazing to see the different generations marching through the village and then giving a performance in the MacPhail Theatre.  There was also a Highland Dancing display in the theatre by current and veteran dancers which everyone enjoyed culiminating with Ullapool's Red Hot Chilli Dancers!

At night was the Singer Songwriter music concert at Ullapool Village Hall.  The night was a great success with pianist James Brotherstone, guitarist Stuart Hossack, singer songwriter Andi Neate plus local bands Copperdrift and the Naked Strangers.  Yet more bags of musical talent who've come from our wee village!  A great spectacle over the weekend and well done to Ullapool High School music teacher Val Bryan for organising the whole thing!

Ullapool's Homecoming Events were spread over the year as proffesional musicans (former pupils of Ullapool High School) attended local primary schools to teach the kids their musical skills.  Also art was on display throughout the village but the main event was concerts going on at two venues over this weekend.  I attended the traditional music concert featuring former Ullapool High School pupils including singer James Graham, harpist Rachel Hair, compere Douglas Beck, piper Peter MacGregor and Micheal Bryan plus Maieraid Green from folk band Box Club!  Also featured was current school pupils and Ullapool choir who gave us songs from Blair Douglas, Runrig and Dougie Macleans "Caledonia".  Its amazing the talent that has come out of the area and great to see them return to put on a fabulous show!

 

Day two of Loopallu always starts at lunchtime and what a start it was with local band The Naked Strangers getting the tent jumping from the start.  Following them was the Grousebeater Sound System and The Dangleberries who also added some Scottish music to the festival and had the main tent jumping around!  Ullapool Highland Dancers also entertained with their new choregraphed Red Hot Chilli Pipers dance which went down a storm!  At night Mumford and Son meant a slow start before the Family Mahone and headliners The Lightning Seeds kept the party going with the headliners well known songs proving excellent.  The festival fringe completed the night watching Torridon in the packed Broom Bar.  Another great social event in my home town of Ullapool!

 

 

Loopallu the annual music festival in Ullapool opened in amazing weather with the Dykeenies, Alabama 3 and The View.  The Family Mahone also did their great stuff in the Ceilidh Place in the Fringe after the tent finished.  The car parks and caravan sites are all full as 2500 people descend on the village doubling the population of the place for one weekend!  Always a great event and atmosphere as you see people for the social event of the year!

 

Having finished our holiday at Loch Lomond we stopped in Falkirk to see for the first time the amazing engineering of the Falkirk Wheel the worlds first and only rotating boat lift.  The wheel links the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal and enables boats to go from Glasgow to Edinburgh across the country.  It replaces a disused set of locks to link the two canals and lifts and lowers boats in a time of just over four minutes.  The wheel has an interesting exhibition explaining how it works and then the boat takes you up on the lift, along the canal through a tunnel and back down again.

The final day of our holiday by Loch Lomond and a chance to get into the great outdoors and walk over the Stoneymollen Road from Balloch by Loch Lomond to Cardross by the RIver Clyde!  A steep section takes you up from Balloch with views over the castle and loch before Stoneymollen Moor opens up on the hillside with stunning views over Loch Lomond and then down over the River Clyde!

Scotland had to beat Holland at Hampden Park to have any chance of getting to the World Cup Play Off's.  The fans were in bouyant mood on the Renfrew Ferry pre match with Andy Chung and Ted Christopher entertaining us.  The Hampden atmosphere was probably the best ever as the tartan army's famous Hampden Roar cheered the team on.  However we couldn't score and lost a late goal to lose 1-0 and our dreams of South Africa in June are in tatters!

A day trip to Inveraray from Loch Lomond was a beautifu scenic drive and there's loads to see in this wee village!  The Inveraray Jail and courthouse takes you back to the 1800's and over the crimes people were jailed for!  The Bell Tower towers above the village with its small shopping street full of unique shops.  Finished up at the stunning Inverarary Castle which is impressive from the outside but even more so inside with its massive collection of guns set in the walls of the countries highest room!  Definately recommended for a good day out!

 

Scotland had a vital World Cup Qualifying match today against Macedonia.  It really was win or your out and the team didn't disappoint with a 2-0 win.  There was a good pre match party on the Renfrew Ferry with Torridon and Andy Chung before the match and a magic after match party at the 02 Academy for a Hampden Heroes Rammy featuring Torridon and Scocha.  A great day and less travelling to the match then I'm used to having got the train in from Loch Lomond!

 

 

 

A week's holiday in Balloch on the banks of Loch Lomond started with a cruise on the famous loch for a couple of hours.  Viewed the castle, Cameron House, the islands and many other sights before walking round Balloch Castle Country Park for some more views of the amazing natural scenery.  A relaxing day seeing the tourist sights on the Bonnie Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond!

 

Runrig played another massive concert at an iconic Scottish venue by playing for the year of Homecoming at Scone Palace in Perthshire.  The stage was right in front of the palace and the support bands were piper Fred Morrison, the Blair Douglas Band who rarely play live, King Cresote and the Peatbog Faeries.  Runrig came on to complete the line up and headline their gig and put on their usual masterclass in music!  A great day out at Scone and Runrig still playing to crowds of 15,000 after 35 years together!

While in Perthshire for the weekend took a drive past the Meikleour Beech Hedge at 30 metres high and 530 metres long is officially recognised as the world biggest hedge in the Guinness Book of Records.  Legend has it that the trees were planted in 1745 by men called away to fight in the Jacobite Rebellion.

A day trip from Edinburgh to Oslo for the big World Cup Qualifying match in Norway.  Flew in and mate my mates in the Dubliner Bar and then had one of the best parties ever in a BASTA Hotel Room where the crack was excellent.  The great atmosphere continued with the Norwegain fans outside the stadium and then the whole day was spoiled when we lost 4-0 to make our chances of qualifying slim to say the least.  Flew home after the game at the same time as the Scottish team but nobody was in the best of spirits at the airport.  For once I was delighted to get back to Scotland straight after a game to get over a terrible result!

Having seen the Edinburgh Tattoo on TV often enough in the past this was my first time enjoying it in the flesh!  It was quite a show in the temporary stands of Edinburgh Castle Esplanade.  Outstanding musicanship, dancing, military displays and lots more made for an entertaining show.  There was some amount of people from different countries enjoying the tattoo and it was done round a Homecoming and Robert Burns theme with them being celebrated during 2009.  Highly recommended and a great show - my favourite were the amazing drummers of the Central Band of the Swiss Army.

 My wife's right into rugby so while in Edinburgh we went for a tour of the Scottish stadium.  Having been in it twice for rugby matches and once to see U2 it was interesting to see it with no event on.  Far quietier and got into the area's you don't normally see.  The dressing rooms and tunnel are covered in Scottish flags and memorbilia and the executive lounges, press boxes and trackside meant different views and stories from the tour guide.  A two hour tour was great value for money!

 The annual Oddballs Day in Ullapool to raise funds locally always culminates in the Three legged Fancy Dress Pub Crawl round the licensed premises of the village.  While not participating this year due to an injury it was entertaining to watch and join in round the pubs.  There was some amazing costumes but most shocking of all was Torridons for their performance in the Broom Bar that night!  Always a popular night locally and a great laugh!

My first experience of a live sheepdog event and its easy to get carried away watchign it when the dogs are successful rounding up the sheep.  Its good to see something so traditional to the Highland crofts still being done and watched by a reasonable sized crowd in the field near where my grandparents lived.  This was the 21st Lochbroom Sheepdog Trials at Inverbroom Farm and watching the sheep dog get marks out of a hundred depending on how well they handled the sheep.

Ullapool's Oddballs Weekend is always somewhat loopy!!  This year the event kicked off on the Friday night with a shinty and football match followed by the return of the Bed Race which saw four dressed up beds being wheeled round the village from pub to pub with plenty of laughs along the way!

 

Castle Leod at Strathpeffer is home to the chief of the MacKenzie Clan and is rarely open to the public.  Today was an open day with us able to walk in the castle gardens with its ancient trees and then walk through the different rooms within.  Its got a large lawn garden and is a picturesque castle hidden not far off the main road.  Its one of the few castles in Scotland still lived in by the same family for hundreds of years and has an interesting history.

The Crown Princess ship visited Invergordon for its second Highland visit this summer.  Invergordon Harbour is always popular for cruise ships as its the second deepest in Europe.  The ship has the biggest passenger load on a cruise ship ever to visit the Highlands with 1200 crew and 3000 passengers.  It was certainly a busy day in the port with the visitors enjoying the area!

The centrepiece of the Scottish Homecoming 2009 at Holyrood Park in Edinburgh.  The biggest Highlands games in the world, Highland Dancing, Clan Village, Live music and lots to do!  Performances from Julie Fowlis, the Red Hot Chilli Pipers and Highland Heartbeat were excellent as were the atmosphere and the amount of kilts that were being worn around the arena.  If only the bar and food queues had been shorter! 

Torridon launched their brand new album "Highland Pride"  at Ironworks, Inverness to a large crowd.  The sound quality of the performance was brilliant.  The band started by running on stage to the Benny Hill theme tune and played their new songs including the title track, the normal Scottish classics and various instrumentals.  Caledonia was particularly good with their piper playing high up on the stairs near the back.  A great night for the band and the audience!

The new £2 million pound Inverness Marina was officially opened today by internationally renowned yachtswoman Dame Ellen MacArthur.  The new marina built on reclaimed land at the entrance to Inverness Harbour features a remote control yacht lifting hoist, full disabled access (the only one in UK at this time) and is accessable in all tidal conditions for vessels up to 2.5 metres draught with spacious berths for all boats moored there.  As part of the open day and celebrations round the offical opening there was water walking balls, RNLI demo's, power boat and sailing sessions, sea kayaking and activites on for those who wanted to participate.    Ellen MacArthur stopped off on her round Britain voyage to offiically open the marina and had her boat "Scarlet Oyster" moored there for the weekend.

 

A great day out and overnight barbecue and drinks with the Ullapool Sub Aqua Club on Isle Martin.  A boat trip from Ullapool pier, some fishing and then a barbecue and drinks by the campfire.  Overnight in a cottage on the island and then back to the mainland!  Great crack, great views and all good except for the midgies!!!

 

Rock Ness is always well attended by dance music fans from across the country and its run by my great pal Rob!  However I'd never attended before but when my friends band Torridon were chosen to play in the Clash (Ceilidh) Tent I couldn't resist and had a great night.  Torridon played to an ever increasing crowd in the tent while the massive festival site had a shopping street, main stage, smaller stages, music everywhere!  I'll never forget Torridon asking if any of the tartan army were at Rock Ness and then they sang Were Coming Down the Road.   The massive tent went into a frenzy!  Finished the night off watching the Flaming Lips on the main stage!

2009 is the year of Homecoming and the town of Alness In Easter Ross where I work organised a week of activiities to welcome people back to the area and for locals to enjoy.  The week features concerts, Is a Knockout, Community Quiz and tonights Homecoming Football Match which saw the current Alness United Under 17's play a team of "legends" from yesteryear.  I was linesman as the legends ran out 3-0 winners against the current youth's.

Having left FIfe College, Kirkcaldy in 1994 with an HND in Leisure Management I'd always kept up a friendship with the guys who were at college or the Halls of Residence we stayed in since then.  However reunions have got less lately due to almost everyone getting married.  So a wee reunion was planned for this year with a small turnout but hopefully becoming an annual event with lots more next year.  We met in neutral Perth, booked into a central hotel, caught up and enjoyed an Italian meal out and some drinks.  Great to catch up - here's to next year!

 

A weekend at the amazing Waternish Pennisula on the Isle of Skye for myself and my wife's birthday.  Staying at the hospitable Stein Inn with its amazing view over Loch Bay and its great seafood meals for two nights we also visited Scotlands only surviving Tannery of sheep skins, had a drive round beautiful Waternish including the Fairy Bridge and Trumpan Church ruin where the Battle of Spoiling Dkye occured.  Then it was onto nearby Dunvegan with a great walk to Coral Beach with its crystal clear water and a visit to Finlay's Giants Museum as the tallest recorded man grew up on the Isle of Skye!  A fine weekend blessed with great weather it was a good break away from normal civilisation! 

 

The Peatbog Faeries as part of their album release tour of their new album "Live" played a home gig for the Highlands at the Ironworks, Inverness.  An amazing night from this instrumental band who live are so full of life on stage and get everyone dancing in a frenzy.  With bagpipes, brass sections, two fiddles, guitars, drums and keyboards the sound is amazing!  Haste Ye Back!

 

Tim Emmett came to Inverness for a lecture in the Speakers from the Edge series and had his audience captivated by his stories, film clips and photographs on the big screen on stage.  He is a well known climber, base jumper and wing suit flyer off high cliffs and has appeared in many TV programmes in the past.  He's best known as the climber who raced Top Gears Jeremy Clarkson up France's Verdon Gorge (Clarkson in a car and Tim speed climbing) and won!  He has free climbed Kedar Dome and base jumped off the Old Man of Hoy in Orkney!  An extreme sports athelete his stories and film clips were superb!

 

A 8.9km walk up the hillside above Loch Ness in Farigaig Forest on the south side of the famous loch.  There is great viewpoints on the hillside over the surrouding hills, Loch Ness and across to Urquhart Castle on the opposite side of the loch.  The walk also takes you past beautiful Lochan Torr an Tuill which was like a mirror with the trees surrounding it reflecting on the surface of the water.  The walk goes higher and higher up the hillside through the forest and is a pleasant quiet area with fine views throughout.

Legendary Irish Box player Sharon Shannon took her Big Band to Inverness to play Ironworks and what a night it was!  I had only previously seen her play live once and that was just in a small band but this was amazing playing with seven other musicians and various guests on vocals.  The most amazing guest though was former Pogues front man Shane McGowan someone I had always wanted to see perform live but had never thought I would!  He came on stage and blasted out classics like The Irish Rover, Fairytale of New York and Dirty Old Town.  It was amazing to see and hear and right on my own doorstep in Inverness - awesome!

 

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers made a welcome return to Inverness on their Scottish tour.  With the drum solo, dancers and pipe tunes of all descriptions it was a great night and really go visual show as well as musically great!   The band even remarked how much they love playing in Inverness!

The usual pre match ritual of a party on the Renfrew Ferry saw Andy Chung, Davie Holt and then the Bannockburn Band entertain the tarta army and put us in party mode.  At Hampden Park it was a must win game against Iceland who Scotland had always beaten in the past.  The team won 2-1 so Hampden Park was making plenty of noise!  After match party in the Sports Cafe was also superb!

The morning after the ill fated match and we visited Amsterdam Dungeon where the actors and surroundings try to scare you with their tales and stories!  Then it was off back to the boat and farewell to Holland for the overnight journey back to Newcastle.  Although a lot quietier on the way back we were still entertained by our Scottish bands and music all the way home!

 

The day started with a cruise of Amsterdams canals before venturing to pubs with friends and partying with the friendly orange dressed Dutch supporters.  Dam Square in the city centre was a party zone with both sets of supporters together singing.  Then it was off to the Amsterdam Arena where it all went wrong and Scotland got beat 3-0!  However the Dutch are the third best team in the world and I suppose it was to be expected!  A great day with a great atmopshere throughout.

As the ship to Holland berthed in Amsterdam the tartan army went on the decks with their flags and sang in anticipation of a great trip!  Then it was onto buses to the hotel and a walk round central Amsterdam.  Then met up with old friends and socialised for the rest of the day!

The tartan army's invasion of Holland took place today!  A chartered train with 12 carriages left Edinburgh Waverely Station for Newcastle and then everyone was bussed to the docks and put on the DFDS ferry to Amsterdam.  The party started before the boat had even left Newcastle and continued all the way across.  Music by the The Tartan Specials, Ted Christopher and DJ Tam Coyle kept the party in full swing! 

 

A Highland first - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat by Andrew Lloyd Webber had been on the go for 30 years and starred some amazing actors over this time.  Here is made it to the Highlands and starred Craig Chalmers.  Great story, acts, music and performace and quite something to see such a show in the Scottish Highlands.

Comic Day at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness was strange with Starwars characters walking round the area.  A great day for kids but not if your me and one of them threatened to shoot me!!

A first for Inverness the musical Sunshine On Leith featuring the music of the Proclaimers.  My first ever musical and a great Scottish storyline with scenes which kept me transfixed from the start, very funny and quality music from the Proclaimers sung by the actors.  Superb night and would love to see the show again.

 What a night at Ironworks to celebrate Robert Burns 250th birthday!  First up was my pals Torridon at their first performance at Ironworks.  They got the crowd into a frenzy and even sang the Homecoming Song "Caledonia" before leaving the stage after some fast flowing music!  Then it was the famous Vatersay Boys who played for three and a half hours in between haggis and tatties!  A great night to a sell out crowd with great music and entertainment.

 

Happy New Year to one and all where every you celebrated the start of 2009?  We attended Inverness's first street party since 1999 in the Northern Meeting Park and it was a great night.  Frosty but well wrapped up and no snow or rain to spoil the night.  Enjoyed the Highland music of Single Malt Sound System, the indie hits of the Magic Numbers and then after the fireworks at the bells it was into 2009 with pipes and drums of Albannach.   A great venue and well organised - well done to Inverness for a great celebration with big screens showing live Highland games in North Carolina and Waipu in New Zealand.  Happy New Year - here's to a great 2009!

Can't believe thats a year married already - its flown past.  It was our first return visit to the Ben Wyvis Hotel where the happy day occured a year ago!  After a lovely lunch it was back to Inverness to the St Andrews Day celebration in the Highland Council Car Park.  The big stage featured the Inverness Gaelic Choir, Bruce MacGregor and friends and then a 90 minute show from the amazing Red Hot Chilli Pipers who took Inverness by storm!  Great to have such a free event within a stones throw of your house on your wedding anniversary!  Happy St Andrews Day to everyone!

Runrig returned to play Eden Court in Inverness after a gap of some time due to the theatre being closed for renovation.  It was the first big venue the band ever played and they still come home to the Highlands to play it regularly.  This was my seventeenth live gig with the band with them blasting out the classics all the way through.  Their drum and guitar solo spots also add to the live performanc and differs from their normal songs!   Great to see them back home playing again and inside in the dry after the wet at Loch Ness last year!

A bus journey for the Inverness Ross County Supporters Club to Perth for the 2008 final at McDermid Park.  A good laugh on the journey down, some singing and socialising in the great 208 Pub in Perth and then an entertaining cup final.  County took the lead but Airdrie equalise to put the game into extra time.  2-1 down with minutes to go and Sean Higgins equalises for County.  However our joy was shortlived losing at the lottery of penalties.  One wonders what would have happened had we won the final as the sing song on the bus home was legendary! 

Met one of the star's of my favourite movie Touching the Void tonight just round the corner frae the house at Eden Court Theatre.  Simon Yates is a mountaineer, author and star of the documentary film that I find so amazing!  Here he was on stage in Inverness taking the audience through his life of climbing mountains across the world with amazing photos on the giant screen behind him.  Interesting night and some amazing sights and stories from a life that had many risks involved.  He'll forever be known as the guy who cut Joe Simpsons rope in real life and the documentary film but he's an excellent proffesional speaker and a sold out main theatre enjoyed this tonight!

 

Some time spent in the lovely Lochaber area of Scotland beneath mighty Ben Nevis.  Drove through Glen Nevis and then a half hour walk to the stunning Steall Falls which featured in the wedding scene on Braveheart.  A great walk and some amazing views on getting there and also viewed the Lower Falls within the Glen with some amount of water falling down them right by the roadside!  After some time spent in Fort William itself it was a visit to the Treasures of the Earth at Corpach which features one of Europes finest collections of priceless gemstones and crystals.  It also included amazing stones, fossils and skeletons and was interesting to walk round and see the different displays.

 

The low mist spoilt the fireworks this year but the bonfire was excellent as usual with a large burning glow across Bught Park.  The funfair was popular too and its always a good night for everyone.  The rain stayed off but the high fireworks were spoilt by the mist with the lower fireworks impressive none the less!  This year featured local band Shutter playing live while the fireworks went off in the background - a good extra with the music playing!

It was a dry train to Hampden Park, breakfast at the ever reliable Crystal Palace pub in Glasgow then onto the Renfrew Ferry.  Entertainment was Andy Duncan (Hunky Dory) and then Torridon, both bands from Inverness that had the Ferry jumping with the Scottish music.  We also had a trial run of the recording of We Have A Dream from the forthcoming charity single.   Onto the match and we desperately needed a home win but a goal less draw followed.  Scotland still in second place in the group but on lower points than we hoped at this stage.  Half time at the game saw the Hampden crowd sing backing vocals on "We Have a Dream" the forthcoming re recording with profits going to BBC Children in Need appeal.  A good day out but the wrong result (how many times have the tartan army said that!).

 

Blazin Fiddles returned to Eden Court Theatre, Inverness to promote their new live album and celebrate their tenth anniversary!  This band were put together of top fiddle players from throughout the Highlands for the Highland Festival ten years ago.  Started as a one off for the festival the band has grown to play internationally and be a full time career for the band members.  Here they came to Inverness to play to a home crowd and play their fast fiddle tunes and entertain as individual members as well! 

 

The final day of Loopallu with the tent lively in the afternoon with the Stormchasers and 3 Daft Monkeys playing.  The beer tent was the biggest ever this year and great for meeting friends.  The best live performance was undoubtly the Red Hot Chilli Pipers whose choregraphed display was awesome with the ever reliable Family Mahone on just before the headline act.  The headline act Echo and the Bunnymen did nothing for me so went to the fringe event early to see the Stormchasers play again!  Another great Loopallu - can't wait for next year!

 

The biggest annual event in Ullapool and its Loopallu again!  The Big Tent took days to set up but the party started early on the Friday night when the Vatersay Boys took to the stage followed by King Cresote and the lively Levellers.  Then it was onto the fringe event and the Ceilidh Place to see Loopallu hereos the Family Mahone!  Ullapool is never more lively than now with everywhere in party mode!

The final day of a ten day holiday watching Scotland and seeing the sights of Europe.  This final day involved a bus and boat trip of Gothenburg in Sweden seeing its many sights including the canal and harbour.  The trip finished in the famous Dubliner Bar in Gothenburg for some more pear ciders before a flight home to Scotland the following day.

Having flown from Iceland to Denmark i disembarked at Copenhagen airport and took the train across to Sweden.  Passing between the two countries on Europes biggest bridge the awesome Oresund Bridge which features a tunnel, a man made island then the biggest of bridges.  Alighted in Malmo for the afternoon seeing the sights and tasting the local Pear Cider brew!  Sights included the city hall, St Peters Church and the beautiful river area and main square.  Then it was the evening train down to Gothenburg for the last couple of nights of the adventure before heading home!

A day of sightseeing.  The morning was spent in Reyjavik visiting the Icelandic Parliament, famous Hofol House where Reagen and Gorbachev ended the Cold War, the vikings and troll centre, the Icelandic Presidents house and the Pearl a massive dome on top of the citys water tanks.  In the afternoon it was off to Pingvellier National Park where the tectonic plates of Europe and North America meet then onto the amazing Golden Falls at Gulfoss and the boiling water displays at Geyser!

 

I spent the morning in the famous Blue Lagoon in Iceland.  The lagoons water temperature is 37-39 degrees and holds 6 million litres of geothermal sea water which is fantastic for relaxing in.  What a chilled out morning in the lagoon then an afternoon of socialising and singing before the big match which Scotland could not afford to lose and never winning 2-1 against the hosts!

 

Having travelled from Macedonia via Bulgaria, VIenna, Latvia and Denmark today marked my arrival for my first visit to Iceland.  The tartan army had taken over the city of Rekjavik and it was an amazing night in the Dubliner Bar, Highlander Bar and the VIking where half of the Tartan Specials band who'd made the trip over for the game performed for us!  A great night in a great city which is compact in the centre and easy to move around.  The locals are friendly and though the beer is expensive it goes down a treat!

George Burleys first competitive game as Scotland manager and one we could not afford to lose with a tough section ahead.  However it was over a hundred degrees and as us fans sweated just standing watching the team melted and lost 1-0.  A terrible start.  Despite this the pubs on the boardwalk in Skopje were great and the opposing fans friendly.  The locals loved having the tartan army in Macedonia for the first time!  The tartan army at night enjoyed cheering on Andy Murray as he won his US Open Semi Final too!!

Having flown from the Scottish Highlands to Sofia in Bulgaria it was a long bus journey across to neighbouring Macedonia.  However it was the tartan armys first visit to this country and the people were very friendly and hospitable.  Spent today seeing the sights, having some hospitable sociailising and even managed to get on Sky Sports News singing "We'll be Coming Down the Road".  Skopje is not well known as a tourist destination but there was plenty to see in the city with Mother Teresa's Statue (she was born in the city), the old Railway Station, the city's icon the Stone Bridge, the City Fort and even managed a gruelling walk up Mount Vodno in the heat to reach the Millenium Cross the world's biggest cross on the top of the hillside!

 

 

Scotlands first match against Northern Ireland since 1992 and it was a wet night at Hampden Park in Glasgow.  On arrival in Glasgow it was to the Renfrew Ferry as usual to see Hunky Dory and Schiehallion perform.  Not as big a crowd present as normal but a good start to the day and even met Pudsey Bear from BBC Children In Need when the final total for the Runrig Loch Lomond CD single was confirmed!.  Then onwards with a bus journey to Hampden with the roof being raised off with the singing.  Onto the match a 0-0 draw and not the greatest of games but a great penalty save from Scottish keeper Alan MacGregor and some other positives for the big World Cup Qualifiers which start next month!  Then a party at the Sports Cafe to round the night off!!

Liverpool sent a team north to play Inverness CT in Barry Wilsons Testimonial Match at the Caledonian Stadium, Inverness.   All Liverpools big name players were on international duty but the reserve side came north - the first that such a giant of European football has played in the Highlands.  Barry Wilson an ex Ross County player was the recieptent of the testimonial after ten years with Inverness CT.  Liverpool were a big draw with a crowd of over 7000 turning up but being disappointed by seeing the Reds lost 5-0 to an on form ICT team.  At half time a legends match took place between Ross County and Inverness CT with ICT winning 1-0.  A good spectacle and enjoyable night in the Highland but a shock scoreline certainly!

 

The Vatersay Boys made a welcome return to Inverness to play the sold out Ironworks venue to promote their new album.  They play for three hours which was amazing value for money and a great craick!  They are great at getting their crowd going and the usual amazing night ensued!

The opening day of the season saw the Second Division Championship Flag presented to Ross County FC after last seasons fine league win.  The flag was present to the club chairman Roy MacGregor and then unfurled high above the main stand at Victoria Park.  There was a large crowd inside the stadium for Ross Countys return to the First Division and we narrowly lost 2-1 to Dundee.  A fine football season now in progress for the next 45 weeks ahead!

Having woken up early at Suileag Bothy it was still a long walk in to the side of Suliven Mountain then a steep climb up.  However the rewards were well worth it with the view in all directions just fantastic.  Reached the summit cairn at 731 metres and could see the Western Isles to the west across the Minch, Stac Pollaich to the south and loads more of the Assynt and Sutherland remote Highland views.  Well worth all the effort and probably the most enjoyable view from the top of any hill or mountain I've climbed!

After finishing work and driving north to Lochinver I hiked the trail from Glencanisp Lodge to Suileag Bothy in the hills of North West Sutherland.  Remote and a great walk on a nice night with great views as it was hot sunny weather.  Stayed overnight in the bothy which has a fantastic view of Suliven mountain before heading off up the mountain in the morning!

 

 The Proclaimers ended their 129 date world tour with a return to Inverness in a big top tent at Bught Park.  They were literally playing in my front garden they were that close!  The twins entertained the people of the Highlands who had travelled from miles around to see the band perform.  It was good to meet up with some friends prior to the gig and then watch the twins and their band in action!  I even got an Access All Areas ticket so was back stage viewing the action and meeting the Reid twins afterwards!

Cairngorm Mountain near Aviemore is one mountain within the range called after it!  Its 1244 metres above sea level and anytime I'd been up it before it had been on the Funniculur Railway and you don't actually get to the summit!   This time it was a hike up to the summit via Coire Cas a winter skiers dream but even in July it has patchy snow to tramp past!  An enjoyable walk up through the corie and then down past the Top Station and trains taking people to that destination!  A lovely day at the bottom but cloudy and windy when I was on the summit!  Another Munro ticked off my list!

 

The final day of the gathering and it all started with a march down Grampian Road in Aviemore with the footsoldiers being piped down the street waving their flags and singing along!  It was quite a display for the locals and tourists watching.  Then a carnival day at Aviemore Playing Fields with Highland Games demonstrations from the strongmen, five a side kilted football competition, tug of war plus side shows, kids entertainment and a beer tent.  When the day finished it was back to the Cairngorm Hotel for the evening with Ted Christopher entertaining with his singing, fireworks, the Euro 2008 Final won by Spain on the big screen and one last chance to meet up and party together.  Heres to the next gatheirng in 2010 in South Africa!

Day two of the 2008 Gathering and a day of music at the Cairn while cheering on Andy Murray on the big screen during his Wimbledon match.  Stars of the show were Torridon and the Tartan Specials today with the atmosphere in the Cairn car park just superb.   A real family event with footsoliders taking their children along to introduce them to the spirit of the gathering.  A fine night ....we're coming down the road!

It was a return to Aviemore two years after the last gathering for the tartan army!  The Cairngorm Hotel was again the headquarters and the Friday saw a day of music on the stage in the hotels car park!  Also featured was the brilliant "Get Steamin" train journey on a traditional steam train from Aviemore to Broomhill (Glenbogle in Monach of the Glen) for a traditional ceilidh on the platform!  The night finished with Schiehallion performing live on stage with a great set of tunes that had the tartan army bouncing in Aviemore!

The 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race stopped in Inverness today to provide a rest day for the participants.  The power boats passed through Loch Ness and stopped in the Caledonian Canal and that meant the locals could get a better look at the boats on display!  The 10 day race which starts and finishes in Portsmouth is the longest and toughest event for powerboat drivers in the world!  The race has only been held twice in the past in 1969 and 1984 and it has attracted competitors from around the globe to participate.

A walk up the Fyrish Hill in Novar Estate to the landmark of the area the Fyrish Monument.  Its a 2 mile walk up from the car park leaving the trees of the woods behind and walking up the path to the monument at the top!  Its the icon of the Alness area and gives outstanding views of the Cromary Firth far below!

 

Nairn Museum hosted a football exhibition from March to May 2008 which tells the experience of a matchday in Scotland.  It was loanded to Nairn Museum by the Scottish Football Museum at Hampden Park in Glasgow the first time such an exhibition had featured in the Highlands.  Researchers from the Football Museum had visited every club in the country capturing everything from supporters and mascots to behind the scenes with players, backroom staff and referees.  The exhbition provided background to a day at the football (which I know and enjoy very much!) with photos and information.  The Nairn Museum also put on display local football team photos from down the years which was also interesting to look at!

A day trip to the Isle of Skye passing famous Eilean Donan Castle at Dornie on the way!  Spent the day visiting the sights and seeing the natural wonders of the island and the amazing Cullins mountain range.  Held a python at the Skye Serpentarium in Broadford before visiting the Going Home (Runrig Exhibition) at the Aros Centre in Portree which was excellent with its history and exhibits on one of my favourite bands.  Then the afternoon was spent at historic Dunvegan Castle before another scenic drive home past the Cullins.

Struie Hill is a ridge walk with fine views over Kyle of Sutherland, the Dornoch Firth, the Struie road and right up the coast of Sutherland!  Its a short steep climb up then a ridge walk along to the radio mast at the far end with stunning views all the way along! 

A journey south after an enjoyable few days in North West Sutherland.  After sunshine all the way today was overcast but this helped create amazing sight on Loch Assynt!  The reflection in the loch was unbelievable with the cloud and hillside reflecting on the mirror.  Also the ruin Ardvreck Castle on Loch Assynt reflected back giving amazing views for people stopping on the main road south!  Then it was a stop at Falls of Shin with it mass of water and visitor centre.

An amazing journey round a dodgy single track loop road in Sutherland but it revealed some  hidden treasures along the way.  An amazing viewpoint on the road gives a great view of Suliven the famous mountain in the area.  Then it was onto Clachtoll to visit the Rev Norman Macleod Memorial Stone.  Two years ago while on holiday in New Zealand we visited Waipu which was founded by the Rev Norman Macleod and his followers and is one of the great migration stories.  He left Clachtoll in Sutherland in the early 1800s and travelled via Nova Scotia and Australia before settling and forming Waipu.  Its amazing we were there two years ago and then visited the memorial cairn today in west Sutherland where the migrants amazing journey started!  Clachtoll itself had a great beach before we headed onto Stoer and then the viewpoint at Drumbeg.  A great day out in the car with some views and some history!

A day lazying around on the sandy beach and getting sunburnt as the Highlands of Scotland weather was hot hot hot!  Achmelvich Bay's two sandy beaches were perfect for relaxing on, the weather was fantastic and it was a great place to have a holiday!

A holiday in a touring caravan at Achmelvich Bay just north of Lochinver in north west Sutherland in the Scottish Highlands.  The camp site was below the famous Suliven mountain and right by the sea with Achmelvich Bay and its beautiful turquoise waters and sandy beach.  Our first night on holiday saw us visit tiny Achmelvich Castle (known as Hermits Castle) built in 1952 by a recently qualified designer David Scott.  Beside the sea and built incase nuclear war started its a tiny stone structure and probably the smallest castle in the world!  At sunset it was time to sit on the main Achmelvich Beach and enjoy the amazing sunset coming down over the Minch!

Having clinched the league title two weeks in Dingwall today saw us beat Cowdenbeath 3-0 in our final home game of the season and then came the cup presentation.  It was great to see us bouce straight back up after being relegated last season and fans and players enjoyed the cup presentation after the match.  The team went on a lap of honour and were cheered by the delighted supporters!   A few days later i got my hands on the trophy myself!

My first visit to the Old Brewery in Cromarty on the Black Isle for a musical treat in the form of Dochas.  An intimate venue which is unlicensed so you bring your own bottle - great idea and exceptional venue!  Acoustics fantastic and its like sitting in your living room with a band playing in the corner - relaxing and enjoyable.  Dochas were brilliant as usual with their songs and instrumentals entertaining everyone!

Ross County were today confirmed as the Scottish Second Division winners when we played our 500th league game since joining the Scottish League in 1994.  It was a tense day as we needed to win with Airdrie United losing at Brechin City.  Countys game in Dingwall was very one sided with us comfortable 4-0 winners.  The crowd were apprehensive and quiet until word came round with 2 minutes left that Brechin has scored and the stadium erupted.  We could sing "Championi" with confidence.  Countys game finished and we just had to wait for the confirmation from Brechin.  Sure enough we were confirmed as winners and the County players came back onto the pitch to celebrate with the fans as "We are the Champions" blasted from the speakers.  A great season after being relegated last year and we've bounced straight back up!  Well done to Derek Adams and all the players for a great campaign!

Wolfstone played their first Inverness gig in over a year at the Ironworks.  Stuart Eaglesham is back on lead vocals and his energy at the front of the stage makes such a difference.  Some songs and instrumentals from their Terra Firma album released last year but also some classics from down the years.  Instrumentals still best the Wolfstone way on home turf!

 

Scotlands first match of 2008 and George Burleys first match in charge of the national team.  A 1-1 draw with Croatia a team who put England out of the Euro Championship Finals so a great team to be playing in a friendly.  A good match by friendly standards and a reasonable atmosphere considering on 30,000 people inside Hampden Park.

 

Scotlands first match of 2008 and the first for new manager George Burley saw a pre match party of the usual quality on the Renfrew Ferry.  Starring Andy Chung, the Tartan Specials and a few Croatian supporters it was the usual great knee's up prior to the football action!

My final day of five walking the Great Glen Way.  Today was Fort William to South Laggan.  Pictured above leaving Caol with Fort William and Ben Nevis in the background and taking the Caledonian Canal towpath to Gairlochy before going along the forest trail along beautiful Loch Lochy.  Plenty of views and sore legs along the way!

 

The walk comprised the Caledonian Canal tow path past locks with views south to the Nevis Range.  Then travelled along the bank of Loch Oich with fine views across the loch and by the old railway line built to connect the Highlands but which ultimately was never used.  A cold cold day but kept walking and was met at the southern point of the walk by an amazing view down Loch Lochy and sunshine!

 

I bought my wife a Christmas Present with a difference - a morning at the Sled Dog centre near Aviemore seeing the racing dogs, learning all about them and being taken into the forest in the Cairngorm National Park pulled along by 10 racing dogs at high speed!  A wonderful experience with Alan Stewart who races dogs all over the globe.  Learned plenty about the history of sled dogs, how to keep them healthy and how this really is a full time job!  Best of all was the dogs pulling us round the forest at full speed!  Highly recommended and a really brilliant and different kind of experience!

 

The finale to Highland Year of Culture 2007 with the Highland Lights on the old Scottish New Year Night!  A procession of Highland people left Inverness City Centre with burning torches (bought for charity) along the riverside and out to the Longman with various entertainment, music and fire shows along the way.  Once at the Longman the view was brilliant across the Kessock Bridge high above the Moray Firth for a fourteen minute choregraphed music and firework display from GroupF a French based company!  Quite a spectacle and the best fireworks performance ever seen in the Highlands!

My wee nephew Torran just four years old was mascot at the New Year fixture between Ross County and Peterhead.  He warmed up on the pitch with the Under 19s, had his photo taken with striker Sean Higgins and Rosco the Stag and then led the Ross County team out before the match.  Ross County won the match 5-1 so he really was the lucky mascot!  A proud day for his uncle and the rest of the family at our local league club!

A day trip to Naama Bay from our resort in Sharm El Sheikh.  A bustling beach resort with bars, shops and beach.  The Beach Promenade here is busy and it was a hot hot day to enjoy the beach area!  We found the most interesting place was the Sharm Museum with its replica's  of famous Egyptian relics.  King Tutankhamum's death mask was very interesting and the stories of Egypt told by the Egyptiologist.

Having stayed overnight above the Red Rose City of Petra the morning view of the Jordanian desert was amazing!  It was then a long bus journey to the lowest point on earth to float in the Dead Sea.  No plants or organisms live in the sea, hence its name and the high salt content ensures people float rather than swim in it!  A relaxing day floating around before a long journey back to Aqaba for the sail and bus journey back to our resort.  A great couple of days in Jordan seeing some very famous and enjoyable sights along the way!

A two day trip from Egypt to the neighbouring country of Jordan.  A two hour sail from Taba in Egypt to Aqaba in Jordan was amazing as you could see four countries from the boat - Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.  Then a coach trip past the mountains and desert of Wadi Rum to the Red Rose City of Petra - the lost city made famous by Indiana Jones.  Amazing to walk through the canyon to see the Treasury revealed through a gap in the rock.  Probably the most awe inspring place I've ever visited with its tombs, amphitheatre, houses and buildings cut out of the cliff faces!

 

A morning trip out of Cairo to the desert to see the original pyramid at Sakkara.  It was the first of 114 built throughout Egypt.  It was then back for a great viewpoint at Giza Pyramids before walking round the massive structures.  Then it was onto the Great Sphinx in front of the Giza Pyramids.  The afternoon saw us visit Giza Papyrus where we had a demonstration of how they make papyrus prints from plant and strengthen them.  A quick visit to the Turquoise Joaillerie Museum before getting the bus back to Sharm El Sheikh including a journey under the Suez Canal on the way back.

While on honeymoon in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt for two weeks we did a two day trip of Cairo.  Above is us photographed outside the interesting and massive Egyptian Museum and the other is of us by the massive River Nile where we enjoyed a short boat trip.  It was a day for learning about the history of Egypt and proved highly interesting.  Pictured below is me by the Giza Pyramids with the view from the hotel we stayed at overnight right beside them and of Marie in the Shahinza Perfumes Palace which are famous for their perfume oils.  We finished the day with a Sound and Light show at the Giza Pyrmaids which involved story telling, lights and music.

When Runrig announced an Inverness tour date the night after our wedding we just had to go!  It was the first time Runrig had played the Ironworks and it was just overloaded with fans to enjoy the Gaelic supergroup.  A moment never to be forgotten at the end when Book of Golden Stories was played live and dedicated to "Craig and Marie who got married yesterday".  Thanks for the amazing dedication!

To keep the party going after the wedding we had to have a hangover party.  A bar meal at Johnny Foxes, Torridon played a session to keep the party going and everyone had a blast!  A good opportunity to catch up with people we had'nt had time to catch up with properlly over a few sociable drinks.  My t shirt certainly amused plenty of people too!

 

The day of our wedding - Taffy and Marie now Mr and Mrs Maclean.  The full wedding was the brilliant Ben Wyvis Hotel in Strathpeffer with the wedding ceremony conducted by a great registrar - my mother!  Then we had a fantastic meal, photos and then an evening reception with Torridon blasting out the music.  For our first dance Torridon sang Runrigs Book of Golden Stories which was the perfect first waltz in married life!  A great and happy day.  Thanks to everyone for their warm wishes and pressies - we have been bowled over with everyones generosity!

 

 The biggest of days - Scotland V Italy at Hampden Park, Glasgow.  Scotland needed to win to qualify for next summers European Championships.  Only problem was they were playing the World Champions.  Scotland the nation was behind the team and everyone wanted tickets for this match where there was no public sale.  Hampden was amazing and though we lost 2-1 and so failed to qualify but despite this the tartan army refused to leave the stadium until the team came out for a lap of honour.  Everyone was proud of the team who had excelled themselves during the campaign in a group they were classed as no hopers.   We even beat France home and away during the campaign!  A day of highs and lows.

 

Runrig released a charity single "Loch Lomond - The Hampden Remix" for the charity BBC Children In Need.  The tartan army were recorded singing the song during last months Hampden match against Ukraine and the single went on sale last Monday.  Tonight the band performed the single live on BBC1 Scotland and myself and other tartan army members were on the stage within the BBC Studios singing it with the band.  We were piped from the Renfrew Ferry to the BBC Studios and then sang and danced to the song!  A great success and a major event for me singing on stage with Runrig!  Below is the photo of us on stage giving it laldy!

The Inverness Bonfire and Fireworks on 5 November each year is always a well attended event at Bught Park.  It takes the council about a week to build the bonfire from pallets and then thousands turn out to watch the Bonfire, fireworks and go on the amusements such as dodgems, waltzers and chutes.  Always a great family event and this year was no different with me attending with my neice and nephew who loved it!

A fine weekend with seven pals in Belfast for a stag party weekend in Northern Ireland.  The laughs were amazing as we flew from Inverness to Belfast, had a taxi tour of the Shankhill and Falls Road areas of Belfast then enjoyed watching the football and rugby in the city centre pubs of the city!  A fine weekend of laughs, sleep, drinks and lots more!  To the boys who attended - cheers it was great!!

The most unbelievable of days!  Scotland favourites pre match to beat Ukraine who were World Cup Quarter Finalists!  The press coverage and hype pre match was amazing and the team delivered winning 3-1 and scoring two goals in the first eight minutes of the match to have Hampden Park jumping!  Half time so the 52,000 crowd sing Loch Lomond for Runrigs Charity Single and the whole place erupted and sang the song together!  Some atmosphere from start to finish and a great victory inside the national stadium.

 

The usual pre match tartan army party on the Renfrew Ferry and the usual amazing bounce and singsong pre match!  Torridon opened the proceedings and had the place jumping.  Then the BBC tv cameras arrived and recorded the 1000 odd tartan army on board singing and dancing to Runrigs Loch Lomond recording for an upcoming charity single in aid of Children In Need.  Then the Crash Banjos made their Renfrew Ferry debut and ensured the party continued up until everyone's buses left for the big match!

 

Ben Wyvis is a great bulk that dominates the landscape for many miles around in the North East Highlands high above Dingwall!  Last week it was covered in snow - this week by a miracle the weather is amazing and it was completely cloud free on my hike up the mountain!  After passing through Garbat Forest I entered the Ben Wyvis National Nature Reserve and started the steep climb up An Cabar on the mountains south westerly extremity.  Then it was over the flat summit ridge over the mossy turf to the summit cairn.  The views across the remote mountains and wilderness was amazing with Loch Glascarnoch, Dingwall, the Cromary Firth and Novar Windfarm also well in view at different stages of the hike up and down!

Day two and everyones tired after some night last night!  Today saw the Mini Box Club a kids band from Achiltibuie open the second day and then a host of bands including the Family Mahone, the Tiny Dancers and the biggest name to ever play in Ullapool - Franz Ferdinand who played a dedication for Marie and I prior to our wedding!   Met Janice Long from BBC Radio 2 who comperes Loopallu each year who met the mad locals once again and loved their hospitality!   Another great day in the festival tent and a great atmosphere around the village!

Loopallu Festival in Ullapool and its the third year and by far the biggest with the top quality bands playing this year!  Having assisted with the festival site set up and done a radio interview with BBC Scotland it was time to enjoy the music and see the Ullapool Pipe Band open Loopallu and then see some of my favourites in the Vatersy Boys and the Saw Doctors perform in the Big Top Tent.  Then it was onto the fringe events afterwards to see the Family Mahone in the Ceilidh Place and then enjoy a pint with the Saw Doctors in the Arch afterwards!  The Saw Doctors had such a great performance tonight and you can tell they loved playing in Ullapool and everything that goes with the village!

Probably the greatest moment in Scottish football history.  The World Cup Finalist France - we came to their capital city, set the place alive with a party and march and then unbelievably beat them against all odds 1-0 through a James McFadden goal from about 30 yards!  To say this is the things dreams are made of is putting it mildly!  My 32nd away match and far and away the greatest ever.  The atmosphere the tartan army created was unbelievable and the teams performance was superb with every man playing his part!  I can tell my grandchildren I was there the day we beat the French in Paris against all the odds to go top of our European Championship Group!

A fantastic day out and carnival atmosphere in the centre of Paris as the Effiel Tower area becomes a meeting point for the troops.  After plenty music, dancing, laughs, games of football and socialising the tartan army approximately 15,000 strong marched from the Effiel Tower to the Park de Prince stadium for a distance of almost 4 miles and sang and displayed our flags for the whole journey creating a wonderful spectacle for the friendly French people watching from their businesses and homes!

 

Travelled to Paris for tomorrows European Championship Qualification game.  Optimism is high after a great win at home on Saturday!  My 32nd away trip and its back to Paris where the World Cup adventure started for me in 1998!  A great night in Paris tonight watching local Inverness legends Torridon perform their folk music to the tartan army masses!

 

A famous and deserved home win at a crucial time for Scotland in the European Championship Qualification Group.  Hampden Park was bouncing and not even a dodgy penalty decision by the ref could spoil our day.  Faddys 20 yard shot into the top corner was amazing!  A great result, great atmosphere and great day out.  Off to Paris on Tuesday for the toughest match off all - fingers crossed!

A Scottish debut for the Tartan Specials from New York on the Renfrew Ferry prior to a famous win over Lithuania!  As usual the best place for the troops to meet up and party on.  Met some old friends and made new ones too!  A great party atmosphere and it got everyone singing ready for an amazing match at Hampden Park!

 

A walk starting in Rosemarkie along the beach to Chanory Point Lighthouse, viewing Fort George on the other side of the Moray Firth and the Brahan Seer Memorial Stone before going through Fortrose and over the hill.  Marvellous views over the Cromary Firth on the way up the hill, down the other side and finishing by going along the Rosemarkie Burn in Fairy Glen with its waterfalls.  A fine 11.3 km walk on a glorious day!

 

Visited Invergordon to see the massive ship here today on a cruise.  Invergordon attracts such ships throughout the summer and the boats sail up the Cromarty Firth and disembark their passengers in Invergordon to visit various Highland tourism sights.  While in Invergordon I saw the different murals painted onto the side of buildings which have added to the colour within the town.

 

This annual charity game took place on the hallowed turf of Victoria Park Stadium, Dingwall and saw the players beat the supporters 9-0.  I refereed the game on a magnificient playing surface - a game that was a good laugh and without any trouble!  The fans enjoyed using the dressing rooms and playing in the strips of the team against their heroes.  After the match I met new Ross County manager Dick Campbell.

 

 

Never before have I seen the Ironworks so busy!  A sell out crowd dancing all night to this amazing ceilidh band while Whisky Galore played on the screen behind the band!  Plenty of banter, great music and an amazing atmosphere inside the Ironworks.

Runrigs biggest gig since 1991 at Loch Lomond and it saw 17,000 at Drumnadroicht on the banks of Loch Ness.  Unfortunately the weather put a dampner on the day with constant rain but despite being soaked through it was a fantastic day of music.  Our friends Torridon opened the event followed by the funny Vatersy Boys and then enjoyed Julie Fowlis, Great Big Sea, Wolfstone and my first time seeing The Red Hot Chilli Pipers live before Runrig came on stage.  Runrig's set was fantastic with a great light and movie show behind the stage complementing the music!  Lets hope an event like this becomes an annual event - only with better weather!

 

The joys of living in the Highlands - five minutes by car and your out in the countryside away from it all.  These photos were taken at Daviot Wood today a Forestry Commission site and a 7km walk.  The Kessock Bridge looks close in the photo above but in fact its miles away but is clearly seen in the distance down the forest track.  Daviot Wood itself has loads of trails through the forest but I also joined up and walked part of the General Wades route that was built in 1728-1730 by Wades troops to link Dunkeld with Inverness.  Theres also a viewpoint with a fine view over the city of Inverness, Moray Firth and the hills and mountains behind including might Ben Wyvis!  A great place to get away from it all and just beside the busy A9 road though you'd never know with the peace and quiet!

 

 

As part of the Highland 2007 Year of Culture the European Pipe Band Championships took place in Inverness for the first time in history.  140 pipe bands from around the world converged on the city and played from dawn till dusk!  There was different classes and competitions but definately Grade 1 was the best with the standard of piping truly amazing.  The Grade 1 European winners for 2007 were Field Marshall Montgomery.  At the finale and march past the massed bands played Highland Laddie and Scotland the Brave which was amazing to hear with so many pipes and drums playing together!

 

 

An eleven mile walk over half a day in one of Scotlands most scenic valleys and a circular walk along the north bank, down the remote east side and back along the south bank with stunning views of Loch Affric and the mountains and features surrounding it!  Fine views over the Kintail Mountains, Loch Coulavie, the Sputan Ban waterfall off An Tudair Beag and stunning scenery throughout.  I even managed to get to the very remote sandy beach on the Eastern Shore of the loch after passing the bothy at Athnamulloch.  One of the best walks to do in the Highlands for scenery and changing views as the weather changed throughout from sunshine to showers to moving clouds!

 

A special tattoo for Highland 2007 in the scenic Fort George which provided a great night of music, dance, displays and a real night to celebrate Scotland and its people!  The night featured a parachute display from the Golden Lions, Massed Pipe Bands, the Imps Motorcycle Display Team, The Royal Army of Oman Pipe Band, Massed Military Bands and  a Finale with a lone piper on the ramparts of Ft George.  A great occasion and  a great spectacle!

 

After a huge day for Inverness with the World Highland Games the night saw a massive ceilidh in the tent on Bught Park.  Great music from my mates Torridon and Scotland (and the worlds) finest box player Fergie Macdonald and his band!

 

 A summer cycle along the towpath of the Caledonain Canal heading south from Inverness to Dochgarroch and heading back on the opposite bank of the canal.    Some great views of the surrounding hills, the River Ness and Caledonian Canal and passed loads of runners, walkers, cyclists, boats and fishermen along the way!  A quiet peaceful cycle getting away from the city of Inverness within minutes!

 

 

The annual fete day organised by Ullapool Rotary Club.  Stalls on the pier, a visit to the harbour by Lochinver Lifeboat, the annual race with canoeing, cycling and running plus entertainment from the Ullapool Pipe Band and a Coastguard display in Loch Broom which is viewed from the pier!  Always a well supported day by the local community and a great place to catch up with people you haven't seen in ages!

 The eleventh year of the SSC Fair Play Cup between tartan army clubs.  This year the venue was Inverness with WESTA winning in a final at the astroturf pitch at Bught.  This was followed by a function in the Chieftain Hotel before everyone went to Johnny Foxes to see Torridon perform all their classic Scottish songs!  Another great day of meeting friends in the tartan army and having a great laugh!  Well done to my pals in WESTA for winning the tournament for the first time!

 

An afternoon spent at the Fort George tourist attraction I hadn't been at since a young child and a short hop from home in Inverness.  Following the Battle of Culloden in 1746 the government built this fortress as the ultimate defence against further Jacobite Uprising.  It was intended as a impregnable army base but actually never saw a shot fired in anger.  Its the only Ancient Monument in Scotland still functioning as intended - a working army baracks and a tourist attraction.  Walked along the mighty walls, visited the imposing chapel, the historic barrack rooms, viewed the Seafield Collection of arms and military equipment in the Grand Magazine, the Highlanders museum and saw the many canons and guns on the ramparts overlooking the Moray Firth where we even saw bottle nosed dolphins swimming around just below the fort's walls!

 Glen Affric is a National Nature Reserve in a remote area of the Highlands around an hour from Inverness.  Today I left the beautiful Loch Affric and climbed to the summit of Sgurr na Lapaich (1036 metres) known as the Peak of the Bog before doing a ridge walk up further to Mam Sodhail with its massive summit cairn.  Mam Sodhail is the second highest mountain north of the Great Glen (1180 metres) and so is the second highest mountain until you reach Iceland!  Mam Sodhail means Hill of the Barns and the hope was to climb the highest mountain Carn Eighe which is 3 metres higher and slightly further north but the weather conditions were unfortunately too stormy so I descented into Coire Leachavie and enjoyed a walk the length of Loch Affric before heading home!  An outstanding day away from it all and great exercise seeing some amazing views in the process!

 

While in Ayr-shire went to Alloway the birthday place of the bard of Scotland and the countries most famous poet Robert Burns.  Visited his cottage, museum, Kirk Alloway and saw the Burns Monument.  The Tam O Shanter experience was also great to see with a high quality audio visual show before going to  the Brig O Doon from the famous fictional story featuring Tam O Shanter.  An interesting day within the village with a lot of history!

 

 

The first major concert at Ayr Racecourse and it was fantastic to see the Saw Doctors play again.  A great outdoor venue in a large area and the Saw Docs were true to form blasting out their legendary songs and getting the crowd going.  They were followed by the headline act Deacon Blue who I hadn't seen before but the last half hour of their performance they were brilliant especially when blasting out Dignity the whole place was jumping!  The event was part of the Burns an A That Festival 2007!

A weekend break in Ayrshire and we went out for dinner to Elliots in Prestwick for Marie's birthday.  Quite the most fantastic meal and an amazing restaurant!

Hiked up Braeriach as part of the annual Aviemore Walking Festival.  At 1,296 metres Braeriach is the third highest mountain in Scotland and the UK.  Went through Cahalamain Gap and past the Lairig Ghru on the ascent up which was a gruelling walk with pouring rain then snow and trudged through deep snow to reach the summit cairn.  The snow really slowed the group down and reaching the summit took 5.5 hours.  However enjoyed the walk and have now completed walking up Ben Nevis, Ben McDui and Braeriach - the three highest mountains in the UK!  The photo above show's me on the summit cairn of Braeriach while the one below shows the famous three corries of the Cairngorm Mountain Range which can be seen from miles around!  A major walking challenge and a very enjoyable day!

 

 

A hike up Ben Bhraggie hill high above Golspie.  At the summit at 396 metres is the controversial Duke of Sutherland statue which for years people have asked to have removed as the 1st Duke of Sutherland was infamous for the Highland Clearances.  A great walk to the summit with stunning views down over Golspie, the Dornoch Firth and far out to sea.   The walk weaves it way through forest and then opens up at the top where the path weaves through the heather till the summit is reached.  The 9 metre high statue on a 23 metre pedastal built in 1834 is an imposing sight at the top no matter your opionon on it.

A sad day as my team Ross County were relegated for the first time in their history to finish bottom of the Scottish First Divison.  The final day of the football season and a day which would decide who would be promoted as champions and who would be relegated - some way to finish the league with everything to play for.  With a minute to go in Dingwall St Johnstone would have been crowned league winners but Gretna scored in the final minute to win the league and Ross County were relegated.  Emotions were very different for both sets of supporters and players!   Ross County will play next season in the Scottish Second Division while Gretna will play in the SPL.  Photos show Gretna celebrating in Dingwall and us County fans having a good time with the Gretna fans afterwards despite us having very different emotions!  A piece of football history was made in Dingwall as Gretna are the first team to win all three Scottish divisions in successive years - 3rd Division in 2005, 2nd Division in 2006 and 1st Division in 2007.

A visit to the top tourist attraction in Scotland - Edinburgh Castle!  Pictured above is me beside Mons Megs the famous canon of Edinburgh Castle high on the ramparts above Scotlands capital city.  This was my first visit to the castle since I was a child and I enjoyed the stunning views over Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth from the ramparts plus visited different museums and saw the One O Clock Gun museum.  Also saw the Crown Jewels of Scotland and the Stone of Destiny at the top of the castle plus visited the inspirational Scottish War Museum, a shrine to those who have given up their lives while serving with Scottish infrantry.  There is much to see and do within the castle and was thorougly enjoyed seeing this Scottish icon!

A guided tour of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, Edinburgh.  The tour took us through the Debating Chamber (photographed above), committee room and the garden lobby.  An interesting hour long tour learning about the design of the Parliament building, devolution and how it all works.  The controversial building is interesting to see around and has interesting architecural features.

The Fourth Successive Year of the Player of the Year Dance and another fine night at the Chieftain Hotel, Inverness.  Awards were given to Donnie McBain for Services to Ross County FC, Michael Gardyne for Young Player of the Year and Don Cowie for Player of the Year.  It was my pleasure to present the Player of the Year Award to Don Chipper Cowie before everybody got torn in about the food and then danced the night away to Schiehallion.  Having organised this event for the last four years I am shortly stepping down as the Supporters Club secretary and thank everyone for their support over the years especially the club members and the Ross County Players and Staff past and present for attending each year and making the nights so successful!

The Grim Northern Social played the Ironworks as support for Eddie and the Hot Rods.  The Grims with their new line up entertained the Highland audience with their classic tracks plus new songs from their upcoming album.  The photo shows the Grims front man Euan McFarlane's stong vocals entertaining the crowd!!!

A big game at Hampden Park and a win over Georgia would keep Scotland top of the Euro 2008 Qualifying Group ahead of Ukraine, Italy and France.  Scotland were certainly in a better position than anybody could have dreamed off and a win was vital!  It was a close game and the team scrapped it in the end but a 2-1 victory kept us top and ensured a great Hampden Atmosphere.  From the National Anthems at the start to Kris Boyds early goal, 500 miles ringing round the stadium at half time to the celebrating when Craig Beattie fired in the winner!  Hampden was bouncing and the tartan army celebrated another famous victory!

Another famous morning and early afternoon on the Renfrew Ferry for a tartan army pre match party!  A great place for everyone to meet up prior to an important game with everyone expecting Scotland to win with them top of the group and in great spirits.  This party featured as usual Andy Chung plus Clanadonia and Torridon playing for the first time at this venue.  It was great to see my friends from Torridon perform for the tartan army and Clanadonia played some outstanding instrumental Scottish tunes as well!  Seeing and hearing live music that is traditionally Scottish whets the appetite for the big game in the afternoon!!!

For the last six Tuesday evenings I have attended University of Aberdeen lectures on St Kilda in Inverness. In association with the National Trust For Scotland the lectures have been a great education on the archipelga of the remote islands in the Atlantic Ocean. The slides and photos used have been beautiful and the stories of peoples trips to the islands completely amazing! The programme of lectures included human occupation, special features, archaeology, history and indivdual islands. A very interesting series of lectures and highly recommended!

A scenic drive round Wester Ross in the Scottish Highlands.  Having left the capital in Inverness we drove to Garve before heading to Lochluichart, Achnasheen, Lochcarron and Kishorn before crossing the Bealach Na Ba (Pass of the Cattle) to Applecross.  This famous road has stunning views over the mountains it crosses plus views over to the Isle of Skye and involves driving the single track hairpin bends over the mountain road.  After a fantastic lunch at Applecross Inn it was onto Loch Torridon, Loch Maree, Gairloch, Loch Ewe before heading for Ullapool for the weekend. 

Ross County Supporters Fundraising Group Save Our Staggies ran a unique night at Dingwall Tandoori. For £14 per person guests and fans were served a 4 course meal at Dingwall Tandoori with the Ross County players assisting the staff from the local Indian restaurant in the service of food and drinks! The meal was tremendous, background music provided live by the Dingwall Academy band and the players were helpful and very approachable. I am photographed here with the four players who were waiting the tables when I was there - Player Coach Derek Adams, midfielder Neal Hooks, French striker Malik Rezgane and new Italian goalkeeper Matieo Tomei. The night raised over £1000 for Save Our Staggies and featured heavily in the press including the Scottish Sun newspaper.

Having left my work at Inverness Leisure after 10 years in a variety of posts I had to have a leaving night out! A meal was enjoyed by staff at Dows Bar Diner, Inverness followed by music and drinking with local band Schiehallion. It was great to have so many work colleagues present on the night - both current and former. The attached photos shows five of the original staff of Inverness Leisure when it opened its doors in March 1997. I would like to thank all my former colleagues for their kindness with messages, cards and presents and for attending on the night!

Having worked at Inverness Leisure for 10 years today was a sad day with leaving after such a long time! My work colleagues presented me with presents, cards, good wishes and we had refreshments in a surprise presentation for me! The highest point though through all the sadness of leaving was meeting Zac the Hearing Dog for the Deaf for the first time. Myself and my colleagues plus the facilities customers raised £5000 to buy a Hearing Dog for a Deaf Person. After the local coordinator Bert Smail's dog died we asked if the money we had raised could be put towards a new dog for Bert! Happily the dog has just passed all its test and is assisting Bert with his daily life. It was a pleasure to meet Zac on my final day at work. An emmotional day and one of great memories from down the years working at Inverness Leisure!

I am a keen supporter of Ross County Football Club based at Victoria Park Stadium, Dingwall, Ross-shire. I have followed this team since they got into the Scottish League in 1994. The team have risen from the Highland Football League, won the Scottish League Third Division and are currently playing in the Scottish First Divison. The team won their first national trophy in November 2006 when they won the Scottish Challenge Cup by beating Clyde at McDiarmid Park, Perth. This photo appeared in the Ross-shire Journal today along with an article on myself regarding me having to give up roles with the Ross County Supporters Groups due to starting an exciting new carrer! I have got a lot of enjoyment out of working on Save Our Staggies and the Inverness Ross County Independent Supporters Club over the years!

I first saw Highland band Wolfstone perform in July 1990 at Ullapool Village Hall. Since then I have followed the band and attended their concerts over the years in cities and towns all over Scotland plus attended their gigs in New York City and Washington DC in USA back in 1996. Tonight in Inverness was the thirty fifth time I have seen the band live over the years at the launch of their new album Terra Firma. There is a new sound from the band and only two of the original band from 1990 still play but their gigs are always great fun with lots of dancing in a frenzy to their Celtic Rock instrumentals and songs!

I travelled to London after being on the waiting list for tickets for 2 years for my favourite quiz show - A Question of Sport. It was fantastic to see the show being filmed live at BBC Television Centre in London. The show is presented by Sue Barker with captains Matt Dawson (England Rugby Union World Cup Winner) and Ally McCoist (Scottish Football Legend). The show was very funny to see and was shown across the UK on 23 February.

Having flown to London the previous night today we enjoyed a city bus tour of London seeing all the major sites over the course of the day. There is so many sights on the River Thames area including Tower Bridge, The Tower of London, London Eye, Houses of Parliament and Westminister Abbey. We also had a boat cruise of the River Thames plus visited Buckingham Palace, Downing Street, Nelsons Column, Albert Memorial, Kensington Palace and the Marble Arch. An enjoyable day seeing all the famous sights of this massive city!

It was a great priveledge and surprise to be a part of my works Team of the Year for 2006. The Community Sports Leadership Team took part in this award scheme in their own time and took local schools for activity sessions plus promoted the facility and its work! We had won the monthly title of Team of the Month but were voted the overall winners of the annual award which was of great pride and excitement to us. The team are Kevin, James (General Manager presenting the award), Me holding Lee, Andy and Cameron holding Martin up! Missing from the photo were Charlie, Leanne and Ross.

My first ever Burns Supper and an enjoyable night with Inverness Burns Club at the Lochardil House Hotel, Inverness. The address to the haggis was made by Bill Hamilton with the Immortal Memory by James Fraser. The Rev Derek Brown did the toast to the lasses with his wife the Rev Susan Brown doing the reply. The night was highly enjoyable with a lovely meal of haggis, neeps and tatties followed by Drambuie Trifle. The speeches were interesting and funny and the night finished with everyone present singing some of Rabbie Burns famous songs! The photos shows piper Bill Hamilton addressing the haggis in front of the head chef!

This display of muscianship and aerial ballet took place at Falcon Square, Inverness with the artists suspended from a massive crane! This was part of the opening ceremony of Highland 2007 Year of Culture. After a display on the ground including chanting, singing and fire swinging the artisits took to the suspended platform and performed music high above us suspended from the crane! It was quite a sight and the night finished with fireworks on the roof of the Eastgate Shopping Centre.

We travelled to Burghead on the Morayshire coast to witness the Burning of the Clavie. This old new year celebration occurs annually and involves a group of local men carting a barrel of fire around the town in a clockwise direction to scare away evil spirits. The Clavie is a half barrel filled with wood shavings and tar and the barrel is nailed to the carrying post by the same nail each year. It is carried round the town and presents smouldering faggots to houses of eminent citizens and public buildings. The spectacle finishes at Doorie Hill at the front of the village where the clavie is set down, more fuel is added and the whole hillside becomes a beacon of fire. It was quite a spectacle to witness for the first time!

Myself and my finance Marie spent a Scottish Hogmanay at the Clachnaharry Bar, Inverness with some friends. A fine Highland New Year with Stovies and a few drinks! Happy New Year to all our friends - all the best for 2007!!

Andy Chung is a singer and musical legend of the Tartan Army! He had never played Inverness before but it was a privledge to see him play his debut in the city at the Gellions. Andy is a long time friend of mine and to see him play on my own doorstep to a receptive crowd was great!

Inverness Leisure had their annual staff night out in the Colymbridge Hotel, Aviemore. Another legendary night materialised with everyone getting on a storm! After a four course meal the dance floor was busy all night! Well done to everyone for enjoying the night and having a blast before the busy festive period comes!

Day 2 of the Scottish Stadium Tour and visited many grounds in the early hours of the morning including Hampden Park, Celtic Park, Hamilton, Motherwell, Stirling Albion and Airdrie before heading to Livingston and the Edinburgh stadiums. Then it was north through Fife, Dundee, the Angus grounds (including Brechin City pictured) and then onto Aberdeen, Peterhead, Elgin City, Inverness CT and ending in Dingwall for our match against Gretna who we visited yesterday. An outstanding trip visiting every ground in the country in 26 hours - unfortunately Gretna spoilt our day by beating Ross County!

A mini bus load of Ross County supporters headed south with the massive job of visiting all 42 of the Scottish Football League clubs. We popped into Perth to visit St Johnstone manager Owen Coyle (pictured) at McDiarmid Park before meeting Berwick Rangers Supporters Trust members just south of the Scottish border. Then we visited Gretna, Queen of the South and their friendly social club before being overwhelmed by the hospitality and donations to the cause in the Stranraer Social Club. After dinner in here it was up the Ayrshire Coast, Kilmarnock, Dumbarton, Greenock Morton and Partick Thistle in Glasgow just prior to midnight!

Ross County FC held their Christmas Fayre at Victoria Park, Dingwall. The highlight was meeting the team in their home dressing room and getting our hands on the two trophies they won last month. Here is me holding the Scottish Challenge Cup which Ross County win by beating Clyde on penalty kicks. Pictured with me in the Ross County home dressing room is captain Don Cowie and striker Amick Ciani.

I organised a Race Night at the National Hotel, Dingwall and raised over £1000 for Save Our Staggies in the process. It was quite a night with entertainment, bets, raffles and plenty of laughs. It was the supporters first chance to get their hands on the two trophies Ross County won last month. Here is me holding the North of Scotland Cup (which team won by beating Nairn County) and the Scottish Challenge Cup (which the team won by beating Clyde) and of which is their first national trophy.

On the way home from Down Under we stopped for two nights in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. It was our first experience of the desert. Today we went on a Dubai City Tour visiting all the famous spots in the city including the Gold Souk, Jumeirah Mosque, World Island, Royal Palace, the indoor Ski Centre and the famous seven star Burj Al Arab the tallest hotel in the world! Here Marie and I are pictured near the hotel from the Souk Medinat Jumeriah Hotel.

We arrived after an overnight flight from Auckland to Dubai and went on a Desert Safari. On leaving the city it was desert straight away and we went on a 4WD tour through the desert and over the sand dunes at full speed! Lots of fun, bumps and speed in different directions in the massive sand dunes! Saw camels, goats and falcons before viewing the sunset from the desert (photographed). Then it was onto the Arabian Adventures Bedouin Village for a meal on the traditional cushions and low tables. An interesting day out in the desert!

Following a journey round Coromandel Pennisula up through Auckland and Warkworth we found ourselves in beautiful Bay of Islands while staying at Whangarei. The Cream Cruise took us round the Bay of Islands today visiting Marsden Cross, Black Rocks, Cooks Cove and Urupuka Island (photographed). We then sailed out into the Pacific Ocean and went through the famous Hole in the Rock at Cape Brett. A hughely enjoyable day out at sea in sunny weather and amazing views in all directions.

Having hired a car and headed south on New Zealands North Island we visited Otorophanga Kiwi House, Waitomo Caves and then spent a couple of enjoyable days at Rotorua. Here I am pictured in the smelly thermal Kuirau Park with its boiling mud and water pools. I almost disappeared in the steam coming from the water below the platform! Also visited the Government Gardens, Buried Village, Sulphur Bay and spent an enjoyable Maori evening at Mitai Maori Village. Enjoyed zorbing before heading north on the Road Trip!

We had flown from Sydney to Auckland and visited family in Campbells Bay before going up the Sky Tower and Mt Eden in the largest city in New Zealand. Here I am pictured in the Sky Tower high above the City of Sails and Auckland Bridge in the background. Auckland is a beautiful city built on former volcanoes with a great view from the tower in all directions!

An enjoyable day in Sydney visiting the sights on the Harbour Cruise seeing the Opera House, Darling Harbour, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Heads and visiting the middle and main harbour. Great informative cruise and an excellent way to see the city from the water! After a walk round the Opera House once back on dry land it was onto the massive Aquarium with its platypus's, crocodiles, sharks and Great Barrier Reef fish. Couldn't see the whole of Sydney in a day but enjoyed seeing the main and famous sights!

This was one of the highlights of the whole trip down under. A three day sailing trip round the beautiful Whitsunday Islands. Travelled through Hook Passage to Whitehaven Beach which is in the top ten league of beaches in the world! Crystal Clear water, miles of sand and lots of views that were out of this world. Highlights were swimming in the water (see photo), snorkelling, relaxing, sunbathing, sailing and seeing the amazing Hayman Island resort for the rich and famous!

Having left Brisbane we flew to Airlie Beach for a few days to relax and enjoy this small seaside town. Went horse riding, ate out, swam and it was the main point for sailing trips to the Whitsunday Islands which we did later in the week. The highlight however was undoubtly the tandem sky dive from 12,000 ft with a scenic flight, views over the spectacular islands and Airlie Beach below and then jumping out the plane at 125 mph! Pure adrenaline stuff and am photographed here with my tandem jumper Stevie!

A day trip from Brisbane by boat to Morten Island and its amazing Tangalooma Wild Dolphin Resort. This island is the worlds third biggest sand island with crystal clear water on the sandy beach and palm trees everywhere! Went sand tobaggoning in the desert, lazed on the beach and finally fed the wild dolphins who come into the beach every night for some fish! Marie and I fed two dolphin calves called Storm and Silhouette and it was amazing to get so close to them and see them feed direct from our hands.

The whole plan behind a months holiday down under was to have the honour of being a groomsman at Glenn and Elaine's wedding in Brisbane, Australia. Glenn was a lifelong friend who grew up in Ullapool and emigrated to Australia a few years ago. The wedding was very much a Scottish occasion in the heat of Australia! The wedding took place at a winery on the outskirts of the city with the ceremony beside the laguna and a great meal and entertainment all night afterwards. Enjoyed the occasion to the full though parts were nerve wracking with formal speeches with me being the Master of Ceremonies! A day never to be forgotten and worth every mile of travel to attend!

The iconic structure of Brisbane is the Story Bridge which is high above the Brisbane River. While in Brisbane the Story Bridge Climb had to be undertaken and along with Julian and Kenny we climbed the bridge in daylight with amazing views for miles and came back down in the dark as the lights went up across the Central Business District.

Just off the plane from Singapore and it was important to stay awake and get used to the different time zone in Australia. What better way than a stroll round Brisbane City Centre and then a bus to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary to see at first hand the animals of Australia. Held a one year old crocodile, fed the kangaroos, watched the Koalas feed on their leaves and a Wild Bird Display.

After a flight from Scotland the previous day we had a days stop over in Singapore and enjoyed visiting all the major sites. Had a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar of the famous Raffles Hotel, had a rickshaw journey, saw the world biggest fountain - the Fountain of Wealth at Suntec City and enjoyed a City Bus Tour. Visited Sri Mariamman Temple and in Merlion Park saw the Merlion the international emblem of Singapore (photographed). It was then onto the plane and off to Australia overnight!

As if the pre match party isn't good enough, news of my new job and now we witness a real shock - Scotland beat France 1-0 thanks to a goal from Gary Caldwell! Simply the best day of my life in every regard! The famous Hampden Roar returned as the tartan army celebrated and celebrated a famous victory to blast the team to the top of the European Championship Qualifying Group!

What a day this turned into! A train journey down from Inverness, onto our usual party venue on the Renfrew Ferry and then news got to me that the carrer of my dreams had been accepted and I had a new life to look forward too! Add to that an expectant tartan army looking forward to the afternoons match against World Cup Finalists France and it was some party! See the photo for the party with Schiehallion and Andy Chung performing for the troops!

I hadn't seen Scottish band Capercaillie perform in quite some years. Was delighted to see they chose to play a one off gig at the new Ironworks venue in Inverness and once again a great night at the Ironworks was guaranteed! The vocals of Karen Matheson and the instrumental numbers of the band ensured it was another amazing night!

The final evening of Loopallu saw Alabama 3, headliners Hayseed Dixie and the Family Mahone play. However it was the Family Mahone who were the find of the festival playing fantastic music and a stunning live performance. Had been to see them the night before in the Ceilidh Place at the Fringe and knew they were excellent but they were simply outstanding!

Without doubt the band the local people were determined not to miss! The Vatersy Boys played Loopallu late in the afternoon and the tent was completely swamped as everyone enjoyed their good time ceilidh music! A highlight of the festival without a doubt!

The Loopallu Festival is in its second year and has brought so much to the village of Ullapool that i grew up in! All accomodation sells out, local businesses make a fortune and you can't squeeze another car in the car park or tent in the camp site. Its a fantastic event and its a tribute to my friend and local music promoter Robert Hicks for setting it up and making it so popular. Loopallu sold out this year. Here I am photographed above the tent with the Summer Isles in the background far out in Loch Broom!

The second Loopallu Festival and a fantastic weekend guaranteed! The opening night was headlined by The Stranglers but the outstanding band was on before them when the Peatbog Fairies from the Isle of Skye stormed onto stage for an amazing instrumental set of music! This year sold out and the benefits to the village are just amazing!

Went on a cruise the length of the Most Famous Loch in the World - Loch Ness of course! The cruise started at Dochgarroch taking us past the weir into the River Ness then past Lochend Lighthouse. The boat then cruised down the loch passing famous Urquhart Castle before mist engulfed the loch in the middle and we went through thick cold white mist! However on passing through the mist the loch opened up with great views over the hills on either side of the loch as we passed Invermoriston, Cherry Island and arrived at Fort Augustus. On the return journey north coming out of Fort Augustus there was terrific views over the Abbey and the Nevis Range far beyond! We passed Foyers and Dores enjoying beautiful views over the 26 mile loch. This Loch Ness Express is a new service which only started this year and is the first time in many years you can travel the whole length of Loch Ness. Only one disappointment - I've still to see Nessie!!

My second trip to the new music venue of the Ironworks in Inverness and another of my favourite bands playing. Shooglenifty put on a great set in this fine new venue with outstanding acoustics!

Scotland only had two away games in Europe during 2006 and this was the only game I was going to make! Following a fine opening win over the Faero Islands last Saturday the fans travelled to Lithuania where we had lost a few years before. Thankfully this time we won 2-1 and controlled most of the game. The tartan army celebrated in style! I also enjoyed seeing some of the Vilinus tourist spots including the creepy KGB Museum and the amazing buildings including the cathedral and city hall!

Our base in Lithuania for this match was the capital Vilinus. After an hours coach journey we were in Kaunas for the match. It had a supporters village and plenty of bars outside the ground and had a carnival atmosphere. Piping and singing were common place as the tartan army partied pre match hoping for a victory and revenge for their 1-0 defeat at the same stadium a couple of years before.

First night in Lithuania after the morning flight from Edinburgh and the tartan army are all over the city meaning the pubs are busy and jumping! The tartan army have a party in every country whether they win or lose and expectation was high going into this game. I am photographed with Ludo and Helmie Don on what is my 31st away match following Scotland!

A fine win at Parkhead our adopted stadium for the day. A 6-0 win and 5-0 up at half time ensured the team were on easy street and made sure the tartan army all went home happy! Seeing Scotland scoring so many goals so easily was very rare and most enjoyable!

Our normal pre match party zone on the Renfrew Ferry featured Andy Chung and the famous Gaberlunzie. This was the first game of a new qualifying campaign and we were hoping for revenge having fallen to an embarrasing 2-2 draw away the last time we met them! The Renfrew Ferry is without doubt the best venue pre match with children enjoying the family atmosphere and live music on offer!

A brief stop on the journey from Ullapool to Inverness to see the box canyon of Corrieshalloch Gorge and the Falls of Meach. This tourist attraction has just reopened after a years closure for repairs and entrance is from the opposite side of the road now. Stunning views over the falls from the swing bridge and from the viewpoint! Well worth stopping to see if driving past!

The Johnny Cowboy Memorial Cup is played annually between the village of Ullapool and the housing estate of Morefield.  Johnny was a fantastic friend and local hero and a lover of football.  I was asked to referee the match and it was an honour to officiate at.   A close game was won by Morefield again and both teams are pictured above the football pitch.

My first chance to get my photo on the border between Scotland and England at Gretna Green. A river is the actual border between the two countries and being so close proves how close Gretna FC are to England. The First House in Scotland is beside the Scottish border!

The Old Blacksmiths in Gretna Green is in the top three visited tourist attractions in Scotland. There is shops, marraige rooms, a museum and details of the famous stories of girls taking off on horses in England to race to Gretna Green to marry their sweethearts. Thats me photographed beside the marraige anvil in the Old Blacksmiths Room. Our main reason for visiting to attend Ross Countys first ever match against Gretna later that afternoon.

A trip to Cromarty on the Black Isle to view the 120 metre Wind Generator under construction at the Nigg Yard across the Firth. Its the largest wind generator every built in the world and is scheduled to go out to the North Sea shortly to start recycling wind power! Here it is passed by the Golden Princess cruise ship which spent the day visiting Invergordon further up the Cromarty Firth.

A car jounrey from Inverness to the beautiful Glen Affric area high up in the hills. Then we cycled the path around Loch Affric for amazing views of this beautiful part of the Highlands. Its so remote in this area but also a beautiful well kept place as a result and a massive Nature Reserve.

The highlight of the Ullapool Pub Calendar. The Three Legged Fancy Dress Pub Crawl takes place on the first Saturday of August each year. As part of the Oddballs Day in the village this is a fundraising event where participants pay to participate, dress up and go round twelve pubs answering three questions in each pub while having a drink along the way. A fantastic fun fundraising event that is always participated in by locals and watched by other locals and tourists alike! This year Marie and I went as pirates. The photo shows the race about to start!

Dressed up for the annual Three Legged Fancy Dress Pub Crawl of Ullapool. Here my brother and friends dress up and prepare to start the race! A fun fun night on the cards!

I picked today as the day to propose to my sweetheart Marie after going out together for two and a half years. Today seemed perfect as the Valley of the Broom viewpoint is so picturesque and all our families were going to be in Ullapool that afternoon so it was going to be easy to celebrate! Marie always said she'd guess when I went to do it but I took her totally by surprise and had asked permission first and bought the ring that fitted her perfectly! A happy day!

The Ironworks Live Music Venue opened its doors for the first time on 2 August in Inverness. A much needed live music venue for the city and my first time there watching the Donnie Munro Band for the first time since he left Runrig. A great night and most impressed by the acoustics in the venue plus the pride and passion in the songs of Donnie Munro.

This viewpoint is one mile down the Braemore to Dundonnel Road just off the main road between Ullapool and Inverness. I have travelled the world and seen some amazing views in my life but this view reminds of home in the Scottish Highlands and has always been a great view down Strathmore to Loch Broom in the distance. This special place would take on more significance as this is where I proposed to Marie.

Day Three of the Great Glen Way and the finish of the Loch Ness section of this long distance walk! An enjoyable walk from the old Thomas Telford Bridge beneath Invermoriston Falls and along the side of the hillside before dropping into Fort Augustus with its Abbey and Canal Locks. This was the eight mile section of the walk. Will have two days left to do now from Fort Augustus to Fort William - hopefully next summer!

It was always an ambition of mine as an amateur league referee to officiate at a match at Victoria Park, Dingwall home of the Ross County team I support. I was honoured to referee the match between the current first team squad and a fans team who had paid for the priveledge of playing against their heroes. A good crowd watched the game in an excellent community spirited evening and though obviously the proffesionals won convincingly everyone seemed to enjoy the experience, myself included.

The Inverness Highland Games this year featured the Masters World Championships the first time it had been held outside of North America. Inverness was honoured to host this event alongside its normal heavy weight annual event. A fine couple of days of entertainment developed including the opening ceremony, Highland Games events, funfair, stalls, motorcycle display teams and evening concerts with Blazin Fiddles in the marquee!

After an amazing weekend of events the Tartan Army Gathering finished with an indoor concert in the Osprey Arena of Aviemore Highland Resort with Torridon who supported the main act and well known Peatbog Fairies. It was a tremendous final night to close the weekend and the organising committee including myself gave ourselves a pat on the back at the end for an event that had run very smoothly!

The final day of the tartan army gathering and everyone met at Headquarters at 12noon for a tartan army march along Aviemore Main Street to the Football Pitch. At the pitch the Carnival Day kicked off at 1pm with street theatre, giant sporran throwing, stalls, tug of war, penalty kick competition and traditional Highland Games events.

After the SSC Fair Play Cup finished the tartan army flocked to tv screens around Aviemore to cheer on Portugal in the World Cup Quarter Final against England. The Cairngorm Hotel was the busiest place to watch the match as the no scoring draw edged into penalties. As you can see from the photograph the tartan army were more than delighted when Portugal eventually won on penalty kicks!

The Saturday of the Tartan Army Gathering saw the annual SSC Fair Play Cup played at Seven a Sides at Aviemore pitches. This content between tartan army clubs from across the country was finally won by Perthshire Tartan Army for the third time! The closest I'll ever get to the trophy is shown here!

The Cairngorm Hotel in Aviemore was the headquarters for the tartan army gathering and hosted all the major outdoor music events. Friday night saw the Bannockburn Band perform and Saturday saw Schiehallion entertain the crowd followed by Fireworks. It proved to be an excellent outdoor venue and the staff at the hotel were superb!

To conclude the Friday night the tartan army chose to "get steamin". On a 1950s steam locomotive from Aviemore to Broomhill we travelled for a train journey, stovies, ceilidh on the train platform and then a return to Aviemore. The views at the foot of the Cairngorm Mountains was spectacular and Broomhill Station was actually called Glenbogle in the BBC series Monarch of the Glen so was popular for photographs!

Myself and three mates in the tartan army organised the first ever tartan army gathering in Aviemore. It was a year in the planning and organisation and the first day on Thursday 29 June saw footsoliders of the tartan army converge on the town of Aviemore for a long weekend of events of fun! The first night saw live music events across Aviemore! Here I am pictured with Don, Arthur & Helmie Don at the Thursday night disco preparing for a great weekend!

My twelfth time seeing the Saw Doctors live and a great night at the recently refurbished Strathpeffer Spa Pavilion. This Irish band are top notch when it comes to live performance and this was according to the management of the Spa the best night since they reopened for live music. The photo shows the band performing their track "Joyce Country Ceildih Band".

The second days walk on the Great Glen Way between Inverness and Fort William. Today I started at Invermoriston and walked the parth to Drumnadroich. Fine views over Loch Ness below from the path high up on the hill. Todays route was 14 miles and involved some steep sections, walking a single track road plus forest sections!

A massive new dance festival for the Highlands of Scotland and what a location! At Dores with an amazing view of Loch Ness behind this dance festival attracted a large audience to see Fat Boy Slim headline. Another major success for the organisers - well done Robert. Beautiful day and stunning for those attending.

Save Our Staggies invited Tam Cowan north for a stage show as a major fundraiser to raise £4000 for the youth team kits. Watched the England V Trindad and Tobago game live in the Viking Bar with Tam Cowan then laughed all night at his hiliarous stories and gags in the Seaforth Room. He was a real football supporter not taking a penny in expenses for attending and putting on a show people in the Highlands were talking about for weeks afterwards!

A nice evening stroll up the hill high above Inverness to the Radio Masts. Quite a view over the city and the Highland countryside from the top. Doesn't take too long to walk up either from above Kinmylies area of Inverness! Here Marie and I are pictured with the Beauly Firth in the background at the top of a nearby extinct volcano in the same hill range.

We attended the Glen Affric Walking Festival visiting the Guisachan Wild Boar Project which is trying to reintroduce these animals back to their Highland hinterland. This was followed by a walk through the massive Douglas Fir Trees to the 100 ft high Plodda Falls. In the afternoon we did a forest trail up over the hill with views over Loch Affric and then alongside Coire Loch (photographed) a breeding site for rare dragonflys.

My eighth time seeing the Proclaimers play live in their first ever gig in the Spa town of Strathpeffer! A newly refurbished venue the Proclaimers had it rocking all night with their world known songs! A night all the Highland tartan army footsoliders met up to enjoy the music and a few beers together! If I could walk 500 miles then .......

A great priveldge to attend the album launch of our friends band - Torridon. They released their debut album "The Bog" in Inverness to a heaving bar. It was fantastic to hear such a proffesional album and a great musical performance on the night. Scottish traditional music played with pride and passion!

Our first visit to this stunning location just outside Aviemore. Part of the massive Rothiemurchus Estate there is a walk round the loch and a castle on the island in the middle of the loch. A relaxing afternoon out in a stunning location.

As part of the Aviemore Walking Festival I embarked on a guided walk to the second highest mountain in the UK - Ben McDui! Passed Coire an Lochan on the way up, came through wind and snow and trudged to the summit cairn for an amazing view down the valley below and Aviemore could be spotted far below. On the way back down walked to Cairngorm Mountain and walked down underneath the funniculur railway. A great day out - the highest and second highest mountains in the country now conquered and not a sight of the Old Grey Man of Ben McDui!

Enjoyed a walk in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care along with other members of my family. We did the walk in memory of our dear Gran who passed away last year from cancer. £7000 was raised by those participating. The walk left Glenkyllachy Lodge and went along the River Findhorn near Tomatin, Inverness-shire. Photographed is myself and my mother at the finish line!

The third annual Player of the Year Buffet Dance at the Chieftain Hotel, Inverness. As Secretary of the Supporters Club I did the Review of the Year remembering all the funny incidents that occured over the year! The Player of the Year award went to John Rankine, Young POY to Neil MacDonald and midfielder Mark McCulloch got the Services to Ross County award for his loyalty down the years! An enjoyable night and once the speeches were over it was a buffet followed by a dance with Schiehallion!

The joys of going to my hometown of Ullapool is the outdoor environment and meeting up with family and friends! Here is a photo with Julian after we walked his dogs on the beach that stretches round the Morefield area of Ullapool below the golf course. We are photographed beside the Ullapool River with the village of Ullapool in the background.

The Highlands witnessed the biggest game in its football history tonight when the Scotland Future Team played Turkey in the Future Cup. It meant the tartan army flocked to Inverness which meant a great night out for us locals who have not been to Scotland matches on our own doorstep! Johnny Foxes Bar was the headquarters with everyone meeting there pre and post match. The match itself at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium was won by Turkey who won the group by beating Scotland but was a hard fought match with the biggest crowd ever for a future game. The 6000 capacity stadium was almost sold out and the game was delayed to allow the crowd in! After the match the tartan army took over Johnny Foxes and the karoke was transformed into a sing song with 500 miles by the Proclaimers proving popular! Even David Taylor the SFA Chief Executive enjoyed a drink and discussion with the fans! A night never to be forgotten by Highland based tartan army members!

Ross County supporters had again flown to Belfast in preparation for a ferry journey over to Stranraer for their First Divison Clash. However the game was put off due to snow before we even left Inverness. However with flights booked we travelled anyway and enjoyed a weekend out in Belfast. We put flowers on George Best's grave this morning and then attended the Linfield V Glenavon match at Windsor Park in the afternoon. Here we are pictured swapping pennants with friendly Linfield supporters at Windsor Park, Belfast. After the match we went onto the Windsor Park turf and tried to recreate David Healy's volley which beat England late last year!

The tartan army converged on Aviemore for a pre tartan army gathering get together and to watch live the European Championships Draw for the 2008 championships. While it was great to meet up and share a few sociable pints we were not so happy to get Italy, France, Ukraine, Georgia, Lithuania and the Faero Islands. Here we are promoting the Tartan Army Gathering outside the Cairngorm Hotel.

Ross County have come out and admitted they are in financial trouble and deeply in debt affecting the future of the club. The supporters have jumped forward to raise money and attempt to save their club. Save Our Staggies the supporters group has been formed and spent today with bucket collections at todays match. Here we are photographed with Ross County striker Steven McGarry promoting the bucket collections!

For the first time due to a new airlink Ross County supporters flew to Belfast for a long weekend and to take the ferry back to Scotland to play Stranraer. This was a first of its kind and we were featured in the national press in the Press and Journal and Sun newspapers. We enjoyed some great nights out in Belfast, on making the trip to Stranraer the team won 3-2 to ensure it was a happy journey back to Ireland and we had a taxi tour of the Shankhill and Falls Road area of Belfast where all the troubles were in years gone by. Here we are pictured in the Royale Bar in Belfast with snooker legend Alex Higgins.

While driving from Inverness to Ullapool I stopped on the road to take this beautiful picture of Loch Droma near Braemore. The loch with its small islands and Cogieach Rock in the background is a magnificent landscape to drive through! A view you can never get bored of!!

After last nights fine 3-0 win over Slovenia in Celje we decided to relax and get out of the big city! We travelled to the stunning Lake Bled the main tourist natural tourist area in Slovenia. The views were beautiful with Bled Castle high on the hill, a boat trip to the monasteury in the middle of the lake with its fine views on all side with the lake and high mountains surrounding it! One of the best places I have every visited on a tartan army trip!

A trip on the funniculur railway high up to Cairngorm Mountain for views down over Loch Morlich and the extended Badenoch and Strathspey area. The trip takes just a few minutes from the base station to the restaurant and and viewpoint high up the mountain on the UK's highest underground station. Well worth visiting if in the area!

I met Scottish football legend Archie Gemmill at his book signing at Waterstones, Inverness today. Archie is famous for one of the best goals the world has ever seen against Holland at the Argentina World Cup of 1978. His autobiography was an excellent read and interesting life he has led in football and working life!

The first ever Ullapool Music Festival. Called Loopallu - it spells Ullapool backwards! Was very proud to attend the opening night on what was a big weekend for the village I grew up in. The festival was opened by the Ullapool and District Junior Pipe Band which was a great touch. They were followed by Hayseed Dixies, the Undertones and Shooglenifty in what was the busiest night Ullapool has ever seen so far!

A vital must win match for Scotland after a draw with Italy last Saturday! I flew out on a charter flight for the day and visited the friendly Dubliner Bar in Oslo again pre match. We cheered the team on and won 2-1 to give us some hope of qualifying with Kenny Miller becoming a legend for his two goals! The tartan army has probably never celebrated like this before. After the match it was a bus to the airport for the flight home meeting the Scotland team on the way as they made their way home too!

A bus journey from Ardross took up up the mountain above Evanton to view the renewable energy towers of Nover Wind Farm. An amazing sight to see these massive structures, so well hidden when living below them that produces electricity for the central grid. It was a misty day but amazing to see inside and stand underneath the wind turbines! Just check the size of the turbine compared to the bus parked at the bottom!

I regularly attend the Helmsdale Highland Games on the east coast of Sutherland. Helmsdale is the home of my good friend Don Etheridge and each year the tartan army converge on the village to attend the Highland Games and enjoy the entertainment on offer. This year a sculpture commemerating the emigrants who left the area during the Highland Clearances was put up in time for the Highland Games.

We travelled down to Graz for the friendly match against Austria and met friends at Flanns Bar for a fine pre match party session! I then met Gregor Szith from Graz who I worked with in the USA back in 1996 and we went to the match together and cheered on our respective countries. 2-2 was the final score! Graz Main Square was a beautiful place and we watched the match in the Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium named after the famous actor and Graz's most famous son! It was a fantastic day out with the Austrains very friendly and it was great to catch up with Gregor nine years after we worked together in the USA!

Marie and I headed off to Austria so we could see the country and attend the friendly football match with the hosts. Here we are at Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna while doing the city bus tour. This palace is a World Heritage Site due to its amazing gardens! After visiting this palace we also visited the Opera House, Belvedere Palace, the Danube Tower and the Giant Ferris Wheel. A fine day out seeing the sights of the Austrian capital of Vienna

The second Tartan Heart Festival at Belladrum Estate near Beauly. The main garden stage here is a natural Italian Garden and ideal for viewing the bands. The whole weekend is amazing with camping in the tent site, music, beer tents and great fun where you meet lots of your friends who are all there to enjoy themselves. There was many bands performing but the final two on the Saturday were the two who stood out for me - the Peatbog Faires playing followed by the Proclaimers!

The tenth anniversary of the Hebridean Celtic Festival and they celebrate by putting the Hebrides Supergroup Runrig on and what a night it was. My 14th Runrig concert and arguably the best I've been too as the band came home! A great long weekend with fantastic music with other bands playing including Van Morrison, Peatbog Faires and Mark Saul. Also enjoyed seeing Harris and South Lochs and their beautiful scenery while being over on Lewis. Add to that our friends band Torridon playing in the local pubs and a game of paintball it was busy but thoroughly enjoyable!

The massive Live 8 event took place in Hyde Park, London today and at other venues across the world. The idea was to bring to the attention to the G8 summit that the starving in Africa are still not getting any better! While not everyone could be in London the rest of the country watched on big screens! Here Marie and I watched the opening of the concert at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium, Inverness!

The Proclaimers tour of Scotland saw them play venues they had never performed in before. This took them to Aviemore's new Osprey Arena for a great standing room only gig! After a great performance I met the twins backstage. They are such laid back genuine guys for people who travel all over the world performing!

A trip to Belarus to see Scotland in a goalless draw in Minsk with the hosts in a World Cup Qualifying Match. My first visit to this country and enjoyed the day after the game seeing the sights and here I am photographed at Mir Castle 120km from Minsk. It was interesting to see Victory Square and Strochitsa Village Museum while visiting the country for the football. To get to Belarus we had to fly to Poland and take the overnight train. An amazingly long journey but a thoroughly enjoyable trip!

Celebrated a close win over Moldova at Hampden Park before flying to Poland for the midweek away qualifier against Belarus. The Hampden atmosphere was excellent as we celebrated a hard fought 2-0 victory from Hampdens South Stand Lower! Hampden Park is the National Football Stadium of Scotland and all Scotland matches are played here in this world famous stadium!

The annual Inverness Bike Ride took place today in aid of Clic Sargent. I do this sponsored bike ride almost every year from North Kessock, round the Beauly Firth across Kirkhill and back to Inverness. 26 miles in total this bike ride is always a laugh as so many of the Tarry Ile regulars and friends participate and stop at places on the way round for refreshments!

A person I had always dreamed of meeting comedian Billy Connolly performed at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness tonight. It was the funniest comedian I have ever seen - or ever will see. His show of two and a half hours was side splitting! Afterwards I was lucky enough to meet the man himself at the Stage Door behind the theatre. Was a bit start struck to be honest. I admire the man so much having read his biography and what he achieved through a very tough childhood in Glasgow to perform across the world and be so popular now!

The Ross County Highland Sports Dinner took place at the Drummossie Hotel, Inverness. Speakers were Robbie Glen the former Govenour of Barlinnie Prison who had many funny tales to tell. The main speaker was football manager Ron Atkinson (photographed) and there was also games and fundraising auction plus a four course dinner. My pal Squeak and I enjoyed the hospitality and the laughs during the night!

After the successful Ross County Highland Sports Dinner I finished the night at Johnny Foxes, Inverness. Here I met and enjoyed a pint with skier Alain Baxter who is based in Aviemore but who travels all over the world for ski-ing meets. He sprung to prominence on winning a medal at the Commonwealth Games and then won the popular Superstars TV Show.

The second annual Player of the Year Dinner took place at the Chieftain Hotel, Inverness. After the formal speeches the awards were given out with Jim Lauchlan being awarded Player of the Year, Don Cowie Young Player of the Year and Roy MacGregor won the Services to Ross County award for his chairmanship of the club for the last decade! Then it was time to relax and meet the players, have the buffet and then enjoy the band Age Concern! Pictured with me are Don Cowie, Martin Canning, Jamie McCunnie, Jim Lauchlan, John Rankine, Mark McCulloch, Steven McGarry, Sean Higgins, Ally MacGregor, David Winters, Fergus Tiernan and Craig Campbell.

Reekie Glen is a popular local beauty spot just off the Inverness to Beauly road. Its a walk on both sides of a stream and stretching high above is Dughall Mor the highest tree in the UK measuring 62 metres (204ft). Always a relaxing walk in a nice quiet environment!

The Grim Northern Social were a band I first saw at Birthday at the Bught in Inverness and later saw support the Proclaimers. They played Forres as part of a Highland tour and we enjoyed seeing them in the intimate venue of the Loft in Forres - so called because it is a loft of a barn! A fine night of music as always from the GNS!

My first experience of the Snowman Rally, the Highland Car Club event that is the opening event each year in the rally driving calendar. Went to two stages at Contin and above Ardross. These cars fair travel at full speed through the forest tracks and are quite a spectacle. Its amazing how many people watch the rally in the cold Highland winter!

Ross County's first major cup final at McDiarmid Park, Perth against league leaders Falkirk. It proved to be a fantastic day out despite the team losing 2-1. The friendly rivarly in the pub pre match with the Falkirk fans was amazing and Ross County fans produced the best atmosphere ever at a game especially when we took the lead! The team appaulded the fans at the end for the efforts we had made in cheering them on!

A tartan army trip that will always live with me! On the pitch we drew 1-1 which saw manager Bertie Vogts sacked but it more for the country we were in that I will remember it! We went on a tour out into the countryside visiting Orhei Vechi Cave Monastery which was amazing to see with it being built into a cliff! We also visited traditional Moldovan houses, had a Moldovan meal in a hospitable restaurant and met the local people. Meeting the locals will always live with me as Moldova is the poorest country in Europe and they are so poor its unbelievable. We are pictured with some school children from a village in the countryside!

The tartan army enjoyed a party at the Renfrew Ferry in Glasgow prior to the World Cup Qualifier with Norway. Unfortuantely we lost 1-0 in the match later but met some great Norwegian supporters on the Renfrew Ferry who even went on stage and sang us some songs from Norway! The Renfrew Ferry is always a great place to meet your mates with outstanding live bands providing the entertainment.

A friendly in Spain was what we went to Valencia for but a massive rain storm blew the electricity, the floodlights went out and the game was abandonded with the scores at 1-1!! Had a great jump when we opened the scoring and Valencia was visited with the guys wearing Sombrea's. As you'll see from the photo though I had problems with my footwear when my shoe burst!!

My first visit to the Hebridean Celtic Festival in Stornoway after flying over from Inverness! The Saw Doctors were outstanding in the big tent on the Friday night and were undoubly the highlight of the festival! Made sure i saw the tourist spots as well visiting the Callanish Standing Stones, Carolway Broch and Dalbeag Beach. A thoroughly enjoyable weekend!

BASTA held their tartan army dinner dance tonight in the Cairngorm Hotel, Aviemore.  A fine night with a great meal, plenty drink, good company and speeches from European Cup goalscorer Tommy Gemmill with Celtic in 1967 and former Rangers winger Tommy Henderson.

My third visit to the beautiful Baltic city of Tallinn to see Scotland play. I never seem to get bored of this city its amazing nightlife, friendly people and the best old style city centre I have seen anywhere in the world. The town square is beautiful but also filled with outdoor bars which make it a fantastic place to spend the day as you'll see from the photo!

A fantastic weekend away for the lads in Liverpool on Leslie Ross's stag doo! We must have visited every pub in Liverpool and saw the River Mersey from the taxi at night going past! Made the Cavern Pub made famous by the Beatles but the best pub was this friendly and cheap bar where we sang the roof off the place! O'Neils Pub was taken over by us for a lot of the time and my 30th birthday was the day went home!!

A great football night in Dingwall for a worthy cause.  Ross County captain Kenny Gilbert had to retire from playing football due to an eye injury.  He was a fantastic servant to the club and there was a match between County and Rangers as a fundraiser plus this testimonial dinner.  The night was a real football pleasure with meal, drinks, crack and speeches from many people including Alex Smith and Jim Leishman (pictured above) which was funny but also interesting to hear the banter surrounding football.  Met some old friends who used to play for County and thoroughly enjoyed the night in Dingwall.

My first visit to Copenhagen this beautiful capital city in Denmark. Did all the tourist sites including the boat tour, royal palace, Guiness Book of Records Museum and meeting the icon of Copenhagen the Mermaid! There followed another three days of partying and a friendly match with Denmark! My thanks to my hosts in Copenhagen - Tam and Bo as for once I wasn't in a hotel but a flat!!

The Inverness Supporters Club first ever buffet dance at the Royal British Legion Club, Inverness. It was so successful that it will definately become an annual event! Was walking on air at the end with the success of the evening and how much everyone enjoyed it. There was formal speeches, buffet then a dance to Schiehallion. A great night and we were delighted with the turn out from the football club including most of the players! The photo shows Ian MacDonald (Treasurer), John Rankin (Player of the Year), Dougie Anderson (Bus Convenour), Sean Higgins (Young Player of the Year), Craig Maclean (Secretary), Morven Reid (Services to Ross County Award), Stewart Macleannan (Honoury Life Member)and Nicky Power (Chairman).

For a change the Inverness Ross County Supporters Club decided to have a weekend away and stay overnight at a venue we were playing at. We picked Ayr United and headed south early in the morning, checking into the accomodation and meeting Ayr United supporters. We won the match and then had a cracking night out in Ayr!

A friendly with Wales was not judged to be difficult by the media or tartan army and with Cardiff being close to Scotland many fans travelled south. I travelled the whole way by train and back which was excellent crack and we found Cardiff a friendly city with the locals being excellent when you could understand their accents! Went on a tour of the Millennium Stadium the day before the game not knowing that we would witness a 4-0 defeat the following night!

The committee including myself organised the annual dinner dance for Highland Tartan Army members and it was very funny with former Scotland striker and current Inverness CT manager John Robertson proving to be an excellent speaker. After the meal and formalities it was a dance to Schiehallion till late! It was great to see former SFA Travel Coordinator Marjory Nimmo in Inverness attending after being made an Honoury Life Member of the HTA last year! In the photo is Bob Riddoch (Treasurer), Craig Maclean (Secretary), John Robertson (Guest Speaker) & Alan Crawford (Chairman).

Ross County were drawn to play the might Celtic at Parkhead in the Third Round of the Scottish Cup. Two buses left from the Inverness Supporters Bus on this our big day out in Glasgow! The bus journey was great crack, the London Road Tavern before the game had some atmosphere and the fans made a noise thoughout the game with the home support surprisingly quiet! We tried extra hard that day but the team were unfortunate to lose 2-0 but with it being Celtic we were playing we could hold our heads high! A brief stop in Perth on the way home before getting home after an awesome day out!

Having won 1-0 at Hampden last Saturday we travelled to Holland in high spirits for our two legged play off match. A great few days transpired in Amsterdam with the Dutch fans and the tartan army getting on a storm and partying together. Our party finished when Holland won 5-0 in the second leg to knock us out! However it was a great trip and look at Dam Square on matchday for atmosphere!

Scotland had beaten Holland 1-0 at Hampden Park last Saturday in the final Play Off for the European Championships of 2004.  A wonderful James McFadden goal had the tartan army and country on top of the world and expectation was massive going into the second leg in Holland.  We had a great time in Amsterdam especially around the Globe Hotel and the Dam Square.  However it all went sour when we were slaughtered by the Dutch but still partied on afterwards and I even met my hero and former Scotland captain Colin Hendry after the match.

 

My first experience of a day at the races. Not really a betting man but good to try it without being successful. We had a suite high up to view the racecourse with drinks and food through the sponsors who ran our tables! An interesting day out and amazing how serious some people take it and how much work is put into making the horses look good prior to their races.

A vital qualifying match in Dortmund and the Highland Tartan Army stayed in the neighbouring city of Bochum for a few days of partying! Through in Dortmund on matchday their square had a massive stage and entertainment on all day. We are pictured with German fans who seem to like the Scots because they don't like England much either!

The usual pre match party venue of the Renfrew Ferry saw Schiehallion and Gaberlunzie perform for the tartan army! The atmosphere was just amazing as we looked forward to revenge for our draw in the Faeros last year. Thankfully we won the game 3-1 so all the pre match partying was worth it!

When I was growing up Davie Cooper was my football hero for his close control and ability to dazzle other players. He was my idol for Scotland and was a great penalty taker. Sadly he died young from a brain hamerogue and is buried at Bent Cemetery in Hamilton. Here I am pictured beside the memorial statue to him which is in central Hamilton.

Here I am pictured on Milngavie High Street on the outskirts of Glasgow having just reached the end of the week long West Highland Way walk from Fort William to Glasgow. A tiring few days but a fantastic experience and physically hard going! The walk took me through Kinlochleven, Glencoe, Loch Lomond, Drymen and then Milngavie! Met some great friendly people along the way, had blistered feet and also met some of the dreaded midges!

My first visit to Norway and to the major city of Oslo. A boring 0-0 friendly draw was the result but it was an interesting few days in Oslo with Tam Coyles 40th birthday party, the tartan army taking over the Dubliner Bar with its friendly Scottish manager Bally and one of the most expensive places you'll ever spend money in!

Local radio station Moray Firth Radio celebrated their 21st birthday by taking over Bught Park in Inverness for a massive weekend long concert! Saw the Grim Northern Social, Fast Food Rockers, Lemonessence, Abba Gold and Gary Mullens Queen Tribute Band. Amazing to see such big acts perform in Inverness right beside where I stay! My work Inverness Leisure entered the "Its a Knockout" competition in the afternoon which was just like the tv programme being presented by Keith Chegwin! We didn't win the Knockout on the inflateable challenges but we did have a great time and showed great teamwork!

The UK's highest mountain of Ben Nevis was conquered at 4406ft after a long walk up! Passing Lochan Meall ant-Suidhe at the half way point it was a stunning day of sunshine with a great view down over Glen Nevis! However as I got higher the cloud line got closer until it covered myself and Donald. We reached the summit at 1344 metres and had a break from the top though no view due to the cloud! A fine achievement and was very proud to reach the top of the country!

Ross Countys rivals Inverness Caledonian Thistle won the First Division title back in May. The trophy was taken to my work at Inverness Leisure for the Highland Spotlight event and lots of people got their photograph taken with this pretigious trophy. This trophy used to be what the Scottish Premier League wins used to be awarded so its interesting to see the engraved names such as Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen on it! Some of my mates just laughed because I picked up Caleys Cup!!

Clachnacuddin Supporters Association held a fundraising dinner at the Caledonian Hotel in Inverness. The main speaker was Scottish Legend Dennis Law the joint top scorer for the Scottish National Football Team. It was also my 29th birthday so a good way to celebrate to meet a legend!

My first trip to the Faero Islands high to the north of Scotland in the Atlantic Ocean. A beautiful scenic place with an amazing walk from the ferry to the ground via a steep hill! The surprise did not end there though as Scotland were shocked and 2-0 down after just 20 minutes. The team came back to draw 2-2 but it is still one of the major shocks ever!  The experience of seeing Scotland play in such a remote and beautiful country was amazing.  Seeing international football high on a windy hillside was an experience I'll never forget.

This photo was taken 2,305 feet up Mt Fuji in Japan - the largest mountain I've ever seen and one of the highest in the world.  Stopped in Japan after travelling down under and the imposing sight of Mt Fuji was just awesome.  Drove three quarters of the way up the mountain but to get to the summit would have involved a further 12 hour walk and it wasn't the time of year to do that!

Having travelled round Australia round every state and territory I found myself in the outback in the Adelaide River Inn in the Northern Territory of Australia. Here I met Charlie the Buffallo the star of Crocodile Dundee and Crocodile Dundee 2. He died after filming the second movie and is now stuffed and on the end of the bar! Remember the hand signal that Mick Dundee made the wild buffalo fall asleep in? Well he seems to be distracted by my kilt here!

You can't go to Australia and not see Uluru (Ayres Rock) in the Northern Territory.  I spent an enjoyable morning walking round the massive rock as the sunrise came up and then enjoyed champagne as the sunset later the same night. 

I travelled to Australia via Argentina and New Zealand and spent a couple of months in Queensland staying with my old school mate Glenn MacRae. I then started travelling round every state and territory in Australia moving south just after New Year to the beach town of Byron Bay. Here I took surf lessons and learned the adrenalin charged sport of surfing! I took to surfing like a duck to water and loved it learning to catch my own waves in my first lesson!

A snooker night at Eden Court featuring Jimmy "Whirlwind" White and John Virgo.  I enjoyed hospitality prior to the snooker in the restaurant with friends including snacks, laughs and meeting the players in advance of the game.  Then enjoyed a night of snooker live and challenge matches including local players and these proffesional players!

 

An incredible tartan army trip to see us beat Latvia in Riga in a fantastic opening game for the World Cup Qualifiers.  Flew to Helsinki in Finland then took the jetfoil to Tallin in Estonia then a bus to Riga for the match!  The same on the way back only we missed the Jetfoil and had to take the helicopter from Tallin to Helsinki.  A marvellous laugh throughout, a great result for Scotland and even managed to attend Estonia V Portugal the day after our win and met Irish manager Mick McCarthy who was at the match spying!

 

My first time doing something formal at a wedding and it was great in a beautiful setting!  Lynne and Andrew got married at Urquhart Castle by Loch Ness and myself and my buddies Julian, Kenny and Glenn had the honour of being ushers!  A great day not that I remember too much about the night in a fantastic scenic spot!

During a family holiday to Kent in England to visit relatives we stopped in Folkestown to see the Channel Tunnel exhibition showing how Euro Tunnel was carved open and made over a number of years.  Linking the south of England with France by train it took years to build!

An amazing experience for my first ever World Cup.  Took the ferry to France and enjoyed a great time in Paris when Scotland opened the World Cup against holders Brazil.  Then it was onto Bordeaux to draw with Norway staying on the coastal resort of Archachon and then onto St Etienne where we were knocked out due to a 3-0 defeat to Morocco.  The most amazing trip for 18 days and a great adventure and friendly football cultures throughout.  The tartan army were so good natured and friendly that we won the Fair Play Cup for the World Cup and below is me pictured with the trophy we recieved as I'm pictured at the HTA Dinner Dance in the Lochardil Hotel, Inverness a few months later.  I'm also pictured with the Scotland manager of the time Craig Brown and the SFA Travel Club Coordinator who gets us all our tickets Marjory Nimmo!

Ross County were newly admitted to the Scottish League and their first big Scottish Cup tie was against Dunfermline Athletic.  Went to the game on a bus with the Ullapool Ross County Supporters Club and had a great day out in Fife.  Good crack on the bus, a few drinks in Fife then though County lost a great atmosphere at East End Park.  We took a massive Ullapool flag with us and it was hung across a motorway bridge and went up and down the away end stand!  A fantastic day out never to be forgotten!

While backpacking round North America a visit to the Grand Canyon was a must.  I will never forget arriving by bus, walking along past the tree line and just being left open mouthed at the massive canyon in front of me.  Walked down into the canyon for amazing views round this natural attraction!

While backpacking round North America I stopped in Memphis, Tennesse to see Graceland the home of Elvis Presley the legend who is buried in the back garden.  Amazing to see inside the house and gardens plus view the golden discs and jump suits the man used to wear on stage!

Worked the summer months at Camp Hillcroft in New York State and then travelled round the United States of America.  Visited many famous buildings and places along the way and here I am pictured outside the US Capitol Building where the government sit in the US.

Having worked in New York State for the summer at Camp Hillcroft I enjoyed some time in the big city seeing the sights of the city and in particular Manhattan Island.  Enjoyed a boat trip out to the Statue of Liberty and climbed up the inside to the crown at the top!

 

My first ever Scotland away trip and its European Championships 96 in England.  Stayed at my cousins in Derby for this match in Birmingham and couldn't believe the friendliness between the Dutch and Scots supporters in our opening match.  A 0-0 draw at Villa Park ensued a moral victory for Scotland but a great party atmosphere!

 

Went to the England game at Wembly with the wrong score and the final game against Switerland back at Villa Park which saw Scotland knocked out by just one goal.  Then flew to the USA to live and work in the State for the summer!

After a summer backpacking round Europe visited Northern Ireland last where visited the famous Giants Causeway with its rock formation leading into the sea with stories of it's intended route across to Scotland!

During a round Europe back packing trip for the summer I experienced visiting many countries and places meeting different cultures and languagues along the way.  Here is me pictured by the Berlin Wall which famously came down in 1989 to unify Berlin and move East and West Germany into one country again having been split up after the Second World War.

The Rheistag in Berlin is a famous building and when I visited Berlin in 1995 it was wrapped as a display by a famous artist.  This wrapping of the Rheistag took in huge crowds to see the building as an art form.  I was lucky to be there when such a historic display was in progress and joined with thousands of others in front of the famous building.

The Rheinfall is Europes largest waterfall and is located in the small town of Neuhausen, near Schaffhausen in Switerland.  I took a boat trip from Kontanz in Germany up the Rhein to the famous waterfall and enjoyed an afternoon walking round getting different views of the roaring water from above, alongside and below.  An impressive sight in a beautiful country!