Part 2 of an ongoing series of posts about the Inverawe estate in Argyll.
This time, we concentrate on mankind’s intrusion into nature. For the most part, the laird leaves the woodlands alone, untouched; however, the Forestry Commission clear-felled the slopes of Ben Cruachan, initially leaving the mountainside bare but there are now young trees beginning to grow in the barren patches. The unfortunate consequence has been damage to some of the water-courses, resulting in culverts that used to flow with beautiful clear peaty water now stagnant and clogged-up with algae.
One day, I sat down and tried to establish what kind some of my favourite trees in Inverawe might be. One by one, they all turned out to be (goat-) willow. This straggly mess of branches is no exception.
This is perhaps the saddest story of recent clear-felling forestry operations in Inverawe: the confluence of two burns flowing down from Ben Cruachan, it used to be shallow with a ready flow of clear peaty water over yellow and brown pebbles. However, with all the pollution from the lorries upstream, it is now turgid, foetid, with red algae growing.
The Forestry Commission have finally done all they're going to and left the sides of Ben Cruachan to recover - the first few young replacement trees can just be seen.
A cluster of birch trees, Inverawe
An elegant tall silver birch, Inverawe