The Treasures of Brodick Castle

  

Think of a castle. Words like imposing, impenetrable and intimidating spring to mind. Yet none of them seem fitting for Brodick Castle. It may have seen its fair share of bloody games of thrones - the Dukes and Duchesses of Hamilton who owned it stood within a whisker of succession to the Scottish crown- but the impression you perceive when you visit is that of.......... a home! A delightful, sunny and comfortable home in which you can almost hear the echoes of the bustle of a large household and their much-loved dogs down the ages.

Brodick Castle, in its south-facing perch overlooking Brodick Bay and surrounded by beautiful lush gardens tumbling with waterfalls and rhododendrons, was acquired by the National Trust for Scotland in 1958 from the Lady Jean Fforde, now in her nineties and still living on the island. The castle has been kept with meticulous care and devotion just as it was left and every room is filled with the colourful, precious, extravagant and quirky possessions of a wealthy dynasty. It was with a view to finding out more about these that I booked on one of the Castle’s new specialist guided tours: ‘The Treasures of Brodick Castle’. These treasures represent one of the most significant collections of art and artefacts in Scotland.

As you might visit Brodick Castle yourself, I won’t give away too much here about the secrets and stories of the treasures which guide Sue Mills reveals during the tour, but I’ll just mention a particular one that intrigued me- a bezoar. As an aristocrat with enemies you might pop a bezoar into your drink to protect yourself because it was believed to be an antidote to poison. It is actually a hairball from a ruminant’s stomach and, as it turns out, this is one of those examples of traditional remedies being proven to work by science: such hairballs are indeed an effective antidote to arsenic. The bezoar was encased in a delicate filigree flask and hanging on a chain. It seemed like a symbol of a sophisticated but deadly world.

The history of Brodick Castle is inseparable from the history of Arran and today the castle and its enchanting gardens will engage and interest all members of the family. After your visit, do try to read Lady Jean Fforde’s autobiography ‘Castles and Catastrophes’ which records with honesty and humour a childhood spent at home in Brodick Castle with its many privileges and also its many challenges.

Brodick Castle and its grounds are open daily throughout the summer.

Kev found this splendid pair of antlers on the golf course this week. The stags shed their antlers at this time of year. We think they belonged to Brutus, last year's chief stag. They are much heavier than I expected.

On Looking Closer

When I first came to Lochranza I remember pestering the geologists from the Lochranza Centre about what Hutton’s Unconformity was (as I kept hearing it mentioned) and where it was. I knew that this geological feature inspired James Hutton in 1787 to make deductions about the origins of the world that rocked (sorry!) society, but it’s easy to walk along Arran’s north coast and not notice it at all!

This presents a situation where there’s nothing like a good guide to open your eyes as well as your mind, and we were lucky enough to have one during Arran’s GeoFest a couple of weeks ago. SNH’s Colin MacFadyen the guide kept stopping us to reveal how much information is in the fine details that you only see if you look closely. We were encouraged to handle the rocks to differentiate the smooth, the granular and the gritty; we noticed their layers and folds and the angles they lie at in relation to each other. With each revelation Colin pieced together the story of Arran’s slow journey north over 600 million years from a position near the Falkland Islands.

Equally entertaining and informative was the evening talk in the Lochranza Centre given by Dr Neil Clark from Glasgow’s Hunterian Museum about Arran’s dinosaur footprints. We learned that whilst Skye has dinosaur footprints, Arran has dinosaur ancestor footprints- and they’re all around the coast. Look out for a distinctive shape consisting of three large toes, a weedy thumb and a large pinkie which helped these creatures balance as they negotiated unstable terrain.

Arran’s description as ‘Scotland in Miniature’ is spot on in terms of its rocks Dr Clark told us. It contains just about every rock that is present anywhere in the country. In fact there are rumours circulating that Arran is to be designated a Geopark. Meanwhile, I’ve learned to scrutinise rocks more closely to find out the stories they have to tell!

Ben's Holiday on Arran

Someone recently pointed out that we do not have many  pictures of dogs on our website, so when Marie O'Brien shared photos with us of her holiday here last September with her husband and Ben the dog, it gave us an opportunity to put matters to rights. 

Here is Ben enjoying his holiday, captured by Marie's fabulous photography.

 

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Spring dates, events and news

Today the sun is shining! We’re getting outside work done and enjoying its warmth on our faces. What a relief after the relentless succession of winter storms we’ve endured in the British Isles this winter.

The start of February is traditionally marked by Candlemas and the Gaelic festival of Imbolc as a halfway point between winter and spring. The first of the month is St.Brigid’s Day. Her name is embedded in many Scottish place names. In fact, the site of an ancient chapel known as St.Bride’s lies just above the campsite: https://canmore.org.uk/site/39781/lochranza-ballarie-saint-brides-chapel

The campsite will open on March 21^st but in the meantime here are some dates for your diary, and information that may interest you.

Firstly, the Arran GeoFest geology festival will be held over the weekend of  18^th-20^th March with walks and talks for all. See:

http://www.scottishgeology.com/arran/

The Lochranza Field Centre is now the Lochranza Centre CIC (community investment company). If you’ve stayed at the campsite before you may well have enjoyed their summer ceilidhs. The centre offers simple, clean accommodation, good food and outdoor activities, particularly for groups. This is what the Geological Society 100 Great Geosites project said about them:

“The Isle of Arran, and particularly the well-known Loch Ranza Field Studies Centre, offers some of the best opportunities to study the geology of the last 600 million years”.

Find out more at:

http://www.lochranzacentre.co.uk

This year’s Arran Mountain Festival takes place over the weekend of 13^th- 16^th May. I know that places are filling up fast already. It’s a great opportunity to take your walking to the next level under the guidance of experienced and qualified leaders. It’s also an opportunity to benefit from insider knowledge of Arran’s lesser-known hills. Find out more at:

http:// www.arranmountainfestival.co.uk

If you’re interested in birds and you are planning a visit to Arran, you may find the following links of interest. We are lucky enough to have Mr Jim Cassells on the island, who keeps us all informed about the birds that live here or pass through and keeps detailed records of them. He is always interested in your sightings.

On the Arran Birds website http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/index.html you can find these sections:
Monthly news http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/monthly_news.html
Recent sightings http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/recent_sightings.html
Short walks http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/finding_birds.html
Notes on Arran birds http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/arran_bird_notes.html

N.B. The photo shows Chalmadale Waters- the name of the burn that runs by the campsite