5.

Woodland of the Black Isle

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Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   Text © Copyright January 2023, Julian Paren; licensed for re-use under a Creative Commons Licence.
Images also under a similar Creative Commons Licence.


One hundred Black Isle Woods waiting to be explored

NH6353 : Above the ravine in Littleburn Wood by Julian Paren
Littleburn Wood is a mixed wood with some fine specimen trees as well as native species. It is owned by Forestry Commission Scotland. In one corner of the wood is The Clootie Well. The FCS website says "The brightly-coloured rags or 'cloots' tied to the branches of ash and beech trees are tokens for wishes and prayers at this haunting place." The trees elsewhere in the wood are finer than the rags!!!
by Julian Paren

The Ordnance Survey names over 70 areas of woodland on the Black Isle but there are also many small unnamed woods. Under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, all the woods away from garden-grounds are open for exploration on foot, irrespective of whether footpaths are marked on maps or the presence of barriers, such as locked gates. Some woods contain neglected areas so dense that without animal tracks they would be impenetrable.

Forestry and Land Scotland has five woods on the Black Isle to which they encourage visitors by providing parking areas and information either on the ground or through their website. These are Munlochy Clootie Well, Culbokie Wood, Monadh Mòr, Ord Hill (North Kessock) and Learnie Red Rocks. The RSPB also owns Fairy Glen. These Visitor Attractions feature in Guide Books and the websites of Visit Scotland, Highland Tourism and rental property owners. But the majority of the Black Isle’s woods are local woods enjoyed by residents for relaxation and dog-walking. These are the hidden gems of the Black Isle, and only if visitors stay long enough to live like a local will they become better known beyond the immediate area. Part of the pleasure of visiting the woods is that you will see few people, yet find so much to satisfy a natural curiosity.

Lifetime and age of woods

NH6355 : Mounded up terrain, Bellton Wood by Julian Paren
What a contrast to the wood before it was clear-felled. The old roots are dug up and put into lines and the new trees planted in rows in the cleared area. At this stage the trees are around 30 cm tall.
by Julian Paren

On the Black Isle the only trace of the Caledonian Pine Forest that once covered Scotland is at the Monadh Mòr SSSI, where in pockets there are still native trees in a bog-forest environment, characterised by very wet mires and an unstable quaking surface. There is little remaining Ancient Woodland except that planted for pleasure by the large estate owners centuries ago, some with exotic non-native trees. There are Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS) that still maintain a ground ecology inherited from former times, which include orchids and flowers that are rare on a national scale. The curious visitor can learn to discriminate between the PAWS sites and the more predictable modern plantations.

It is sad that the very moment a wood is at the apex of its interest, it will be at maturity, and then foresters thin or clear-fell the wood, or winter storms wreak havoc leading to leaning and up-rooted trees. Then there is a period of devastation before natural regrowth and intentional plantings start the cycle again. Many Black Isle woods have been harvested in the last ten years, and one remembers their prime, and bemoans subsequent forestry operations.

Most commercial woodlands have a lifetime of more than 50 years from planting to harvest. The exceptions are Christmas Tree plantations with life-cycles of under ten years. The Black Isle is the home of the largest commercial Christmas Tree producers in Scotland because of the favourable soil and optimum rainfall. Nordman Fir trees are a real growth industry of the Black Isle countryside, but the plantations hold little interest before harvesting. The largest plantations are at Mains of Drynie, Drumsmittal, Badgallach, Braelangwell, Culbin Wood and Arpafeelie. The plantations are excluded from my compilation of Black Isle woodland.

KML

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