0:00:06 > 0:00:08This is a story of Britain.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11But a Britain we rarely see.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Britain as an undiscovered country.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21Our glorious landscape isn't just spectacular.
0:00:21 > 0:00:23It's full of secrets and surprises.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30It's absolutely beautiful.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35We asked you to share your secret places with us.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37And your response was overwhelming.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41You're taking us to some remarkable sites.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45Wow. It really is magical.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48- What a view! - That is glorious, isn't it?
0:00:48 > 0:00:51We'll also share a few secrets of our own.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53Oh, look at that. Fantastic!
0:00:58 > 0:00:59Ah, that's amazing!
0:00:59 > 0:01:01Like being a child again.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05This is Britain as you've never seen it before.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08Oh, my word!
0:01:08 > 0:01:10Wow, that's really incredible.
0:01:15 > 0:01:18I don't think I could dream up a view as good as that.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21- So if you want to know a secret... - Then come with us.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Britain is blessed with magnificent mountains.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47Uplands which are shrouded in secrets.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51In the Lake District, a symphony of rock
0:01:51 > 0:01:55and water reaches its crescendo with Scafell Pike.
0:01:56 > 0:02:01While northern Wales is crowned by the majestic peaks of Snowdonia.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07But our most mountainous
0:02:07 > 0:02:10and mysterious realm is the Scottish Highlands.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14With Britain's highest mountain.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17And Britain's deepest water.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20The Scottish Highlands are the perfect place to keep a secret.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25The Highlands stretch across half of Scotland.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29We are making for the region of greatest extremes.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34The Great Glen, which cuts through the Highlands from coast to coast.
0:02:35 > 0:02:40The mighty Ben Nevis, our tallest peak, looms over the glen.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45And in its dark heart, the legendary waters of Loch Ness.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51I reckon the Great Glen's got to be stacked full of secrets, hasn't it?
0:02:51 > 0:02:53It has, look at the size of it.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56There's bound to be some amazing stories here.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58Do you know, I love this part of the world. I can't wait for this.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04To unlock our first secrets, we need a view over the glen,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08and this contraption's going to help us gain some height.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11- So, are you up for it?- I'm really excited. Yeah, looking forward to it.
0:03:11 > 0:03:12- Are you?- But if you want to take a view in,
0:03:12 > 0:03:15what you need is a little secret cheat.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17- How about the gondola? - Oh, yes, I'm in.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27Look at that there, that jump. Come off down those rocks.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Aonach Mor, a mountain just north of Fort William,
0:03:32 > 0:03:35attracts extreme outdoors enthusiasts.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43- Look...- There's jumps!- All these jumps all through the rocks
0:03:43 > 0:03:45- and through the trees. - No, thank you.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51- Ah, that's terrifying speed! - I did part of it once.- Did you?- Yeah.
0:03:51 > 0:03:52How did you get on?
0:03:52 > 0:03:54- Very badly.- Did you? - THEY LAUGH
0:03:59 > 0:04:02But these barren mountains offer a secret source
0:04:02 > 0:04:05of inspiration for a more serene activity.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Jamie Hageman's spent years living here, working as a landscape artist.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14Jamie's artistic eye gives him a unique perspective
0:04:14 > 0:04:18on the secrets of the Highlands that most overlook.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21- You all right, Jamie?- Hello. - Hi, Jamie.- Can we join you?
0:04:21 > 0:04:22Go for it.
0:04:22 > 0:04:24In your workplace.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26That's good. You're good.
0:04:26 > 0:04:27- Thanks.- That's amazing.
0:04:27 > 0:04:28That's brilliant.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31What would you say is the secret to being an artist up here?
0:04:32 > 0:04:36For me, it's all about painting the mountains at their most impressive.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38So it's about finding these hidden viewpoints
0:04:38 > 0:04:41that show the mountains at their best.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44And in the glens, there must be so many secret hidden spots
0:04:44 > 0:04:47that you can get to that people just don't normally go.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49Yes, definitely.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52With Ben Nevis, you've got a broad side above Fort William that's
0:04:52 > 0:04:55the usual way up that I would suggest
0:04:55 > 0:04:57that you head up, round the northeast side,
0:04:57 > 0:05:00and look at the northeast buttress of Ben Nevis.
0:05:00 > 0:05:04- That's amazing.- It's not an obvious viewpoint, but this viewpoint shows
0:05:04 > 0:05:09Ben Nevis looking very alpine and not actually that recognisable.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12I think it's about the viewpoints that aren't obvious,
0:05:12 > 0:05:14- that's the thing.- Lovely.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16You've found all these secret vantage points here,
0:05:16 > 0:05:18in the Highlands. We're here for a few days.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21Can you recommend where we go and see your secret places?
0:05:21 > 0:05:23You've got to climb Britain's highest mountain.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25You've got to climb Ben Nevis.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29But I would recommend climbing it from the northeast side.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32Maybe hire a guide to take you up through the 600-metre cliffs.
0:05:32 > 0:05:33That's for you.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35- THEY LAUGH I'll take that one on.- Anything else?
0:05:35 > 0:05:38- Well, you've heard of the Loch Ness Monster?- Yes.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41There might be other monsters around in Scotland,
0:05:41 > 0:05:43so you could search out one of those.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45- Secret monsters for me. - And what else?
0:05:45 > 0:05:47Well, you've heard of Bonnie Prince Charlie
0:05:47 > 0:05:50and all his hideaways throughout the Highlands.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53- Well, you could try finding one of those.- Good stuff.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55What an adventure. Thank you very much indeed.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01The scale of the Highlands is immense.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Not only is this the most mountainous part of Britain
0:06:04 > 0:06:08but this region's also the least populated part of Europe.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Leaving plenty of space to hide its secrets.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18So, using your suggestions and Jamie's top tips,
0:06:18 > 0:06:21we're going solo for a spell to cover more ground.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25I'm starting with our tallest order -
0:06:25 > 0:06:28find a secret route up Britain's highest mountain.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36This is Jamie's beautiful painting,
0:06:36 > 0:06:41but when you see Ben Nevis for real, it's pretty daunting.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44Now, I'm a farmer, so the great outdoors is no stranger to me,
0:06:44 > 0:06:46but I'm no mountain man.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49And to discover Ben Nevis' secrets,
0:06:49 > 0:06:51I'm going to have to climb up that beast.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59Being Britain's highest mountain, Ben Nevis attracts
0:06:59 > 0:07:01tens of thousands of walkers every year.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07But few explore the north face.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11Its dramatic cliffs make it the mountain's secret side.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18John Lyall has spent 20 years mountaineering in Scotland,
0:07:18 > 0:07:22so who better to uncover Ben Nevis' mysteries?
0:07:22 > 0:07:25So you're going to be my guide up the mountain for the next 24 hours?
0:07:25 > 0:07:26Yeah.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28That's a fairly imposing sight, isn't it?
0:07:28 > 0:07:31I must say, I'm feeling quite nervous about this.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33At least the weather's on our side at the moment.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35Yeah, it's looking super, isn't it?
0:07:41 > 0:07:43So what's the plan then, John?
0:07:43 > 0:07:46Well, we're heading up to the Scottish Mountaineering Club's
0:07:46 > 0:07:49hut at the foot of the cliffs of the north face
0:07:49 > 0:07:51and then we're going to climb the Ledge Route,
0:07:51 > 0:07:53which is actually just straight up above there.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55Crikey, that sounds a bit scary!
0:07:58 > 0:08:00You're a man of the mountains.
0:08:00 > 0:08:02And what is it that makes it so special to you?
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Just everything about the Highlands.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08Favourite climbs, yeah. Definitely some favourite climbs.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11The Cuillins of Skye, that's an area where I did a lot of my first
0:08:11 > 0:08:12scrambling and climbing
0:08:12 > 0:08:16and they're an amazing place above the sea,
0:08:16 > 0:08:19spiky peaks reaching into the sky, and that's a special area.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21But there are lots of them
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and some of them are just hidden little corners
0:08:24 > 0:08:25that not many other people know about.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30It's a hike up to our overnight hut,
0:08:30 > 0:08:33and with every step, the weather clears a bit more
0:08:33 > 0:08:36to reveal the mountain in all its dramatic grandeur.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44Ben Nevis is often wreathed in cloud,
0:08:44 > 0:08:48so it feels like it's enticing me with a secret view all of my own.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51- Is that the summit up there, John? - Yeah. That's it.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55You can just see above that tiny, little patch of snow.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57- Just come out of the cloud? - Yeah.- Amazing!
0:08:57 > 0:08:59Little bit of mist. It's fantastic, isn't it?
0:08:59 > 0:09:02And what are your favourite spots up there, up the ben?
0:09:02 > 0:09:04Well, the summit's pretty good.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09I've climbed Ben Nevis getting on to 100 times or more,
0:09:09 > 0:09:12and you get more connected with it the more time you spend there.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14And have you got some favourite secret spots up there
0:09:14 > 0:09:17- and names of places that you love? - Definitely some favourite
0:09:17 > 0:09:21hidden little corners that not many people go but are real gems, yeah.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28There's really only one gem that I'm interested in right now.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Whereabouts is this Ledge Route then, John?
0:09:33 > 0:09:38- Well, you see this steepish bit of rock up here?- Yeah.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41We go around the left side of that and then up
0:09:41 > 0:09:43onto the crest of the ridge above it.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45And then we go...
0:09:45 > 0:09:47- (up there.)- Crikey!
0:09:47 > 0:09:50What, we're going to walk along there? Are you sure about this?
0:09:50 > 0:09:51Yeah.
0:09:56 > 0:09:57Looks horrible.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03This face of the mountain has numerous secrets
0:10:03 > 0:10:08known only to those bold enough to climb these awe-inspiring cliffs.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11Beneath them, nestles our home for the night.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13No mere bolt hole,
0:10:13 > 0:10:18this is Britain's only alpine hut, and it has its own surprises.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Mountaineers have been exploring Ben Nevis' secrets
0:10:24 > 0:10:25for over 100 years.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30To make it easier to open new routes, the Scottish Mountaineering Club
0:10:30 > 0:10:35built the alpine hut as a permanent base for the harsh north face.
0:10:35 > 0:10:40Opened in 1929, it was named in honour of a local climber,
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Charles Inglis Clark,
0:10:43 > 0:10:45who had been killed during the First World War.
0:10:47 > 0:10:51Since then, the hut has hosted many of Britain's greatest
0:10:51 > 0:10:56climbers in whose footsteps I must follow.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59Here we are, at one of our most famous mountains
0:10:59 > 0:11:03that's full of secret routes and nooks and crannies.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06And the way that I'm going to get up it is supposed to be
0:11:06 > 0:11:08up there somewhere.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11It's really quite daunting.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13Have to see what tomorrow brings.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20While you've had your head in the clouds, Adam,
0:11:20 > 0:11:23I've been looking into the glen's hidden depths.
0:11:27 > 0:11:31There are more than 30,000 lochs in Scotland,
0:11:31 > 0:11:33and you've told us about many magical places
0:11:33 > 0:11:35with water at their heart.
0:11:38 > 0:11:43Of course, the most famous up here is the mighty Loch Ness.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48It was born millions of years ago with the shift of a seismic
0:11:48 > 0:11:49fault line,
0:11:49 > 0:11:53then gouged out by enormous glaciers during the last ice age.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58Loch Ness holds more water than all the lakes
0:11:58 > 0:12:00of England and Wales put together.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04And, of course, it's also home to one of the most famous
0:12:04 > 0:12:06monster mysteries in the world.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12Whether Nessie's here or not, she is a global superstar.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16I'm on the hunt for another monster.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18But this one I won't find in Loch Ness.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25A local tip-off is taking me 30 miles west
0:12:25 > 0:12:27to the magnificent Loch Morar.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40It's wonderfully isolated, easily missed
0:12:40 > 0:12:42if you stick to the tourist trail.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49For some, it's the most beautiful body of water in Britain.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57What's beyond question is it's the deepest -
0:12:57 > 0:12:59plunging down 310 metres,
0:12:59 > 0:13:03that's over 1,000 feet beneath the surface of the loch.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10And try and get your head around just how deep this water is.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14Imagine this, you can stand the Eiffel Tower in the loch
0:13:14 > 0:13:18and still there would be 30 feet of water above it.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22So if you can lose the Eiffel Tower in here,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25what else could be hiding in Loch Morar?
0:13:28 > 0:13:32Rumours of a mysterious monster christened Morag
0:13:32 > 0:13:35have swirled around this loch for over 100 years.
0:13:35 > 0:13:40And to date, there are over 30 reported sightings of Morag.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44But a monster? Really?
0:13:45 > 0:13:47That would be quite some secret.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56If there's one person who can lift the lid on the mysteries of Morar,
0:13:56 > 0:13:59it's Viv De Fresnes who manages the loch.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Go on, tell me about life here.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03It's just all about the peace and the quiet really for me.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05I love it. Yeah.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08We don't allow jet skies or speed boats on it
0:14:08 > 0:14:10to try and keep it as peaceful as this.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14And I love the fish here. Wild trout, you can't beat them.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16And there's salmon and sea trout in the loch as well.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18And obviously the monster.
0:14:18 > 0:14:19Obviously. Obviously the monster.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24Viv has treated all the Morag stories with a fair degree of
0:14:24 > 0:14:28scepticism, but some of his friends, like Ewen MacDonald,
0:14:28 > 0:14:33are absolutely convinced the monster of Morar exists.
0:14:33 > 0:14:34Ewen, how are you doing?
0:14:34 > 0:14:36Hello, yes, fine thanks.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Good. So you're a believer in the monster?
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Yes. I've seen it a couple of times.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44- Oh, you have?- Uh-huh. - Go on, tell me the tale.
0:14:44 > 0:14:47We were cruising here on a motor boat between the islands
0:14:47 > 0:14:48and we seen this wake running in the water.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51We followed it and this head came out of the water
0:14:51 > 0:14:54and you could see this mane on the back of the head
0:14:54 > 0:14:56and it sort of moved around a bit.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59And then the head down and then it disappeared.
0:14:59 > 0:15:00Left a swirl of water.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02What did you think at the time?
0:15:02 > 0:15:03It was a monster, you see.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07Um. Well, a lot of people over the years have seen something
0:15:07 > 0:15:09and some of them are very believable, they really are.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11Well, most of them.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16There's a couple of lads here from Newcastle,
0:15:16 > 0:15:18and they were out fishing for a week.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21And I came up to see how they were getting on.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25And they were sitting in the car park, very agitated.
0:15:25 > 0:15:26I says, "What's the matter?"
0:15:26 > 0:15:30The monster came up beside them, just beside the surface
0:15:30 > 0:15:33beside them. They panicked when they seen this thing.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35And they really were very believable, those two.
0:15:35 > 0:15:37They were very scared.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Even two terrified fishermen couldn't quite convince Viv
0:15:40 > 0:15:43that the monster Morag is real,
0:15:43 > 0:15:46but a recent event may have changed his mind.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49My daughter Fiona and I were over the far side of the loch
0:15:49 > 0:15:52and Fiona said, "What's that, Dad?"
0:15:52 > 0:15:53I looked out on the loch
0:15:53 > 0:15:57and there were these two things about a mile away.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00I've never seen anything like it in 20-odd years on the loch.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03- I managed to get a picture of it. - Let's have a look.- Or them,
0:16:03 > 0:16:05- there's two.- Oh, really?! - See if I can find it here.
0:16:07 > 0:16:09The day before that, I would have stood here and said,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12- "Nah, load of nonsense."- Wow.
0:16:12 > 0:16:14It's not like a boat wash, if you know what I mean.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16Do you know what shocks me about that? It's quite how big...
0:16:16 > 0:16:19They're big things. That's nearly a mile away.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22Could this really be Morag?
0:16:22 > 0:16:25And if it is, why are there two wakes?
0:16:27 > 0:16:29- What do you think it is, then? - I've no idea.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33- I love that.- I really haven't an idea, so...
0:16:33 > 0:16:36The story is that it's land-locked eels, grown huge.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38And there are records of land-locked eels having
0:16:38 > 0:16:40- this membrane-like growth round their heads.- OK.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42- So that could be the mane. - That could be it.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44I certainly don't think it's a monster.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47If there is something out there, I don't think it's a monster
0:16:47 > 0:16:48or a dinosaur of any kind.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50This is about the only dinosaur we've got round here.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53- SHE LAUGHS - How rude. How rude.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59Maybe an eel could grow to a monster size here,
0:16:59 > 0:17:03but I think something else is feeding the mythology of Morag.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06It's the magic of this place.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10And who better ask about the magical secrets of Loch Morar
0:17:10 > 0:17:13and monster Morag than a child?
0:17:13 > 0:17:15Viv's daughter, Fiona.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18So can you remember the day that you and your dad were out
0:17:18 > 0:17:21and you saw what might be the signs of Morag?
0:17:21 > 0:17:26Yeah, I did. We were up over there and I said, "Dad, what was that?"
0:17:26 > 0:17:29Cos there was these two long things swimming in the water.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32So it was you that spotted it first just cos it looked so unusual?
0:17:32 > 0:17:37Yeah. Cos at first I thought it was two eels, but it wasn't.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39Well, I don't know.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43There's no sign of the monster so far
0:17:43 > 0:17:46but the setting of Loch Morar casts its own spell.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50I feel like I'm in a child's adventure story, especially
0:17:50 > 0:17:52with all these enchanting islands.
0:17:53 > 0:17:55You're so lucky having this.
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Tell me about the islands around here.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00- Why are they special to you? - They just seem so magical.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01They're really good to explore
0:18:01 > 0:18:04cos there are loads of little hiding places and trees to climb.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07- Do you have a favourite? - Fairy Island, definitely.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10Fairy Island? Which one is it?
0:18:10 > 0:18:12This one here?
0:18:12 > 0:18:14- What a place.- Yeah.
0:18:14 > 0:18:18- This is your own secret entrance to Fairy Island?- Yeah.
0:18:18 > 0:18:20That's really hidden, isn't it?
0:18:24 > 0:18:27As we glide in towards Fairy Island,
0:18:27 > 0:18:30I feel like I'm entering a land that time forgot.
0:18:32 > 0:18:33Wow.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39It's absolutely magical.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48- It's truly wild out here, isn't it?- Yep.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51- There's not a footpath to be found.- Nope.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55Oh, yeah, this is the viewpoint.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57You could see Morag from up here, couldn't you?
0:18:57 > 0:18:59- Yeah.- What do you think Morag is?
0:18:59 > 0:19:03Like a big kind of fish thing that has flippers like a seal.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06- Oh, right. - But the back like a big dragon.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09And that day that you were out with your dad and he took the photo,
0:19:09 > 0:19:10do you think that was Morag?
0:19:10 > 0:19:12I don't know.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15- Do you think she has a lonely life out there?- No.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18- I think there's six, seven of them. - So they're sociable?
0:19:18 > 0:19:20Yeah, cos there can't only be one.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30I've found it so enjoyable experiencing
0:19:30 > 0:19:34and seeing the loch through the eyes of a child.
0:19:34 > 0:19:35It's inspired me
0:19:35 > 0:19:39to think that if I wait here just a few moments longer,
0:19:39 > 0:19:43I might just catch a glimpse of Morag the monster.
0:19:45 > 0:19:50This landscape feels like a fitting home for myths and legends.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53They've been a bit of a theme in viewers' suggestions.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55Which have taken us all over Britain
0:19:55 > 0:19:57in search of undiscovered stories.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04But right now, I'm tackling a very real kind of secret -
0:20:04 > 0:20:07finding a route up this terrifying-looking mountain.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09Don't let me hold you up.
0:20:11 > 0:20:15I've spent the night in an alpine hut built nearly a century ago
0:20:15 > 0:20:16at the foot of Ben Nevis.
0:20:18 > 0:20:23Yesterday, bathed in sunshine, the ben's north face looked bad
0:20:23 > 0:20:27enough, but now, clothed in mist, it's even more intimidating.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33It's like the mountain is hiding its secrets,
0:20:33 > 0:20:34waiting to catch me unawares.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40I'm glad John's climbed Ben Nevis nearly 100 times.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49So, Adam, I think we'll just stop up here and put our harness
0:20:49 > 0:20:53and helmets on and get roped up.
0:21:00 > 0:21:01Right.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04Things are getting a little bit more serious.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09And I am feeling a bit apprehensive.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13It seems that this journey up the mountain, for me it's all new.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15It's a complete education.
0:21:15 > 0:21:17So you're going to look after me, John, aren't you?
0:21:17 > 0:21:19We're going to look after one another.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28It's not long before it becomes all too clear why we've roped up.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31Goodness me, John.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33It looks like we've come to a mass of cliffs.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35Is this a bit of a dead-end?
0:21:35 > 0:21:39It can look that way with the abyss here in front of us,
0:21:39 > 0:21:41- but we're actually going to cross the gully further up.- Yeah.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44Then we're going to traverse round underneath this big steep cliff
0:21:44 > 0:21:46- and all the way round.- OK.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49- That looks pretty serious down there.- OK.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55Just make sure you get your feet in good, solid footholds
0:21:55 > 0:21:57as you come round there.
0:22:00 > 0:22:05Ledge Route was first opened up in 1893 by some of the pioneers
0:22:05 > 0:22:06of British mountaineering.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11We're walking in the footsteps of giants.
0:22:11 > 0:22:15The route combines scrambles, traverses and climbs...
0:22:15 > 0:22:17There's some loose blocks there.
0:22:17 > 0:22:21..which is why mountaineers view this as a real classic.
0:22:21 > 0:22:23- Right.- OK.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28Until now, at least I've been able to see where I'm going.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32OK, climb when you're ready.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34Just step up to your left there.
0:22:36 > 0:22:37But as the cloud closes in,
0:22:37 > 0:22:40it's like the mountain is toying with us.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43- More exposed here.- OK.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47- Blimey.- Right.
0:22:51 > 0:22:53This is quite a ridge.
0:22:54 > 0:22:59The swirling mist obscures my view, suddenly opening up to reveal
0:22:59 > 0:23:02the hidden, terrifying drops on either side.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05- We'll just stay a little bit away from the edge there.- Yeah.
0:23:05 > 0:23:07Good idea.
0:23:07 > 0:23:08There's some great drops down there.
0:23:10 > 0:23:11OK.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16Crikey, don't want to drop down there.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21It's with some relief that we make it off the ridge
0:23:21 > 0:23:22and onto the plateau.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30I'm no mountaineer yet, but I feel it's quite an achievement to have
0:23:30 > 0:23:32come along that ridge.
0:23:32 > 0:23:36And now the top of Ben Nevis is not far away.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40Groping our way through the mist,
0:23:40 > 0:23:43we could be the only people on the mountain.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49But Ben Nevis has yet another secret to reveal.
0:23:52 > 0:23:53Goodness me, John!
0:23:53 > 0:23:56We come round the corner from a desolate mountainside
0:23:56 > 0:23:58with no people and now there's quite a crowd.
0:24:02 > 0:24:03What's going on?
0:24:03 > 0:24:08Well, this is the Ben Nevis Hill Race. It's an annual event.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10Oh, my word. Cause an accident.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14'Suddenly I feel a little...overdressed.'
0:24:14 > 0:24:17They're going at a fair old pace, aren't they?
0:24:17 > 0:24:18That's the way to go, isn't it?
0:24:18 > 0:24:21How long does it take them to run up and run down?
0:24:21 > 0:24:24Er, quicker than us!
0:24:24 > 0:24:26HE LAUGHS
0:24:26 > 0:24:29That's all very well, but they haven't had to climb
0:24:29 > 0:24:31the northeast face.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35They ran up the walkers' route instead. That has to be cheating.
0:24:36 > 0:24:41Apparently, 400 people take part every year and the top runners
0:24:41 > 0:24:46will climb to the summit and race back down in just over 90 minutes!
0:24:46 > 0:24:47Astonishing!
0:24:48 > 0:24:51Let's go and put my hand on this final summit.
0:24:53 > 0:24:55The mountain has one final secret,
0:24:55 > 0:24:59one that even those who make this most demanding of ascents
0:24:59 > 0:25:01often fail to discover.
0:25:01 > 0:25:05What are all these rocky shapes in the mist then, John?
0:25:05 > 0:25:08They're old ruins of the weather observatory,
0:25:08 > 0:25:10meteorological observatory,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13that was up here from 1883 until 1904.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18That was when the Victorians' excitement with science
0:25:18 > 0:25:19reached fever pitch.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23Then this weather station was intended to reveal
0:25:23 > 0:25:26the secrets of the Earth's atmosphere.
0:25:26 > 0:25:2921 years it was manned all the time, storms all sorts of things, yeah.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32Quite an experience living up here doing that.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35Hmm, I think I know why they shut it down.
0:25:35 > 0:25:371883 -
0:25:37 > 0:25:39cloudy, cold.
0:25:39 > 0:25:411884 -
0:25:41 > 0:25:43cloudy, cold.
0:25:43 > 0:25:461885 - cold, cloudy.
0:25:50 > 0:25:55Finally, I've reached the top, the highest point in Britain.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58- Hey, hey.- Well done.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01- Thank you for looking after me. - Not at all.
0:26:01 > 0:26:03Well done.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05- The route OK?- Not too bad. Not too bad.
0:26:05 > 0:26:06Just got to get back down again now.
0:26:11 > 0:26:13I think I can feel the sun coming out.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17'It seems wishful thinking...'
0:26:17 > 0:26:19The mist is clearing.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23'..but as we descend, the mountain reveals what's been hidden.'
0:26:23 > 0:26:28- Beautiful! What a view. - Loch Linnhe, Loch Eil.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30Fort William is where?
0:26:30 > 0:26:32- Just down here... - Over there, just over the edge?
0:26:32 > 0:26:35- You're just seeing the edge of it. - Beautiful.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37And the halfway loch just down here.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48Nearly 26 hours after setting off,
0:26:48 > 0:26:52I'm relieved to be back at the beginning.
0:26:52 > 0:26:53Well, I have to say,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55I was pretty nervous about climbing
0:26:55 > 0:26:59Ben Nevis, but having done it, I can really understand why
0:26:59 > 0:27:03mountaineers like John are drawn to these extraordinary places,
0:27:03 > 0:27:07and I feel quite privileged to have shared the secrets
0:27:07 > 0:27:10of the highest mountain in the UK.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23If, like us, you're on a hunt for Highland secrets...
0:27:23 > 0:27:25It's great to go by foot.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29The right to roam in Scotland means you're pretty much free
0:27:29 > 0:27:31to explore wherever your legs can take you.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36But 70-odd years ago, access to areas around Fort William
0:27:36 > 0:27:38was tightly restricted.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47Even locals had to carry passes and paperwork.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Because this was a landscape in lockdown.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53That's because, during the Second World War,
0:27:53 > 0:27:57this area of the Highlands became a top secret training ground.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01The rugged terrain was ideal for training a new elite force.
0:28:03 > 0:28:04The Commandos.
0:28:11 > 0:28:16From 1940 onwards, men tested their mettle in these mountains.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19The Great Glen and the surrounding area rang with
0:28:19 > 0:28:23gunfire as Commando warfare was invented here in secret.
0:28:23 > 0:28:27I tell you what, having climbed up Ben Nevis, using that as their
0:28:27 > 0:28:31training ground, these guys must have been as tough as old boots.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36But the Commandos weren't the first military figures
0:28:36 > 0:28:38to operate in this part of the Highlands.
0:28:42 > 0:28:46250 years ago, the king's troops were combing the hills
0:28:46 > 0:28:48and glens for an enemy of the state.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53Now, somewhere around here, so the story goes,
0:28:53 > 0:28:57is the secret hiding place of the Young Pretender to the
0:28:57 > 0:29:00British Throne - Bonnie Prince Charlie.
0:29:00 > 0:29:03- What we've got to do is try and find it.- Yes.
0:29:06 > 0:29:09The grandson of James II, Britain's last Catholic king,
0:29:09 > 0:29:14Bonnie Prince Charlie vowed to overthrow George II, a Protestant.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19But the prince's rebellion was to end in defeat
0:29:19 > 0:29:20at the Battle of Culloden.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27Branded a traitor, the Bonnie Prince was forced to flee.
0:29:28 > 0:29:32Pursued by the government's redcoats, he took refuge in a succession
0:29:32 > 0:29:35of caves and other hideaways right across the Highlands.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41One of those secret hiding places is reputed to be nearby.
0:29:42 > 0:29:44- Oh, look at this.- Wow.
0:29:44 > 0:29:47- Wow, this is a good one. - Spectacular!
0:29:48 > 0:29:50- Lovely, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53- Right, let's get the map out. - Are we anywhere near?
0:29:53 > 0:29:58Well, if my map-reading's correct, I reckon this cave
0:29:58 > 0:30:02must be up behind the waterfall there somewhere.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06So, as much as you'd like to go for a swim, maybe we should get on.
0:30:06 > 0:30:07Another time.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14Today, this is all Forestry Commission land.
0:30:14 > 0:30:16These trees are new growth.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20But back in 1745, this was all open moor.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23Swarming with redcoats, it would provide scant comfort
0:30:23 > 0:30:26for a pampered prince on the run.
0:30:26 > 0:30:28BATTLE CRY
0:30:28 > 0:30:31But making his way from one hiding place to another,
0:30:31 > 0:30:34the Young Pretender wrote his name into the very fabric
0:30:34 > 0:30:35of the Highland landscape.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41Now, Ellie, according to the map,
0:30:41 > 0:30:43this cave that Bonnie Prince Charlie hid away in,
0:30:43 > 0:30:47- is somewhere up there.- Let's crack on, these midges are killing me.
0:30:47 > 0:30:48They're horrible, aren't they?
0:30:54 > 0:30:57- It could well be up here, that view's amazing.- It is, isn't it?
0:30:57 > 0:30:59- You could see the enemy coming. - Yeah,
0:30:59 > 0:31:00and he was running for his life.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06It's got to be round here somewhere.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10There's a bit of a hole there.
0:31:11 > 0:31:14That's a foxhole, that's not going to fit Bonnie Prince Charlie
0:31:14 > 0:31:16- in there. - HE LAUGHS
0:31:16 > 0:31:18Or maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm wrong.
0:31:20 > 0:31:22- Are we going up? - Yeah, let's go up here.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27- Ohh.- Look, that is. - Yeah, you're right.
0:31:27 > 0:31:29It's the back of the cave. It's tiny, isn't it?
0:31:29 > 0:31:31SHE LAUGHS Good hiding place.
0:31:31 > 0:31:34- You'd never be discovered in there. - Go on, climb in.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36- No creature comforts. After you. - HE LAUGHS
0:31:36 > 0:31:38You're the red-headed Celt.
0:31:38 > 0:31:40- THEY LAUGH - Go on.- All right.
0:31:43 > 0:31:44Crumbs.
0:31:45 > 0:31:47If you did get discovered though,
0:31:47 > 0:31:50- you've got no way of running away.- No.
0:31:50 > 0:31:52You're just stuck in here.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54Come on, Ellie, there's room for two.
0:31:54 > 0:31:56- There isn't.- You can be my guard.
0:31:56 > 0:32:00Look at this. How the mighty fall.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03- He went from leading men to living in a...- I know, on the run.
0:32:03 > 0:32:05..a tiny hovel like this.
0:32:05 > 0:32:07- At least the midges aren't coming in.- That's a bonus.
0:32:07 > 0:32:09Looking on the bright side.
0:32:09 > 0:32:13- He didn't bother scratching his name on the wall, did he?- No, he didn't.
0:32:17 > 0:32:19He did have a good view, though.
0:32:21 > 0:32:22He certainly did.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25Although he didn't have much time to look at it. He had to keep running.
0:32:25 > 0:32:26True enough.
0:32:26 > 0:32:28Shame I didn't bring some whisky.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33Only these mountains now know whether Bonnie Prince Charlie
0:32:33 > 0:32:36really stood here, scanning for signs of pursuit.
0:32:39 > 0:32:42But he did spend five months on the run,
0:32:42 > 0:32:45scrambling from one bolt hole to the next,
0:32:45 > 0:32:49before eventually escaping to France...never to return.
0:32:55 > 0:32:59He has, however, become a figure of romantic legend
0:32:59 > 0:33:02and I must admit, I'm keen to see what other secrets
0:33:02 > 0:33:05might be associated with the prince's adventures here.
0:33:07 > 0:33:09Ah, Ellie, you're not alone.
0:33:09 > 0:33:14Romance, legend and drama draw millions of tourists
0:33:14 > 0:33:15to Scotland every year.
0:33:18 > 0:33:22Amongst the sights they come to see...are islands like Skye.
0:33:27 > 0:33:28Peaks like Ben Nevis.
0:33:30 > 0:33:35And the mythological depths of places like Loch Ness.
0:33:37 > 0:33:41However, there is one problem many visitors face.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44The mountains make it difficult terrain to travel through.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47And in the Highlands, the wiggly routes make it difficult
0:33:47 > 0:33:49to visualise where everything is.
0:33:49 > 0:33:52What you're trying to say is, people get lost.
0:33:52 > 0:33:56Indeed, but there is a secret solution to this problem,
0:33:56 > 0:33:58one which you've tipped us off about.
0:34:00 > 0:34:04The secret's to be found in Eddleston, near Peebles,
0:34:04 > 0:34:06in the grounds of this hotel.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14Hunt around and you'll come across an incredible guide
0:34:14 > 0:34:15to Scottish geography.
0:34:16 > 0:34:20One which Keith Burns stumbled across completely by accident
0:34:20 > 0:34:24when he was visiting the hotel in 1996.
0:34:24 > 0:34:29I walked into this clearing and saw this pit,
0:34:29 > 0:34:32full of undergrowth, it was a jungle.
0:34:32 > 0:34:34And looking down into the undergrowth,
0:34:34 > 0:34:37I thought I saw a shape that looked like the Mull of Galloway
0:34:37 > 0:34:39because the Mull of Galloway's a very characteristic shape.
0:34:39 > 0:34:41I thought, no, I'm imagining things.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44This is silly. But if that's the Mull of Galloway,
0:34:44 > 0:34:49there should be an island where the Isle of Arran is.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52And I walked in the direction of where Arran would be
0:34:52 > 0:34:55and I found the Isle of Arran.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58Ten minutes later, having walked over Ben Nevis
0:34:58 > 0:35:02and the northwest Highlands, I was at Cape Wrath.
0:35:02 > 0:35:05Absolutely astonished to have realised that
0:35:05 > 0:35:08this was a three-dimensional topographic model
0:35:08 > 0:35:11of the whole of Scotland. I was absolutely stunned.
0:35:12 > 0:35:16What Keith had stumbled upon was this...
0:35:16 > 0:35:20the largest three-dimensional map in the world.
0:35:24 > 0:35:29Incredibly it had been lost, completely overgrown,
0:35:29 > 0:35:33a secret hidden in the grounds of the hotel and ignored for years.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38It had been commissioned by this man, Jan Tomasik,
0:35:38 > 0:35:41the hotel's owner in the 1970s.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46Originally from Poland, Jan was stationed in Scotland
0:35:46 > 0:35:51and fought in Normandy during World War II. He never went home.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54Confronted with queries about Scottish geography
0:35:54 > 0:35:59from his hotel guests, Jan built this enormous map in the grounds.
0:35:59 > 0:36:04Sadly, he was forced to sell the hotel before it was completed
0:36:04 > 0:36:05and the project was abandoned.
0:36:05 > 0:36:09Condemned to disappear in the undergrowth for years.
0:36:11 > 0:36:14Since rediscovering it, Keith has raised funds
0:36:14 > 0:36:18and an army of volunteers to complete Jan Tomasik's vision.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23Having been overgrown, there's still work to do.
0:36:23 > 0:36:29But the map is already a testament to its Polish creator's amazing vision.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32That's thanks to its original design,
0:36:32 > 0:36:36scaled down to the millimetre by architectural students.
0:36:36 > 0:36:43For a one-in-10,000 scale 3D map, the accuracy I find quite amazing.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49Keith's team hope the map will become a tourist attraction
0:36:49 > 0:36:52in its own right, one which celebrates the secret links
0:36:52 > 0:36:55between Scotland and Poland.
0:36:56 > 0:37:02The connections between Poland and Scotland go back 400 years or so.
0:37:02 > 0:37:07Initially, there were a lot of Scottish immigrants to Poland,
0:37:07 > 0:37:10merchants, mercenaries, craftsmen,
0:37:10 > 0:37:14and Bonnie Prince Charlie's mother was Polish.
0:37:14 > 0:37:18So the importance of the map is about the connections
0:37:18 > 0:37:21between the Polish and Scottish people.
0:37:21 > 0:37:25The eventual aim is to flood the pit, as Tomasik intended,
0:37:25 > 0:37:28so that the water forms the lochs and seas
0:37:28 > 0:37:31that give Scotland her distinctive shape and character.
0:37:31 > 0:37:36We hope we can leave the map in the state
0:37:36 > 0:37:39that Jan Tomasik would be pleased with.
0:37:39 > 0:37:44And then hopefully there'll be enough local community involvement
0:37:44 > 0:37:48that it'll be adopted and looked after for the future.
0:38:07 > 0:38:09Your insights have revealed many secrets
0:38:09 > 0:38:11as we've travelled around Britain.
0:38:11 > 0:38:14But now I'm following my own instincts.
0:38:14 > 0:38:18My quest to discover more about Bonnie Prince Charlie
0:38:18 > 0:38:21has led me to an isolated spot on the west coast of Scotland.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28Bonnie Prince Charlie landed just across the water from here
0:38:28 > 0:38:31in the summer of 1745.
0:38:31 > 0:38:34He'd sailed from France to begin a battle not just for the control
0:38:34 > 0:38:37of the country but for its very soul.
0:38:44 > 0:38:46It was a time of huge religious conflict,
0:38:46 > 0:38:49when kings were crowned as much for their religion
0:38:49 > 0:38:50as for their ancestry.
0:38:53 > 0:38:56The Highlands were a Catholic stronghold,
0:38:56 > 0:38:59making them a natural power base for Bonnie Prince Charlie's attempt
0:38:59 > 0:39:03to overthrow the Protestant King George II.
0:39:03 > 0:39:06However, when the Young Pretender's rebellion failed
0:39:06 > 0:39:09his supporters here would pay a bloody price.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14New fortresses were built across the Highlands,
0:39:14 > 0:39:17garrisons for thousands of the king's men.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21Catholicism was outlawed.
0:39:21 > 0:39:24The clans were brutally suppressed.
0:39:24 > 0:39:28Even the wearing of tartan was banned.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31Anyone who raised a voice at the draconian measures
0:39:31 > 0:39:33was ruthlessly dealt with.
0:39:35 > 0:39:40But the battle for the soul of the Highlands continued...in secret.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46Facing the complete loss of their culture,
0:39:46 > 0:39:49Catholic Scots established a network of secret hiding places
0:39:49 > 0:39:53across the Highlands, to train new priests.
0:39:53 > 0:39:57From locations disguised to look like innocent farm houses,
0:39:57 > 0:40:00priests would disperse across the countryside.
0:40:00 > 0:40:01They slept rough in the heather,
0:40:01 > 0:40:04giving them their name, heather priests.
0:40:04 > 0:40:08Constantly on the move to avoid detection by the authorities.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17I've joined writer Ann Lindsay to walk to one of the communities
0:40:17 > 0:40:20that relied on these so-called heather priests
0:40:20 > 0:40:22to keep their faith alive.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26It's so remote that even now the only way to get there
0:40:26 > 0:40:28is by boat or on foot.
0:40:28 > 0:40:31Wow, they're, sort of, revealed to you all of a sudden, these houses.
0:40:31 > 0:40:34- I know, it's like a little secret village.- Yeah.
0:40:34 > 0:40:38And there's more, you know, just round the corner and spread around.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40Some are still ruined.
0:40:40 > 0:40:42But no church?
0:40:42 > 0:40:48No church because this was the time when Catholicism almost died out.
0:40:48 > 0:40:52So how did people who were Catholic take mass?
0:40:52 > 0:40:54Well, somehow the word would have gone around
0:40:54 > 0:40:56and so everybody would gather, down on the beach,
0:40:56 > 0:40:59because the heather priest had to be able to leave very fast
0:40:59 > 0:41:02and there's a story, how 1,000 people gathered
0:41:02 > 0:41:06right down on the beach to hear mass.
0:41:06 > 0:41:08This hamlet is a time capsule,
0:41:08 > 0:41:12it remains much as it was in those dark days.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17The people here lived in fear of reprisal
0:41:17 > 0:41:20but it was the heather priests who were most at risk.
0:41:20 > 0:41:23They knew that the mere act of holding a mass
0:41:23 > 0:41:27- could result in brutal punishment. - SCREAMING
0:41:29 > 0:41:32If they were caught the first time, practising mass,
0:41:32 > 0:41:34the heather priest would be banished.
0:41:34 > 0:41:36The second time, they would be executed.
0:41:47 > 0:41:49Eventually their faith won through.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52As the perceived threat the Highlanders posed
0:41:52 > 0:41:56to the Crown receded, the Acts that banned Catholicism were repealed.
0:41:58 > 0:42:02The clouds that hung over this remote hamlet disappeared,
0:42:02 > 0:42:05to be replaced by a sense of timelessness and magic.
0:42:09 > 0:42:13I've written about all sorts of secret and mystical places,
0:42:13 > 0:42:17and of all the places that I've found, this is my favourite.
0:42:17 > 0:42:22- It is absolutely like a little lost world.- Wonderful. Wonderful!
0:42:24 > 0:42:29It's a stunning spot, an unlikely front-line in a secret battle
0:42:29 > 0:42:31for the soul of the Highlands.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36The heather priests have long since faded into history
0:42:36 > 0:42:40but it's wonderful to wander in their secret steps.
0:42:46 > 0:42:50Thanks to your suggestions, we're uncovering all sorts of secrets
0:42:50 > 0:42:52as we're exploring the Highlands.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57From the mountain highs, to the depths of its lochs,
0:42:57 > 0:43:00you've inspired us to take a fresh look
0:43:00 > 0:43:02at some of Britain's most glorious countryside.
0:43:04 > 0:43:07Now, you can take the boy out of the farm...
0:43:07 > 0:43:09But you can't take farming out of the boy.
0:43:09 > 0:43:14Yes, there's one story that piqued my farming interest.
0:43:14 > 0:43:19You know, the last thing I expected to find in the Scottish Highlands
0:43:19 > 0:43:23was this, an American-style cattle ranch.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25Yee-ha!
0:43:30 > 0:43:33People have always struggled to bring large scale agriculture
0:43:33 > 0:43:35to the Highlands.
0:43:35 > 0:43:37With steep slopes and large areas of bog,
0:43:37 > 0:43:42the land hasn't leant itself to the kind of mixed farms like mine.
0:43:44 > 0:43:48Instead these mountains have largely been the preserve of sheep,
0:43:48 > 0:43:52which flourish despite the difficult conditions.
0:43:52 > 0:43:57So what possessed anybody to try and establish a cattle ranch here?
0:43:58 > 0:44:06I mean, it's a vision of the Midwest that even has a cowboy and a cowgirl.
0:44:06 > 0:44:10It's all thanks to an extraordinary character called Joe Hobbs,
0:44:10 > 0:44:12a Brit who'd ranched in Canada.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17I'm meeting the present-day owners, Paolo and Elspeth Berardelli,
0:44:17 > 0:44:19to find out more.
0:44:19 > 0:44:22Hobbs had a bit of a vision that this land could produce a lot more.
0:44:22 > 0:44:24It was relatively unproductive, I think.
0:44:24 > 0:44:27It had some sheep on it but he saw the land as very similar
0:44:27 > 0:44:32to the land that he'd ranched in Alberta and he decided to buy it.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35He transformed the place, draining it, doing all sorts, you know.
0:44:35 > 0:44:38And these are some of the pictures, are they?
0:44:38 > 0:44:41Yeah, this is the ranch in it's...in its heyday, so...
0:44:41 > 0:44:44Here they are bringing in the cattle into our yards,
0:44:44 > 0:44:47which are still very much as they were then.
0:44:47 > 0:44:48Wonderful, isn't it?
0:44:50 > 0:44:54Hobbs' massive project was designed to turn the boggy,
0:44:54 > 0:44:58tussock-covered land of the Highlands into grassy pastures,
0:44:58 > 0:45:01capable of producing enough good-quality feed
0:45:01 > 0:45:04for a large herd of cattle during the long winter months.
0:45:07 > 0:45:12And in 1950s Scotland, it was a revolutionary idea.
0:45:14 > 0:45:18Ever the showman, Joe Hobbs convinced Pathe News
0:45:18 > 0:45:21to feature his audacious project.
0:45:21 > 0:45:24- ANNOUNCER:- Starting with a herd of 70 Angus Herefords,
0:45:24 > 0:45:26JW Hobbs, a Briton who once ranched in Canada,
0:45:26 > 0:45:29has raised his stock in seven years to over 1,000.
0:45:29 > 0:45:34And all on land where men thought no sizeable herd could ever find feed.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38All the Scottish cattlemen had to wear tam-o'-shanters and...
0:45:38 > 0:45:41everything on horseback, riding around.
0:45:41 > 0:45:43I think it was quite...it must have been quite a sight, you know?
0:45:43 > 0:45:47And a lot of people, they had a lot, a lot of men working on the place.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56The family still uses horses to help wrangle the cattle.
0:45:56 > 0:46:01So I'm joining Anna and Fergus for a Wild West-style round up.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04Come on, horse! Walk on, walk on.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06Come on, horse. And, er...
0:46:09 > 0:46:11HE LAUGHS
0:46:14 > 0:46:16I'm not quite as nimble as the children,
0:46:16 > 0:46:18who are already showing me up.
0:46:18 > 0:46:20And, er, there we go.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24And, thankfully, I've got a lovely steady Highland pony
0:46:24 > 0:46:27to look after me. Walk on, then so I can get my foot in.
0:46:27 > 0:46:33Oh, hello! Ah, it's all gone wrong. HE LAUGHS
0:46:34 > 0:46:38We're off to round up some cattle that have strayed from the main herd.
0:46:38 > 0:46:41Wait for me. Tck-tck, tck-tck.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57Heyup, hup-hup-hup-hup-hup-hup.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00WHISTLING
0:47:01 > 0:47:03At least I look at home on the range...
0:47:04 > 0:47:06..if not on a horse.
0:47:07 > 0:47:09This is absolutely brilliant.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13I have to let you into a secret. When I was a boy, I wanted to be a cowboy,
0:47:13 > 0:47:16but on a motorbike...cos I'm rubbish on a horse.
0:47:16 > 0:47:18Come on, then, walk on.
0:47:20 > 0:47:22WHISTLING
0:47:22 > 0:47:26At the moment, Anna's rounding up the cattle...
0:47:26 > 0:47:29and Fergus is rounding up...me.
0:47:29 > 0:47:32- He's a bit of a plodder. - Go on, walk on.
0:47:32 > 0:47:33Ferg', watch that one.
0:47:35 > 0:47:37Well, it's not exactly been Blazing Saddles
0:47:37 > 0:47:42but after just over an hour, we've reunited the herd.
0:47:42 > 0:47:44Great job, team!
0:47:44 > 0:47:49Now, I'm looking forward to those cowboy staples - coffee and beans.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51Living the dream. Living the dream.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53Shall we head back to the ranch?
0:47:53 > 0:47:57Let's go, horses roll. Tck-tck, tck-tck. Come on.
0:48:08 > 0:48:12This big country invites those with grand schemes to make their mark.
0:48:14 > 0:48:18The mighty Caledonian Canal links the lochs together,
0:48:18 > 0:48:21making a secret watery highway,
0:48:21 > 0:48:24its epic scale only appreciated from the air.
0:48:26 > 0:48:30Surrounding this waterway, rock rises up in grand salute.
0:48:36 > 0:48:39Yet in the midst of all this majestic landscape
0:48:39 > 0:48:45is a hidden Highland secret that's very human and deeply personal.
0:48:45 > 0:48:48Which is why I've come to the Black Isle, near Inverness
0:48:48 > 0:48:52at the northern end of the Great Glen.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55When we asked you to share your secret places with us,
0:48:55 > 0:48:58we heard about a rather mysterious tradition.
0:48:58 > 0:49:02Now a cloot in Scots is a piece of cloth, like this.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06And somehow these cloots are tied up with a secret,
0:49:06 > 0:49:11intensely private ritual, at something called a clootie well.
0:49:15 > 0:49:19I know the tradition is something to do with hanging cloots, or cloths,
0:49:19 > 0:49:21in a tree.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25Whatever it is, there's a distinctly otherworldly feel to this place,
0:49:25 > 0:49:31created by an ancient custom sitting side-by-side with our modern world.
0:49:31 > 0:49:33Wow, there's more revealing themselves.
0:49:33 > 0:49:36Oh, they're quite far flung from the path,
0:49:36 > 0:49:39they're all out across the trees.
0:49:40 > 0:49:44Clearly, whatever tradition was going on years ago,
0:49:44 > 0:49:46is still very much alive today.
0:49:48 > 0:49:49Goodness.
0:49:50 > 0:49:56They're certainly increasing in number...everywhere you look.
0:49:56 > 0:49:59Oh, my word, look at this.
0:49:59 > 0:50:01It feels like the whole wood is full of them.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07Every branch...is covered.
0:50:07 > 0:50:10It looks a bit like a festival from years ago
0:50:10 > 0:50:11and everything's just been left.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19I've arranged to meet Dr Alix Powers-Jones,
0:50:19 > 0:50:22who's going to reveal the ritual of the Clootie Well.
0:50:22 > 0:50:27- Hi, Alix.- Hello.- There's even more of them.- They're everywhere.
0:50:27 > 0:50:31- It never ends. So this is the Clootie Well, then?- It is.
0:50:31 > 0:50:34- Right, what's that all about?- The Clootie Well's all about the water.
0:50:34 > 0:50:36It's in fact not a well, it's a spring
0:50:36 > 0:50:38that comes out underneath the hill.
0:50:38 > 0:50:42- How long have people been coming here?- It's a pre-Christian, Iron Age
0:50:42 > 0:50:45Celtic tradition, so potentially thousands of years.
0:50:45 > 0:50:48And people came to ask for something.
0:50:48 > 0:50:52- So it's all for good luck?- More likely for this particular spring,
0:50:52 > 0:50:54it was about the health of children.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57What they would do is they would dip their rag in the water,
0:50:57 > 0:51:01say you'd got a headache, they would rub it on your head
0:51:01 > 0:51:03and then they would tie the cloot to a branch.
0:51:03 > 0:51:07So instead of you decaying, you being ill, or dying,
0:51:07 > 0:51:09it was the rag that would decay.
0:51:11 > 0:51:14Once, the neighbouring road would have been a pilgrims' route.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16Now, it's the A832.
0:51:19 > 0:51:22But the well still attracts visitors in the know,
0:51:22 > 0:51:25which is why there are cloots as far as the eye can see.
0:51:28 > 0:51:30Why do you think people still come,
0:51:30 > 0:51:32even though we've got the Health Service?
0:51:32 > 0:51:36It's like any superstition. Why do you not go under a ladder?
0:51:36 > 0:51:38Why do you throw a coin in a well?
0:51:38 > 0:51:41It's exactly that same persistence of old traditions,
0:51:41 > 0:51:45- old superstitions.- You can see all these trees are completely covered.
0:51:45 > 0:51:49- Where is the well?- The well, the spring is actually down
0:51:49 > 0:51:51nearer the road, do we want to go and have a look?
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Yeah, let's take a look.
0:52:02 > 0:52:05- Yes, that's not much of a well. - No, it's definitely a spring.
0:52:05 > 0:52:08- THEY LAUGH - But people left rags, cloots.
0:52:08 > 0:52:12We think of rags as almost worthless.
0:52:12 > 0:52:16But certainly a couple of hundred years ago or 1,000 years ago,
0:52:16 > 0:52:19cloth was very valuable. You perhaps had only one skirt
0:52:19 > 0:52:21and a pinafore and a top.
0:52:21 > 0:52:25If you had a cloot that you cooked in, that you prepared puddings
0:52:25 > 0:52:29or dumplings in, it would be passed from mother to daughter.
0:52:29 > 0:52:34They were valuable things. So to give it away, to hang it in a tree
0:52:34 > 0:52:36and to say, "I'm not having it any more,"
0:52:36 > 0:52:39- was a significant thing to do. - You wanted a wish in return.
0:52:39 > 0:52:41- You wanted something in return. - Absolutely.
0:52:41 > 0:52:44- And to that end, do you have a cloot with you?- I do.- Right.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46- I have a cloot with me in my pocket, there we go.- OK.
0:52:46 > 0:52:49- I shall leave you to your moment. - Thank you.- Thanks very much, Alix.
0:52:49 > 0:52:51- Thank you.- Bye-bye. Bye.
0:53:03 > 0:53:08The secret traditions of our ancient ancestors are still very much alive
0:53:08 > 0:53:10in this shrine to healing.
0:53:10 > 0:53:14It seems hope springs eternal in the human heart.
0:53:19 > 0:53:24Your suggestions have inspired us to take a journey round the Great Glen.
0:53:24 > 0:53:27And it's revealed all sorts of secrets, from the mysterious...
0:53:27 > 0:53:31At first I thought it was two eels. But...it wasn't.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34- To the mystifying...- At least the midges aren't coming in.
0:53:34 > 0:53:38- Looking on the bright side. - That's good.
0:53:38 > 0:53:40But now we're in search of the magical.
0:53:42 > 0:53:43I reckon we're nearly there.
0:53:43 > 0:53:46- There's a bit of a clearing on this corner.- Yeah.
0:53:46 > 0:53:48Got to be a view from there, hasn't there?
0:53:48 > 0:53:51- I'm not going to look until the last second.- Don't look, don't look!
0:53:51 > 0:53:55- Are you ready? Wait for it. Wow! - What a view!
0:53:58 > 0:54:01That's really incredible with the mountains just falling down
0:54:01 > 0:54:02into the loch.
0:54:08 > 0:54:12This is the Glenfinnan Viaduct.
0:54:12 > 0:54:14Completed in 1898,
0:54:14 > 0:54:18it was the largest concrete engineering project in Britain.
0:54:22 > 0:54:24And over 100 years later,
0:54:24 > 0:54:28the 21-arch construction still takes the breath away.
0:54:28 > 0:54:31- That's glorious, isn't it? - It really is.
0:54:31 > 0:54:36- I don't think I could dream up a view as good as that.- Incredible.
0:54:36 > 0:54:39Overlooking the magnificent Loch Shiel,
0:54:39 > 0:54:44the viaduct owes much of its recent fame to a certain boy wizard.
0:54:50 > 0:54:52Can you just hear that there coming?
0:54:52 > 0:54:55I can, yeah. APPROACHING TRAIN
0:54:55 > 0:54:58- Look, I can see the steam. - Oh, yeah, yeah!
0:54:58 > 0:55:00Oh, wow!
0:55:05 > 0:55:10- The Hogwarts Express! Harry Potter rides again.- Yeah!
0:55:10 > 0:55:13- A train full of wizards. - HE LAUGHS
0:55:14 > 0:55:17Oh, what are we doing up here? We should be on it.
0:55:17 > 0:55:20Well, you're always calling me an old witch, let's see what I can do.
0:55:20 > 0:55:22BELL CHIMES Goodness me, here we are.
0:55:22 > 0:55:24You really have got magical powers.
0:55:24 > 0:55:26I told you I was a witch and you will be nice to me,
0:55:26 > 0:55:29or I'll turn you into a frog.
0:55:29 > 0:55:31- This is amazing.- Look at this.
0:55:31 > 0:55:33The views are still good from here.
0:55:33 > 0:55:35In fact, this carriage is where they filmed.
0:55:35 > 0:55:38- I'm sitting where Harry Potter sat. - You are Ron Weasley.
0:55:38 > 0:55:41I am him. SHE LAUGHS
0:55:41 > 0:55:44I'm not quite Hermione but I'll do my best.
0:55:52 > 0:55:56The real secret of this train isn't starring as the Hogwarts Express
0:55:56 > 0:55:57for Harry Potter.
0:55:59 > 0:56:03The revelation is the glorious countryside it passes.
0:56:03 > 0:56:06Views which cast their own magic spell.
0:56:09 > 0:56:13It also has a surprising past.
0:56:13 > 0:56:15What was this train originally used for then? Do you know?
0:56:15 > 0:56:18So, this line was originally built to transport the herring
0:56:18 > 0:56:20- down to London.- Oh, right.
0:56:20 > 0:56:22Now, I think, it's just tourists, tourists, tourists,
0:56:22 > 0:56:25enjoying these incredible views.
0:56:25 > 0:56:28Running between Fort William, at the foot of Ben Nevis
0:56:28 > 0:56:33and Mallaig, where ferries depart for Skye and the Outer Hebrides,
0:56:33 > 0:56:36the track unites mountains and the sea.
0:56:37 > 0:56:41Well, it's a lot easier than walking up Ben Nevis, I can tell you.
0:56:41 > 0:56:42That's for sure.
0:56:47 > 0:56:52Oh, there's some beaches. That is beautiful.
0:56:52 > 0:56:54There's barely a soul, it's lovely.
0:56:57 > 0:56:59The track terminates at the sea.
0:56:59 > 0:57:03But our journey through Secret Britain isn't quite over yet.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12Ahh, we're here.
0:57:12 > 0:57:15- I've got one more secret for you. - All right, come on.
0:57:15 > 0:57:19It's a bit of a hike but Adam's secret site is worth the effort.
0:57:36 > 0:57:40- This is a beautiful spot to end, isn't it?- It really is.
0:57:40 > 0:57:42- I thought you'd like it.- Love this.
0:57:42 > 0:57:47For me, you know, those rugged, unforgiving tops of Ben Nevis,
0:57:47 > 0:57:51down to the beautiful, tranquil coastline with the sunset
0:57:51 > 0:57:53- just couldn't be better.- Mmm.
0:57:53 > 0:57:58This is a lovely end. Look at that sun now behind the mountains.
0:57:59 > 0:58:01It's beautiful.
0:58:01 > 0:58:05People forget how many wonderful places and amazing secrets
0:58:05 > 0:58:07- we have across the UK.- Hmm.
0:58:07 > 0:58:11- Where next?- Well, we need a few suggestions, don't we?
0:58:11 > 0:58:13And that's where you come in.
0:58:13 > 0:58:17We'd love you to share your secret places, hidden stories...
0:58:17 > 0:58:23- And magical mysteries.- So we can share more of Secret Britain.
0:58:23 > 0:58:26Visit our website...
0:58:29 > 0:58:30..to get in touch.