The villagers news june 2015 by LETI Group

JUNE 2015

The

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The Voice of Balquhidder, Lochearnhead, Strathyre & St Fillans

STUC A CHROIN 2015 The long ascent up Beinn Each

Editor’s Bit May is hopefully again going to be the start of a summer of fun in all the villages. Balquhidder certainly started well with the Monachyle Festival which hundreds of people enjoyed even though getting down the single track road was certainly a new experience and challenge for many but worth the effort all who made it agreed. Strathyre is next and we are certainly looking forward to music in the big tent, presuming we get this off to the printers first, and hope to have lots of photos for next month’s edition (talk about having to look ahead, no wonder the odd(or 2) mistakes slip in!) Please feel free to send us your own reports and photos of events big or small over the next few months. Lochearnhead will again be hosting the BLS Highland Games in July and are appealing for helpers for various positions as you can read in Angus’s letter and we have always found it is more fun to join in than just sit and watch so yes we will try and help Gus and hope you get lots more volunteers. St Fillans seems to be having a party or occasion for every month as far as I can see from reading John’s articles (incidentally one of John’s more colourful passages about politicians was read out and discussed in the review of the papers done at Monachyles festival definitely a second career in the making for this young trainee reporter). Balquhidder is set to perhaps conclude the summer fun when the Annual Bike Fest is going to have its second outing at the end of August, please note the change of date as the hall is already booked in September for the annual Horticultural show. Hardly time to go on holiday or any cash left if you go to everything but shows what a quiet life in the country is really all about. The weather might not be what we would all hope for at this time of year but apparently the lack of hot sun is the reason for the beautiful display of bluebells carpeting our woodland areas and the lack (so far) of the dreaded midge. When we realise that over 1800 people have died of the heat of 50 degrees in India and 18 killed in flash floods in Texas we should perhaps not moan too much. 2

THE BIKE FEST RETURNS SUNDAY 30 AUGUST 2015

Lochearnhead Village Hall Race Night

Put this confirmed date in your diary. Get your bibes out and get peddaling. Watch this space for further details in the months to come! Ladies Hat Competition Winner - Lynn Wild

Karen has a message for all the GIRLS

“Now COME ON you GIRLS! If you think I am going to be the only female mountain bike rider in this year’s Balquhidder Bike Fest, think again!! I need some friendly female support (that’s you) to come along, and join me in the mountain bike challenge in Kirkton Glen on Sunday 30th August. I’m determined to try and beat my time from last year, and with you and few other “pedalling gals” we can all have a laugh trying the route. Kirkton Glen is a simply amazing place to cycle. The views are great and the tracks offer lots of variety. Maybe we could all try and have a regular weekly/fortnightly pedal and get into it slowly, ahead of time. What do you think? Don’t worry though, this is not a Lycra and spandex fest... a mountain bike, a helmet, a bit of lippy and a sense of fun is all we need to get started, go pedalling and hopefully get healthy in the process. So girls, if you fancy getting together to have a first pedal, (all ages and abilities encouraged) call or email me (Karen) on 01877 384624 or karenmethven59@gmail.com.”

Best Dressed Jockey Gus Cameron

The recent Race Night was to raise funds towards hall funds. Thanks to telephone betting a considerable £750 was raised. Many thanks to those who sponsored the races, decorated their hats, dressed up and came along to enjoy theirselves.

Erudite Muse “Every great man nowadays has his desciples, and it is always Judas who writes the biography.” Oscar Wilde, quoted on Forbes.com “I prefer people who rock the boat to people who jump out.” Orson Wells, quoted in GQ magazine “Like all great travellers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen.” Disraeli, quoted in Conde Nast Traveller

The St Fillans Bit One of the first rules of journalism whether it be for a local mag or The Times is to get your facts right. Which I failed to do spectacularly last month. I reported that Sally Watson was at last investing in a computer and broadband for easier access to family & villagers. Sally tells me that she has actually invested in a stair lift for easier access to upstairs. Sorry Sally – not even close! Sadly this month yet another wee obituary. Malcom Simmons passed away on 20th April. Although not strictly a villager, Malcolm lived in Dunira, he had played an active part in St Fillans village life for many years. Born in 1944 and educated in Yorkshire he took up a career in teaching and then returned to University in Sheffield and then Leeds attaining a BSc in mathematics and then a Masters in Electronic Computation before continuing his teaching career. With wife Maureen, he moved to Scotland in 1988 where he took up the role of Senior Lecturer at Stirling University and built the new family home at Dunira. He taught hundreds of students and wrote numerous articles including a book ‘The Effective Teaching of Mathematics’. The couple worshiped in Dunira Church and as a self-taught organist he shared organ duties there for many years, became an elder and had considerable input as a member of the Kirk Session. Many will remember his masterminding of the new Church organ and the superb visit of renowned organist Nigel Ogden who gave a brilliant recital to celebrate the new organ. He was an active member of the St Fillans Players and our picture shows him rehearsing his role in ‘House Guest’ in 2004. Malcom took early retirement in 2002 but was diagnosed with Parkinson’s just 2 years later. With the constant support of Maureen he continued to lead a normal life, travelling, holidays and contributing to church life and never complained about his illness – just faced it with courage and dignity. Our sympathy to Maureen and family. On Friday, Saturday & Sunday 19th to 21st June the St Fillans So and Sews will be holding their bi-annual exhibition of Patchworks, Quilts and Floral Art in The Sandison Hall. Entry costs £4 and includes tea/coffee and home baking. This is always a very well supported event with mini busloads of folk attending. A date for the diary. More updates on the Festive Weekend in August. On the Saturday the bar

by John Murray

will open at 12 noon with the BBQ starting up and serving from 12.45. Elvis will entertain from 1 p.m. to 1.45 p.m. Followed by kids and adult games before Elvis returns at 3.15 to 4.00. There will be face painting for the kids Elvis related quiz sheets and a kid’s raffle (I’m assuming that is a raffle for kids not a raffle of kids!). The fancy dress theme will be Elvis/Rockstar. On Saturday evening there will be a 70s themed gathering with 70s snacks and drinks and folk will be encouraged to dress 70 style. There will be a couple of game show skits followed by a 70s themed disco. Sounds like a fantastic day. On Sunday the format is as last

year with a ‘sit down’ buffet lunch and entertainment by the 3 Tenors. As I said last month these are superb entertainers and you miss this at your peril, Prices are pegged at £10 per adult & £5 for kids under 16 for the Saturday afternoon, £5 for all on Saturday evening and £15 for all on the Sunday. I can see the weekend being a sell out so you might like to register your need for tickets to Richard Graham at lochearnside@gmail.com or give him a ring on 685367. On Sunday last the new Achray owners Brad & Zelda held a complimentary cheese and wine party to thank the many villagers who have welcomed them to Continued overleaf

The St Fillans Bit

(Continued from p3)

The Achray

St Fillans and to introduce themselves to villagers who had not yet visited the ‘new’ Achray. I was not able to be there but my better half tells me that it was a great evening. (Four of us did enjoy dinner there the previous evening and it was a very pleasant experience). The local construction industry has undergone a major boom over the first couple of months of the new ownership with a constant flow of tradesmen doing maintenance, repairs and upgrades. Brad tells me they had a budget for minor works but this was binned within days. The joys of taking over an old building. Meantime the Four Seasons carries on giving its usual excellent service. Mary reminds me of Father’s Day on 21st June – Traditional Sunday Toast with a free pint for the old man. Booking essential. The new menus are being well received which include a lighter lunch option, a Tarken Specials menu and an evening ALC menu. Long term readers of this column will know that I am an impulse buyer of ‘essential’ homeware gimmicks, the majority of which get used twice then go to the next car boot sale. I only report on the useful buys which are few but include my soup maker and Dyson cordless vacuum cleaner (having said that I have no idea where the soup maker is now since we reverted to the old tried and tested soup maker – Daisy) this is an intro to my latest ‘investment’. A few weeks ago we had several ISAS maturing and I simply could not see the point of reinvesting at 2% return. Thankfully NS&I introduced the Over 65 Bonds designed to give pensioners a far better return than the open market and we were able to take up the limited maximum allowance for the pair of us. That left a £6,000 ISA to use up. I have long been a hater of solar panels as they look horrid and I doubted if they worked – I saw it all as a double 4

glazing type hard sell operation. Then I happened on an article in a national daily which explained in detail how the things actually do work and how their cost has reduced rapidly as more people use them. Of interest was that a normal domestic installation of 4KW costs just under £6,000. I decided to investigate and registered an interest on a ‘compare’ web site. Big mistake. I was inundated by just the kind of hard sell guys I had expected. But, oddly, the first company I spoke to sounded genuine so I met with their rep who was totally upfront. Gave me the price before the sales pitch, showed me the latest panels which are far less obtrusive than previous ones and went over the cost/return sums. The simple facts are that for an investment of £5,800 the average return I can expect is £900 – that is a 15% return annually! It works by the electricity supplier paying me a FIT (Feed in Tariff) of 14p a unit for every unit (KW) I generate as this is fed back into the national grid. But the magic bonus is that I use as many day light units myself without my FIT reducing. In other words I get free electricity AND get paid for generating it. I still thought it too good to believe but keep daily records an in month 1 I have generated £62 of electricky which npower pay me quarterly – and my electricity bill has halved. First month income/saving totalling £112! Obviously that will increase in the summer and decrease in the winter but it does look like the predicted £900 a year is accurate. So my ISA will now be returning £900 a year rather than £120. And I am creating green energy. Give me a phone or email if you want more info and a reference for a good installer. Finally – is there a pianist out there who can accompany amateur singers? I don’t really know what the actual description of such a player is but the essential ability is to be able to adapt the accompaniment to the singers – when they get things wrong the piano keeps up... I used to know a pal who ‘played by ear’ – couldn’t read music but could play virtually any instrument. Don’t expect to find that but if you know a versatile pianist please contact me. The pianist is required for a village show next autumn. John Murray

Music by the Loch

Enjoying music is a great way to get together with other people and as most U3A groups have music courses we at C&WP invited our two nearest neighbours to join us in a social event at the café by Loch Venachar on 18th May. Including musicians and audience 75 people enjoyed a cosy, ceilidh-type afternoon complete with a delicious cream tea. Forth Valley U3A started the proceedings with their hand bell ringers ‘Callander Chimes’ who provided a very varied programme of tunes with beautiful harmonies. Anne Docherty, their leader, not only made sure everyone kept in time but also took part herself – no mean feat! After tea our own group ‘Singing for Pleasure’, led by Helen Johnston, conducted by Maurice Temple and accompanied by Ron Thewliss, entertained us with songs old and new with audience participation. The finale was provided by the talented members of Perth U3A’s Ukulele Band, whose tunes set us singing, foot-tapping and hand-jiving. Many thanks to all the performers, to our own members who made up the audience; the staff of Venachar Lochside for providing and serving the teas; and not least, to the subcommittee of C&WP for organising this very successful event.

speak for all in the Village who are lucky enough to have known these wonderful people, that the pleasure was all ours, and say a sincere thank you for all the involvement and work that they both put

Fred and Catherine Menzies For a lot of people in Strathyre it would have been sad to hear that two of the most respected people in the Village were leaving, but it was the case of Fred and Catherine Menzies, who, through a wee bit of ill health and mother nature taking her course, found they had to move to somewhere that allowed them to enjoy a quality of life that was to their liking elsewhere. Catherine was born in Balquhidder some eighty-two years ago and Fred was born in Callander some eighty-nine years ago. Fred arrived in Strathyre in his late teens and worked with the forestry for the next forty-two years, which is an amazing amount of service in an industry that is so hard to survive in. They married in 1953 and celebrated their Diamond wedding in December 2013. Catherine came to Strathyre as a very young girl and as time moved on, worked in the “Trading Post” from the onset, until it closed just over seventeen years later when it became the family home of George and Nancy Coppock.But she also worked in other establishments in the Village including the Ben Shean Hotel. Which at the time was know as the “Station Hotel”. Catherine was also involved in the Hall Committee for sometime, along with anything else that involved the welfare of the Village. Fred was a keen carpet bowler and both of them were very keen and talented dancers and liked nothing better than to

swan around the dance floor, especilly if it was in Strathyre Hall when Scottish country dancing music was the order of the day, although they were more than capable of most dances that would throw us mere mortals into disarray. Out with their normal day to day life they also looked after the forestry cabin which was located at the commission ground, and also the cabins at Stank road [Strathyre Cabins] at the south end of the Loch. Fred and Catherine began their married life in Keip road where they stayed for a number of years, and in that time produced a daughter Christine who, at the age of thirteen, moved with her mum and dad to Creagan Cottages which became the family home for the next forty six years, but in that time Christine found a husband who goes by the name of Gordon Campbell and they now live in Lochearnhead. Time rolls on and this lovely couple are now settled in Freds old roots of Callander [Glen Gardens] and I am sure they will be renewing old acquaintances or at least meeting sons and daughters of said acquaintances and there is nothing more revitalising than to reminisce with old friends. From a personal point of view it has been a pleasure and an honour to know Fred and Catherine although in Strathyre time, I am a very new boy on the block, but Jan and I have spent some lovely times in their company and I am sure I

into this community to make Strathyre a better Village during their very long stay. Strathyre will miss them both but they will never be forgotten and if either of them wish to visit Strathyre for any reason, the doors will always be open. On behalf of all your friends in Strathyre we wish you both well and good luck for the future. Wullie D “Not goodbye just au revoir” Catherine & Fred Menzies would like to thank their family, good neighbours and friends in Strathyre, Balquhidder, Lochearnhead and beyond for all the kindness, help and good wishes given to them during their recent house move. They are pleased to say that they are settling into their new home in Callander.

continued

Old Race Route Stuc in the past The 2015 Stuc a’ Chroin hill race opened a new chapter on May 2nd with a new start and finish location, with the initial and closing sections completely rerouted. After a mammoth amount of work by the new route team, it finally got its initiation and the general consensus was very positive. Many of the runners had previously commented that they didn’t like the long run-out and return on the forestry track as being too hard on the feet and legs particularly towards the finish, so when the race had to change its start and finish location, we decided to bite the bullet, and reroute the forestry track sections. Always a very popular event, and the first in the season of the ‘Long Hill Classics’ on the Hill Running calendar, there was a little trepidation as to how the runners would take to it and how it would perform during the day. Most loved it and not many were sad to see the back of the old long forestry track out and back. With the hours and days after the race forecast to be abysmal, we hoped that the forecasters had got it right … and they were! Although there were testing conditions again, and very windy particularly up top, the rain held off mostly until after the race had finished, and against most of our predictions, the winners actually came in earlier than the old route. In a rerun of the 2013 race, the winner was Hector Hains (HBT) 2:08:33, 2nd was Finlay Wild (Lochaber) 2:12:51. (This was the same first and second from 2013!) Third was Alasdair Anthony of Ochil HR For the ladies, Jasmine Paris (Carnethy) 2:40:43 came in first, Georgia Tindley (Edin Uni Hare & Hounds) was 2nd and third was Kerstin Leslie (Dalbeattie RC) 3:05:44 The local winner was Craig Harvey from Callander with a creditable 2:32:16 We always get many comments after the race for the marshals and the way the race is run and this year we ran a post-race survey to gauge the views of the runners and it was overwhelmingly favourable. There were also many appreciative comments from the runners for their free massage after the race, courtesy of Jim Greer from the Therapy Room. A fantastic effort this year as ever 6

from everyone connected with the race. Thanks as always to Glen Ample Estate for allowing us to run on their land, and Mike Holliday for arranging to run the race as well as dropping off water, enabling access and generally being there when we needed him. The Inn always give us a massive amount of support and this year was no exception. Thanks to Steve and his staff. Thanks to the Forestry Commission for giving us permission to run on their land, to our main sponsors Kingshouse Travel, Thomas Allan and the many businesses whose continuing support we couldn’t do without, Graham Tiso, the Green Welly Stop, Sula Furnishings, Inn & Bistro Strathyre, Stirling Stoves, Immervoulin Caravan Park. Strathyre Cleansing. Village Shop Strathyre. Airlie House B&B, M&M Timber, Aitchison Enterprises, The Braes Farming Co. KPs DIY. Lochside Cottages. Ian Brydie Building Services. Heroncraft Scotland, RTA Doune, S Carmichael & Sons (Comrie), Roll On Flooring, Crystal Tea room (Crieff), The Therapy Room and to Jason Allardyce

Andrew. Although there’s more work to be done, hopefully Strathyre should see the benefits of these improvements for many years to come. A helluva day up top meant trying conditions and a long day for the marshals marking, dispensing liquids and solids, encouragement and cajoling words and expressions. It should be noted, even heralded, that amidst all that, these guys and girls made snowmen up there. Now

Jasmine Paris - Female Winner

Hector Hains, Finlay Wild, Alistair Anthony - The Three Winners

and Dave Hunt and Archie Scott for their brilliant photos. Thanks also to the new route team - the planning, carving, mowing, digging, marking and mapping. A massive amount of work was put in by Adrian, Dougie, Davey, Graeme, Wullie, Stevie “Digger” Black, Eoin, Frank and

THAT’s professionalism! Fantastic job every year without fail, and Eoin and Mike roving as well. Not to be outdone, those at Race HQ made the event start, finish and prize-giving run smoothly as they always do, steadfastly ensuring that the job is done, and is done well.

Stuc a Chroin New Route

The Start on the New Route

Finally, we’d like to thank the runners - we couldn’t run the race without them and we hope they’ll continue to run the race next year and many years in the future. We’ll finish with a quote from a runner “On both occasions that I have run the race, I have been overwhelmed by the number of marshals, the attention to route marking and the absolute enthusiasm of all associated with organising the event. Whatever is in the water up your way needs to be bottled!” Steve Respinger

Hector Hains crossing the line

Finlay Wild receiving fhis prize rom Steve and Catriona

The race has finally taken place using the newly established route and according to the feed back from the runners it was a huge success with some commenting that it was the best race they had ever run, high praise indeed! However let’s not forget that this would never have happened without the help of some local [and not so local] people. So it’s a very big thank you from the committee and quite a few runners, to all who worked so hard and gave up their time to help with this massive project. Namely; Eoin Campbell, Adrian Wilburt, Stevie Black, Frank Kerr and his friend Andrew Thomson [Glasgow] These lads provided their expertise, time and machinery free of charge and without their help this route would never have been possible, but let’s not forget the committee members who designed and also worked so very hard in the construction of this route and gave up a few MONTHS of their lives, which I’m sure their wives and girlfriend loved them for, and they are; Davy, Ian, “Oor Dougie” Graeme, Catriona and yours truly, not forgetting the ground staff who dealt with admin, Jim and Steve. A special thanks goes to Eoin and Adrian whose profound knowledge of these hills and mountains that surround us kept us on the right track when we entered the forest area, we would have been lost without you lads!! Also to the Forestry Commission for all their help and understanding when we were working on their land. There is still some landscaping work to be carried out at the tennis court area and we will keep an eye on maintaining the route but the best maintenance we can have is for the route to be used as a pathway on to the hills by as many people as possible which will help to keep it clear and if you are speaking to any visitors who are looking for a nice walk, please steer them in our direction. Also, if anyone comes across anything that needs to be addressed then please report it to any committee member and we will take whatever action is required. We will be looking to make more improvements in the recreational ground, but that will require a Village meeting for approval once we have established what needs to be done, so watch this space!!! Wullie D [on behalf of committee] 7

Church News BalquhiĐĐer •bls Reg. Charity No. SC012316

A Note from

St Angus’s

The young folk’s challenge in the last issue was not taken up - no-one took up the challenge of the questions asked. So, what about the prize? I’ve decided to offer it again in the hope of a response so it’s open to ALL irrespective of age. The last questions were too easy for adults so the new questions will follow. In the Church’s year the season of Easter is now over and as I write the celebration of Pentecost is fast approaching and will have passed by the time you read this. Pentecost, as you probably know, was when the Holy Spirit came down on the first disciples like tongues of fire and changed them from a frightened band of men meeting secretly behind locked doors into a band of fired up evangelists willing to give their lives rather than deny their faith, their transformation was nothing short of miraculous. If I have ever been tempted to doubt the Christian story I just have to read that second chapter of Acts to be convinced all over again. In a way it was really the first birthday of the Church though it remained a sect of Judaism for more than a hundred years. Now here’s this month’s challenge:1) what is the actual meaning of the word “Pentecost?” and 2) what is the name of the Jewish festival on which it occurs? (Please SOMEBODY have a go!!) Answers please to me at fiona@auchraw.freeserve.co.uk and the first correct one received will have the prize. Doing it by e-mail means there is no doubt at all as to who is first as the time is apparent. Happy Googling!! 8

We extended our Christian Aid Week to cover the Nepal Earthquake Appeal and have left Gift Aid envelopes in the church for anyone wishing to contribute. Details of how to donate are on the envelopes which you can leave in the Church Collection Box or you can send a donation directly to Christian Aid at the address printed on the envelope. Many of us have wanted to contribute, not least because we know how much the people of Nepal have done to help those of us besotted with mountain climbing! Church members especially might like to be reminded that the Church of Scotland publishes a monthly magazine full of news and opinions relevant to today`s issues and those being discussed at the General Assembly. You can borrow copies left on the Church sales table in the church but we would be glad if you would remember to get them back to us! Details of subscription rates are in the magazines or available from me. Nb you can get a wee discount if you order through me! I started writing this as the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland opened in Edinburgh. We used to hear a little about the proceedings from our ministers, but until recently I had not realised just how much business they plan to get through in one week when the church sets out all that the Assembly and its committees are going to discuss. The list is very long indeed and I doubt if many people have the stamina to follow it all in detail. The most eye catching item on the first day was approval by 309 votes to 182 to allow same sex relations within the ministry for those in civil partnerships. Later in the week, extending this to include same sex partnership within marriage was held over for further consultation. All in all, much food for thought. Jean Edwards

DOCTORS Drs Strang & Scott and Drs Mathewson & Gibson Community Nurses

The surgeries and community nurses take part in various training programmes throughout the year. This is to meet the educational and training needs of all members of the practice and nursing team. The next training afternoons will be on:

Thank You The family of the late William MacNee would like to thank you all most sincerely for your attendance at the memorial service in the Parish church conducted by the lovely Terry Taylor, Aberfoyle, during their recent sudden and very sad loss. Many thanks to Marion and David for such moving and unforgettable tributes, to piper Roger Sharp, to Matt of Lochearn House for such an enjoyable buffet at the McLaren Hall and to Ross Anderson for his professional and caring arrangements. Morag MacNee

Wednesday 24th June 2015 Thursday 24th September 2015 and

Real Ale - Real Music

Tuesday 20th October 2015 Both practices and community nurse clinic will close at 12.30pm. Emergency cover will be provided by NHS24 for nursing and GPs. In the event of an emergency, please telephone 111. On that afternoon, please do not contact the surgeries for repeat prescriptions or for appointments.

Bracklinn Practice If you require urgent medical attention when the surgery is closed please contact NHS24 on 111. Make sure you have enough medication to last you over the holiday period, and if you think you will run out, order your medication early or ask for 2 months supply.

My favourite recipes... by Katarzyna Sujanova

Lemon and poppy seed cake Wonderful lemon cake, moist and tangy. Delicious and perfect for every occasion. Another favourite cake in our family. Enjoy! Ingredients: 85g butter at room temperature 245g caster sugar grated zest of 1.5 lemons 15g poppy seeds 165g milk 235g plain flour 2 tsp baking powder 0.5 tsp salt 3 egg whites Lemon syrup Juice and zest of 1 lemon 50g caster sugar Lemon glaze Juice of lemon 250g icing sugar 24cm ring mould, greased and dusted with flour. Preheat oven to 170C. Mix the butter, sugar, lemon zest and poppy seeds in a mixer. Slowly add the milk and continue to beat. In separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. In a separate bowl whisk egg whites and fold into the cake mixture. Pour into the mould and bake for 30 min. or until the sponge bounces back when touched. While the cake is baking, put the lemon juice and zest, sugar and 100 ml of water in a saucepan no bring to the boil. Low heat and cook until it has a thin syrup consistency. When the hot cake comes out of the oven, pour the syrup all over the top. When the cake cools down make the lemon glaze by mixing the lemon juice and icing sugar, pour on the top, decorate with poppy seeds. Enjoy!

Strathyre Inn & Bistro Darts League

Is Summer officially here!! It must be, as the Inn & Bistro Darts League has finished. The League was formed 4 years ago to have fun, competitive darts on a Thursday night through the long winter months. This year’s event proved to be even more competitive than ever, although the banter, jokes and socialising being the real winner. The overall Champion this year was our own Wullie (the power) Dalziel, who took the title for the 2nd time with the brilliant record of never losing a match all season. A great achievement. Joint second was Emma Richards who took the Ladies Title for the second year running, also joint second was Art Crammon who also recorded the highest checkout of 167, just pipping Ron Milne who had held the highest most of the season. A special mention must go to all the Ladies, who have all played with credit, most in their first season. Of course, the darts wouldn’t happen without a venue, many thanks to The Inn, Steve Nixon for his superb weekly refreshments and also the staff who supply us all with the necessary liquids associated with pub darts! Anyone interested in playing darts is welcome to turn up on a Thursday most

weeks throughout the summer for fun nights (non-competitive!!) Finally, the most unusual finish of the season goes to Tommy (Jocky Wilson) Anderson, who threw his last dart one night against Wullie, underhanded, back handed and with no aim whatsoever in disgust at the board, only to find it hit the designated target of double one. Wullie wasn’t amused but everyone else was in stitches, rock on Tommy!! Arthur Crammon Fixture Secretary

Cupcake Heaven Freshly baked, delicious flavour for every occasion. Boxed individually or in 4, 6 or 12 cakes for Birthdays, Anniversaries or other occasions. Celebration Cakes made to order. Contact Lorraine on 01567 830368 or lorrainetelfer@btinternet.com for flavours and prices. Will deliver f.o.c. locally

Scottish Blackface Sheep Shearing Championships in Lochearnhead Saturday 27th June 2015 Starting at 8.30am with all heats FINALS 5.00pm New Zealand v Scotland Shearing Test Come along and see shearing at its best plus Ceilidh Dance Saturday 27h June 9.00pm – 1.00am Licenced Bar & Food All Day

View from the Park by Owen McKee The Park Authority’s proposals for the camping bylaws and provisions are now in the hands of the Minister and all the Park Authority can do is await the decision. Although I am hopeful that the very sensible proposals will be given ministerial approval I am a little apprehensive about the political clout that the opponents of the proposals have. Fingers, toes and everything else are crossed that the solid community support carries the day and we can progress to a better future for the enjoyment of the Park by residents and visitors alike. Integral to these proposals are two other bits of regulation viz The Outdoor Drinking of Alcohol byelaw and the designation of sections of the A84 and A85 trunk roads as Clearways. As always seems to happen when something new is proposed, there is something happening elsewhere which has a knock on effect and this is particularly true with the Clearways. It had been hoped that the Clearways would have been given authorisation by the end of 2014 but unfortunately there is a review ongoing in regards to clearways in the North of Scotland and a decision on the A84 and A85 situation is being delayed until the report is analysed. The byelaw on alcohol is a local authority matter and as the proposed area straddles Perth and Kinross and Stirling Council jurisdictions there is additional administration to contend with. However things are progressing well and it should be possible to introduce all the byelaws as a unified plan. In the meantime there is another consultation to keep you from wearying. For the past couple of years we have been engaging with the communities to prepare our Local Development Plan. Under the legislation we are required to keep our Local Development Plan under constant review and to produce a Plan at least every five years. A report showing the Main Issues that the ongoing discussions brought to light were issued to the community councils and their comments and those of other interested parties have now been incorporated in our proposed Local Development Plan. Details are 12

available online at www.ourlivepark.com or if you prefer you can view a copy at the Park offices in Callander or Balloch. The consultation runs to the end of June and your comments would be most welcome. Making a visit to The Park on 13th May, Richard Lochhead MSP, Minister for The Environment, formally opened the fourth (and final) Scenic Routes Viewpoint which is situated at Inveruglas I am pleased to say the sun shone that day and there was considerable media presence which resulted in blanket coverage of the event in the national press. The viewpoint officially named An Cean Mor, is well worth a visit. The views down Loch Lomond are spectacular and I am confident it will serve well its purpose of attracting more people to the National Park and will encourage those who do come to linger longer. The latter part of May also saw us acting as hosts to a delegation from our sister National Park, The Cairngorms. Believe it or not Cairngorms National Park currently does not have a Ranger Service and they rely on the local authorities and private landowners to provide the cover our Ranger Service provides here. The main purpose of the visit was to see how our Ranger Service works, assess the costs and for them to then gauge whether they should look to employing their own rangers. It will be interesting to see which route they decide to take. Another area in which their operation differs from ours is the Planning. Whereas we have our own Planning Department Cairngorms operates in conjunction with the local authorities who deal initially with any planning applications. Details are fed to Cairngorms National Park Authority who then decide whether they should “call in” any particular application. That seems to me to overcomplicate an already burdensome process. Owen McKee: As always I can be contacted as follows: Post: Taigh Na Bhuth, Lochearnhead. Phone: 01567 830214 01567 830214 email: owen@thevillageshop.fsbusiness.co.uk

Star Cook is Leaving On behalf of the Lunch Club I feel I should say a few words about one of our loyal, Volunteer Cooks. The B.L.S. Lunch Club has now been running for 16 years. The Club starts up in October and runs through till the end of March, every Monday at the Scout Station in Lochearnhead. It was all started by the late Margaret Ritchie who got a grant from “Help the Aged Millennium Awards” to purchase equipment. In order to run successfully the club needed 2 volunteers each week to each cook a soup and a pudding for up to 30 people. Over the years we have had a great number of wonderful cooks providing us with a choice of really tasty soups and puddings. The club pays the cooks for raw materials used but many of them refuse payment and just donate their offerings for which we are very grateful. One volunteer cook in particular who has been so loyal to the Club since it started is Jane Chadfield of Balquhidder. When asked she has consistently provided wonderful soups and puddings,

Vera Stewart presenting Jane Chadfield (left) with a little present

never forgetting and always ensuring the food arrived on time. We are so grateful to her and many thanks are due. A small presentation was made by Vera Stewart to Jane on behalf of the Lunch Club. Alas Jane and Edward, her husband, are upping sticks and moving to Lockerbie to be nearer one of her daughters. They have lived in the glen for 22 years and both have contributed greatly to the community. We shall miss them both very much. So, many, many thanks Jane for giving your services freely to the Lunch Club and for all you have done. We trust the move will go smoothly. You will both be missed. P. Perkins President B.L.S.Lunch Club

Balquhidder, Lochearnhead & Strathyre Community Council Minutes of Meeting held at Strathyre Village Hall on 20th May 2015

Please note that these minutes have not yet received formal approval and should be considered a draft version only. Present: Malcolm McNaughton (MM), David Johnston (DJ), Ruth McLusky (RMC), Susie Crammon (SC), Loraine Telfer (LT), Karen Methven (KM). Apologies: Alistair Barclay, Paul, Angus Cameron (AC), Rosanne McWilliams (RM) , Richard Eastland (RE), Adrian Squires (AS). Attending: Cllr Martin Earl (ME), Stirling Council, PC Will Diamond, Police Scotland, Owen McKee (OM) National Park, Morag Buxel (MB), Stirling Low Carbon Future. 1. Approval of Minutes It was proposed by MM and seconded by LT, that the minutes of the meeting on 8th April 2015 should be accepted, and this was approved unanimously. 2. Declarations of Interest DJ, MM, KM, LT all declared an interest in the Balquhidder Broadband item. 3. Police Report No antisocial behaviour but 42 road traffic offences were reported. These were predominately speeders but also included defects such as MOT and no seatbelts. There was a domestic break in at Rose Cottage, Glen Ogle between 11th and 30th April. The cottage is currently under renovation. There was also the theft of the outboard engine from the new NP boat at the Watersports Centre between 24th and 25 April. Routine patrols have been carried out as well as Ironworks patrols every weekend. One boat patrol was carried out on 19th April to coincide with the boat race. Time was also spent on wildlife crime enquiries as well as firearms licencing training. On 6th May a day was spent carrying out speed checks with Strathyre Primary School pupils. This was well received and the feedback has been excellent. MM asked whether speed checks were being carried out outwith the 30 mph areas. WD reported that motorcycle patrols were operating but that the camera van is tasked separately so he has no control over where it goes. Local police are not authorised to target speed limits outside the built up areas. 4. Stirling Low Carbon Future MB, the coordinator and gave a short presentation on the project and handed out leaflets and contact information. The Stirling Low Carbon Future is a partnership project based on the successes of the Fintry Community Project and Transition Stirling. Working mainly on providing energy saving independent information and renewable energy options it draws on previous experience to give independent advice. As part of this it is looking at energy savings for community buildings such as village halls. The second strand of the project is looking at ways to help communities reuse unwanted wood such as pallets to make raised beds and garden furniture etc. The are looking at running events in order to publicise their activities and it was suggested that the BLS Highland Games and articles in the community newspapers would be a good vehicle for this. 5. Matters Arising 5a) State of road surface on A84, South of Strathyre. PH reported that he had written to BEAR Scotland regarding concerns at the state of the road surface here. He had not received any formal reply, but a short time after writing, the road was resurfaced at this point, and the problem has been resolved. 5b) Five Lochs Meeting, 29 April, Callander. PH attended this meeting at which the National Park reported on progress with plans for further bye-law legislation in our area. The Board has accepted recommendations to proceed, despite some opposition from various (mainly national) bodies. Improvements at Loch Venacher and Loch Lubnaig were described and warmly welcomed. There had been a problem at national level with proposals for clearway legislation, but this has now been resolved and further progress is now anticipated. 6. Balquhidder Broadband Ratification of decision taken at meeting on 7th May was agreed. DJ reported that the ITT had been completed and sent to CBS last Thursday for issue. Donald McGregor and Mark Venables had agreed to join the working group of Richard Harris, Fergus McKay and DJ. The process of setting up ‘Balquhidder Community Broadband’ as a Community Interest Company was underway and it was hoped that the relevant papers would be sent off to Companies House in Edinburgh on Friday. 7. Bye-law and Clearways Nothing new to report. (As reported at item 4B, there has been a problem at national level over clearway legislation, but this has been resolved and progress on the local application for clearway legislation is now anticipated. There was some discussion on which roads would be affected by the clearway but it was confirmed that only the trunk roads were planned. DJ reported that PH had received confirmation that the maps showing the areas of the alcohol ban would be updated to take account of the CC’s wishes. 8. Correspondence None 9. Planning Matters None - but a public consultation paper from Stirling Council on Wind Energy Developments Spatial Framework had been received. This does not affect the area of the National Park but some of Lochearnhead around Glen Beich falls outside the park area. OM agreed to speak to owner of Glen Beich. 10. Matters From Councillors 10a) ME reported that new Division Commanders had been appointed for both the Police and Fire and Rescue Service – he was still to meet with them. 10b) He also handed out leaflets on the Royal Voluntary Service. 11. Any Other Competent Business OM asked whether the CC had received a copy of the latest Local Development Plan. No one had seen it and AS had made no mention of receiving it when he met DJ yesterday. OM reported that it could be seen online. Lochearnhead and Strathyre have their own maps but the Balquhidder area is covered in the Small Rural Communities Section. Consultation is open until he end of June and it was suggested that this should be mentioned in The Villagers. There was no other business and, at 8.50 p.m., MM declared the meeting closed. The next meeting is due to take place at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday 1st July 2015 at the Village Hall, Balquhidder. 13

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1 The Raft Race - “Their Off ” 2 The Raft Race - All Done 3 Ceilidh Fun with Fraser 4 The Campsite 5 The Ceilidh Band 6 The Paper review with- Stephen Jardine, Guy Grieve (Ethical Shellfish Co) & James Withers (Scotland Food & Drink) 7 Monachle Mhor Hotel looking busy 8a & b The Marching Brass Band 9 Zip Wire in action 10 Allison’s Enchanted Cottage Stall 11 The Creme Brulee Van 12 Katy’s Secret Phantassie Summer Salad 13 Music with Ewan & Kaila 14 Roast Beef, Wild Garlic, Gravy 15 Enjoying the Feast 16 Tom enthusiastic about the feast 17 The Chefs et al who helped 18 Singer 19 Oscar Smith and Katy Brett - The Real Chefs 20 Tom enthusiastic again

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Monachyle Festival A festival for all age groups was the aim over the holiday weekend and literally thousands of people can testify to the great success achieved by Tom and Lisa and an amazing crew of workers, including 3 generations of a local family. From the start with the “traditional” raft race (won by Alice and Iris Henman in their pink canoe) to the Soul Foundation on Sunday evening or a more genteel review of the Sunday papers there was something for all. Over 250 children joined in Rowanbank’s Tea Parties with children following the Fairies up to specially decorated trees to join in the story telling. For many “regulars” a highlight is the Feast on Saturday evening with 5 chefs displaying their skills and even here 2 of the chefs had their own children working hard as the next generation of Masterchefs! The bread and cake competitions allow mere mortals to demonstrate their talents and Tom was particularly complimentary about the high standard of the breads this year with the winner being Steven Timannay with local girl Madge Sharpe a very close second. Karen Methven was the winner of the cake competition. This year there was also an extended Market area enjoyed by both customers and the traders who enjoyed the whole atmosphere of the occasion. If you wanted more action you could join in the dance workshops, including a very popular Bollywood one or, for the more adventurous try the Zip Wire another new feature.

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Pin-Feathers* by Old Nyati

*Once in demand by Victorian miniaturists, the tiny pin-feather comes from the

leading edge of a woodcock’s wing and only two such feathers occur on each bird (one on each wing). This month, Old Nyati discusses equality in taxation ....

Let us suppose that every day, 10 men go out for dinner. They decide to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes, and it went like this: The first four men (the poorest) paid nothing. The fifth paid £1 The sixth £3 The seventh £7 The eighth £12 The ninth £18 The tenth man (the richest) paid £59

All ten were quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner of the restaurant said “Since you are all such good customers, I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by £20. So now dinner for the 10 only cost £80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay taxes. The first four men were unaffected. They still ate for free. But how should the other six, the paying customers, divvy up the £20 windfall so that everyone would get his “fair share”? They realised that £20 divide by six is £3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth and sixth men would each end up being paid to eat. The restaurateur suggested reducing each man’s bill by roughly the same percentage thus: The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving) The sixth paid £2 instead £3 (3%) The seventh paid £5 instead of £7(28%) 16

The eighth paid £9 instead of £12(25%) The ninth paid £14 instead £18 (22%0 The tenth paid £49 instead of £59 (16%) Each of the six was better off, and the first four continued to eat for free, but outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings. “I only got a pound out of the £20”, declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man “but he got £10!” “That’s right” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a pound too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than me!” “That’s true!” shouted the seventh man.” Why should he get back £10 when I got only £2? The wealthy get all the breaks!” “Wait a minute” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!” The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for dinner. The nine men sat down and ate without him, but when they came to pay the bill, they discovered that they didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of it. That, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table any more. There are lots of good restaurants in Monaco and the Caribbean. And then there was another man who was fed up with the usual delays and cost of our stifling legislation, so when filling in forms for things like planning applications, tax and VAT etc. etc., and seeing that little box with the words ‘for official use only’ he would smear cooking oil or butter on it. Who can guess why??? Old Nyati

LATIN: Caesar adsum jam forte Brutus ad erat, Caesar sic in omnibus Brutus in `is` at. SPANISH: Si senor dardago, forte loriz inaro, demona loriz dema trux, fulla cous bulzan dux. (Translation below if required)

Caesar had some jam for tea Brutus had a rat Caesar sick in omnibus Brutus in his hat. Don`t laugh !!!! And the Spanish: Si Senor there they go, forty lorries in a row. Them are not lorries, them are trucks, full of cows, bulls and ducks. You don`t have to crazy, but it helps.

Glenorchy Farm

Free range rare breed pork for sale

We sell fresh pork as 1/2 pigs (20kg) and 1/4 pigs (10kg) every 3 months, next available - Mid August. We also sell frozen pork, sausages and bacon and can arrange drop off points in the local area Contact: Fiona MacLennan t: 07783116399 e: fipoulter@hotmail.co.uk facebook: Glenorchy Farm

BALQUHIDDER BROADBAND UPDATE Further to the update in the May edition of The Villagers some progress has been made. With the permission of the BLS Community Council and Invitation to Tender (ITT) was drafted and agreed with Community Broadband Scotland (CBS). This has now been issued and some very initial discussions have taken place with suppliers who have expressed an interest in bidding for all or parts of the ITT. The assistance of the BLS Community Council was crucial to being able to move forward with this as quickly as we did and allow time for a Community Interest Company (CIC) to be formed and registered. However, it must be clear that the process of dealing with the tender returns, contract negotiations and all other business to do with the supply of superfast broadband within the glen will be dealt with by the new CIC. The ITT has been designed to cover the wider area of Balquhidder, which will not see any benefit from the upgrade work which is due to the Strathyre and Lochearnhead exchanges. It therefore covers an area bounded by Kingshouse and Balquhidder Station in the east, Inverlochlanrig in the west, Ballimore glen to the south and Kirkton Glen to the north.

The requirements of the ITT include:1 The provision and support of a local network infrastructure to all properties within the area, 2 The provision of ‘backhaul services’ to connect the local network to internet, and 3 The provision and support of a complete end to end solution. The times scales for dealing with these negotiations have bee set very aggressively in order to progress things as quickly as possible. This should hopefully lead to a ‘commencement of service’ before Christmas this year if everything goes to schedule. Progress has also been made on creating the CIC required to manage this whole process. Five locals, Richard Harris, Fergus McKay, David Johnston, Donald McGregor and Mark Venables, all of who have extensive experience in business, Information Technology, networks and communications, have agreed to be the initial directors of ‘Balquhidder Community Broadband Community Interest Company’ (BCB CIC)to get it off the ground. The forms have all been signed and sent to Companies House and the CIC Regulater so the the company can be registered. A CIC operates similarly

to any othe company but its purpose must specifically benefit the community, all profits must be used to benefit the community and any assits held must be tied to the community. Therefore BCB CIC has declared that:“The company’s activities will be carried out solely for the benefit of all residents, visitors and businesses within the defined Balquhidder area through the provision of fast broadband.” Once sufficient detailed information has been recieved from the protential suppliers a community meeting will be convened. Further information is available on balquhidder.net.

Rangers’ Review

By Gareth Kett Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Our landscape is spectacular and at this time of year the changing hues of spring add an extra dimension to the beauty, perhaps personified by the carpets of bluebells that appear in our woodlands and on some glen and mountainsides in May. One of the most eye-catching places is Little Drum Wood, near Brig O’ Turk. Almost a third of the world’s bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) grow in the British Isles with bluebell carpets being predominantly a British phenomenon. But beneath the beauty there’s a story; a story of destruction and incompleteness. Bluebells evolved in ancient woodlands. Where they now add colour to treeless hillsides there were once expanses of forest, rich in biodiversity. Where they dominate the forest floor, perhaps, as in European woodlands, they should form part of a mosaic with the yellows of celandines and primroses, the whites of wood anemone and wild garlic, and the greens of dog’s mercury and ferns. So what does Europe have that we (at least in Scotland) don’t? The answer is wild boar. They are ecosystem engineers; rooting driven by their appetite for bulbs and roots prevents monocultures developing, promoting biodiversity (1). Wild boar were probably hunted to extinction in Scotland around 700 years ago. Following reintroductions from Europe they were finally wiped out around 300 years ago, although they have re-established in southern England following escapes from captive populations. As a ranger service we have a role in interpreting the landscape to visitors and school groups. Many visitors arrive here believing that they are coming to a wilderness area, when the dramatic landscape is in fact a product of the interaction between man and the environment. UK National Parks fall into Category V of the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) Protected Areas Categories System - Protected Landscape/Seascape: A protected area where the interaction of people and nature over time has produced an area of distinct character with significant, ecological, biological, cultural and scenic value: and where safeguarding the integrity of this interaction is vital to protecting and sustaining the area and its associated nature conservation and other values. Wilderness National Parks, 18

such as Yellowstone and the Serengeti National Parks fall into Category II National Park: Large natural or near natural areas set aside to protect largescale ecological processes, along with the complement of species and ecosystems characteristic of the area, which also provide a foundation for environmentally and culturally compatible, spiritual, scientific, educational, recreational, and visitor opportunities. (2). Understanding the difference allows people to appreciate the landscape without expecting it to be a wilderness. Each year the National Park Authority employs a number of seasonal rangers, who together with casual staff, assist the permanent rangers in visitor management duties including patrols and manning the visitor centre at Balmaha and the boat launching facilities on Loch Lomond at Balloch and Millarochy Bay. This season three seasonal rangers – Jemma Doran, Lorna Oldershaw and Adam Ross - have joined the Trossachs and Breadalbane team. We wish them well with the season. Hopefully you will get a chance to meet them over the next few months. It’s always great to be able to contribute to education and development programmes at local schools. The Strathyre Primary School Grounds Day Community Event was a great example of how the Ranger Service and National Park Volunteers can work together with parents, teachers and pupils. We managed to replace a significant section of degraded path in the school grounds with some of the children really getting stuck into the tough, muddy work! The discovery of a newt by one of the mums added to the day’s excitement! Many thanks go to Adrian and Forestry Commission Scotland for providing the materials to replace the path. On a less positive note, most of you will probably be aware that the outboard motor was stolen from the new National Park patrol boat on the 24th April. The boat was parked on the grounds of the water sports centre at

Lochearnhead. The perpetrators must have lifted the engine over the fence and into a waiting vehicle. If you saw anything or have any information relating to the theft please pass it onto PC Diamond. As usual if you have any wildlife sightings to report or any queries please contact me by e-mail address gareth. kett@lochlomond-trossachs.org , or on the Lochearnhead Office number 01389 722040. If I’m not in the office please leave a message and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Earlier in the month we had a report and photos of a pair of Mandarin ducks on Loch Earn. A native of East Asia, feral populations of Mandarin ducks became established in south and east England in the 20th century. They appear to be dispersing into Scotland, but sightings are uncommon. Many thanks Caroline! References 1. J Welander, 2000. Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of a Disturbance Regime: Wild boar (Sus scrofa L) rooting and its effects on plant species diversity. PhD Thesis, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Utgivningsort. 2. http://www.iucn.org/about/work/ programmes/gpap_home/gpap_quality/ gpap_pacategories/

The Scottish Wildlife Trust AGM

in April was followed by four short presentations. In ‘Moths of the Trossachs’ Arthur Jones’ photographs clearly showed that moths are not all small, brown, jumper-eaters but can be as attractive as butterflies. While Scotland has only 35 species of butterfly, moths are far more numerous, notionally categorised as macro >20mm wingspan (800) and micro moths <20mm (1500). Between March and September a wide range of species emerges, mostly seen at night but some are day-flying. Monthly highlights included; red-green carpet, emperor (day), hooktips, beautiful carpet, northern eggar (day), poplar hawk, garden

tiger, beautiful snout – check them out! Paul McDonald, Project Officer with SWT’s Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels, gave a project update. N American grey squirrels easily outcompete our smaller native reds for food and territory. They also carry squirrel pox virus (SPV) to which they are resistant but infected reds die within 2 weeks. Worryingly, it has now been found in Glasgow and Plean Country Park. Control of grey squirrels is controversial but effective although soon undone once stopped. While a vaccine for reds is feasible, it is unaffordable and difficult to deliver. The majority of the UK’s red squirrels are in Scotland, mainly north of the Highland Boundary Fault, making Callander an important frontier. Everyone can help by reporting grey and red squirrel sightings on the new website, posting squirrel-related articles on Paul’s blog, or by offering practical help like making wooden feeder boxes. Would anyone be interested in setting up a local red squirrel group to co-ordinate such activities? Report sightings on http:// scottishsquirrels.org.uk/squirrel-sightings and/or contact Paul on pmcdonald@ scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk. Barn owls are one of the most easily recognised and popular British birds but, unfortunately, prone to large variations in population due to weather and fluctuating populations of field voles, their principle food source. Mike Steward has been

putting up nest boxes and monitoring barn owl populations in Central Scotland since 1990, starting with just 4 breeding pairs and reaching a peak of 74 pairs in 2010. The winter of 2009/10 was the coldest for 20 years but with little snow so owls could continue to feed plus a peak in voles allowed good broods to be raised. In contrast, 2010/11’s winter was not as cold but had prolonged periods of deep snow that protected what voles remained after numbers had crashed. This was disastrous with a huge number of owls starving to death, leaving only 24 breeding pairs in Mike’s boxes and none in FCS’s 35-40 boxes. Since then there has been a slow recovery; from 24 to 33 breeding pairs between 2012 & ’13, to 58 in 2014 plus over 168 chicks due to high vole numbers. Mike is predicting owl numbers will dip in 2015 as voles crash but both will increase again in 2016 to a record high in 2017, IF we don’t get severe winters with long-lying snow! Kevin Duffy’s talk on his recent Mountain Hare surveys coincided with a press announcement that 10 conservation organisations had issued a joint petition for a 3-year ban on culling of mountain hares. This would stop local extinctions and allow a scientific assessment of the impact of tics, known to affect grouse chicks but with unknown impact on final grouse bags. These tics are known to be carried by hares but also by co-located sheep and deer. This was a rare opportunity to see how hares are caught in applebaited cage traps spread over a wide moorland area. 100 traps spread over 4 grids of 25 meant an 8 mile route over difficult terrain to check them once every 24 hours. If conditions like heavy snow would be detrimental to trapped animals, the traps are locked open. Caught hares are weighed, measured, sex determined and a small, numbered metal tag fitted on the ear. At the start in October the hares were largely brown but became whiter as days got shorter and temperatures fell. By recording the number of tagged hares returning to traps, a statistical method is used to assess to the size of the local hare population and future surveys will provide trends. Lesley Hawkins

Do you need an affordable home ? Rural Stirling Housing Association aims to support local communities by providing quality homes at affordable rents for families, couples and single people in housing need. We currently have over 550 rented houses and flats. Around 50 of these become available for rent each year. We hope to have new properties in Strathblane and Balmaha soon and currently have properties in the following communities Aberfoyle Deanston Gartmore Lochearnhead Balfron Doune Killin Strathyre Buchlyvie Drymen Kinlochard Stronachlachar Callander Gargunnock Kippen Tyndrum We may be able to build in other communities in the future – please let us know to if you want to live in a village that is not listed above. Information on local housing need and demand helps us plan for the future. If you are interested in renting one of our properties when they become available please contact us: Rural Stirling Housing Association Stirling Road, Doune FK16 6AA Telephone: 01786 841101 Email: enquiries@rsha.org.uk www.rsha.org.uk Registered as a Scottish Charity No. SC037849

Scottish Wildlife Trust Callander Local Group Diary 2015 Talks start at 7:30pm Kirk Hall, South Church Street, Callander. **Note the change of venue** 5 July SWT Balsam Bash: 10-13:00, meet Geisher Road Surgery Car Park 25 July Bottle, plant and SWT Stall fund-raising event for Callander SWT group 10-16:00, Ancaster Square:

The new season of talks will start in September 2015. EVERYONE WELCOME! Admission £2 members, £2.50 non-members, free to full-time students. Includes tea/coffee & biscuits.

Please book with Lesley Hawkins 01877 339080 or mlhawkins@tiscali.co.uk

Over the last month, road safety has been the biggest concern in our local area after a number of serious collisions, as well as two fatal collisions which resulted in the death of 4 motorists. Collisions by in large are generally due to driver error of some description, whether that be excessive speed or driving

dangerously, or failing to drive according to the road or weather conditions. You will have seen an increase in the number of high visibility patrols being conducted on the A84, A85 and A82 roads in an effort to influence better driver behaviour. There are also unmarked traffic cars and motorcycles carrying out patrols to catch those who are committing traffic offences. Given the fact that speed is generally a blame factor in the majority of collisions we deal with, there has been a marked increase in the number of speed checks being carried out. These checks are being implemented by local officers within the built up areas, and we are being assisted by roads policing officers and staff from the safety camera partnership who will be operating within the national speed limit areas. As a result of the local drive for road safety, I spent the day on Wednesday 6th May carrying out speed checks on the A84 in Strathyre and was assisted by the P4-P7 kids from Strathyre Primary School (and Mrs Keenan!) Throughout the course of the day, numerous vehicles were stopped and luckily for the drivers, they got off without having to have a fine and points on their licence, and instead were “dealt with” by the kids. The fastest speed we recorded was high 40’s which is inexplicable in a 30mph zone. The feedback that was received from the drivers was that they felt there was benefit in the initiative as they felt more responsible for their actions when explaining to the children. The initiative always receives good feedback, but on this occasion, numerous 20

members of the public made contact with Police Scotland after reading the posts, particularly on social media sites, Facebook and Twitter. The comments were all positive and they highlighted that the scheme should be extended to cover other schools within the Forth Valley area. This is now something that is being looked at, which is great to see as the initiative began here. Unfortunately there has yet again been a number of thefts in the local area. Overnight between Friday 24th and Saturday 25th April, the outboard engine from the National Park patrol boat was stolen. The boat was brand new and had only been in the village for a week, having carried out one patrol on the Sunday before the theft. The boat was parked as always, within the grounds of the watersports centre. Given the size and weight of the engine, several persons would have been involved and I am of the opinion that it was not opportunistic but most certainly preplanned. The village is now without a patrol boat for Loch Earn, which has an impact for everyone. The rangers are unable to carry out their valuable survey work and we are unable to carry out joint patrols with NP staff. There was also a domestic break-in to Rose Cottage in Glen Ogle between the 11th and 30th of April. This again does not appear to have been opportunistic but more preplanned. From speaking to the local community, very few people knew that the property had been bought and was under renovation. Someone clearly had known and took their opportunity to force entry and steal a quantity of power tools. If anyone has any information regarding these thefts, please get in touch with me. Any information that is passed will be dealt with in the strictest of confidence. As always, I can always be contacted on 101 or for those who prefer email, I can be contacted directly at william.diamond@ scotland.pnn.police.uk. Regards, PC Will Diamond

Beetle-Mania!! Please come for an evening of fun and games and, at the same time, do your bit to help support the two local nurseries at Killin and Crianlarich that cater for our area. We are so lucky to have two such excellent jointly-run nurseries at hand to give our children a great start in life. The nurseries are predominantly funded by Stirling Council but money is tight! The available budget for new toys, games, furnishings and suchlike is very limited. Which is where you come in! Please come along to the “Beetle Drive” fundraiser at 6.30pm on Saturday 6th June at McLaren Hall, Killin, organized by the Killin and Crianlarich Nursery Parents’ Group for an evening of lighthearted fun, gentle music and huge cash prizes (okay, maybe “huge” is a relative term!). It will be fun for all ages (you don’t need to have children for an excuse to come!) and all proceeds will go towards much-needed renovations of the outdoor areas at each of the nurseries. We really need your support to help keep our community nurseries exciting, fun and inspiring places for our little people. Tickets available on the door.

Gardening

JUNE

by Jonathan MacDonald Each year botanists discover on average about 2,000 new species of flowering plants. With this in mind a rather amateur plant hunting trek one holiday in Skye years ago was undertaken to leave the cosmopolitan behind in search of the endemic. There were two plants on the holiday itinerary. Firstly a search was to be conducted for a plant only discovered in the 1930’s having been found growing only in Iceland until then. Its discovery tied up some botanical loose ends on distribution as ice ages melted and so on. Koenigia islandica is there to be seen near the Old Man of Storr and if you go equipped with the knowledge that its requirements as a plant are bare, intermittently flushed or constantly moist, basaltic gravel pans and screes, mainly with a northerly or easterly aspect you will soon come across it. This was happily the case that day. The frost action and wind erosion assist in keeping the habitat open. As a general rule mountains that are good for climbers are bad for the botanist and I soon found this to be true as a whole day trekking in another Koenigia Islandica location failed to discover the second plant, the alpine rock cress Arabis alpina. After a tough days climbing to a solitary rocky cleft where it is to be found on Coire na Criche on the main black Cuillin ridge it was nowhere to be seen, no visual repayment for some serious off track effort. This is indeed splendid isolation for any species but looking up high above into a slight overhang you could see what just might have been the so called one foot diameter clump that is said to exist. As the light faded we headed back down with a slight annoying sense of failure. This might have been the last ever sighting of a plant that only exists in Aribis Alpina this one spot and nowhere else in Britain. Fussy or what? What a great way to combine a love of plants and the outdoors. You could try a spot of plant-hunting yourselves as nearer to home and not far from here you could stumble across a rather demure

wee Orchid growing in rather unusual circumstances. In fact so unusual that it could be described as natural evidence for evolution. It might get you pondering not the chicken or egg question but “Pit bing” and egg. In fact Young’s Helleborine orchid or if you prefer Latin Epipactis helleborine var. Youngiana is one of only 4 “endemic” species of plants that only occur in Scotland and a very small limited population near Newcastle and nowhere else in the world. You would need to be near pit spoil to find it which suggests it evolutionary origins are recent and are a direct result of anthropogenic habitats. Simply put we howked a muckle big pile of coal from huge romantic pits with names like the Bardykes, Bothwell Priory and Gorebridge and the huge Zinc and lead deposits kept the spoil heaps toxic and vegetation free. Our rare orchid would appear as a result of crossing with other orchids and a distinctive population would appear which had hairier leaves and pinker flowers and so on and has been known to be around for about 150 years. Here is a plant that would not have occurred had it not been for coal mining and strange as it may seem its success was reliant on industrialisation with its very un-green practices helping establish it. The question to ask is should we let this relic simply disappear again or will this new species find another niche somewhere perhaps perched on the waste from on-shore wind farm production? As spoil heaps are capped and replanted one of Scotland’s and perhaps the world’s rarest plant is likely to disappear, surely a

Young’s Helleborine

good enough reason to go and see it? Be consoled though as some estimates say that nearly 100,000 new species of plants are yet to be discovered in the wild and I still can’t get my head round the 400 new species of fish that we discovered last year alone. This year I think I’ll take a trip in late July to find Scotland’s rarest plant hidden amongst the acid wasteland on an old pit bing in Clackmananshire or should I make an arduous 80 mile fishing boat trip out into the Atlantic ocean to find another of our rarest endemic plants only discovered 2 years ago. The St Kilda Dandelion is not unlike my own dandelions other than being a wee bit smaller and having extra bracts (specialised leaves). That’s quite a trek to see a dandelion even if it is small and strange. Falkirk here I come. Riverside Garden Centre Need Inspiration? Open 7 days a week: 9.30 - 4.30 Tullybannocher, Comrie, (A85) www.scottishgardens.info Tel: 01764 670800

Riverside Garden Centre

Need Inspiration? Open 7 days a week: 9.30 -‐ 4.30 Tullybannocher, Comrie, (A85)

www.scottishgardens.info Tel: 01764 670800

McLaren High School News Central Schools Under - 16 Cup Final On the last day of March, when we witnessed all four seasons in one day, the boys made their way to the sports pitches at Stirling University to take part in the Central Schools U16 Final against Larbert HS. The match started in difficult conditions, with the rain, wind and hail proving to be detrimental to expansive rugby. The early stages were fiercely contested with both teams taking a physical approach to combat the driving rain. McLaren made the breakthrough when Logan Trotter burst through the line and rounded the last line of defence to make the score 5-0. With the wind blowing towards Logan, converting tries proved to be extremely challenging in this half. After a second period of goal line pressure Connor Clark crossed to extend McLaren’s lead to 10-0. However, Larbert continued to stay in the game and scored their own unconverted try to close the gap to 10-5. This proved to be a wakeup call for McLaren and shortly after this score Luke Maher scored a wonderful solo try, breaking through and running in from the half way line. Logan popped over the conversion from in front of the posts to make it 17-5. Further scores from Logan and Luke extended McLaren’s halftime lead to 29-5. After a change of ends McLaren now had the wind behind their backs and it didn’t take long for the boys to assert their dominance when Duncan Hendry crossed the line to make it 34-5. At the full time whistle McLaren were crowned Under-16 Central Schools Champions and Duncan collected the trophy. This rounded off an excellent season for the boys after their recent 7s success.

Under 16 Central School Champions Congratulations to all involved. The winning squad was James Wray, Connor Clark, Jack McGuire, Cameron Cairns, Stuart Lang, Blair Hail Brown, Duncan Hendry, Daniel Longworth, Max Menzies, Paul Mcnab, Connor Ramsay Clapham, Gregor Nixon, Callum Maxwell, Luke Maher, Charlie Allardyce, Rory Abernethy, Aarron Hibbert and Logan Trotter. Duke of Edinburgh Report Over the past few weeks all bronze DofE participants have been attending their training weekends. The weekends involved two days of training which will help when

pupils embark on their practice and final expeditions which will take place in May/June. On the first day the groups went out navigating, despite the awful weather! The catch up weekend fared better as you can see from the photos! Pupils learnt basic navigating skills and put them into practice out and about around Coilhallan Woods. Thanks to all the adult volunteers who helped out. Laura King S3 Group photo (below) left to right: Aarron Hibbert, Laura King, Annie Chisholm, Eve Scott, Rebecca Geddes, Hazel Lafferty (all S3)

visit our website: www.mclarenhigh.co.uk

Senior Ski Course 2015 – Austria Following on from previous years, McLaren High School once again organised a Senior Ski Course for thirty-one pupils and four members of staff. The group headed to St Anton, located in the Arlberg Ski Region of the Tyrolean Alps in Austria. The week was a great success with plenty of snow and sun for Alpine skiing.

to thank everyone who has donated. All funds raised go towards supporting the many clubs and activities that are available to our pupils.