0:00:06 > 0:00:11Imagine a picture-perfect thatched cottage near its own white sand bay.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15That beach has got to be one of the most beautiful beaches I think I've ever seen.
0:00:15 > 0:00:20Imagine a string of islands, packed with some of the most remarkable wildlife in the British Isles.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27Imagine having the run of those islands on land...
0:00:27 > 0:00:29This is what the Outer Hebrides are all about.
0:00:31 > 0:00:32'..and at sea.'
0:00:32 > 0:00:34Oh, that's nice.
0:00:34 > 0:00:39Well, that's exactly what I'm going to be doing for the next six months.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41I'm working as a voluntary wildlife ranger
0:00:41 > 0:00:44for this stunning chain of islands.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47My new job will bring me into contact
0:00:47 > 0:00:49not just with an amazing range of flora and fauna...
0:00:49 > 0:00:52Ah, look at that. Fantastic.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55..but also with the people who live and work
0:00:55 > 0:00:58in some of the most remote islands in Britain.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00Welcome to my Great Escape.
0:01:00 > 0:01:01Come on, Rubes! Come on!
0:01:11 > 0:01:16I've travelled the 600 miles from my Bristol home to my new base in North Uist...
0:01:16 > 0:01:17That'll do.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21..and I've been busy getting my croft ready to keep some pigs and turkeys.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25That sort of low, contented grunting. That's coming from me, not the pigs.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29I've also been exploring the islands with Jimmy MacLetchie,
0:01:29 > 0:01:31the man who used to be the wildlife ranger here.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34- Have we got any fenders?- No.- OK.
0:01:34 > 0:01:39- And who I've singularly failed to impress.- Oh, boy!
0:01:39 > 0:01:42It's now late summer and things can only get better.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45I'm making plans to visit St Kilda...
0:01:45 > 0:01:48I try a little cross-dressing...
0:01:48 > 0:01:50I normally wear stuff like this in the cottage, alone.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53..and finally get out diving.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10My job is to pick up from where Jimmy left off six years ago,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12when funding for the ranger's job dried up.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14And he's a hard act to follow.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17But this has to be one of the best jobs in the world.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Part of the duties of the ranger
0:02:23 > 0:02:27is just generally patrolling the shore,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30and just keeping an eye on what comes in,
0:02:30 > 0:02:32cos you've got the open Atlantic out there.
0:02:32 > 0:02:38It's also an extremely popular part of the ranger duties
0:02:38 > 0:02:41with at least one mammal in this car -
0:02:41 > 0:02:46Rubes, who takes his beach patrolling duties extremely seriously.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51Look all around me.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58At the moment, if you look all around me, every environment you can see is very special.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02You've got the machair here, which is a globally significant environment.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05That's the dunes, there, and the grass on it.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09Then you come down to the beach - these white beaches - and then, of course, the shallows.
0:03:09 > 0:03:14And the rocky shore, as well. Er, and just to wander along here
0:03:14 > 0:03:18every now and then, and just do a nice little beach walk, just keeping an eye on things.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Nice way to spend an afternoon but it's quite important as well.
0:03:21 > 0:03:23Come on, Rubes!
0:03:23 > 0:03:25There's a bunch of oystercatchers here.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29There's about 45,000 breeding pairs of oystercatchers kicking around now.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33And one of the reasons they've exploded is they've learned how to move inland,
0:03:33 > 0:03:36which is a great trick to crack if you're a seabird -
0:03:36 > 0:03:38opens up loads of different environments to you.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Rubes!
0:03:43 > 0:03:47It's been really stormy for the last few days, hence all this stuff.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49This is kelp.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52And this was the basis of a huge industry on the islands.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57Crofters used to burn it to make soda ash, that was used to make glass and soap.
0:03:57 > 0:04:03They also used to extract agar from the kelp, which thickens food like jelly and ice cream.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08Unfortunately, both industries collapsed pretty much overnight
0:04:08 > 0:04:13when scientists invented cheaper production methods, leaving the islanders high and dry.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Come on Rubes. Come on!
0:04:18 > 0:04:21The economy of the Outer Hebrides has always been precarious,
0:04:21 > 0:04:23but they do have fantastic natural assets -
0:04:23 > 0:04:27glorious beaches and amazing wildlife.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31If anything's going to turn things around, it's tourism, which is why the islanders are so keen
0:04:31 > 0:04:36on having a wildlife ranger to make the most of the obvious attractions.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39It's very rare for me to have a photo of Rubes without a pebble in his mouth.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43I'm just going to explain the anatomy of Rubes to you.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48At the back of the head here is a tiny little vestigial brain
0:04:48 > 0:04:50for eating and chasing pebbles.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53The whole of the head here is tongue.
0:04:53 > 0:04:54It's like a fire hose rolled up.
0:04:54 > 0:04:59And all of this is designed to just produce drool and shed hair.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01That's Rubes.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13Good morning.
0:05:15 > 0:05:16Part of my routine,
0:05:16 > 0:05:20when I get up, is to go and feed the pigs and the turkeys.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23Rubes! Where's the pigs? Where's the pigs?
0:05:23 > 0:05:27And Rubes has fallen in love with the pigs.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31He goes and stands at the entrance to the sty here, waiting to come out.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33RUBES BARKS
0:05:33 > 0:05:36All right, Rubes. All right, Rubes. In you come.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39I think he's a bit fascinated by them, actually.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41They do keep trying to suckle from him,
0:05:41 > 0:05:43which he finds a bit alarming.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45As you would. Look at that.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49Obviously not making the mistake of getting attached to these pigs at all.
0:05:51 > 0:05:52Hello, Streaky. How are you?
0:05:52 > 0:05:54You all right, young lady?
0:05:54 > 0:05:59But, nonetheless, I still think they should have a good life, and a fun life.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02They should enjoy themselves. It's up to me not to get too attached.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04But...
0:06:06 > 0:06:09I don't know. You know, it's all part of the big picture, isn't it?
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Making sure that their short stay...
0:06:12 > 0:06:16with us is a very enjoyable and a high-quality stay.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20I'm only here for six months and every time I look out to sea,
0:06:20 > 0:06:24there's a reminder of just how hard island life can be.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29St Kilda lies 41 miles off North Uist,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31and it's one of only 25 places on Earth
0:06:31 > 0:06:34to have been awarded dual world-heritage status
0:06:34 > 0:06:38for its natural and cultural importance.
0:06:38 > 0:06:39Life was always precarious
0:06:39 > 0:06:42on the five islands that make up St Kilda,
0:06:42 > 0:06:45with the population surviving on a diet of seabirds and eggs,
0:06:45 > 0:06:48which they collected by scaling the massive sea cliffs.
0:06:48 > 0:06:54But the appalling winter of 1929 proved too much for the remaining 36 residents,
0:06:54 > 0:06:59who asked to be evacuated to the mainland, ending 2,000 years of habitation.
0:07:01 > 0:07:052010 marks the 80th anniversary of the evacuation of St Kilda.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09North Uist has been building a commemorative viewing point,
0:07:09 > 0:07:12complete with a telescope and slate maps.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16'As ranger, I've been roped in to lend a little bit of muscle.'
0:07:16 > 0:07:17So this is it.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20Yeah, well, what we've got here is we've got the base for the telescope.
0:07:20 > 0:07:24- Yes.- We've got, we hope, the rest of the telescope.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27- And then, these are the panels here. - Oh, the plinths.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31- There's four of those - extremely heavy.- Fantastic.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33Alison Cropper moved to the islands 15 years ago,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36and she's taken on the role of coordinator.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39This is going to go on top of the stone wall,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42so you can have a really good look and identify everything there.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45And the opening ceremony's going to be the 29th?
0:07:45 > 0:07:4929th, which is the new initiative for St Kilda day.
0:07:49 > 0:07:54That's the anniversary of when they evacuated in 1930.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56Right. Er, OK.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- So... It's all extremely heavy.- Yeah.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03And, obviously, you know, very nervous about the slab panels.
0:08:03 > 0:08:08Yeah, just remember when you pick it up, just bend your knees. We'll keep an eye on it, yeah.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10- All right?- Yep. Perfect.
0:08:24 > 0:08:25Are they heavy?
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Heavy-ish, yes.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29We can make them look heavy.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37There are also plans to build a major visitors' centre in the Outer Hebrides,
0:08:37 > 0:08:43where tourists can learn more about the islands without having to do the long and dangerous sea journey.
0:08:47 > 0:08:52North Uist are desperate to get the St Kilda Centre.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55And the St Kilda Centre is a fully functional,
0:08:55 > 0:08:58interactive visitors' centre about St Kilda.
0:08:58 > 0:09:03And this stuff arriving now is really significant
0:09:03 > 0:09:06as a part of their bid, so they're really keen to get it all set up.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10Four other communities are bidding for the St Kilda Centre
0:09:10 > 0:09:13and the Western Isles Council has appointed a team of consultants
0:09:13 > 0:09:17to assess the merits of each and draw up a shortlist.
0:09:17 > 0:09:21They must be praying for a good day when the consultants come,
0:09:21 > 0:09:26so they can get them to this high point on the island and say, "THERE is St Kilda.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30"THERE is a rock-solid reason
0:09:30 > 0:09:33"why WE should have the St Kilda Centre on North Uist,
0:09:33 > 0:09:36"staring you in the face."
0:09:36 > 0:09:39- St Kilda is there.- I know. I know. - In all its splendour.
0:09:39 > 0:09:44- You might squint a bit, though. - What a day. So those are the Monachs, aren't they?
0:09:44 > 0:09:48Those are the Monachs with the lighthouse.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51- Barra is down there.- Yep.
0:09:51 > 0:09:56And then, of course, there's Hirta right in the distance, and Boreray.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00It looks like some sort of forgotten kingdom or something.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03You know, out there in the Atlantic with the low cloud over it.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07- You know, the lost world of St Kilda.- I know.
0:10:07 > 0:10:13- The cliffs on it are absolutely immense, aren't they?- They're huge.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16Apparently, they're taller than the Empire State Building.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18- Really?- Yeah.- Good grief.- Yeah.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21And if you get the chance to go there, Monty, you'll...
0:10:21 > 0:10:24I'm definitely going, without a doubt.
0:10:24 > 0:10:29- You won't get a better view...- No. - ..in the outer Hebrides than the one we've got in front of us right now.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35So it's going to be a really proud moment for you when this,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38- you know, when you come to show the consultants here.- Yeah.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41I think this will have a huge impact on them as well,
0:10:41 > 0:10:45because I don't know if there's any other things like this round the Outer Hebrides.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48- There's various viewpoints and things but not quite as special as this. - Yeah.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51I was chatting to Jimmy about it and he said this is one of
0:10:51 > 0:10:54the great adventures you can have in the British Isles, in Europe.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57- Go to St Kilda.- And it's all the things you spot on the way, you know,
0:10:57 > 0:11:01like pilot whales - you know, if you're lucky enough to get them -
0:11:01 > 0:11:06- and the little puffins and... - Dolphins and all sorts. - Dolphins, absolutely.
0:11:06 > 0:11:10Very few people are ever lucky enough to visit St Kilda.
0:11:10 > 0:11:12But while I'm here, I'm determined to make the trip
0:11:12 > 0:11:16to these spell-binding islands that are right on my doorstep.
0:11:22 > 0:11:27But in the meantime, I've got plenty of work to do sorting out the island's nature trails.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32I'm just heading to Berneray, across the causeway,
0:11:32 > 0:11:35to do the unguided trail here and just check it all out,
0:11:35 > 0:11:39make sure it's in good nick. And if it isn't, what work I need to do.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42I've already done the Eriskay trail,
0:11:42 > 0:11:43and I intend to work on the trails
0:11:43 > 0:11:45in North and South Uist,
0:11:45 > 0:11:47Barra and Benbecula.
0:11:47 > 0:11:48But for now, it's Berneray,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50where in a few days' time
0:11:50 > 0:11:51I'm doing a nature walk with
0:11:51 > 0:11:53a former ranger, Jimmy MacLetchie.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55I'm coming in as a marine biologist,
0:11:55 > 0:11:57so I'll talk a little bit about the sea and things
0:11:57 > 0:12:01and it's all part of me learning the job, really, and learning the ropes.
0:12:01 > 0:12:06That interface with visitors coming into the island's absolutely crucial.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10That's my big debut, in front of real people.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13Should be interesting. Come on, Rubes. Let's go.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27The name Berneray, by the way,
0:12:27 > 0:12:29is from the Norse.
0:12:29 > 0:12:34"Bjorn" - bear, and island - "ay".
0:12:34 > 0:12:38Berneray. And it was a very sacred place to the Vikings,
0:12:38 > 0:12:42that used it as a burial ground.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01You can see why people have eulogised about this island.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05It is absolutely beautiful and almost completely deserted.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08Wait a minute.
0:13:08 > 0:13:09Wait, wait.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13Right, follow the way markers up to the summit of the hill.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16I haven't seen a single way marker so far.
0:13:17 > 0:13:19Again, this is one of the things
0:13:19 > 0:13:23that the ranger position needs to do, is mark these out clearly.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27Maybe it's me sweat-streaming, to be honest, but I haven't seen a single way marker.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30The next thing takes me up to the top of that mountain there.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49We'll come down off the hill and I've come to the beach.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53And that beach stretches for three miles.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58Feels like I'm running on a beach in Bali or Tonga.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02Mind you, if I jumped in the water I'd probably change my mind very quickly about that.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05It's so beautiful.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07That beach has got to be
0:14:07 > 0:14:11one of the most beautiful beaches I think I've ever seen,
0:14:11 > 0:14:13in all my travels around the world.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17Just lovely - white sand, pretty much deserted,
0:14:17 > 0:14:20beautiful shallow water, crystal clear.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23And that touch of wildness about it.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26Touch of wilderness.
0:14:26 > 0:14:27Balm to the soul.
0:14:29 > 0:14:30Fantastic. Fantastic.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Inland, inland. Last bit.
0:14:32 > 0:14:33Come on, Rubes!
0:14:36 > 0:14:41This is typical of the way the walks...
0:14:41 > 0:14:45Just through time - it's the fact that the funding ran out.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Things like these big posts have just come out of the ground.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Someone's just propped that up. It needs to be put back in the ground.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54And, in fact, this whole walk needs to be well sign-posted.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57I've been lost a couple of times.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59So it just generally needs a lot more of these, I think.
0:15:02 > 0:15:06So, no shortage of things to do here, then.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08Come on, Rubes.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21The final selection for the proposed St Kilda Centre has just been announced,
0:15:21 > 0:15:26and the North Uist bid has made it through to the final three.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29Today, the consultants have arrived to assess our bid.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32You can't see the beaches, cos it's just over the horizon.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34That may be a golden eagle.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37- Just coming in. Can you see it?- Yeah.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43There's going to be a lot of very nervous people making this journey at the moment.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47Gradually driving towards the Kirkibost Centre
0:15:47 > 0:15:49and the St Kilda presentation.
0:15:49 > 0:15:54And potential economic prosperity for these islands
0:15:54 > 0:15:56for...the next few decades.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59The biggest tourist attraction this island has ever seen.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04This is like getting the Olympics.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07This is like getting the Olympics, basically, for North Uist.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10So, as you can see, this central location is just an ideal place.
0:16:10 > 0:16:15And, also, if you look here, St Kilda is just on the horizon from the Uist.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17With all his knowledge as the ex-ranger,
0:16:17 > 0:16:20Jimmy MacLetchie kicks off the North Uist pitch.
0:16:20 > 0:16:24Due to the sensitive nature of the meeting, our cameras aren't allowed in.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27They seem fairly impressed, but they also mentioned that
0:16:27 > 0:16:31several of the other bids are very strong bids as well.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34But if you saw the argument that was presented in there
0:16:34 > 0:16:37and the enthusiasm and the passion and all that,
0:16:37 > 0:16:39this is such an overwhelmingly strong argument
0:16:39 > 0:16:44as to why it should be in the one place where you can actually see St Kilda.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57You've probably noticed a distinct lack of trees in the landscape,
0:16:57 > 0:17:01which is why peat has always been such a vital resource for the islanders.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04In the old days, it was their only source of heat
0:17:04 > 0:17:08and it's still pretty much the only thing that people burn in their fires.
0:17:12 > 0:17:14I cut my peat with Jimmy a few weeks ago.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16Now it's time to turn it.
0:17:19 > 0:17:20This has been...
0:17:20 > 0:17:23the wettest August...
0:17:24 > 0:17:26..since 1986.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32I'm here todry my peat out - to turn it -
0:17:32 > 0:17:35which is a fairly amusing concept on a day like today.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40And just to add to the tale of woe,
0:17:40 > 0:17:41it's midgey as well.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44But it's just hit that perfect kind of level
0:17:44 > 0:17:48between gentle mizzle and drizzle that gets everywhere,
0:17:48 > 0:17:52and not quite being too wet for the midges not to fly.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56The idea of the process here...
0:17:56 > 0:17:59Out the way! Out the way, fool.
0:18:00 > 0:18:05..is to get the peat up with the wet side...
0:18:05 > 0:18:07It's all wet at the moment. But the wet side that's been
0:18:07 > 0:18:11on the ground facing out and a bit of air going through.
0:18:11 > 0:18:16So you build these little sort of towers of cards
0:18:16 > 0:18:20by leaning them up against each other, like this.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24And then the air can get through 'em. I leave 'em like this for a few weeks and then I've got peat.
0:18:24 > 0:18:26Hello, Rubes.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30You want to try doing this at home.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34Make yourself a very moist chocolate cake
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and then cut it into uneven segments
0:18:37 > 0:18:39and try and balance it.
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Oh, and all the while,
0:18:41 > 0:18:45get a friend to stick a pin in you every half-second,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47to replicate the midge.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51With this weather,
0:18:51 > 0:18:54all of this should be dry by about 2012, probably.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07The sea around the islands is beautifully clean and teems with life.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10It's the perfect environment for shellfish,
0:19:10 > 0:19:12and scallop fishing is a boom industry in the Hebrides.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15But there's huge controversy between the boats
0:19:15 > 0:19:20that dredge the seabed for scallops and divers who hand-pick them.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23I've come to Lochmaddy to find out more from one of the scallop divers
0:19:23 > 0:19:25and get in for a dive myself.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30Down here amongst the seaweed and the mud and the slime,
0:19:30 > 0:19:32I've found Rory. You live here, don't you?
0:19:32 > 0:19:36- Yeah, right here. - You live just here, under that rock.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39So I know you're quite passionate about the hand-dived scallops
0:19:39 > 0:19:43- as opposed to the dredging form, aren't you?- Yeah.- You've seen the impact of that.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47- Yeah.- What's the kind of difference with a dredged area of seabed?
0:19:47 > 0:19:50- Well, it's just, the dredging just decimates the whole seabed.- Right.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53It's unbelievable when you go down and see it.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56Handpicking them's a lot nicer to the environment. Leave everything there.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59You're picking the right ones - picking the large, leaving the small.
0:19:59 > 0:20:03- Not impacting anything around you. - Yeah, much more sustainable, yeah.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06It's one thing I'd really love to do today, cos you mentioned
0:20:06 > 0:20:10just round the corner there, there's some nice scallop beds we can have a look at.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12- Yes. Hopefully we'll see something. - Cook them up. Be grand.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18I'm really keen to explore the bay with Rory
0:20:18 > 0:20:22because I think there could be potential to set up some, underwater nature trails
0:20:22 > 0:20:25which would attract divers from all over the world.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35Rory navigates us through a maze of small islands.
0:20:35 > 0:20:39Lochmaddy is one of the most scientifically important loch systems in Europe
0:20:39 > 0:20:41and it's a natural home for scallops.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49There's about half a million divers in Britain.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53And this is one of the absolute prime spots, the Outer Hebrides.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56So, potentially, it's a huge source of revenue
0:20:56 > 0:20:59in terms of bringing people into the islands.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01MONTY:
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Down here, it's all about disguise -
0:22:13 > 0:22:17about staying hidden and hoping none of the passing predators spot you.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41That was superb.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43Really, really nice little dive.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46It's alive down there, you know?
0:22:46 > 0:22:50And your ability to spot a scallop
0:22:50 > 0:22:53from absurd distances...
0:22:53 > 0:22:56I suppose for you, every time you pick one up, it's, like, you know...
0:22:56 > 0:23:01- It's your work, isn't it?- Yes. You really get your eye in after a few.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04It's amazing, the stuff you were spotting and I was missing.
0:23:09 > 0:23:15There's nothing but the Atlantic Ocean between my beach and America, so huge seas build up -
0:23:15 > 0:23:20and when they hit, there's nothing to do but get indoors as fast as possible.
0:23:24 > 0:23:29My old mates from Applecross, Andy and Heather, have arrived for a visit with their kids,
0:23:29 > 0:23:31which seems a good excuse for a party.
0:23:32 > 0:23:36We'll just show this immense pile of seafood we've got.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39To start off, this is a huge sea trout. Scallops.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43And - there we are - one or two lobsters.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46Now, the reason these aren't being sold commercially
0:23:46 > 0:23:49or put back is the claws have come off.
0:23:49 > 0:23:53If they were put back, they probably wouldn't survive. They're no use for commercial sale.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58And sitting at the top of the food chain is this array of...
0:23:58 > 0:23:59< Whoo!
0:23:59 > 0:24:03This array of carnivores we have here. So here we go.
0:24:03 > 0:24:04Let's get cooking.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06Let's get cooking. Er...
0:24:06 > 0:24:10Rory's the expert, so Rory, mate,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14if you want to do like a perfect scallop and then we'll all try and do one each.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16I've got this beast.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19That looks dangerous.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23There's a real art to shucking a scallop, which is obviously getting most of the meat out,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26and not, sort of, amputating your own thumb.
0:24:26 > 0:24:27It's a little bit messy so...
0:24:27 > 0:24:32Right. Rubes, mind your nose, otherwise you'll lose your nose.
0:24:32 > 0:24:33And then, once that moves...
0:24:33 > 0:24:35out.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39- THE OTHERS EXCLAIM And there it goes.- That was perfect.
0:24:39 > 0:24:40Right, I'll have a go.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43I'm under pressure now. I'm shaking.
0:24:43 > 0:24:44Oh!
0:24:45 > 0:24:47- HEATHER GASPS - Well done.- Oh!
0:24:47 > 0:24:49< Oh, wow!
0:24:49 > 0:24:53The idea is to leave as little meat as possible here, isn't it? So that's not a very good one.
0:24:53 > 0:24:58Alison, from the St Kilda committee, is the resident expert on how to cook scallops.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01And, actually, really, what you need to do now is season them.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03- Salt and pepper.- Right. There we go.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07Superb. And you do the seasoned side down.
0:25:07 > 0:25:12- Right.- In a dry pan.- These are hand-dived, Hebridean scallops.
0:25:12 > 0:25:17Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way. Dredged scallops may be cheaper to buy,
0:25:17 > 0:25:20but the process of raking them off the seabed carries a hidden cost.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23For every scallop you're holding in your hand,
0:25:23 > 0:25:27maybe 50, 60, 100 other animals have died so you can hold that scallop.
0:25:27 > 0:25:31When you hand-dive them, you pick them up, put them in a bag - it's really selective.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33It's incredibly efficient and kind to the environment.
0:25:33 > 0:25:38And Ads, whose family run a local shellfish business, is the expert on lobsters.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41There's all sorts of conjecture about how you kill a lobster -
0:25:41 > 0:25:43it's one of those great culinary debates, isn't it?
0:25:43 > 0:25:47Chuck it in boiling water? Put it in the freezer, then chuck it in boiling water?
0:25:47 > 0:25:51And the way I've found works best is you actually make a cut in the top of the shell with a knife -
0:25:51 > 0:25:53just push down and out.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56And essentially, you're chopping through all its nervous system.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00So you very quickly have a very dead lobster like this one.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04And I think, personally, it's so much better than just chucking them in hot water.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06So, that's my opinion.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08- You need to salt the water.- Say when.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11- That'll do. - OK. Why do you salt the water?
0:26:11 > 0:26:15Well, ideally you want to use saltwater like sea water.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18It just makes... The meat kind of gets a bit fluffy and doesn't taste so nice
0:26:18 > 0:26:21if you just do it in completely fresh water.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24I'd say you could maybe do three of the small ones in there,
0:26:24 > 0:26:25- once you've topped it up a bit.- OK.
0:26:25 > 0:26:30- And small ones...ten minutes.- Right.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33And you can tell. You can tell by the colour they've gone.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Yeah. They go brick red, don't they? They go this lovely sort of..
0:26:36 > 0:26:41- And we need to have the sink ready with cold water in it.- Right.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44- Because they'll keep cooking once you've taken them out.- Ah, I see.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48Their shell's the perfect thing for holding heat, isn't it? Which it's naturally supposed to do.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51- Those look very well done. - Do they?- Yep.- Excellent.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53Food of the gods.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13Part of the ranger position - one of the responsibilities -
0:27:13 > 0:27:18is taking groups of people around some of the interesting eco-systems around here.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23Today, I'm heading off to Berneray, where I'm meeting a group of tourists.
0:27:23 > 0:27:28And in conjunction with Jimmy, who's going to do the terrestrial side,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31I'm going to do the tide line and below -
0:27:31 > 0:27:33high tide and below - which is kind of my area, really.
0:27:33 > 0:27:38So I'm expecting a group of stout-thighed, ruddy-cheeked tourists,
0:27:38 > 0:27:43all keen as mustard, and hopefully I can not disgrace myself describing what's in the sea.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47What a day. We haven't had a day without wind for a long, long, long time.
0:27:47 > 0:27:51Ladies and gents, what we're going to do is just bimble to the end here.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54Bimbling will feature very strongly today.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56I think there's a really sort of healthy interest
0:27:56 > 0:28:01amongst people generally, actually, in the environment around them.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Er, up here in north-west Europe, in the UK,
0:28:03 > 0:28:06we've got an unbelievably rich set of eco-systems here.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09So a good chance to, sort of, chat about it.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13OK. I've got a fantastic view here,
0:28:13 > 0:28:15just out into the open sea,
0:28:15 > 0:28:18and you can almost see the transition in the environments.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21So, we're going from the dunes here
0:28:21 > 0:28:25out onto the beach - this amazing sugar-white sand beach.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30OK, just before we all strip down to our undies and obviously jump in,
0:28:30 > 0:28:31which is part of the walk,
0:28:31 > 0:28:35just a quick chat about two things. One is the temperature and clarity of the water.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39Jimmy just said, as we were walking down, "You must mention the clarity of the water."
0:28:39 > 0:28:43One of the reasons this water looks so tropical and so beautiful is it's so clean.
0:28:43 > 0:28:45Very few pollutants.
0:28:45 > 0:28:50There is nowhere in the oceans anywhere on earth at the moment that hasn't got a trace of mankind in it.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53So, the deepest water of the Marianas Trench, seven miles down,
0:28:53 > 0:28:56has got a trace of mankind - there's chemicals in there.
0:28:56 > 0:28:58So, all water's got tiny traces but up here,
0:28:58 > 0:29:01it's pretty much the cleanest you're going to get in Europe.
0:29:01 > 0:29:05What a great experience, to actually pass on various odds and bobs
0:29:05 > 0:29:10and people are always very enthusiastic, who come on these walks. So, a lot of fun.
0:29:10 > 0:29:14If someone can find a crab, I can tell you some great things about a crab.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18Do you think you can find a crab? Wow. That's fantastic.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20This is... That's a great one -
0:29:20 > 0:29:22carcinus maenas, which is the green crab.
0:29:22 > 0:29:26Crabs have two claws, as you know.
0:29:26 > 0:29:29That's the one he uses for his fighting and crushing things.
0:29:29 > 0:29:33And this is the one that he uses for the more delicate things -
0:29:33 > 0:29:36you know, cutting up his dinner and feeding himself.
0:29:40 > 0:29:42What a lovely day!
0:29:42 > 0:29:47You know, a great way of showcasing what these islands are all about,
0:29:47 > 0:29:49tourists and visitors coming in.
0:29:49 > 0:29:55You've got this amazing jewel in the crown of British wildlife,
0:29:55 > 0:29:59and it's so important that someone is there to translate it for people
0:29:59 > 0:30:03and someone is there to show people around, and also someone's there to keep an eye on it -
0:30:03 > 0:30:06to make sure people are treating it with the respect it deserves.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09So yeah, today has really highlighted for me the importance of a ranger position.
0:30:22 > 0:30:27It's August 29th, and the official opening of the North Uist view point.
0:30:27 > 0:30:32It's 79 years to the day since the evacuation of St Kilda.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41A fantastic turnout. Brilliant turnout,
0:30:41 > 0:30:45but approaching us is this great mass of rain,
0:30:45 > 0:30:48thundering up the hill towards us.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51So, everyone's looking slightly nervous.
0:30:51 > 0:30:56So hopefully, we can get this done nice and quickly and get back to the warmth of the community hall.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00And I'd like to invite my colleague, who's much better at ribbon cutting than I am,
0:31:00 > 0:31:05Alison Robertson, who is going to cut the ribbon and officially open.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08APPLAUSE
0:31:08 > 0:31:11WOMAN SINGS IN GAELIC
0:31:37 > 0:31:39It's very significant, this turn-out,
0:31:39 > 0:31:44because it means, you know, the community's right behind the St Kilda thing.
0:31:44 > 0:31:48So this St Kilda bid is very important.
0:31:48 > 0:31:52That singing earlier on was spine tingling stuff, you know.
0:31:52 > 0:31:56Gaelic's very much a living language and everyone quietly joining in.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59There's quite a lot of emotion involved in the whole St Kilda thing,
0:31:59 > 0:32:03because it's so interlinked to everyone's past in the Uists.
0:32:05 > 0:32:10Tweed manufacture has always been important in these islands, and now it's part of the culture.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14The raw cloth is repeatedly beaten by hand to fix the natural dyes
0:32:14 > 0:32:17and make it more resistant to wind and weather.
0:32:17 > 0:32:21Unfortunately, this involves soaking the cloth in human urine.
0:32:21 > 0:32:24This is quite hard work, so we would like some help,
0:32:24 > 0:32:27so we would like Monty Hall to join us. Where is he?
0:32:27 > 0:32:29CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:32:31 > 0:32:35I normally wear stuff like this in the cottage, on my own.
0:32:38 > 0:32:42- We'll just put it this way. - Hope my mates at the rugby club don't see this!
0:32:42 > 0:32:44Mind you, they dress like this all the time.
0:32:44 > 0:32:45- Hands in.- OK.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48APPLAUSE
0:32:50 > 0:32:53Are you all right for urine? Right.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56- Just grab the tweed and give it a good bang.- OK. Smashing.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59- And we're going to sing a song. - Excellent.
0:32:59 > 0:33:01- Are you OK?- I'm good. I'm good.
0:33:01 > 0:33:04A surreal Saturday night. OK, OK.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10Right, let's give it a good bang first to get it going, Monty.
0:33:11 > 0:33:13That's it. You've got the movement well.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16THEY SING IN GAELIC
0:33:21 > 0:33:24# Welcome to Halster Hall
0:33:24 > 0:33:26# Give a big cheer for Monty Hall. #
0:33:26 > 0:33:29THEY CONTINUE TO SING IN GAELIC
0:33:52 > 0:33:55Thank you very much.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58Thank you very much. I'm going to do all my boxer shorts like that now.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01On my own, down the cottage.
0:34:03 > 0:34:06It's been a really great evening. Been really, really nice.
0:34:06 > 0:34:09It's quite interesting, cos it's a celebration of St Kilda -
0:34:09 > 0:34:13it's keeping the memory of St Kilda alive - but it's a lament as well.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16When you listen to the songs, and you see the faces.
0:34:16 > 0:34:18This was a part of a community that died.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21And it's being kept alive in the memories.
0:34:21 > 0:34:25So, yeah, quite a poignant evening, but great fun.
0:34:25 > 0:34:27Really, really great fun. I've had a ball.
0:34:27 > 0:34:29- Good night, Monty.- Good night. >
0:34:31 > 0:34:33It's going to be some weeks until we know if North Uist
0:34:33 > 0:34:36has won the competition to get the St Kilda visitors' centre.
0:34:36 > 0:34:42But if nothing else, it's revived a real interest in the history and traditions of the place.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47Just got in from the St Kilda evening,
0:34:47 > 0:34:51which was a great evening.
0:34:51 > 0:34:53And for the first time,
0:34:53 > 0:34:57I sort of felt a bit more part of the community.
0:34:59 > 0:35:01I met lots of lovely people,
0:35:01 > 0:35:04ended up wearing women's clothes,
0:35:04 > 0:35:08hammering a piece of tweed soaked in urine,
0:35:08 > 0:35:11as you do, basically, on a Saturday night.
0:35:11 > 0:35:14But it was really nice and you could feel the passion in the room for St Kilda
0:35:14 > 0:35:18and a connection, and I felt a little bit of that as well.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36Since I've been here, Jimmy and my landlord, Fergus,
0:35:36 > 0:35:41have both bent over backwards to get a salmon or a sea trout on the end of my line.
0:35:41 > 0:35:45All I've caught so far is a few miniscule brown trout.
0:35:45 > 0:35:47Go and get me a sea trout.
0:35:47 > 0:35:51But I'm always up for more fishing.
0:35:51 > 0:35:55It rained last night and it rained really heavily.
0:35:57 > 0:35:59Fergus, just going past.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03And sheets of rain sweeping across the land.
0:36:03 > 0:36:07I walked out of the cottage and it was just torrents, absolute torrents.
0:36:07 > 0:36:10And I've had about three or four calls already today
0:36:10 > 0:36:16from local people saying, "Go and catch your salmon today, my boy."
0:36:18 > 0:36:21We had so much rain last night that all the systems came totally up.
0:36:21 > 0:36:23- Right.- Today, it's fallen slightly. It's warmer.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26- Yeah.- The fish will be really excited. They should have moved.
0:36:26 > 0:36:29- Right.- So they're more likely to take. We just have to find them.
0:36:29 > 0:36:31Cos it's a big old loch, isn't it?
0:36:31 > 0:36:36This is the biggest salmon loch in Uist, so to catch one in here will be a real splendid thing.
0:36:36 > 0:36:38A real achievement, believe me, to catch one at all.
0:36:44 > 0:36:46- You've got to face where you're fishing.- OK.
0:36:49 > 0:36:53You're letting - it's quite difficult. You're letting go of the line.
0:36:56 > 0:37:00My gift for catching small trout
0:37:00 > 0:37:03is earning me an island-wide reputation.
0:37:03 > 0:37:06Beautiful little brown trout.
0:37:06 > 0:37:08I've got the big wind.
0:37:10 > 0:37:15What's the biggest salmon ever caught in the Uists?
0:37:15 > 0:37:17About 36 pounds, I think it was.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20There was another one, 29 pounds.
0:37:20 > 0:37:23Don't snap it. You have a trout twitch there.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26A trout twitch, which I have a bad case of.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28Clamp your finger over the line and just let it...
0:37:28 > 0:37:31Hold, keep the line tight and just let it pull it slowly.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34The boat should do most of the work, if I see it.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37You've got a hell of a fly on here, Jimmy. It certainly seems to be, er,
0:37:37 > 0:37:42- doing the trick.- If there's anything here, they'll just have moved in.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45Yeah. So when they just move in, it's a good time?
0:37:45 > 0:37:48They, you know - they're new to the water...
0:37:48 > 0:37:53Yeah, they're just settling down before they head in to look for where they really want to go.
0:37:53 > 0:37:55We're just taking a bit of a short cut.
0:37:55 > 0:37:58Due to Jimmy's freakish upper body strength,
0:37:58 > 0:38:01we've snapped both oars.
0:38:01 > 0:38:04Just another little test the fishing gods have thrown at us.
0:38:06 > 0:38:10Got this lovely golden light at the moment. The wind's dropped a little bit.
0:38:10 > 0:38:15- Monty, can you just bring in a dropper, please?- So, what's your rationale there? Just thinking...
0:38:15 > 0:38:18It's getting darker, so we're putting a much bigger fly for them to see.
0:38:18 > 0:38:23It's a very old fly that's going on here, but he's had a few battles.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26- A scarred old warhorse. - Yes, look at him.
0:38:26 > 0:38:28You always keep those flies.
0:38:28 > 0:38:32- You think every year, "I'll throw it away." But they always stay in your box.- Yeah.
0:38:32 > 0:38:34It's like a scarred old prize fighter, you know?
0:38:34 > 0:38:37Go on, then. Work your magic.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41- Nice cast.- Come on, big fella.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44How many foils can one man have?
0:38:44 > 0:38:46And then it happens.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48Hey, Monty's biggest trout.
0:38:48 > 0:38:50Yeah.
0:38:50 > 0:38:51- Keep the line tight.- OK. Yep.
0:38:51 > 0:38:54- And now onto the reel. - We're on the reel.- Keep it tight.
0:38:54 > 0:38:56See how slack it's going.
0:38:56 > 0:38:58- Sea trout.- Sea trout?
0:38:58 > 0:38:59- Yep.- Fantastic.
0:38:59 > 0:39:03Keep it round to the right - to the left, Monty - of the rod, because there's a rope there.
0:39:03 > 0:39:05He'll head into the wind. Don't worry.
0:39:05 > 0:39:09Don't take it through any more line than that. Lift the rod up.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13- There we go. - That's why you keep old flies.- Yeah!
0:39:13 > 0:39:18- Keep him on the surface. On the surface. He doesn't like this. On the surface, to me.- Yes, OK.
0:39:18 > 0:39:20Bring him in. Bring him in.
0:39:23 > 0:39:24- Hey!- Now there...
0:39:24 > 0:39:26is Monty's...
0:39:26 > 0:39:29..debut sea trout.
0:39:29 > 0:39:30Wow!
0:39:30 > 0:39:32There we go. Look at that.
0:39:32 > 0:39:36Absolutely beautiful, beautiful animal.
0:39:36 > 0:39:41Fresh from the Atlantic, caught on an old bruiser of a fly
0:39:41 > 0:39:45that Jimmy keeps in the murky depths of his fly box for occasions just like this.
0:39:45 > 0:39:49But absolutely beautiful. Wonderful eating,
0:39:49 > 0:39:52wild Atlantic sea trout.
0:39:52 > 0:39:55Beautiful. Give me a hand shake, mate. Thank you so much.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58- It's been a journey, hasn't it? - You did well.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01But you know, a fish that size and that type
0:40:01 > 0:40:04is worth its weight in gold to many people.
0:40:04 > 0:40:08Oh, God, yeah. It's a creature of myth and legend.
0:40:09 > 0:40:10MONTY SIGHS HAPPILY
0:40:11 > 0:40:13Well done, mate. Well done.
0:40:13 > 0:40:16The first thing I'm going to do is phone my dad,
0:40:16 > 0:40:20cos he's wanted me to catch a sea trout ever since I was a tiny little kid.
0:40:28 > 0:40:29That's quite interesting, isn't it?
0:40:29 > 0:40:33I've only just realised as I laid it out on the slab
0:40:33 > 0:40:37that that, of course, is the way the brown trout look
0:40:37 > 0:40:40when they are in the lochs and in the rivers.
0:40:40 > 0:40:43And should they decide to move into the sea,
0:40:43 > 0:40:45that's what they become as sea trout.
0:40:45 > 0:40:49So they go much more silver and, er,
0:40:49 > 0:40:51essentially, they become sea fish
0:40:51 > 0:40:56like terribly well-dressed, rather aristocratic, sea fish, I think.
0:40:58 > 0:41:00Which is going to be my breakfast.
0:41:19 > 0:41:20Catching a ferry today.
0:41:20 > 0:41:25The reason is that I'm off to Harris and then Lewis, going to Stornoway.
0:41:25 > 0:41:30It's too far away for a causeway so I'm doing it old-style, on a ferry, which is rather nice.
0:41:30 > 0:41:34You always feel you've travelled somewhere, don't you, when you take a boat trip.
0:41:36 > 0:41:40One of the main reasons for going to Stornoway is some serious shopping.
0:41:40 > 0:41:44The locals have taken one look at my rib and said that is not an Atlantic rib.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46I'm planning this St Kilda trip,
0:41:46 > 0:41:50which is a serious old foray into the wild waters of the Atlantic,
0:41:50 > 0:41:52and to do that, I need to equip the boat.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55And the only place I can do that is Stornoway.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58There's things like heavy anchors, emergency kit.
0:41:58 > 0:42:01It's turning it from a little inshore pootling vessel
0:42:01 > 0:42:05into a proper rugsy-tugsy Atlantic expedition boat.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08MUSIC: "Look Into The Light" by Graham Coxon
0:42:10 > 0:42:14# Look into the light
0:42:15 > 0:42:18# Fills you completely
0:42:19 > 0:42:24# Look into the night
0:42:24 > 0:42:27# Reflects you so briefly
0:42:29 > 0:42:32# Large as your eyes
0:42:32 > 0:42:38# The deepness of the night
0:42:40 > 0:42:44# Aah-ah
0:42:44 > 0:42:48# Aah-ah. #
0:42:50 > 0:42:52See you later.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59It is interesting coming off the ferry, the...
0:42:59 > 0:43:02You can see, it does...
0:43:02 > 0:43:04Bizarre thing to say, looking at five houses,
0:43:04 > 0:43:07but it looks slightly more urban, er,
0:43:07 > 0:43:11than Uist and Berneray,
0:43:11 > 0:43:13with these small little crofters' houses.
0:43:13 > 0:43:16These look more substantial. It's like a settlement.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19One of the things you do get here - Harris and Lewis -
0:43:19 > 0:43:23is you're getting more mountainous and it mountains hitting the sea.
0:43:23 > 0:43:28And all the beautiful, beautiful places around the world are where the mountains hit the sea.
0:43:31 > 0:43:35I've been told that this is very much the place. An Aladdin's cave.
0:43:40 > 0:43:43The kit we're after is the stuff that will make that conversion,
0:43:43 > 0:43:47to turn it into a vessel that can deal with the open sea
0:43:47 > 0:43:52and what's more, can secure itself in the open sea, so things like anchors.
0:43:53 > 0:43:55Big old anchors, you know. Stronger ropes.
0:43:55 > 0:43:58Every time I do that, it's three quid.
0:43:58 > 0:44:00Every time I open my arms, it's three quid.
0:44:00 > 0:44:02The cleats to stick on the deck...
0:44:02 > 0:44:04Shackles.
0:44:04 > 0:44:07You wonder when you're out at St Kilda and you're dragging -
0:44:07 > 0:44:11"Should I have spent that extra £6.50 on another metre?", you know?
0:44:12 > 0:44:16The problem with all this is it all takes up room on the boat.
0:44:16 > 0:44:20But it's all aimed at this one big trip.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23This one big punch of 41 miles
0:44:23 > 0:44:26out into the Atlantic to try and get to St Kilda.
0:44:26 > 0:44:30So, yeah, you know, there won't be space for anything, basically,
0:44:30 > 0:44:35except fuel and safety gear, and me and Jimmy on the boat - that's it.
0:44:39 > 0:44:41A fishermen's co-operative.
0:44:41 > 0:44:44Go in a boy, come out a man.
0:44:44 > 0:44:46I'm ready for anything now.
0:44:54 > 0:44:59We've had the call that a small weather window has appeared and before we know it,
0:44:59 > 0:45:04we're making the final preparations for our epic two-day trip to St Kilda.
0:45:07 > 0:45:10This is the transformation of my rib
0:45:10 > 0:45:15from an inshore vessel to an offshore vessel.
0:45:16 > 0:45:20Something I can take out into the wilderness of the Atlantic.
0:45:20 > 0:45:23It really is a very different place out there.
0:45:23 > 0:45:26Cos that's the thing with St Kilda, isn't it?
0:45:26 > 0:45:28That it just comes from nowhere.
0:45:28 > 0:45:31There's always an unpredictable element with St Kilda
0:45:31 > 0:45:33- and that's what makes the adventure.- Yeah.
0:45:33 > 0:45:37As long as we've done everything we've done, which we have here, to make it 100% safe.
0:45:37 > 0:45:42- I'm just looking forward to going out, even though I've been out. - Me too, mate. Really am.
0:46:04 > 0:46:07Just heading out of the harbour and out into the open sea.
0:46:07 > 0:46:10And over these big oily swells.
0:46:10 > 0:46:15And these swells speak of something massive going on out in the Atlantic.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18There's a huge amount of power being generated out there
0:46:18 > 0:46:22and the result is these fellas coming in and just rolling in.
0:46:22 > 0:46:26And I can actually see St Kilda and Boreray on the horizon.
0:46:26 > 0:46:27And it's a nice sight.
0:46:27 > 0:46:32You know, it looks so close but it's not - it's 41 miles away.
0:46:32 > 0:46:35So, off we go, to the edge of the world.
0:46:59 > 0:47:02One of the things about St Kilda
0:47:02 > 0:47:05is it just never seems to get any closer when you're heading towards it.
0:47:05 > 0:47:09Just stays on the horizon, stays on the horizon, the same size.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13And then suddenly, it just looms up.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16It's almost like it's rising out of the sea,
0:47:16 > 0:47:18re-living its volcanic birth.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20It's suddenly, whoop! It's on top of you.
0:47:23 > 0:47:24This is it!
0:47:26 > 0:47:28This is St Kilda.
0:47:37 > 0:47:41At 196 metres, the sea stacks in St Kilda are the highest in UK.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47Dwarfed by these giants in our tiny boat, Stack Lee is our first port of call.
0:47:47 > 0:47:50It's a wild scene, isn't it?
0:47:50 > 0:47:52A truly wild scene.
0:47:53 > 0:47:58Its imposing cliffs are home to the largest colony of northern gannets on the planet.
0:47:58 > 0:48:00- Wow, look at them all.- Look at that.
0:48:00 > 0:48:03They're just all the way round us.
0:48:03 > 0:48:05Amazing. You wouldn't want to be a small fish.
0:48:08 > 0:48:12- So you have a keen sense of your own mortality here, don't you?- Yes.
0:48:13 > 0:48:17- Yeah, one mistake here and it's... - And you're toast.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22Oh, that's nice.
0:48:22 > 0:48:25- What do you think of St Kilda now you're here?- Er, wild.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28Er, mystical, untamed, eerie.
0:48:28 > 0:48:29Just incredible.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32And you can see why it's a World Heritage site, you know.
0:48:32 > 0:48:35There's certain very special places around the world
0:48:35 > 0:48:37and you can see why this is one of them, quite frankly.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40That is absolutely amazing.
0:48:40 > 0:48:42Wow.
0:48:42 > 0:48:44Extraordinary. Extraordinary.
0:48:44 > 0:48:48- I know you've been many places, but I've not seen anywhere...- No.
0:48:48 > 0:48:49..in comparison to this.
0:48:50 > 0:48:53And doing it in a small boat's nice, isn't it?
0:48:53 > 0:48:58Because you do get the feel of the grandeur of the place and the scale.
0:48:58 > 0:49:02I'm like a toddler at Christmas. You know, tonight I'll just go.
0:49:02 > 0:49:05I'll just be out because I've had so much excitement today.
0:49:05 > 0:49:07And we want to go near it.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10And there we are.
0:49:10 > 0:49:13Feels, yeah, quite odd to be here. You know, it feels...
0:49:13 > 0:49:17I don't know. Something you never expected to see, made real, really.
0:49:17 > 0:49:20- It's very peaceful. - It's lovely, isn't it?
0:49:22 > 0:49:25You can see why you'd want to live here.
0:49:25 > 0:49:30Yeah. I mean, obviously the hardships were intense.
0:49:33 > 0:49:36Very few people get to visit St Kilda. And I can see why.
0:49:36 > 0:49:41The trip here has been exhausting and is certainly not for the faint-hearted.
0:49:41 > 0:49:42Well done, mate. Well done.
0:49:45 > 0:49:48It's now owed by the National Trust for Scotland.
0:49:48 > 0:49:51And the only residents work for the Trust
0:49:51 > 0:49:53or the small military base here.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56I can only begin to imagine
0:49:56 > 0:50:01what it was like to actually live in such a place 80 years ago.
0:50:07 > 0:50:11That's Boreray and that's where I was today, looking at the gannets.
0:50:11 > 0:50:1460,000 gannets over there.
0:50:14 > 0:50:17And it looks peaceful and tranquil from here.
0:50:17 > 0:50:19That's four miles away.
0:50:19 > 0:50:22But you've actually got all sorts of waves and swell
0:50:22 > 0:50:25and wind and currents meeting there.
0:50:25 > 0:50:28And it's a real cauldron. It was quite exhilarating,
0:50:28 > 0:50:30and pretty frightening sometimes, out there today.
0:50:30 > 0:50:33And the two big pillars, they're the Dragon's Teeth,
0:50:33 > 0:50:36and that's where the gannets nest
0:50:36 > 0:50:41and creates part of the reason why this is a World Heritage site.
0:50:53 > 0:50:58In 1947, a naturalist visited St Kilda for the first time.
0:50:58 > 0:51:02And as he left, he said that one of the problems anyone who came here would have
0:51:02 > 0:51:07for the rest of their lives would be trying to describe the place to anyone who hadn't seen it.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10And I completely sympathise with that sentiment.
0:51:10 > 0:51:13And it's the scale of the place,
0:51:13 > 0:51:15The abundance of the wildlife,
0:51:15 > 0:51:17the gannet colonies.
0:51:17 > 0:51:19The actual size of the cliffs,
0:51:19 > 0:51:23and the power of the heritage of St Kilda.
0:51:23 > 0:51:28And I'm so, so pleased I made the journey.
0:51:28 > 0:51:30I think it's something that I'll never, ever forget.
0:51:49 > 0:51:51It's seven in the morning.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55And, er, today we go home.
0:51:56 > 0:51:59Just a breath of wind, I can just feel it.
0:51:59 > 0:52:02And it's due to get up a bit later - force five or six.
0:52:02 > 0:52:06Which could be quite entertaining. I've got my tiny little boat in the harbour there,
0:52:06 > 0:52:08looking very insignificant.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14This is the campsite. There we go.
0:52:14 > 0:52:17My tent - very well organised.
0:52:17 > 0:52:19Nice and taught.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22Jimmy's tent looks like a bin liner.
0:52:25 > 0:52:28But, er, it was a bit rainy last night, didn't sleep that well.
0:52:28 > 0:52:30As you can see, a bit tired.
0:52:30 > 0:52:32Have a look at the village today
0:52:32 > 0:52:35and enjoy my last few hours on St Kilda.
0:52:35 > 0:52:36This amazing, amazing place.
0:52:42 > 0:52:44- What do you think of that?- Not bad.
0:52:44 > 0:52:50That great ridge going along there, like a sort of dragon's back, isn't it? Rising out of the sea.
0:52:50 > 0:52:52I'm not a big heights man.
0:52:52 > 0:52:55- Are you not?- No, don't really like heights very much.
0:52:55 > 0:52:59I think I would have been ostracized in St Kilda's society.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02It's said that before a man could marry, he had to prove he had
0:53:02 > 0:53:07the agility to climb the cliffs and catch birds for his family to eat.
0:53:08 > 0:53:13They had to balance on their left foot on top of a protruding rock called the Mistress Stone.
0:53:14 > 0:53:16And the Mistress Stone, of course.
0:53:16 > 0:53:19That was a test of nerve which I would have failed.
0:53:19 > 0:53:21I would have been single and hungry.
0:53:25 > 0:53:28- And as you look across there, you see the rocks sticking out?- Yeah.
0:53:28 > 0:53:31- That's one of the rocks it would've been.- What, the...?
0:53:31 > 0:53:33One of the ones they would have been standing on.
0:53:33 > 0:53:36But more than that, just going over the edges with the ropes,
0:53:36 > 0:53:41and working their way down and then catching all the fulmars and the gannets and things,
0:53:41 > 0:53:43then carrying them all the way back up again.
0:53:43 > 0:53:45"Afraid of heights" is a highly emotive term.
0:53:45 > 0:53:48I'd say I have a rational fear of standing on one leg
0:53:48 > 0:53:53on top of a 1,000ft cliff to pull a bird, as it were.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55- In every sense of the word.- Yeah.
0:54:00 > 0:54:02Laid out beneath me, there,
0:54:02 > 0:54:07is the whole of man's history in St Kilda.
0:54:07 > 0:54:12This is Village Bay. And you can see this is the more ancient row of cottages there.
0:54:12 > 0:54:16You've got the old black houses, which are like that to the sea.
0:54:16 > 0:54:21Then you've got slightly more modern houses they built, with the doors and windows facing the sea.
0:54:21 > 0:54:24And then, at the far end, you've got the military occupation.
0:54:24 > 0:54:27But that's the real history there. That is the archaeology.
0:54:27 > 0:54:30We've got a great view of the archaeology of man's struggle
0:54:30 > 0:54:32to try and tame St Kilda.
0:54:37 > 0:54:40The population itself was leaving.
0:54:40 > 0:54:44Younger people began to emigrate, looking for different, new lives. They weren't coming back.
0:54:44 > 0:54:48So the community that was actually left here wasn't able to survive.
0:54:48 > 0:54:50And the final straw for them was that
0:54:50 > 0:54:54that winter of 1929 was one of the hardest winters they'd ever known.
0:54:54 > 0:54:55They had no supplies.
0:54:55 > 0:54:59They couldn't get anything in here for six months and they finally...
0:54:59 > 0:55:02Whatever it is in the human mind that suddenly cracks
0:55:02 > 0:55:04and gives up the ghost, they suddenly just...
0:55:04 > 0:55:08They wrote to the British government demanding that they be removed from here.
0:55:13 > 0:55:15I'd love to stay much longer
0:55:15 > 0:55:19but the weather's turning and we've got a difficult trip back.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22- Ah-ha.- A lift, please. - There's a man dressed for action.
0:55:22 > 0:55:24Are you going to Uist?
0:55:27 > 0:55:28All right, mate?
0:55:37 > 0:55:39Ah, look at Boreray.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43- The sky's looking menacing. - Isn't it?
0:55:45 > 0:55:49- Look at the swell lifting up here. - Yeah, amazing.
0:55:49 > 0:55:51Going through, see? Look at this.
0:55:51 > 0:55:53Wow.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56- Look at that.- That is impressive.
0:55:56 > 0:55:58Very impressive.
0:56:00 > 0:56:02Well, let's head around the corner.
0:56:02 > 0:56:04Off we jolly well pop.
0:56:04 > 0:56:05Now the fun begins.
0:56:05 > 0:56:06Right, let's go for it.
0:56:18 > 0:56:20This is proper sea stuff, this.
0:56:25 > 0:56:28This is more like it. This is a five now.
0:56:31 > 0:56:33It's the enormity when you're going into them,
0:56:33 > 0:56:37cos you're up, like that, as well. You're about 15 feet off the deck.
0:56:39 > 0:56:40Bye-bye, St Kilda.
0:56:41 > 0:56:43And thank you.
0:56:45 > 0:56:49Having seen St Kilda now, I can see why they came here.
0:56:49 > 0:56:53And having seen this - hard way to earn... To live, isn't it?
0:56:53 > 0:56:56Hard and frightening and unrelenting. I can see why they left.
0:56:58 > 0:57:03After my visit, I can now see that St Kilda is a tricky place to get to,
0:57:03 > 0:57:06which makes the visitors' centre on the Uists even more important.
0:57:06 > 0:57:09I really do hope we win the bid.
0:57:09 > 0:57:11What a great adventure.
0:57:11 > 0:57:15I've spent the last two days feeling utterly insignificant -
0:57:15 > 0:57:17dwarfed by mother nature.
0:57:17 > 0:57:21Whether that's the cliffs of St Kilda,
0:57:21 > 0:57:24or whether it's the mountainous swells,
0:57:24 > 0:57:25you know, it was amazing out there.
0:57:25 > 0:57:29Your boat feels really, really small out there.
0:57:29 > 0:57:33But it really was worth it. It was worth every turn of the prop.
0:57:33 > 0:57:37It was worth, you know, every moment of fear
0:57:37 > 0:57:40and excitement as St Kilda came into view.
0:57:40 > 0:57:42It was just fantastic.
0:57:42 > 0:57:44And I can't tell you - I've been obsessing
0:57:44 > 0:57:46about this cup of tea.
0:57:46 > 0:57:49I only walked in the door a little while back.
0:57:49 > 0:57:51Now I'm going to sleep for a week.
0:57:53 > 0:57:54'Next time...'
0:57:54 > 0:57:57I'm here to find a sea monster.
0:57:57 > 0:58:03'..my ranger duties turn serious as a whale is washed ashore...'
0:58:03 > 0:58:06Beaked whales, particularly, hunt in very deep water.
0:58:06 > 0:58:09A kilometre down, hunting for squid.
0:58:09 > 0:58:12'..I climb to the top of my world...'
0:58:12 > 0:58:16This is what the Uists and the Outer Hebrides are all about.
0:58:16 > 0:58:20'..and is this the start of things to come?'
0:58:20 > 0:58:23The ferocity of the wind and the waves
0:58:23 > 0:58:26coming together with the land. Just beggars belief.
0:58:47 > 0:58:50Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:50 > 0:58:53E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk