I only spotted the BBC's new series, Britain's Lost World, shortly before it was due to air at 21:00 tonight, or I'd have mentioned it earlier, as it was billed as:
1/3. Historian Dan Snow, naturalist Steve Backshall and wildlife enthusiast Kate Humble set out to solve the mysteries of St Kilda, the only British World Heritage Site nominated for both its extraordinary history and its wildlife. Home to seabirds and seals, the islands are a place of mystery. Until just eighty years ago, St Kilda was inhabited, and those people lived in an extraordinary way. When they suddenly abandoned their homes, they left behind a place full of secrets. Who were the strange and remarkable St Kildans? Why did they leave? And can St Kilda's amazing wildlife survive in the modern world?
In this first programme, Steve collects food the St Kildan way - by abseiling down a 400 foot cliff; Kate finds out how this season's baby puffins are getting on; and Dan discovers the islands' Viking history. But when Steve and Dan set out to row to the island of Boreray, plans go awry
It was a bit irritating as the programme started, with repeated references to "The mystery of why the St Kildans left" - it's not a mystery, and never was, not even the day the islanders left.
Facts appeared to go out the window when they spotted the six modern refurbishment cottages, and they asserted that one of the problems was the zinc roofs and glass windows which wouldn't have lasted or been repairable when damages, as the material was not locally available. Wonder who let them away with that one? The roofs in question are in fact only a few years old - the real roofs on the buildings would have been natural, made of wood covered with layers of heather turfs, then thatched and held down by a net weighted with stones.
Seeing the weather change that brought the Coastguard in to extract one of the team was a good example of the conditions endured there.
The six hour trip in an open boat was better than slipping over in a helicopter or cruiser, and was accompanied by Kate Humble losing her breakfast.
I mentioned the Coastguard safety callout in light of the weather change from sun to showers, which the islanders would have had to contend with, and while the trip in rowing boat declined into farce, it did also illustrate how vital a good boat was, as their example fell apart in little more than calm seas.
I was more than impressed by the soil analysis, confirming the toxin build-up in the land, and carried out in a few seconds by a hand-held gizmo stuck in a hole in the ground.
I caught the latter half of this, the soil analysis and the stretching bit on the rock. St Kilda fascinates me but I could never go there, the though of that 1,000 ft. sheer drop off the cliff at what appears to be the top of a montain scares me to death. I read a couple of histories of the place a few years ago and so have a basic understanding of its culture and background. The BBC programme was a TV attempt to play up to the title some dude dreamed up, no worries about that because if any place in the British Isles could be cast as 'Lost Britain' it would be St Kilda.
I also notice they never mentioned the base - and the telecomms tower so visible in the footage.
For those not up to speed, the base used to allow civilian visitors but this ended with the so-called terrorist hype, and visitors are discouraged. They used to be able to use the facilities - the Puff Inn - but that ended recently, and the only circumstances where civilians will be entertained will be a medical emergency.
QinetiQ are credited on the programme, but the MoD might have asked the programme not to include the camp or radar stations. We'll see in the later content.
If you read our small print you will find a reference to the warden's warning to visitors, alerting them to the dangers of the cliffs and not to wear waterproof trousers. If you trip and fall wearing these on the steep, wet, grassy slopes, then your next stop will be the sea, after you have gone shooting over the 400 metre cliff edge.
Some place, but you have to wonder about its viability and the mental approach of those who lived there. I refer not to any particular social aspect, merely the fact that just to survive there you would have to spend most of your waking hours organising food, either to eat right away, or to store for consumption in winter.
This, as noted earlier, was one of the ultimate problems, when the church got its claws on the islanders and had them in church when they should have been working in the fields, so reducing their already depleted food stocks even further.
I don't remember this, but it seems a fishing boat ran aground on Hirta back in February, and is in the news again as plans are made to decide its fate.
There were worries that it may have brought rats to the island, which could have been a major problem, but it looks as if there were none.
You almost wonder how they managed to hit the island, in the middle of nowhere.
Engine failure during a storm which blew it onto rocks as far as I remember. The island was monitored for months by SNH ( I think ) but no traces of rats were found. This despite fishermen saying fishing boats do not attract rats in any case so was probably another waste of public money. It was a Spanish boat.
To say that the Rhu base operated from a beach is incorrect as it was a pukka base witha large storage warehouse slipway and jetty. This facility is now the Press Center for HMNB Faslane according to a notice on the gates.
The item follows on from the LCL stories, and I'm pretty sure they'll have operated their runs from the beach rather than the stores, but mentioning the buildings would do no harm.
What we probably want it some meat on the Rhu facility history, and its own page to refer to.
The Press Centre story is unrelated to the St Kilda story, and is already included in the HMNB Clyde naval base page, which it relates to.
I see St Kilda is back in the news again today (the Scottish Daily Express and the Daily Record) with an article asking for volunteers to sew cotton bags to help save baby puffins. Apparently every year loads of Pufflings (baby puffins) are disorientated by the lights of the defence installation and wander inland instead of towards the water. They need to be rounded up and the bags are used to transport therm safely.
I have to say I had to check that it was not the 1st of April
The Daily Record I can understand, but I thought the Daily Express had a bit more integrity left.
Certainly in the past, the base commander and the NTS worked closely together, and the light at the base were turned off during the breeding season to prevent the very disorientation these two esteemed pillars of truth and virtue are claiming.
Somebody has to be wrong, or once again, somebody's found a cheap way to sell a few more papers.
Hi, everyone. I am a complete novice in here, this being my first post. I spotted this thread and as I was working as a Civil Servant for MoD on Benbecula I was interested, i was only on Benbecula for about 6 weeks during the summer but I do recall that. Yes the LCTs sailed from Rhu. The stores they were carrying were for the most part building material / plant to allow the construction of the buildings on St. Kilda. They also obviously carried other “technical military equipment as well. I think the builder out on St. Kilda was W. & J. R. Watson from Edinburgh? All or most of the workers were ferried to and from the Island by LCTs The newspapers of the time carried a story about the first time any of the “builders” who were tendering for the work were sent out, in a LCT as it happens. A storm blew up and the LCT could not make landfall on St. Kilda so had to spend a shall we say very, very uncomfortable time running for shelter up to Lewis to find a bay somewhere. Of the four or five “contractors “ who hoped to tender for the work all but one pulled out instantly? Cannot imagine what put them off? On Benbecula I was in charge of a sea ramp that would allow LCTs to be “berthed” up until then they beached, off loaded. And sailed off on the next tide. I recall seeing LCTs on Benbecula; the ones I saw did not have “prows” simply the landing ramp. As I recall the LCTs regularly came into Benbecula, I do not know why? As for the reasons why the original islanders were removed, that is a long and harrowing tale, there are several books and at least one video, I believe that there may be a display in the Kelvin Grove Museum? But I am not positive
The forum discussion thread is often only the tip of iceberg that is the Main Site of Secret Scotland, and this is the case for St Kilda, which has spawned four pages so far.
As the time given for the run by LCT from Benbecula to St Kild was 10 hours, apart from possibly organising the stores and maybe picking up more items and personnel, I think it's pretty safe to assume the stop at Benbecula was really just to make the journey bearable
The story of the evacuation is summarised on the St Kilda page itself, together with more recent fiindings about the imminent demise that would have struck the community had it remained.
I'm trying hard to think of a specific St Kilda item in Kelvingrove, but I can't recall anything devoted to the story, although there may be some artefacts or paintings related to it that I can't recall. Then again, if you're referring to the "reborn" Kelvingrove after the revamp a few years ago, then I'm afraid I'm just not up to speed on the revised format of the place, and probably never will be.
Looks like your trip managed to prove the legend of the untameable St Kilda weather
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