Celtophile Monday

What Glass Ceiling?
Founded in 1908 by three women who were denied access to male-dominated climbing clubs, the LSCC has been going strong for over 100 years. Among their accomplishments are first ascents of several rock climbs in Glencoe, and the first all-female expedition to the Himalayas in 1955. Click here. Related site: Mountaineering Council of Scotland

For My Fellow Horse Lovers
All things horse are explored in articles and video on BBC Scotland. Horses at work, play and show and the people who love them! Click here.

How's That Again?
Let Scottie of RampantScotland.com lead you through the twisting of the Gaelic tongue in this lighthearted look at how to pronounce Scottish place names. Suffice to say what you see definitely isn't what you speak. Click here.

Scotland Above and Below the Waves
Diver Helen Hadley;s photographic tour of Orkney and Shetland. Click here.

Weatherman Walking!
Derek Brockway's blog about his travels and observations of the natural world of Wales. Click here.

Ireland's National Archives
Are you a history or genealogy nut? This site is a treasure trove of historical documents, with a searchable online database. Click here.

Annual Bulwer-Lytton Contest Winners!

It's here! It's here! The one contest that makes me proud to be a writer. The only contest where bad is good, and worse is better. Enjoy!! Click here

**Disclaimer: Not responsible for damage caused by spewage. :)

It's here! It's here!

Celtophile Monday

Scotland's Earliest Face Found
A carving believed to be Scotland's earliest human face, dating back thousands of years, has been found on the Orkney island of Westray.

Scotland's Storytelling Tradition Resurges
Listen to radio story or read transcript here. Visit the Scottish Storytelling Centre here.

Walkhighlands!
Free, detailed descriptions of walking routes across the Scottish Highlands, including maps, GPS locations of waypoints, 3D Virtual Highlands tours, downloadable tour apps, and photographs taken along the routes. Plus a whole lot more. http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/

Thanks to Inez Kelley for pointing me to this video:


Highland Diary
Explore the natural world of the Highlands with BBC natural history specialists. Click here

Castle of the Week
Fatlips Castle Okay, yeah, I picked it for the name. :) That, and it's an unusual looking edifice - looks like a stone cottage perched on top of a tower.

More haunted places in Scotland

I figure it's time to add to this list. :)

Dunrobin Castle
Ancestral home of the earls of Sutherland, this castle is purported to harbor the ghost of the 14th earl's daughter, Margaret. She fell to her death while attempting to climb down a rope to run away with her lover, a stable hand by the name of Jamie Gunn.


Rait Castle
This 800-year-old Nairnshire hall castle is said to be haunted by a ghost in a blood-stained dress and no hands. Legend has it that the Cumming laird invited a delegation from clan MacIntosh in the guise of making amends; the real plot was to kill their enemies. The laird's daughter, whose lover was among the party (it's always about a girl and her lover, isn't it?), found a way to warn him. The MacIntoshes were saved, but the girl's father, enraged, chased her down and cut off her hands. She leapt to her death from a tower window. From that night, no one has inhabited the castle.

Loch Ashie
Situated between Inverness and Culloden Moor, a silent, spectral army is said to appear on the shores of this loch on the 1st of May. It's thought to be the site of a battle between Highlanders and invading Norwegians.




Have time for some video? Check these out!









Have a good week!

Carolan

Kilt Candy

I think the smile does it for me on this one. :)

Vacation pictures - Colorado

A small selection of the hundreds of photos I took on our recent family trip to Colorado. Click the pictures for a larger view. Enjoy!


Hallett Peak above Nympth Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park


One of several species of trout in Emerald Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park


Lightening-struck tree, RMNP


Marmot, RMNP


Chipmunk, RMNP


View from Sprague Lake, RMNP


Trees and sky above my writing spot along Glacier Creek, RMNP


Cloud formations above a ridge along Trail Ridge Road, RMNP


Moose, Kawuneeche Valley, RMNP


Mule deer, Kawuneeche Valley, RMNP


Elk, Trail Ridge Road just after sunset, RMNP


Tree bark (pine?), RMNP


An August full moon, Estes Park, Colorado


Garden of the Gods, near Colorado Springs


Kiva, Manitou Cliff Dwellings


Medicinal wildflower, Manitou Cliff Dwellings


Pike's Peak, the morning we drove to the top


My personal NatGeo moment! It took me half an hour and several tries to catch this mama bird feeding her chick as it stuck its head out of a hole in the chimney of the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument visitor center.


Loading 7 people in the phone-booth-sized elevator for the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine tour in Cripple Creek. Note the sign!


Wildflower outside the Garden of the Gods visitor center.


View through the windows of the magnificent Air Force Academy chapel.

Celtic Music Break!

Thanks to Bob Midden for the heads-up on this new band, Runa. They're coming to my area in September - can't wait!