Fearnan Village Association

A few weeks ago, we asked former resident Alastair Barnett what Christmas was like in Fearnan when he was growing up during the war years.

The Blog likes to think of Alastair as its North American Correspondent, and this time he has conjured up a wonderful account of a 1940s Christmas, with the music of the time playing on the radio as ingenious solutions to the problems of rationing are developed in the kitchen.

He also gives us an account of a dramatic rescue by sledge during the bitter winter of 1946/47, when the village – and indeed the whole of the country – was engulfed in snow for very long periods.

Alistair writes:

When I was preparing to jot down a few recollections of Christmases past for the Fearnan Village Association blog, I asked my brother Jim if he had any particular memories of Christmas growing up in Fearnan during the war.  “I remember mostly the village being very quiet both at Christmas and the New Year,” he replied.

As I sat down to write I realized not only do early childhood memories grow dim as the years drift away, but also celebrating the tradition of Christmas during the war years was difficult for everyone and especially hard on evacuees. Many children of school age who had to flee the city found themselves far from home without their parents. How lonely they must have been. My brother and I were very young therefore fortunate to have our mother with us at all times when we left Glasgow.

The sketchy recollections I have of living at Thistle Cottage as a child include snapshot images of Christmas when mother would make sure we hung a pillowcase over the bedpost on Christmas Eve, and jumping out of bed, bursting with excitement on Christmas morning to discover Santa had not forgotten us.  I loved the Rupert Bear adventure books and comics he left, along with crayons and colouring books and the Roy Rogers six-gun that fired off little red caps with a loud cracking sound. Santa also had an uncanny knowledge of our size in jerseys and socks. (I suspect he conferred with our relatives in Glasgow to get this information.)

As our lives were inexorably intertwined with the Butters family next-door, memories emerge of Christmas when my brother and I clambered over the dike to Springbank cottage. The “front-room” was decorated with multicoloured crepe paper garlands, and we helped pin tissue paper honeycomb bells on the walls and ceiling, and gathered holly from the garden to place around pictures and between Christmas cards on the mantelpiece.  While this was going on, the kitchen filled with the spicy aromas of suet dumpling and fruitcake, and savoury chicken and Lucy’s sweet Melting Moments, along with Sandy’s not so sweet-smelling pipe smoke as he nodded off in front of the blazing fire, with Rover the collie stretched out at his feet by the hearth.

On one occasion I remember Mother’s contribution was a home baked Victoria sponge cake. As fresh cream in winter was scarce, or perhaps non-existent, she became quite creative and piled the cake high with beaten egg white topped off with orange slices. It looked very grand but to this day I don’t know where she got the orange, as they too were in short supply. However, the uncooked egg white was sweet and satisfied my notorious (and lifelong) addiction to sugar.

Thinking of it now, our Grandmother lived in South Africa and once a year would send some tinned goods. Perhaps this solves the mystery of the orange slices if in fact, they canned oranges in those days.

During supper, Sandy who appeared never to enjoy music or singing of any kind must have surrendered and allowed the radio to be switched on in the background for the special Christmas occasion, otherwise I might never have heard of Bing Crosby or “White Christmas, ” or “Jingle Bells” for that matter.

After supper when the dishes were removed to the scullery, the only sound was the ticking of the Grandfather clock and the logs hissing in the fireplace. I sat at the table and in the glow of the paraffin lamp, opened my new box of crayons and drew elegant gentlemen in tall hats and tailcoats arm-in-arm with ladies in bonnets and colourful crinoline dresses. (Images I copied from Christmas cards.) Across the table, Jim maneuvered his toy soldiers through fierce imaginary battles. (By this time we had moved on from drawing camouflaged tanks and Spitfires.) My younger brother, Iain, was very young and in bed long before supper was over.

Once I sneaked out into the frosty night and spent a few minutes chatting with “Paddy” the cow in the byre behind the house. I felt she was being left out, cold and alone and I wanted to comfort her.  She was very receptive and gave me an approving look with her big brown eyes when I patted her head. The byre, as it turned out, was surprisingly warmer than I expected.

What we experienced in Fearnan, not only at Christmas but also throughout those memorable years, was a spirit of camaraderie and the willingness to “mend, make do, and help each other out.”  Evidence of this was illustrated vividly when we had to leave Thistle Cottage and move to Balnearn.

The war had ended and we as a family were coming to terms with the fact that father was not coming home. It’s a mother’s instinct to protect her children, and our mother put on a brave face but I sensed her heartbreak and occasionally came across her in tears. I know she was lonely and I’m sure moving out of the village to Balnearn increased her feelings of isolation.

Soon after arriving at Balnearn, Jim and I both came down with whooping cough.  It’s possible Doctor Swanson from Aberfeldy administered some care but I have no memory of it.  I remember only mother giving us medicine which presumably was prescribed by the Kenmore nurse or the doctor. To make matters worse, the fierce blizzard of 1946/47 that brought Britain to a standstill, struck our hillside home in January and suddenly we were cut off from the village,

How miserable winter was in that remote cottage. The pipes were frozen solid which meant we had to fill buckets with snow to melt over the fire for water. And while waking up to a vista of fresh snow every morning can be magical ― especially through the eyes of a child ― when viewed through a thick layer of ice that covers the inside of all the windows, it loses some of its magic. But our most demanding chore was digging logs out of the woodpile, which was buried day after day beneath freshly fallen deep snow. With one solitary fireplace in the kitchen, the other rooms were freezing cold.  Only when we huddled in bed at night under a pile of blankets with a hot water bottle did we experience some respite from winter’s wrath.  It was on such a night when we prepared to go to bed early to escape the cold that an angel arrived out of the darkness holding a lantern and pulling a sledge. Chrissie Butters had climbed the hill to rescue us!

Alarmed at the treacherous conditions, her parents Lucy and Sandy had sent Chrissie out into the storm in an attempt to bring us back to the village.  Being transported on a sledge in a freezing winter storm in the night was a bit scary but also an exciting adventure and something no child could forget. Wrapped in blankets I crouched on the sledge with Chrissie and Jim pulling hard against the blinding snow, while mother in a heavy coat, headscarf and Wellington boots, trudged alongside steadying the personal belongings she had balanced precariously on the sledge beside me. I believe I’m correct in thinking my younger brother Iain had been moved to Springbank some time earlier before the storm hit. But in any case I have no memory of him during our departure from Balnearn that night.

Is there any feeling experienced by a child comparable to that of being loved? How difficult it is to fully express the warm, loving sensation I experienced that night, finally safe in the village with my brothers, my mother and the Butters family sitting close, beside a crackling fire after our ordeal on the hill.

In so many ways Chrissie holds a very special place in my heart.  When I was five, it was Chrissie — then a teenager — who lay on my bed, comforting me throughout the night while Mother was in the Aberfeldy Cottage hospital giving birth to my brother Iain. When I was with Chrissie I felt secure. A child doesn’t evaluate such feelings but simply accepts what is. Thinking of her now, I recognize she possessed an intangible aura of quiet comforting serenity and a heart full of compassion and understanding and later on I discovered, someone with whom I could safely share any confidence. Chrissie was well loved, well respected and is deeply missed.

Of all the memories I have of Fearnan, the winter of 1946/47 stands out clearly in my mind.  Regardless of the torturous weather, one must have the soul of a poet to describe the beauty of Fearnan as it was then.

I’m not a poet but I cannot stem the emotion that springs from my heart when I think of the crisp winter nights when I stood alone in the perfect silence outside Springbank Cottage and marvelled at the pale winter-white moon and the stars sparkling over the snow-laden hills and the loch; wood-scented smoke drifting from cottage chimneys and the occasional yellow light ― blinking through wind stripped branches ― from across the loch at Ardeonaig, and Lawers and Killin.

There is something wonderful about the quietness of Christmas. It is a reminder to grow still…and listen to the silence.

Merry Christmas, Fearnan — I miss you.

Thank you, Alastair, and a very Happy Christmas to you and all our contributors, followers and readers ……………

We’re delighted to be able to bring you this great picture, hot off the press, of the newly-weds after their wedding in Killin on Thursday 21st December!

We wish Sue and Dolan every happiness in their life together.

The Blog has been away on its holidays recently (it had a very nice time) and now has a few items to catch up on.

Remembrance Day in Fearnan

Despite the cold weather, there was a good turnout at the War Memorial for a short service taken by Mr Grant Smith, the Session Clerk, who bravely climbed the temporary Memorial steps to lead the service and prayers. It was a happy return for Grant, who took the Fearnan service on a regular basis for many years.

The wreaths were laid by Peter McKenzie and Bob Woolley and, as well as remembering members of our own forces who lost their lives, a short dedication to the Russian airmen who died in an air crash just outside the village in 1943 was also written on one of them.

Most of the people who attended the service also went back to the village hall for a cup of tea and some home-made biscuits.  A collection was held for Help for Heroes.

Those of you who follow Aberfeldy Museum’s Facebook page will have seen the recent post about the Kenmore Parish Church publication from 1915.  The publication, which belongs to former Fearnan resident Alec McEwan, includes a Roll of Honour, described as “A list of men, natives of the Parish and others therein, who have gone forth to serve their King and Country in the war.”

A total of 13 men from Fearnan are included in the list:

Of those 13, only 5 returned at the end of the war and the war memorial commemorates the 8 who died in the service of their country. We have pictures of 7 of them:

John Fraser

Duncan Fraser

Hugh Cowan

Malcolm Fraser

Peter Matheson

Duncan Matheson

James Dewar

The eighth man was Duncan McPhail of the Scots Guards.

There is more information in several earlier blog articles, including Fearnan War Memorial – the Story Unfolds and Local Heroes.

Moving forward to WW2, another former Fearnan resident, Alastair Barnett, contributed a moving article to the blog on Remembrance Day about his own family’s experience of the war.

Mulled Wine and Mince Pies

An important date in the FVA’s calendar is our final event of the year – Mulled Wine and Mince Pies.

Last Saturday’s event was well-attended and a lot of fun. It attracted a nice mix of residents and visitors from far and wide. And a considerable age-range, with baby Amelia managing to reduce the average age by a good number of years!

Every one helped with clearing up, which was much appreciated by the setters-up. In fact, people didn’t seem to want to go home and, as Peter tried to sweep the floor, they just moved from one side of the hall to the other, without a break in the chat!

A lovely start to the Christmas season.

Book Club

The Book Club’s December meeting is going to be a little bit different – it’s a festive dinner for  members on the 12th December in the Waterfront restaurant in Kenmore. The Club’s favourite book(s) of the year will be discussed, and we’ll report on the outcome in the next edition of the Blog.

The current book is “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe” by Fannie Flagg, which it will be discussed at the January meeting. It was written in 1987 and weaves together the past and the present through the blossoming friendship between Evelyn Couch, a middle-aged housewife, and Ninny Threadgoode, an elderly woman who lives in a nursing home.

Coming Up Soon!

The next event, and our first of 2018, will be the Winter Pudding Night on Saturday 17th February.

It’s All Hallows’ Eve! A time of superstition that marks the end of harvest and the beginning of winter. A time when the boundary between this world and the otherworld thins, allowing spirits to pass more easily into our world and, for many centuries, a time when people have lit bonfires and worn costumes to ward off roaming ghosts.

Local folklore confirms that belief in the spirit world was strong in Breadalbane, and in ancient times people were as sure of the existence of fairies, sprites and witches as they were of the fact that they were alive themselves.

Among the various supernatural beings that the people of Breadalbane believed to exist, the urisk was one of the most potent. Urisks were water spirits that haunted pools, waterfalls and lonely moorland lochs (the name is derived from the Gaelic word uisge meaning water).  Only visible to those who possessed second sight (unless they themselves chose to be visible), urisks were solitary creatures, bigger and stronger than humans, and inclined to be very mischievous.

At the end of harvest-time (Hallowe’en), they left their lonely dens and would hover near farmyards, stables and cattle houses. They had a particular weakness for dairy products and were known to pester milkmaids who had to make regular gifts of milk or cream to charm them off.

Around the end of the 19^th century, Mr James Macdiarmid from Morenish collected a number of folklore tales which he contributed in the form of papers to the Gaelic Society of Inverness. These papers were subsequently published in the Society’s Transactions, and have helped to preserve information about some of the old customs and superstitions of our area.

Two of the old tales tell the story of the urisks who lived near Fearnan – Caobarlan, who lived in Drummond Hill Wood, and Paderlan, who lived in the burn at the far side of Boreland Wood between Lawers and Fearnan. Although we know it as Chapel Burn, in the old days it was called after the urisk that lived there – Allt Coire Phadairlidh. Even today, it appears on modern maps under that old name.

The first old tale is about Caobarlan – so named because he amused himself at night by throwing stones and mud balls (caoban) at late-night travellers on the road between Fearnan and Kenmore.  He seemed to particularly target those who found themselves a little unsteady on their feet.

These old tales are very much in the oral tradition of story telling and would have been told countless times around the hearth on a winter’s evening.

So, are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin.

Long ago there was a clever, hard-working woman who lived in Fearnan but who had the misfortune to have married a rude and lazy man. She had a cow that grazed on the pasture below Drummond Hill by day, and which would return of its own accord in the late afternoon. One evening the cow had not returned by twilight and the woman asked her husband to go with her to look for the cow which had probably strayed into Drummond Hill Wood, but the sullen and lazy man would not even get out of his chair; indeed, he utterly refused to search for the animal and told her she would have to go on her own.

So, the good woman had to pluck up her courage and go into the wood to find the animal by herself, knowing that in the dark the wood echoed with the frightening and unearthly noises made by Caobarlan.

She searched without success for some time then, as she made her way through the wood in the pitch black, she realised to her horror that she had arrived at the very spot where Caobarlan had his den. Trembling with fear, she decided that kindness was probably the best weapon she had at her disposal and offered Caobarlan a friendly blessing, saying aloud:

“A blessing on thy name, Caobarlan.” Then, for good measure, she added, “I am not afraid of you even at this late time of day.”

On hearing these words, who should appear from his hollow but Caobarlan – and he was delighted with her words.

“Do you know,” he said, “all my life I have longed to receive a blessing from a mortal being. You have done me a great favour. ”

He asked if he could do anything to help her in return, and she explained her errand at that time of night on the hill. He immediately joined her in her search, and they found the cow in a nearby hollow. Alongside it was the reason for its failure to return to the byre. It had just given birth to a fine bull-calf.

Together, they drove the cow and calf home but when they arrived at the croft, Caobarlan was incensed to find the husband still sleeping by the fire when his wife had been out on the hill alone. He decided to help the man see the error of his ways and, in the words of the old tale, gave him ‘a good trouncing’.

So, at the end of this little tale, the hardworking wife is happy to have found her precious cow and its valuable calf; the lazy husband has been taught a lesson that he will never forget; and Caobarlan, who has achieved his aim of being blessed by a mortal being, was never more seen in the land of the living.

The second story is about Paderlan, who was well known for playing mischievous pranks, but this surviving story tells us how he, too, came to leave the district. It is also about the ability of mortals under pressure to outsmart supernatural beings.

Late one autumn evening, we are told, an old farmer from Lawers was making his way home from the Kenmore market. He hurried on at a brisk trot in order to get over the urisk’s burn, Allt Coire Phadairlidh, before it was too late; but just as he rode his horse past the burn he felt a small creature, very light and very lithe, jump up on the horse behind him and shout “Boo!” very loudly in his ear. He guessed immediately that it must be a young urisk. The old farmer was not afraid and, with a quick sweep of his arm, he wrapped his plaid round the creature and then knotted it in front of himself, thereby strapping the urisk tightly to his back. Then he rode home as fast as his horse could carry him.

On arriving at his house, he unfolded his strange bundle and showed the young urisk to his sons. He told them to bar the door and windows and, as an afterthought, told them to put more peats on the fire and to place the end of the old coulter of the plough in the fire. Then they all settled down quietly to wait for the arrival of Paderlan.

They did not have to wait long.

Suddenly there was a terrible noise outside, so loud that the house shook and the doors and windows rattled, as Paderlan demanded his son back. At first, those inside did not answer but then Paderlan put his head to the barred window and roared,

“GIVE ME BACK MY SON.”

“I will give you back your son,” said the old farmer, “but first you must promise me that you will leave Breadalbane and never again return.”

After some thought Paderlan said, “Very well. I will go to Carn-dearg, above Ardeonaig.”

“Not far enough,” replied the farmer. “You must leave Breadalbane, or you will not get your son.”

Eventually Paderlan agreed to leave, and the old farmer handed the little urisk out of the window and, as he did so, Paderlan said slyly, “Old man, I should like to shake your hand.”

”Of course,” said the farmer, and with that he took the coulter from the fire and pushed the hot end through the window. Paderlan took hold of it in his hand and twisted, and twisted, and twisted, until the coulter looked like a corkscrew.

“Good-bye, old man,” said Paderlan, “but I must say your grip is hard and dry.”

The farmer laughed quietly to himself. True to his word, from that date Paderlan was never seen again in Breadalbane.

So Caobarlan has gone. Paderlan has gone.  Does this mean that we can sleep easy in our beds this Hallowe’en?

I’m afraid not – I forgot to mention Cas Luath (Fleet Foot) who used to haunt the old wood above Letterellan. Unfortunately, no tales of his deeds or of his departure have survived so, for all we know, he may still be there ……………………….!

The October Coffee Morning was the last of the year, so we were hoping for a good turn out. Things started very quietly, but gradually people filtered in and by the end, we had a fair sized group who didn’t seem to want to leave! There was a lot to chat about and, as ever, the world was put to rights on a number of occasions!

Fresh pancakes, anyone?

Getting down to some serious discussion.

Book Club

Macmillan Coffee Morning

Two weeks ago, Fearnan took part in the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning.  It is Macmillan’s biggest fundraising event for those facing cancer, when people all over the UK to host their own Coffee Mornings and donations on the day are made to Macmillan.

Although a number of identical events were being held at the same time in the area, the event in the village hall made over £295 for Macmillan, and then sales of cakes in the Thrift Shop took the total to over £300 – a fantastic result and many thanks to everyone for their generosity, both in producing a fantastic range of goodies and in donating to Macmillan.

Boreland Farm

The owners of Boreland Farm have a planning application in progress to replace the caravans with cabins and to add two large cabins to the site. Although they declined the Community Council’s suggestion of a local consultation, they are running an Open Day on Sunday 15th October 2-5pm. This will be an opportunity not only to see round the site, but also to put your questions/concerns to the owners, and to discuss the measures they are putting in place to try to mitigate the impact that some of their visitors have had on residents.  These measures can be viewed here.

As well as complementary refreshments, there will be a range of activities and fun and games for all ages.

Remembrance Sunday

There will be a short service of remembrance on Sunday Nov 12th at 11.00 at the War Memorial. Afterwards, the FVA will be serving tea and coffee in the village hall. All welcome.

Mulled Wine & Mince Pies

Christmas is coming, but there are still 75 shopping days to Christmas at the date of writing!! This year’s Mulled Wine & Mince Pies is on Saturday 2^nd Dec from 15.00 – 17.00. Come and enjoy some seasonal goodies and good company.

Winter Pudding Night

The 2018 Winter Pudding Night is on Saturday 17^th February at 6pm. The perfect antidote to wintry weather! A convivial evening with the best choice of puddings you will find anywhere, ever! Whether you prefer childhood favourites like treacle pudding, jam roly-poly and rice pudding, or more sophisticated tarts and sweets, there’s something here for everyone.  Live music. Come hungry!

An invitation to the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning!

The World’s Biggest Coffee Morning is Macmillan’s biggest fundraising event for people facing cancer. People all over the UK host their own coffee mornings and donations on the day are made to Macmillan. Last year alone they raised £29.5 million and this year the aim is to raise even more.

The first ever Macmillan Coffee Morning happened way back in 1990. It was a rather small affair with a simple idea: guests would gather over coffee and donate the cost of their cuppa to Macmillan in the process. It was so effective, they did it again the next year – only this time nationally. Since then, Coffee Morning has raised over £165.5 million for Macmillan.

Fearnan is getting involved this year, and you can be part of this nation-wide event by joining friends and neighbours on Friday 29th September in the village hall from 10.30 to 12pm.

 If you can’t attend but would still like to make a contribution to Macmillan, contact Graham on 07804 978082.

Fearnan Carpet Bowls Club

 By far the longest running club to use the Fearnan village hall is the Carpet Bowling Club which started in 1956 – the year after the hall opened. This year, Carpet Bowls starts its 61^st season on Monday 2^nd October from 8pm – 10 pm.

Why not come and have a go – there’s no charge for a first-time, taster session and you’ll be made very welcome. The game, which is suitable for all ages and abilities, is played in a similar way to lawn bowls although there are some differences between the two.

An indoor sport, it’s not weather dependent and is therefore a great way to take exercise in the winter. Health benefits include improved hand eye coordination and strengthened muscle tone.  It’s fun, very sociable, very affordable (£3.00 per session) and is a chance to take part in a team sport.

Fearnan is part of a local League, along with Camserney, Acharn and Killin. So, joining the Bowling Club brings a chance to travel – to Camserney, Acharn and Killin! And in true Bake-Off style, at the end of the year there’s a chance to be Fearnan’s Star Bowler, and to take either the Singles or Doubles Cup.

Go on, give it a go!

Event at The Big Shed

On 6th October at about 12.30, Jill Davies from a project called Rural Wisdom http://ruralwisdom.org/  is visiting The Big Shed at Tombreck to talk about, and collect, ideas for making rural communities good places for older people to live.

All are welcome at the session and there will be a pot of soup, along with some cake, for lunch.

FVA October Coffee Morning

Fearnan Village Association’s last Coffee Morning  for this year will be on October 17th, 10.30 – 12.00 in the McLean Hall, Fearnan. Freshly baked savouries and cakes, fresh coffee and a variety of teas. Everyone is welcome.

Lunch Break

Last Saturday’s Soup and a Roll provided a chance to catch up with friends and visitors over a light lunch.  A select – and very sociable – group enjoyed homemade soup and bread, rolls and tray bakes.

Tai Chi Time

Weekly Tai Chi classes will be held in the Hall from Wednesday 27th September at 10.00 am with Liz Jennings.  All abilities (or none!) are welcome and the cost will be £4.00 per session.

For further information please contact Julia Lane.

Book Club

Forthcoming Events

The Fearnan Village Association’s last Coffee Morning  for this year will be on October 17th, 10.30 – 12.00 in the McLean Hall, Fearnan. Freshly baked savouries and cakes, fresh coffee and a variety of teas. Everyone is welcome.

Mulled Wine and Mince Pies will be served on Saturday 2nd December at 3pm.  Join us to celebrate the start of the festive season.

Glen Lyon & Loch Tay Community Council

We are reproducing the draft Minutes of the recent Community Council Meeting to help keep everyone up-to-date with issues that affect our community.  Please note that they will remain as draft Minutes until they are approved at the  next meeting on 9th November.

Please also note the mention of the multi-agency meeting in Fearnan Village Hall on 22nd September, part of which is open to the public.

Draft Minutes of the CC meeting held on 7th September 2017, in Fearnan

Present: S. Gardener, chair, K.Douthwaite, vice-chair, J.Riddell, treasurer, S.Dorey, secretary, Cllrs I. Campbell & X. McDade and 10 members of the public.

Apologies: W. Graham, T. Da Silva, C. Brook & Police Scotland.

Minutes of the last meeting at The Big Shed on 13th July 2017, were accepted, proposed by SD & seconded by KD.

Police Report:

PS McNaughton had contacted SG by email as there would be no police presence at the meeting. The police sent details of a break in & theft of tools from a house between Fearnan & Lawers. They also drew the meeting’s attention to the fact that if there is a noise problem, or any antisocial behaviour e.g. drunken behaviour, fly tipping, verbal abuse, drug dealing, members of the public should phone 101 or the PKC Anti-social Behaviour Team on 01738 476173.

Commanders Meeting:

SD reported back on the Commander’s meeting she attended in August.

Tomdarroch:

Another Amenity Order has been served. The pigs at Culderbeg are still being monitored by Animal Welfare.

There will be a multi-agency meeting in Fearnan Village Hall on 22nd September at 2.30 pm. The public are invited to attend from 3.30 – 4.30 to hear the latest developments.

Finance:

The defibrillator costs have been paid. Current balance is £768.11.

 Planning:

Old Lawers: siting of containers. The application was refused. Applicant has appealed the refusal. Local Review Body Hearing will be on 12.9.17 The CC sent another letter in support of the Refusal.

Boreland Farm: change of use application. SG stated the need to differentiated between what was legitimate CC business and what was a dispute between neighbours. WG & SG saw X.McD at his surgery at The Big Shed on 18/08/17 to discuss compatibility, impact on the amenity of residential properties, impact on existing tourist businesses in Fearnan, the front cabin, effects of extra traffic through Dalchiaran, noise and other antisocial behaviour from stag parties. At the request of Carol Scambler, Shoreside, SG presented 3 points on her behalf concerning: 1) The path being put in by Boreland farm owners from the farm to its section of lochside – little comment apart from general agreement that diverting BF guests away from the village was a good thing; 2) Music curfew of 11 pm in line with licensing laws – meeting accepted as reasonable; 3) Outside curfew of 9 pm was considered to be unreasonable and unenforceable.

IC suggested the BF owners hold a Community Consultation before the application goes to the Development Management Committee (DMC). The meeting agreed – SG to contact owners with proposal.

Application to go to DMC in October. Cllr X. McD to continue lobbying.

Planning List: update was handed out.

 Health & Safety:

Defibrillators – SG had a meeting with Mairi Speedie at the Ben Lawers Hotel on 03/07/17 to check on the progress of the defibrillator. All now completed. CC article in the Breadalbane Quair about the new defibrillator at the Ben Lawers Hotel.

Ambulance Service – KD will attended the meeting in October and confirm that all defibrillators are registered. SD confirmed that all defibrillators in Glen Lyon are registered and Claire Harding is taking steps to make her one more easily available.

Roads:

SG presented summary of email from IC following last meeting

1) Tir Artair – damaged wall repaired

2) Rynachulaich Farm – traffic lights – no imminent safety hazard – no imminent   repair

3) Old School House barrier – deteriorating culvert – work planned Autumn 2017

4) A827 opposite Boreland Farm – collapse of retaining embankment – traffic lights – work scheduled October 2017

Garth – KD informed meeting that some residents are not sure now if they want a sign or not. Consultation meeting between M.Kennedy (Roads), SG and TdaS didn’t take place.

Fortingall – D. Gillespie addressed the meeting re. new signs. The 30 mph sign will be extended to the junction with Glen Lyon & the entrance to Fortingall from the Coshieville direction. Further consultation to take place. No definite plans for work on the Lyon Bridge or the one at Bridge of Balgie.

Broadband:

Application to erect an Emergency Service Mast near Cashlie Power Station, Glen Lyon, did not receive any unfavourable comments.

AB Internet has been taken over by Bogons, transition went well & subscribers now have a Comrie contact in stead of Lincoln.

Lyon Internet – P.Heyes addressed meeting on progress – slow and difficult recently. Decision to be made by mid November between going with R100 or Openreach – further consultation likely.

Fibre Optic – X.McD informed meeting of intention to get fibre optic to parts of Fearnan before end of 2018. Long discussion followed.

Fearnan War Memorial:

The CC has heard nothing more from PKC. IC will chase up.

Correspondence received:

Tayside NHS consultation – Shaping Surgical Services.

Emergency services network consultation

Mental Health Redesign consultation

Scottish Fire & Rescue Local Plan consultation

Scottish Heritage Angel awards

Perthshire Society of Natural Science invitation

Breadalbane Heritage Society re-launch invitation – SG will attend.

AOCB:

South Chesthill Restocking Consultation: replant in one go 2017/18. P.Heyes expressed concerns. SG to send PH copy of proposal – comments by 28/09/17

Timber Lorry Incident: Local resident reported a major delay caused by a timber lorry driving from the Fearnan direction towards Coshieville, meeting traffic & horse boxes at Garth. She notified the police & IC , IC also notified the police but apart from getting an incident number, there has been no further contact. Problems of timber lorries in area discussed.

BT phone boxes: SD reported problems because they do not accept the new £1 coins. SD to contact BT.

Next meeting: Thursday 9th November at the Molteno Hall, Fortingall at 7.30 pm

 N.B Digital copies of Minutes can be obtained by emailing stelladorey@btinternet.com

Update on CC Minutes:

Since the Community Council Meeting, the Appeal against the refusal to allow the siting of 2 containers on ground at Old Lawers has been turned down and Boreland Farm have declined the suggestion of a Community Consultation on their planning proposal as it is not a mandatory part of the planning process in this instance.

There is a cairn above Fearnan, clearly marked on the Ordnance Survey Map (OS Explorer map: OL48 Ben Lawers & Glen Lyon). It is high above the village on Creag a’Mhadaidh behind Easter Auchtar. (Mhadaidh means a fox or wolf.) Recent tree felling has helped to make it a little more obvious to the naked eye than before, but the interesting thing about it is that, unlike most cairns, it is not on the very summit of the hill.

Fiona Black, of Grandad’s Cottage, provided the story behind the origins of the cairn and its position above the village. The family refer to it as ‘Dad’s Cairn’.

Fiona started visiting the village in the 1950s when her father, Donald MacLeod, bought one of the cottages in Dalchiaran and the family would come during the long school holidays.

Dalchiaran Cottages (from behind) in the 1950s

At that time, the house was simply Cottage No 2, Dalchiaran. It wasn’t until much later that the next generation of the family christened it Grandad’s Cottage.

One morning in 1958, the children (Fiona and her brothers, Callum and Keith) decided to climb what was then a bare hillside opposite the cottage. They set off with a very clear instruction from their mother: stay within sight of the cottage. Presumably, so that she could keep an eye on them as they climbed.

The highest point they could reach, and still be in sight of their cottage, was the crest of the first hill. (Technically, they were still within sight of their cottage but I can attest that, at 474 metres, picking out either the cottage below or small figures on the hillside above requires very keen eyesight – or binoculars!)

Still within sight of Dalchiaran Cottages (just!)

Conveniently, there is a broken down dyke just at that point and the children set about building a cairn – not a very big one, but a cairn nonetheless.

It was later in that same year that Fiona’s father, and a few friends from the newly formed Ferranti Mountaineering Group, took a break from their more serious climbs on Ben Lawers and the Ptarmigan Ridge to climb Creag a’Mhadaidh and reconstruct the children’s heap of stones into a properly built cairn. Messages were written, put into empty beer bottles, and then buried in the middle of the cairn.

While they were there, no doubt, the mountaineers would have been unable to resist the temptation of going on to reach the summit behind the cairn, which stands at 578 metres. This picture, which is in our Blog’s Gallery, shows the lochan on the summit.

The Cairn has withstood the weather for almost 60 years, and at some point received formal recognition by being marked on the Ordnance Survey map.

The route up is quite challenging and a bit of a scramble at the moment, as the forestry vehicles that have been working up there have destroyed the path. However, it is possible to work your way up to the gate in the deer fence by following the tracks left by their vehicles. The view is terrific ………………..

Book Club News

Back in May, work started on clearing a site for a special seat at the top of the Cow Park.  The seat was to be gifted by Ian McGregor, in memory of his wife Ann, and the plan was to install it at a spot where they sat on many occasions to enjoy the view.

Two weeks ago, after the seat was installed, the McGregor family came to climb the hill together and inaugurate Ann’s Bench.  The weather on the day, combined with the amazing view, provided a classic Scottish background for their visit.

The McGregor Family

The seat provides a link with Fearnan for the family, and Ian is sure that they will return over the years to enjoy the view and re-kindle their happy memories of times in the village.

Ian is grateful to all those who contributed time and effort to help clear the site, but particularly to Keith Brockie, who master-minded the project (and implemented most of it) supported by Hazel. He hopes that the seat will be well used by walkers on the hill and that it will give pleasure to both residents and visitors.

Indeed it will. What’s more, it will keep Ann in our hearts during the years ahead.

This short video sums up a wonderful family tribute. The piper is Ian and Ann’s eldest grandson:

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