:00:20. > :00:27.Hello and a very warm welcome to the stunning bay on Mull. With the
:00:28. > :00:30.eagles and seas teeming with marine life, this island really is a Mecca
:00:31. > :00:41.for wildlife tourists. From the picturesque seafront to the
:00:42. > :00:49.rugged hills of the interior, there is much to delight any visitor.
:00:50. > :00:53.But this is a working landscape too. Mull is the fourth largest island in
:00:54. > :00:56.Scotland and home to nearly 3,000 people.
:00:57. > :01:00.Dougie and I will be finding out how farming, forestry and tourism play
:01:01. > :01:05.an important part in island life. While I'll be meeting the brave or
:01:06. > :01:07.some might say crazy drivers who race around mull's twisty roads in
:01:08. > :01:20.the rally. With the exception of the rally
:01:21. > :01:22.drivers, most tourists are attracted to Mull because of the peace and the
:01:23. > :01:37.quiet. I've estimated 350,000 people visit
:01:38. > :01:44.Mull every year and more say they are here for the amazing scenery,
:01:45. > :01:51.the tranquility and the wildlife -- most say. A survey by the RSPB found
:01:52. > :01:55.that almost a quarter of all visitors come specifically in the
:01:56. > :02:00.hope of seeing a white tailed sea eagle and, with up to 15 breeding on
:02:01. > :02:05.the island, they've got a good chance.
:02:06. > :02:12.What with whales, dolphins, sales, otters and all kinds of bird life to
:02:13. > :02:16.be found either on or around Mull, it's no surprise that theual's
:02:17. > :02:22.become an incredibly popular wildlife watching destination.
:02:23. > :02:34.I'm on my way to glen gorm at the north of the island. -- Glengorm.
:02:35. > :02:39.It's a prize-winning estate. They have their own wildlife project to
:02:40. > :02:44.tap into the wildlife-watching market. Here on the West Coast of
:02:45. > :02:48.Scotland, it's very difficult to make an estate of this size, buy a
:02:49. > :02:52.bull without having to fund it from elsewhere, so we have tried to
:02:53. > :02:56.diversify as much as we can to make a complete business. The wildlife
:02:57. > :03:01.project is something that we started the beginning of this year. We are
:03:02. > :03:05.providing for our visitors a knew yike wildlife experience to come and
:03:06. > :03:15.see all of Mull's wildlife but hopefully they'll see them all here
:03:16. > :03:20.at Glengorm because here it's like a microcosm. There are staff employed
:03:21. > :03:26.here who take visitors on wildlife tours.
:03:27. > :03:31.We are on the way to the Hide and Steph spotted something away over
:03:32. > :03:37.the marsh there. What have you seen? This is really exciting, it's a male
:03:38. > :03:41.hen harrier. It's a pale bird, quite unusual for Britain's birds of prey
:03:42. > :03:48.which are mostly brown or gold in colour. It's one of the rarer
:03:49. > :03:50.special seize. Two minutes into the journey and already we have seen one
:03:51. > :04:06.-- rarer species. There we go. Wow. That's pretty
:04:07. > :04:11.special, isn't it? Incredible view. It's brilliant, isn't it? Certainly
:04:12. > :04:18.is. It's wild though. On a good day, you get a fantastic clear view right
:04:19. > :04:23.out to the mouth of the loch. You can see dolphin going past and in
:04:24. > :04:28.calmer weather otters in front of the hide. Within the short time that
:04:29. > :04:31.I've been here, I've seen some pretty amazing things that I never
:04:32. > :04:35.thought I would get a chance to see. Like what Probably the one that
:04:36. > :04:38.beats all was the basking sharks. I'd never seen those before and it
:04:39. > :04:45.will stay with you for life, you know, it was so memorable.
:04:46. > :04:48.So is the wildlife the Ranger or walks pro provision making money?
:04:49. > :04:55.This year it won't have covered its costs but it's got a long way to
:04:56. > :05:00.starting to do that. Steph runs a blog and so on so does other aspects
:05:01. > :05:03.that feed into the estate to make the whole thing viable. We are
:05:04. > :05:08.trying to achieve a thriving business and viable community. These
:05:09. > :05:13.things take time, but it just contributes to the whole creation of
:05:14. > :05:16.the Glengorm community and makes me want to come here and for them to
:05:17. > :05:20.enjoy their stay more when they come and make them want to come back
:05:21. > :05:24.again. Later, I'll meet the man who's
:05:25. > :05:30.worked for 20 years to achieve his dream of being a full-time farmer on
:05:31. > :05:33.Mull. I've been in the north of the
:05:34. > :05:40.island. Dougie is heading towards the south.
:05:41. > :05:43.Apart from tourism, island economies are heavily reliant on fishing,
:05:44. > :05:51.farming and forestry quite often. Here on Mull, there's 32,000 acres
:05:52. > :05:55.of forest. Across what's known as the Ross of
:05:56. > :06:07.Mull, there are a number of stands of plantation that were planted in
:06:08. > :06:12.the 1960s. Many suffer from wind damage. The soils are thin. The
:06:13. > :06:17.timber starts to blow and once it starts, you get a domino effect and
:06:18. > :06:22.end up with a big tangled mess. It stood for about 40 years which is
:06:23. > :06:27.the maximum you would expect in this environment and if we don't take it
:06:28. > :06:31.now, it's going to blow down. Demand for timber could outstrip supply.
:06:32. > :06:36.And, because it takes decades to mature, there's no quick fix.
:06:37. > :06:41.It makes the need to extract timber from areas like this all the more
:06:42. > :06:45.pressing. With poor largely single track roads
:06:46. > :06:48.on the island and the ferries already packed full of tour US
:06:49. > :06:52.traffic, it wasn't financially viable to move the timber to the
:06:53. > :06:58.mainland using existing options. But, that's where this bit of kit
:06:59. > :07:04.came in. A floating pier. Over the next five years, about
:07:05. > :07:09.220,000 tonnes of timber are expected to be slip shipped out
:07:10. > :07:14.using the pier which consists of a barge and bridge section that have
:07:15. > :07:19.been cleverly engineered to allow assembly onsite using hydraulics. It
:07:20. > :07:25.was designed by heirshire based JST Services.
:07:26. > :07:35.These are the only ones of this design in the world -- Ayrshihire.
:07:36. > :07:40.Imtakes four hours to assemble. The beauty of using these things is, we
:07:41. > :07:46.can come on to a Virgin shore, it may only take a day's preparation
:07:47. > :07:51.for the ground and when we are away, it's back to Greenland again.
:07:52. > :07:59.There is a lot of forestry in the West Coast of Scotland. There is
:08:00. > :08:03.either land lock because of no roads or not good roads. This is a
:08:04. > :08:09.solution to take timber away that can then go all over the world.
:08:10. > :08:18.Boats with up to 3,000 tonnes of capacity can dock at the pier. The
:08:19. > :08:22.equivalent of about 100 lorries. If we didn't have the floating pier,
:08:23. > :08:26.it would involve an awful lot of lorry trips through the middle of
:08:27. > :08:31.the Northern Ireland. Nobody really wants that -- the island. In a
:08:32. > :08:36.nutshell, it wouldn't work without the floating pier. Could this be
:08:37. > :08:39.rolled out across the country do you think? I think it has to be. There
:08:40. > :08:44.is no alternative to accessing the row mote woodlands.
:08:45. > :08:47.-- remote. This lump of metal may not be the most glamorous bit of kit
:08:48. > :08:51.you have seen, but when you think about the benefits, you see it
:08:52. > :08:54.differently. Add to that the fact it was designed and developed here in
:08:55. > :09:01.Scotland, well then the story gets even better.
:09:02. > :09:13.While I've been finding out about the pier, Sarah has been looking at
:09:14. > :09:17.machines, engineered for speed in Tobamorie. Rally drivers have been
:09:18. > :09:35.catching the ferry to Mull for years to compete in the annual rally.
:09:36. > :09:41.Over the course of two nights and one afternoon, each year, sections
:09:42. > :09:46.of Mull's public roads are closed. This gives the drivers the chance to
:09:47. > :09:51.test their skills against all that the island's narrow and twisty roads
:09:52. > :09:54.can throw at them. Remember the phone box. Be brave.
:09:55. > :10:04.300. The drivers compete over 19 separate
:10:05. > :10:13.time sections during a day and night.
:10:14. > :10:20.You close the roads just to have these special rallies. We depend on
:10:21. > :10:24.the good will of the people on the island and they have put up with us
:10:25. > :10:28.now for the past 45 years. The rally is you nook because of
:10:29. > :10:33.that aspect. It's also unique because it's on an island and people
:10:34. > :10:41.have to make a financial commitment to come and do this event -- it's
:10:42. > :10:45.unique. You Then you come to the race
:10:46. > :10:50.itself. I often think the roads were designed by a drunk man with a wheel
:10:51. > :10:54.barrow full of tar with a wee hole in the bottom and, as he staggered
:10:55. > :10:58.home from village to village, the road builders the next day followed
:10:59. > :10:59.this trickle of tar. The roads are the biggest challenge on this
:11:00. > :11:11.island. The event attracts thousands of
:11:12. > :11:17.spectators, giving the local economy a huge boost.
:11:18. > :11:20.The population in Mull doubles during rally week. Where they all
:11:21. > :11:25.sleep nobody knows. There are people on top of the hill in tents and they
:11:26. > :11:33.think they are the bee's knees camping out in this watching the
:11:34. > :11:36.rally. They come from all over. Everything's just about to kick off.
:11:37. > :11:40.The sun's gone down, the raws is about to begin in 15 my opinions and
:11:41. > :11:45.there is an air of excitement and nervous anticipation behind the
:11:46. > :11:54.drivers. Join me later on when the Mull rally will be in full swing.
:11:55. > :11:58.-- the race is about to begin in 15 minutes.
:11:59. > :12:04.When I've been in the north of the island, Euan headed west to meet a
:12:05. > :12:08.farmer. One of the recurring problems we
:12:09. > :12:12.talk about on Landward is the difficulty of getting new blood into
:12:13. > :12:16.farming. Unless you unher a farm, the cost of land and equipment and
:12:17. > :12:22.the lack of available farms to rent makes it almost impossible to become
:12:23. > :12:28.a farmer. Here on Mull, after 20 years hard
:12:29. > :12:31.work, Ian's managed to secure a tenancy on an 8,000-acre farm on the
:12:32. > :12:46.west of the island. Wild out there today? Sunshine and
:12:47. > :12:52.showers today. So what are these guys? Destined for the pedigree
:12:53. > :12:56.cattle sale. I'm in here getting them used to being handled in the
:12:57. > :12:59.hatchet it's a nice way to pass the evening. You come here and dress up
:13:00. > :13:03.your heifer. You've obviously got the
:13:04. > :13:13.Highlanders, it's a work of art. What else is on the farm? Chive
:13:14. > :13:18.yacht Cheviots, destined for the next sale. So that the perfect mix,
:13:19. > :13:25.sheep and cows for Mull? I suppose it's good having the cattle and
:13:26. > :13:29.sheep enterprise, so as not to risk your eggs in one basket, so to
:13:30. > :13:34.speak. He has 60 Highland breeding cows on
:13:35. > :13:44.the farm. We are heading to feed this year's calves.
:13:45. > :13:51.Farming keeps you fit. It's a good, physical job. It's a bit like being
:13:52. > :13:59.a reporter. How big a battle was it to get your farm? Took me nearly 20
:14:00. > :14:04.years and it was a real battle. But I was too young to take on the
:14:05. > :14:09.family farm years ago, so I was keen to stay in the industry and to be my
:14:10. > :14:12.own boss. I started up a small contracting business and worked at
:14:13. > :14:17.that for almost ten years. In that time, I was taking on grazing leases
:14:18. > :14:23.and then the opportunity calm to move to Mull about 12 years ago and
:14:24. > :14:28.I continued contracting, took on a bigger place, 500 acres, still on a
:14:29. > :14:31.grazing tenancy though, there was no security. A grazing tenancy is a
:14:32. > :14:36.short-term contract of less than a year. That made it really difficult,
:14:37. > :14:41.but it was an opportunity to build and take a risk and then we came in
:14:42. > :14:46.here, about eight years ago on our contract farm arrangement with the
:14:47. > :14:52.owners, and that was when it really started to full-time farm for me.
:14:53. > :14:56.Then we got a full time tenancy. That was a five year tenancy, not as
:14:57. > :15:01.long as Ian would have liked, but enough time to make plans and gets
:15:02. > :15:05.himself established. To buy a place would be tremendous, but the
:15:06. > :15:12.cattedle involved and that is out of the question. It would be really
:15:13. > :15:16.good to get a long-term tenancy here. It's really difficult for
:15:17. > :15:20.would-be farmers to secure their own place. Ian's story shows that with
:15:21. > :15:31.enough dedication and sheer hard graft, it is possible.
:15:32. > :15:35.You have the sunshine, cows, fantastic scenery, two minutes ago,
:15:36. > :15:38.it was lashing and cold and wet. What's the attraction? I've never
:15:39. > :15:45.asked myself that question, it's just in you. You want to do it if
:15:46. > :15:50.you like outdoors. I've never woken up one day in my life not wanting to
:15:51. > :16:01.do it. No matter how long it takes, you just do your job. It's really
:16:02. > :16:08.rewarding. I come here and speak to the people who come holidaying. They
:16:09. > :16:13.come here and it's raining and misty, I don't make lots of money
:16:14. > :16:25.but it's good. I would recommend a tenancy.
:16:26. > :16:32.The love lovely bay is in the north-west of the island. It's a
:16:33. > :16:37.great spot for a wander and a little contemplation.
:16:38. > :16:43.If you have a comment about newing you see on the programme, get in
:16:44. > :16:48.touch by e-mail: The weather here on Mull is sunny, a
:16:49. > :16:51.little cold, but what about the prospects for this weekend beyond?
:16:52. > :16:53.Here is the Landward weather forecast.
:16:54. > :16:57.Thankfully the high winds that we have seen across some parts of the
:16:58. > :17:00.country today slowly dying down and tomorrow, a lot more settled. High
:17:01. > :17:05.pressure out in the Atlantic starting to build its way back in.
:17:06. > :17:09.Producing some fairly settled conditions right through the weekend
:17:10. > :17:13.actually. A cold, bright, frosty start for central and southern
:17:14. > :17:17.Scotland. Cloudier in the north and west. High cloud across central and
:17:18. > :17:20.southern Scotland. The sunshine is hazy by the afternoon. That cloud
:17:21. > :17:24.always thickener the north-west with light and patchy outbreaks.
:17:25. > :17:31.Temperatures not far off what we have seen today but without the high
:17:32. > :17:37.winds it should feel better. Patchy outbreaks of rain at times.
:17:38. > :17:41.A bit of a breeze across the far north of the mainland, but nothing
:17:42. > :17:46.like what we saw today. If you are hill walking or climbing, generally
:17:47. > :17:49.in western and north-western ranges, it's cloudy with outbreaks of rain.
:17:50. > :17:53.Winds coming from the west. Across the east and the south, much
:17:54. > :17:59.brighter conditions on the cards. Great visibility too. Winds lighter
:18:00. > :18:04.but also from a westerly direction. On the in shore waters, it's a
:18:05. > :18:12.westerly force four. One or two coastal showers at times and over in
:18:13. > :18:15.the east, it's a westerly force four to five, with good visibility.
:18:16. > :18:19.The rest of the afternoon and into the evening and overnight, little
:18:20. > :18:23.change. Fairly dry for central and southern parts. In the north and
:18:24. > :18:27.north-west, a stream of showers working their way in and winds
:18:28. > :18:31.picking up a touch in the north. In shelter, in parts of rural
:18:32. > :18:34.Aberdeenshire and Perthshire, we could be down to freezing.
:18:35. > :18:37.Elsewhere, milder, particularly on the West Coast. Looking ahead to
:18:38. > :18:41.Sunday, the high pressure continues to muscle its way in, keeping things
:18:42. > :18:45.largely settled, but also largely cloudy.
:18:46. > :18:51.It's a settled Sunday. But fairly cloudy at times. Here is the detail.
:18:52. > :18:55.The cloud always thick enough to produce odd spots of light rain or
:18:56. > :19:00.drizzle. It will be a milder day though. Looking ahead towards Monday
:19:01. > :19:04.and characterised by high pressure once again, fairly cloudy and dry,
:19:05. > :19:08.but in the north-west we'll start to see outbreaks of rain working their
:19:09. > :19:11.way in. To start the new week, it's largely dry, but that cloud still
:19:12. > :19:15.with us and potentially producing some light outbreaks of rain. On the
:19:16. > :19:18.whole it's dry but windy by the end of the day, certainly up towards the
:19:19. > :19:23.north-west as the weather front approaches. There it is and it's the
:19:24. > :19:27.dividing line to. The south of it fairly mild, cloudy weather, but no
:19:28. > :19:30.the north much colder, brighter conditions working their way in.
:19:31. > :19:34.Through the day on Tuesday, that weather front sinks its way south,
:19:35. > :19:39.but as the winds are quite strong, that could well lift the
:19:40. > :19:42.temperatures up towards Aberdeenshire. Towards Wednesday, we
:19:43. > :19:48.are into the colder conditions. Any showers could be wintry at times.
:19:49. > :19:48.Plenty of sunshine around. The cold trend continues through to Friday.
:19:49. > :20:04.That's the forecast. In the right weather, the bay is
:20:05. > :20:11.stunning and it's not the only reason to visit this part of this
:20:12. > :20:13.bay, Calgary Bay. You can find this sculpture wood known as art in
:20:14. > :20:36.nature. Tucked away at the edge of the wood,
:20:37. > :20:45.you will find a gallery. And the workshop of its owner, wood
:20:46. > :20:49.carver, Matthew Reid. Despite working in wood, Matthew
:20:50. > :20:57.takes husband inspiration from the sea shore, not the forest.
:20:58. > :21:02.-- his inspiration. The inspiration is often drawn from your
:21:03. > :21:09.surroundings, from the coastline. Also from the people around you as
:21:10. > :21:14.well. My work is taken from the beach and early morning walks there
:21:15. > :21:20.and the shadows and the light that affects the sand and the seaweed and
:21:21. > :21:24.kelp that's been washed up. But then other things come into play such as
:21:25. > :21:29.the people around you. Within this building, there are maybe four or
:21:30. > :21:36.five arts and crafts people. As a group, you definitely draw ideas and
:21:37. > :21:43.inspiration and support from having them here and family and friends,
:21:44. > :21:47.you know. Matthew moved to Mull when he was 16
:21:48. > :21:51.to run a dairy farm. His mum and two of his brothers still work there
:21:52. > :21:54.making the famous Mull cheddar. But it was when Matthew was running
:21:55. > :22:01.a hotel that he got the chance to develop his craft.
:22:02. > :22:06.I made furniture for the restaurant and a lot of demurn for the rooms
:22:07. > :22:13.there. It was very individual. So each winter, I would try and make a
:22:14. > :22:27.new piece to keep the hotel look looking unique. Now the thing is I
:22:28. > :22:33.am doing what is my passion. Has that passion always been burning in
:22:34. > :22:42.you? I don't know whether to haves be an ah dust, to create or make
:22:43. > :22:45.stuff. -- to have an artist. Whether it's making a delicate piece of
:22:46. > :22:54.sculpture or building something larger like a house or a shelter or
:22:55. > :22:59.a space, the just being creative. If you can express, I suppose, when the
:23:00. > :23:01.creativity becomes expressive, then I suppose you could call it
:23:02. > :23:05.artistic. Yes. I don't know if I've got there
:23:06. > :23:27.yet. Over 100 teams are competing in the
:23:28. > :23:30.Mull rally this year. Some have travelled from as far afield as
:23:31. > :23:34.Ireland and southern England to compete.
:23:35. > :23:39.But, it's the locals who dominate this race.
:23:40. > :23:45.Every year for the last ten years, a Mull resident has won.
:23:46. > :23:52.What does it take to be a Mull rally winner? Stupidity, bravery skill,
:23:53. > :23:57.talent. Who knows. It's the ability to drive fast, to concentrate for
:23:58. > :24:02.long periods. This is a long event. To add to the challenge, two thirds
:24:03. > :24:07.of the racing happens in the dark. As the sun sets, just before the
:24:08. > :24:14.start, I caught up with the two top seeded drivers who're does uns from
:24:15. > :24:21.the north of the island. The number 2 car, John and in 1, Callum.
:24:22. > :24:25.Callum, number 1 car, you are the first to head off. How are you
:24:26. > :24:31.feeling? Not too bad. I'm not nervous yet. I've done this for my
:24:32. > :24:36.20th year now. My nerves are gone, but when we get on the start line,
:24:37. > :24:39.there'll be a few butterflies. How do you feel about this year? Feeling
:24:40. > :24:45.confident? The weather's fantastic. It's the best chance that a two
:24:46. > :24:50.wheel car drive car has. We have young and up coming star behind us,
:24:51. > :24:58.which is my young does un-John. It's a real challenge for us to try
:24:59. > :25:03.against each other. -- cousin John. Feeling good about it. New car for
:25:04. > :25:08.us. It's going to take a bit of get. Ing used to. It's a proper machine.
:25:09. > :25:13.We'll see how we get on. We'll do our best. How are the nerves? Not
:25:14. > :25:15.too bad. You are always nervous at this time, always going to the
:25:16. > :25:37.toilet. It's absolutely flat out from the
:25:38. > :25:42.start and it's just the intensity of the competition. It's the longest,
:25:43. > :25:47.toughest national rally in the UK. The cars are timed over each racing
:25:48. > :25:55.section. Over two nights and one afternoon, they'll cover more than
:25:56. > :26:00.150 miles at speeds of up to 120mph. On single track on public roads.
:26:01. > :26:07.The team are the fastest time overall wins.
:26:08. > :26:12.-- the team with the fastest time overall wins.
:26:13. > :26:22.As well as talented drivers, the teams also need good mechanics.
:26:23. > :26:25.So behind every car is an incredible support team, something like this.
:26:26. > :26:30.They set up camp, wait for the cars to come in and then it's all go.
:26:31. > :26:40.They service the cars, then they are out on the road again.
:26:41. > :26:48.It's day two of the rally and the island wakes up to the surprise news
:26:49. > :26:52.that the top seeded driver, Calum Duffy went off the road and is out
:26:53. > :27:00.of the race. His younger cousin John is in the
:27:01. > :27:06.lead. 2002 was the last time a local
:27:07. > :27:13.didn't win this event so they are very, very good.
:27:14. > :27:20.On Mull, it hasn't got a huge road network so it's roads that are used
:27:21. > :27:24.every day by the locals so they know them inside out. That and they are a
:27:25. > :27:29.bit special driving. How important a sport is it for the spectators
:27:30. > :27:33.watching? There's the noise, just the anticipation of the speed that's
:27:34. > :27:37.coming, the noise when the cargos past, then once the car's past, you
:27:38. > :27:41.get the smell of the hot oil and things like that. You are looking at
:27:42. > :27:46.me like, what on earth are you talking about, but that's what
:27:47. > :27:48.people come to see and hear and it's that which captures the imagination
:27:49. > :28:01.of the sheer speed. Throughout day two, John maintains
:28:02. > :28:10.his lead and, to the delight of the locals, crosses the finish line in
:28:11. > :28:13.his home village. It truly is a dream come true to come and do this.
:28:14. > :28:18.We have worked hard to be here and a lot of team work's gone into getting
:28:19. > :28:22.even the car here. To come back to your home village with all these
:28:23. > :28:32.people here, I like to soak it up and enjoy it. These rally drivers
:28:33. > :28:37.almost go as fast as you as you are heading back from the Landward
:28:38. > :28:42.shoot. Very funny. You must be thinking of Euan. That's almost it.
:28:43. > :28:46.Next week, we are back on the mainland with more stories from the
:28:47. > :28:51.Scottish countryside. Join us for that and much more, at the same
:28:52. > :28:57.time, Friday night, 7 o'clock on BBC Two Scotland. In the meantime, buy
:28:58. > :29:02.from all of us here. Cheerio. Bye.