http://www.digitalcameraworld.com AUGUST 2019 DIGITAL CAMERA^101transformation makes an interesting
photographic subject: what one
expects to be green is now black.
I reach Greenstone Point under a
full moon, and enjoy the rare luxury
of being able to delay putting up the
tent, as there’s no wind. Sleeping on
the dry peat is as comfortable here as
on a mattress at home. In the morning,
I get the first glimpse of Assynt,
the very far north, from the tent.
“They say when the Arctic convoy
was here, there were so many ships
that you could walk from one side of
the loch to the other,” a dog walker
in Aultbea tells me. Judging by
his attuned bearing, I ask if he’s
a fisherman. “I had three boats
once, sold them now. The industry’s
changed: fish farms are all big
corporations today. When I started,
the fish were in wooden cages, and we
fed them by hand. Now the fish barges
feed the pellets in by machine; each
barge has one operator, who controls
everything by a computer on-shore.”
That night I have a sinister night’s
sleep opposite Gruinard Island, where
in 1942 biological warfare tests using
Anthrax were carried out. In 1990, after
48 years of quarantine, the island was
deemed safe, and warning signs were
removed. Needless to say, I’d collected
the water for my dinner a couple of
hours away from the island!
Feeling lightheaded, angry and
exhausted after seven hours toiling
over the pathless moors, I’m frustrated
to find I’ve only progressed 10km.
My last bag of rations for this 18-day
section is down to half a broken
oatcake and a smidge of peanut butter,
and I’ve 24km more to go to get to
Ullapool and the nearest shop. To get
through the day, everything becomes
timings and points to aim for a five-
minute rest. I’ve had enough – and
my pictures have become appallingly
unimaginative. Time to recharge!eaty paths through heather
become disconcertingly
bouncy when you’re above
sheer 100-metre cliffs. I look
up to see plumes of smoke rise from
the headlands, as wildfire burns along
the horizon. I try to dispel thoughts
of being caught in the blaze while
walking – or worse, while in a tent.
The following day, the fire has died
down by the time I reach the charred
landscape. Fence posts have been
burnt away, leaving their wires draped
exhausted across the landscape. Peat
still smoulders in places, sending up
twirls of smoke. This unexpectedQuintin Lake finds that Man’s mark is still
apparent in the remote north of Scotland
Perimeter
P
Perimeter
Quintin Lake
Roving photographer
Quintin is three quarters
through his 6,000-mile photo
walk around the UK coast.
http://www.theperimeter.ukThis structure in Loch Ewe is
the remains of a jetty used for
loading Arctic convoys in WWII,
where they began their perilous
journey. A submarine net ran
from this point to the opposite
mouth of the loch while concrete
naval gun and anti-aircraft
emplacements surrounding the
site remain. Now the purpose of
this podium is gone; it stands in
evocative contrast to the gentle
lapping of the waves in the image.This month’s route
Torridon to Ullapool
9 days, 143 miles
Total so far: 4,535 miles