Spring

I started the sketch below last week whilst waiting  for the Corran ferry . I had just enough time to get some paint down before I had to drive onto the ferry. On Friday I was again waiting for the ferry so added some finishing touches to the sketch.. I realised that I had missed out a patch of green ;or rather the green hadn't been there last week. In the last few days the leaves have appeared on the birch trees. I wonder how it is that all the birch trees in Lochaber can be so well synchronised as to come in to leaf within a few days of each other; is it the daylength or the temperature?
This evening running home from work, the late evening  sun was shining on the woods near Torlundy The newly emerged leaves were glinting and  shimmering in the golden light. It was  glorious!  In the other direction  Ben Nevis looked majestic and formidable with its cap of snow and  deep shadows creeping  up the corries. As I ran roe deer crossed the track in front of me. Primroses and  wood anemones peppered the woodland floor. Finally crossing the Spean Bridge I saw a cloud of bats wheeling and darting above the river. Truly Sprng is here!

Ben Keil from Corran.

Spring - and nature knows best

Sketch  of Loch Linnhe  on Tuesday

 Recently we have had some cold weather with lots of snow on the hills This was interspersed with the normal dreary days of  cold rain that this part of the world is famous for .However last Friday although wet it seemmed warmer . Running home from work in the dark I almost stepped on a frog on two occasions. The frogs were motionless on the path as if unsure whether to go back into hibernation or head for a pool and start mating.  It got me thinking as to what triggers the frogs and  toads to emerge - is it just air temperature, or day length  or some collective decision mysteriously communicated throughout the frog world!To me after all the wintry weather it was recklessly premature , but sure enough at the weekend I noticed large clumps of frog spawn in pools in the forest.
 In this area  there is plenty of fast flowing streams , but few ponds for frogs to spawn into . Instead the eggs are often deposited in small pools and even deep puddles.This makes the spawn more vulnerable to frost , predation or drying out later on. Clearly producing early tadpoles is an advantage in terms of maximizing growth in the first year, but hazardous given the vagaries of scottish weather.

From the road to Kilchoan on a sunny March day

However maybe the frogs and toads knew something I didn't, because this week an area of high pressure has settled over the U.K. pushing the jet stream north . It has been unbelievably sunny and  warm (albeit with some overnight frost ).
On Monday I had a busy day travelling  to Strontian and then Kilchoan - the most western point of mainland Britain. It was just gorgeous  in the warm balmy weather!  Yesterday I sketched outside for I think the first time this year without getting cold fingers.

Loch Eil from  Blaich

The other two are small paintings I completed today, both are from recent photographs.

Spring is here !

Loch shore at Blaich
This week I started running to work again . Even though it was wet and I was still suffering from the cold it was a joy . The birds were all singing - warblers , black birds and a cuckoo, everything was fresh and green with numerous  wild flowers - primrose,bluebells wood  sorrel as well as the glorious gorse and broom . Having not run to work for two weeks the difference in the countryside was immense.

On Monday, I had to go to Kilchoan. In contrast to Sunday that had been cold and dull it was a glorious Spring day. Ardnamurchan is always beautiful but on this occasion it was heavenly , all the weeks and months of rain were forgotten. This is a quick sketch of the bay beyond Glenborrodale. At this point the landscape changes dramatically from oak woodlands to open pasture moor and rock. My sketch sadly does little justice to the scale and drama of the view. The Ardnamurchan peninsular is the most westerly point on mainland Britain( most British people would wrongly assume that Cornwall is further west). It's a long drive from Fort William on winding, often single track roads, but my oh my is it worth it!
This week the clocks changed and I noticed the first green leaves breaking out on hawthorn trees and the daffodils are in bloom,spring is here at last!

Sketch of the hills whilst waiting for the Corran ferry .

Quick sketch whilst waiting for the train to town.