October saw the second of our community workshops take place with WT Architects on the next stage of our project development of Coroghan Barn. Wil and Tamsin brought with them a proposal of how the building will look in the landscape and the layout as well as possible materials to be used in construction. There were notable oooh’s and aaaah’s!
Norah Barnes from Eigg came to visit to help me carry out risk assessments for the Small Isles Snorkel Trail. We spent a very happy Sunday guddling about in rock pools and went for a snorkel along at Tarbert Bay. The Snorkel Trail will hopefully be launching in Spring 2024. Many thanks to Norah for coming to Canna and for sharing her knowledge with me.
Work has started on our Visitor Hub with Speyside builders arriving on island to begin the ground works. It is amazing how much soil comes out of the ground. The visitor hub will have toilet and shower facilities, a laundry, a GP room as well as a base for the Ranger with an office and stores. We are looking forward to the completion of this long awaited project and will hopefully be opening the doors in time for the Summer season next year.
The farm sent off cattle and sheep this month too and Gerry reports good days at the sale in Dingwall. Thanks to Vicki for taking these photos of the cattle patiently waiting to board the lorry. Personally, I think they look a bit like Ewoks.
We’ve been enjoying using the Small Isles Cinema Kit this month with Friday evenings being Canna Cinema nights. Islanders turn up to the Shearing Shed wearing multiple layers of clothes, wrapped in blankets and sitting on cushions. It's cold but worth it. Aileen usually brings a steady supply of tequila rose to warm us up.
Friday’s aren’t just for the cinema though. A few of us now get together and do a yoga class at lunchtime. There are varying degrees of capability and flexibility and this provides no end of hilarity when trying to copy the moves of the instructors. We all agree that we feel much better afterwards.
A few of us have found gainful employment starting work on doing some conservation of the Canna House Collection. We had some training provided by Siobhan Stevenson and Indi is the lead on this project. We are focusing on ceramics, glass and books for now and we did our first full session today.
We said farewell to Duncan and Kay Lewis. Duncan has been our Seasonal Ranger here and many thanks go to him and Kay for throwing themselves into the community. Duncan organised regular beach cleans, did visitor engagement, set up a good Ranger space in the waiting room on the Pier, carried out our biosecurity checks and did a great deal of path maintenance and strimming. We wish Duncan and Kay well for the future and a safe journey back to Spain.
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