In September our restoration team, Hannah and Victoria, went on a very exciting trip. In collaboration with the wonderful charity Balanced Horizon, our ladies made their way up to Scotland for a week and they sure came back with a story to tell…
Victoria would like to invite you on their journey, from visiting the oyster hatchery at the Firth of Forth to driving through the Highlands to partake in 2 days of extreme beach cleaning in the Isle of Skye. So grab yourself a cuppa, get comfy, and join Victoria as she takes you on their Scottish adventure! Alexa, play The Skye Boat Song
Loch Long at Arrochar by Victoria Hawes
We really did hit the ground running with this trip – after being up from 3:30am, to a delayed flight, to a suddenly not-so-delayed flight, to landing at Edinburgh Airport and getting our hire car (who knew having a hire car could be so stressful!), to finally making our way East toward the Firth of Forth where our first destination was mapped.
One exciting aspect of this trip was the fact that we were meeting with some of the amazing folk at Balanced Horizon, a coastal based charity in Scotland that are striving for a cleaner and healthier coastline all across the country, and they are achieving this by doing two things:
- Beach Cleans
- Hatcheries
With 3 main projects currently underway, myself and Hannah spent our first day meeting with Jake and the rest of the oyster restoration team, who are based near North Berwick, at the charity’s hatchery.
Baby oysters, baby lobsters…and more baby oysters!
The Forth Marine Hatchery is the home of two incredible (you guessed it) hatcheries, one for oysters and one for lobsters. The team have been working tirelessly to restore the populations of these native species within the Firth of Forth, and with restoration being a pretty big part of our jobs, this was a project that completely captivated us. Mirroring our own native oyster restoration work, the team at Balanced Horizon built the hatchery last year with the goal to breed their own spat (baby oysters) which can then be released into the Firth. If successful, this would be a game changer for oyster restoration as it would mitigate the need to import native oysters from other regions, thus eliminating any transportation of disease and invasive species.
Jake explaining the spat ponds to Hannah and Victoria, with Erin.
Chatting to Dr Naomi, Jake, and Erin, we truly got a sense of the incredible work they’re achieving with the hatchery as they took us on a tour of the facilities, starting with the ponds and finishing in their on-site lab!
They kindly talked us through the process of getting the ponds set up, to how they monitor their oysters and measuring the algae.
It’s safe to say that we walked away awed and inspired, and if you would like to learn more about the incredible project then I highly recommend you head to their website and check out Jake’s Instagram (@jakenorton.aqua) where he posts regular updates from the hatchery.
A journey through the Highlands
Once departing from the wonderful hatchery team, we made our way to the historic town of Haddington where we spent our first night exploring the town, taking in the gorgeous architecture and wildlife, eating a delicious dinner at The Waterside Bistro that is situated right by the River Tyne and slept like a well fed sheep! Then, first thing in the morning after a yummy breakfast, we were off to Arrochar where we would be staying by the glorious Loch Long.
Waterfall on the Glen Loin Caves trail
Arriving mid-morning, Hannah and I had some time to kill before check-in so we took ourselves on a scenic walk around the Loch, which to describe in one word would be breathtaking. We took the Glen Loin Caves trail that weaved us through an array of woodland, located at the bottom of the valley, that had majestic waterfalls scattered throughout. 7 year old Victoria was telling 27 year old Victoria that this is where the fairies live, I told you they’re real!
Despite the beauty that surrounded us, we were saddened by the site of the shores of Loch Long and the amount of pollution that plagued it. Victim to the “litter sink” effect, Arrochar is inundated with around 62,000 items of plastic debris and 1.2 tonnes of waste each year. This is due to the Earth’s strong winds and currents in this area and, when the River Clyde meets the Firth of Clyde, marine and urban waste (from Glasgow) combine to create a mass dumpage at Arrochar.
Information sign about marine litter at Arrochar
Information sign about marine litter at Arrocharh clean and collected as much rubbish as we could. It mostly consisted of plastic bottles, but we came across some interesting finds such as: a pair of walking boots, a plastic frisbee, and lots of plastic packaging (think crisps and wrappers!). This moment really solidified why we do the work that we do and why we want to take strong action against the ongoing plastic pollution battle!
After check-in, we rested, had some dinner while looking out across the Loch, kept repeating “I can’t believe we’re actually here!”, and went to bed – excited to see what the following day would bring us…and you guessed it, it brought us more Scottish wildlife!
Due to not needing to be at our next destination till the evening, we had the day to play around with so, deciding on the Arrochar to Tarbet Hidden Heritage Trail, we packed our bags, pulled on our boots and set off! As expected we were met by gorgeous views of the Loch, mountainous ranges, towering trees and more magical waterfalls, all blanketed by a mysterious mist that added a Gothic atmosphere to our walk. I felt like Bella Swan from Twilight!
With 2 days of incredible Scottish air in our lungs, we were ready to embark on the last stretch of our journey and head to the Isle of Skye, where we would be meeting with more of the amazing Balanced Horizon crew for 2 days of intense beach cleaning, and let me tell you it was intense.
Isle of Skye, fishing ropes and Kellogs
If there is one thing I would recommend you do in your life, it is to book a trip to drive through the Scottish Highlands. The awe and beauty of the mountains is jaw dropping. I could picture myself in a scene from Outlander or The Lord of The Rings, running along the mountain range with fresh air rushing through my hair and the sound of soft Scottish flutes playing in the far horizon. I have never been happier to feel so small and free!
Hannah taking a stroll in front of Eilean Donan Castle
Arriving as the sun was setting, the two of us slowly met those who would be joining us for the beach cleans and what a wonderful bunch they are! Kerrie, the fabulous organiser of this event, introduced us to the fellow volunteers who have worked with Kerrie on the Scottish Coastal Cleanup before and they tried their best to prepare us for what was ahead. Sadly, we were not ready for what we would be facing the next day…
Now, as a charity we want to tackle the troubles of the health of our ocean with as much optimism and hope as possible, but unfortunately we can’t ignore the reality of the situation – our coasts and ocean is polluted. It is polluted with waste, rubbish and plastic, and day 1 of the beach cleaning had us feeling a little helpless…however, despite the harsh reality with what Hannah and I faced, the high energy and can-do attitude from the rest of the team was infectious. We felt that, despite the mass amount of rubbish and work that was set ahead of us, change felt possible. Even a small dent in the overflowing mass of rubbish felt like an accomplishment and, by the end of the day, our cheeks ached from smiles and laughter!
Hannah, Kerrie, and other Balanced Horizon volunteers tackling the Isle of Skye beach clean
Isle of Skye beach clean before and after
Kerrie recounted their experience of partaking in a 24 hour beach clean at the very beach we were cleaning. The team of Scottish Cleanup volunteers managed to clear up 4 tonnes of rubbish from that singular beach – marking an incredible achievement!
After spending the first day at a singular beach, Kerrie and the fabulous Tommy (a trustee of Balanced Horizon) guided us along the coastline to try and tackle more of the rubbish that had washed ashore. Despite the gloomier task of picking up masses of fishing rope, plastic containers and more fishing rope, Kerrie created a fun competition! There would be 3 winners, those that found: the oldest item, the item that travelled the furthest, and the most interesting item. During my cleaning I came across a hilarious little Kellogs Rice Krispies cereal toy from 1987, it was part of an 8 piece collection of band members, starring the iconic characters Snap, Crackle and Pop – this find had me crowned the winner of the oldest item category! Although this was a fun find, the little toy was in pristine condition and just compounded the fact that the life span of plastic goes far beyond what’s necessary and stays in our water ways forever.
Thank you
Having the opportunity to be a part of such an incredible project was an honour, and seeing first hand the hard work and dedication of the team at Balanced Horizon was inspiring. This trip truly highlighted what can be achieved when a community comes together and collaborates, something that we hold with extreme value as a charity ourselves.
The kindness and dedication from our volunteers to help in the healing of our marine environment is what makes up a large part of our core and keeps us going. Without them, without you, we would not have achieved half the work that we have.
Not a day goes by where our gratitude and appreciation isn’t growing and we thank everyone who has ever attended one of our beach cleans, come and said hello at one of our stalls, or given our oysters a good scrub before going into the Solent – we thank you and hope to continue to have you as part of our water loving family!
Victoria and Hannah standing behind one of the collected rubbish piles from the Isle of Skye beach clean – with the gorgeous Highlands behind them.
Blog written by Victoria Hawes – Restoration Project Assistant & Social Media Lead
