Archaeology event at Polmaddy

Steeped in history, Polmaddy made the perfect place for an Archaeology Training event on Friday and Saturday just gone. Attendees got introduced to some basic techniques used by Archaeologists when surveying a site, and then put those new skills to the test with some practical tasks out in the field.

The event was run by Scotland's Rural Past team as part of this years Homecoming. Many thanks to the SRP team for all their hard work over the two days.

Polmaddy is a great place to visit at any time of the year. There is interpretation on site which gives visitors a real insight in to how this old town would have looked all those years ago. So if you find yourself in that part of the forest park then pop in!

Yogi

Pictures from the Polmaddy archaeology event

Images by and copyright Lucy Hadley.  Report to follow!

Seasons are fab!

Penninghame Pond which isnt far from Glentrool is a fantastic place to go for a short stroll or walk the dogs. Whilst I was there earlier today, in the rain, I noticed that the leaves on one of the silver birch trees had started to turn yellow. Then when I opened my eyes a bit more I noticed that all of the birch trees had started to take on a magical golden glow.

As the wind blew yellow heart shaped leaves along the path I zipped up my coat to keep out the chilly breeze. I then got quite excited realising that autumn is just around the corner, where woodlands are transformed into magical places of vibrant colours and lochs take on the appearence of mirrors reflecting the surrounding trees and stunning colours in all directions.

I love this time of the year and cant wait to get back out there.

If you like Autumn colours too keep an eye on our website www.foresty.gov.uk where we will be listing all of the Forestry Commission Scotland woodlands that you can visit which have great Autumn colours.

Yogi

First signs of Autumn in the Galloway Forest Park

Some say a heavy crop of autumn fruits is a sign of a bad winter to come, whilst others claim that a calm spring allowed the trees to flower successfully.

Whatever the cause, the Rowan berries we are seeing certainly make an impressive sight set against the blue skies we are enjoying at the moment.

BBC visits the Galloway Forest Park

A BBC film crew recently visited the Galloway Forest Park to record a sequence for a forthcoming programme of "Country Tracks." Ellie Harrison (that is Ellie on the right hand side of the photograph) joined Forestry Commission Rangers to look at the Barn Owl Nest Box programme and helped to ring three healthy Barn Owl chicks. Country Tracks is shown on BBC 1 at 1100 on Sunday mornings.

Fox sightings

Those of you who travel through the Park on the "Hill Road" from Glentrool to Straiton may have seen this fox. This individual is fairly tame and does not appear to worry about cars driving past. He is distinctively marked, having particularly brown hindquarters and is often seen hunting mice in the roadside verges. As autumn advances and the grasses die down, chances of seeing him are even better.

Red Deer Range

One of our readers asked about opening hours for visiting the Red Deer Range. After today, 3rd Sept, there won't be access to the range until our Roaring Stags event, which takes place from the 4th - 9th October. You'll still be able to park at the range and go up to the fence to see if the deer are there though.

For details of the Roaring Stags event, contact Galloway District on 01671 402420 or email: galloway@forestry.gsi.gov.uk.

Images from the Galloway Woodfair 2009

Some bright images from what was a fairly soggy day!



Images by and copyright Andrew Jarrot.

Butterfly pictures

Here are a few pictures of the butterflies referred to by Yogi in her 23rd August post.

Red Admiral



Peacock



Red Admiral



Painted Lady