The Lure of the Sea
Mark Stephen and Rachel Stewart with stories from the great outdoors.
Rachel heads to Portknockie in Moray where an outdoor learning and adventure charity is about to celebrate a special birthday. Outfit Moray, based in Lossiemouth, is turning 21 and Rachel sees for herself the work they do as she speaks to group enjoying paddleboarding and kayaking.
And marking another birthday soon are The Kelpies. The 100ft tall sculptures on the Forth and Clyde Canal will celebrate their tenth anniversary during a day of events in April. Ahead of that, around 30 Clydesdale horses visited the site alongside Andy Scott, the sculptor who created them. Laura Guthrie went along to chat to Andy and some horse owners.
In this week’s Scotland Outdoors podcast we delve into the archives to find a programme Mark made in 2002 all about the Cuillin Mountains on Skye. We hear an excerpt.
Formed in 2022, Aberdeen based Baltic Boys is a group of men who get together to feel the physical and mental benefits of a cold-water dip. Mark went along to join them for a splash around in the North Sea and hear from some of the members about why they enjoy taking the plunge and what they get from the group.
Artist Portia Knight is based in the picturesque fishing village of Crovie between Fraserburgh and Banff. And it’s her location that provides the material she uses for her art, seaweed. Rachel went to meet her on the beach to find out how she became interested in seaweed before they head to her studio to see how she turns it into art using a press designed by her husband.
The Nature Library is a reference library and reading space celebrating the connections between land, sky and sea. Up until now it has been a travelling library, but founder Christina Riley has recently been given the keys to a permanent home in an old ship worker’s cottage in Irvine. Mark went to meet her and find out more about the move.