It’s a lament I’ve uttered too many times. Sitting on a sweeping west coast beach under glowering skies drinking in the world of nature, but all the time wondering why the stories of man in these vast landscapes are never told enough, why they are never properly preserved. Well there is now balm for my laments as the ambitious, dynamic new community-led COAST project is mining the rich seam of West Coast stories for us all to engage with, to savour and to learn from.
I’ve been lucky as a travel writer to experience over 100 countries with all my senses, but the part of the world I am most drawn back to, that I feel a deep yearning for, is Scotland’s unparalleled west coast and its glittering islands. This wildscape of towering ancient mountains – Lewisian Gneiss and Torridonian sandstone are some of the oldest rocks on the planet – tumbling glen and sweeping Atlantic-ravaged littoral is never anything short of inspirational and spirit-soaring.
But a landscape is nothing without its people. I’ve been guilty of calling Scotland’s west coast a ‘wilderness’. Parts of it really are, but other gnarly landscapes are very much manmade wildernesses that have been shorn of their people by the baleful Clearances and other troubles that have scythed through man, woman and child here. COAST talks of a ‘Coast that shaped the world’ as many thousands of its citizens were cleared or have left it over the centuries, their voices living on in the local and diaspora culture in the likes of Canada and New Zealand.
I’m not saying you should travel this coast depressed by the history. Far from it. I’m saying if you realise some of the human struggles that have formed how the West Coast looks today it will enrich your understanding of it, whether you live here or are just visiting. I was delighted to learn that the COAST project is delving deep into as many of the coastline’s stories as possible, including the Clearances.
What is COAST?
In essence COAST is a gathering of stories curated from all over Scotland’s West Coast. These are stories that reflect the coastal communities and how they have lived life down the centuries right through to the modern day. It is supported by the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) and draws on the creativity and passion of 32 local ‘Story Gatherers’, which makes me think back to the days of the clans when story gatherers and tellers were instrumental in a culture that was passed down not in books, but orally. You can learn more about the ‘Story Gatherers’ on the COAST website.
The aim is not just to tell riveting stories – though riveting they certainly are – but also to protect and share the natural and cultural heritage of what can in some cases be fragile communities. This is not just a museum piece either, though, as COAST is very much designed for people who live and Scotland’s West Coast and visitors from anywhere to engage with the stories. If that then inspires people to spend time on the west coast – and I really think it will – all the better.
How do I engage with COAST?
A great starting point is the website, which has just gone live as I write this. It has the stories on there, links to all the social media channels and you can also download the App for free – there is both an iPhone and Android version at www.coast.scot. On Twitter it’s https://twitter.com/CoastScot, Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coastscot and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/coastscot. You are very much encouraged to engage and share West Coast stories of your own.
There will also be physical presence with six exhibitions. COAST was launched in Oban at the start of June and the first brace of exhibitions will be at the Rockfield Centre in Oban for a month. Other venues include Ness on Lewis and the GALE Centre in Garioch. Look out as the Oban exhibitions will also be going on tour, both to the north and to the south of Oban.
The Stories
I’ve had a good root around and there are some corking stories that have been brought to life by COAST. One of my favourite tales of the isles is of Calum’s Road. Yes, it is already a book and a Capercaillie song, but it’s great to see it being shared again wildly. And what a tale of one human’s sheer determination in the face of the worst that man and the natural world could throw in his way. Somehow, stubbornly, he forged a road from nothing with less tools than I use in my garden. It’s a remarkable story from a remarkable part of the world where the people’s mettle has been tested since time immemorial.
In total over 1,300 stories were carefully collated by the ‘Story Gatherers’. They are about people, places and happenings, ranging from a few sentences through to epic efforts. They stories have been honed down to the 400 engaging tales that appear on the website and that will be celebrated by COAST. Titles hint at the joy, humour, intensity and richness woven into their words – ‘A Boatload of Whisky and a Hand in Marriage’, ‘A Creepy Encounter on the Crinan Canal’, ‘A Mysterious Machine Gunning Incident’ and ‘The Boreraig Village Clearance’.
Sometimes, when I’ve been on the West Coast on a windswept hill stumbling across an abandoned village that lies dead to the world, I’ve felt the those laments rising. Some of the stories of Scotland’s West Coast are disconnected not just from me, but the people who still live there and those who visit. COAST aims to reconnect the stories with the people and in doing so connect Scotland’s West Coast – and its rich culture and heritage – with the world.
*This post comes in conjunction with COAST, but all opinions expressed are our own and independent. Other main partners in COAST include CalMac and NatureScot. For more information see www.coast.scot. On Twitter it’s https://twitter.com/CoastScot and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coastscot. Facebook is https://www.facebook.com/coastscot.
