travel

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 6: Paul follows the River Ayr as it flows from Loch Glenbuck towards the sea and the Clyde coast. The old mining village of Glenbuck was demolished long ago, but its memory is kept alive by former resident Barbara Alexander whose uncle, the famous Liverpool football manager Bill Shankly, was a Glenbuck man. From Glenbuck, Paul follows the river through a landscape pockmarked by the scars of old mineral extraction and industry.       At Muirkirk he discovers how a local man illuminated the cities of the world with gas lighting, and how

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 5: This Grand Tour begins in the hills above Glen Clova, on a mountainous plateau known as the Mounth. Following the South Esk downstream, Paul enters picturesque Corrie Fee, where he scrambles on the cliffs with two botanists, searching for Scotland’s rarest plant. Back on the South Esk, he goes electro-fishing to discover more about the ecology and general health of the whole river system.       Running out of riverside paths, Paul takes to the road for a few miles and rides a motorbike to the ancestral home of Harley Davidson. Later

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 4: Paul discovers the source of the remarkable River Nith, high in a remote forestry plantation. Heading downstream, he hears the story of the Knockshinnoch mining disaster – how 116 men were saved from entombment after a massive earth collapse.       At Sanquhar, once famous for its unique and distinctive knitting pattern, Paul tries very hard to knit a glove before it all unravels. Kirkpatrick Macmillan was the man first credited with making a bicycle with pedals. Paul wobbles in his wake aboard a replica at Drumlanrig Castle, before heading south to

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 3: Paul explores the lower reaches of the river Spey – Scotland’s third longest river, famous for its forests, whisky distilleries and salmon – as it flows north towards the coast. On the way Paul hears tales of loggers who floated timber down the river from the 17th century onwards. He then takes to the water in a canoe and discovers the rare and endangered freshwater mussels that were once harvested for their precious pearls, which adorn royal crowns.       Sampling a dram of the original water of life, Paul reaches the

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 2: Paul Murton explores the upper reaches of the river Spey – Scotland’s third longest river – from its source in the wilds of Badenoch to Broomhill, halfway down. He hears stories of clan chief Cluny Macpherson, who hid with his gold for nine years in an inaccessible cave.       Heading to a hidden tributary, Paul discovers a secret aristocratic Victorian love nest located in a remote glen where the wilderness is returning. In Newtonmore, Paul sees traditional Highland houses that remind him of Hobbit dwellings, before he rides a steam train

Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers episode 1: Paul Murton explores the River Garry and hears tales of clan chief Struan Robertson, who fought in all three Jacobite risings. Paul then discovers the geology of deep time, before restaging the Battle of Killiecrankie with just two men, a musket and a broadsword. After surviving a Highland charge, Paul falls off a bridge. He reaches journey’s end on the beautiful Ben Vrackie – the ‘speckled hill’.       Seasoned traveller Paul Murton sets off downstream to explore five rivers over six programmes from source to sea. Paul Murton is a Scottish