标签苏格兰下的文章

格伦·埃蒂夫盛开着石南花的小湖，苏格兰 Small loch in Glen Etive, Scotland (© Oliver Hellowell/Minden Pictures)

An island in the Highlands

Here in the Scottish Highlands, there's something about the rugged environs of Glen Etive that has tickled the imaginations of both ancient and modern storytellers. A glen is a long, narrow valley and this one is especially beautiful. It has strange footnotes in both Irish and Scottish folklore. The name itself translates to 'little fierce one' and is given in honor of Etive, the Gaelic goddess long associated with nearby Loch Etive.

According to an Irish myth, Glen Etive was founded by the tragic heroine Deirdre and her lover Naoise after they were forced into exile. In Scottish folklore, Glen Etive is said to be the home of a mythical creature called a Fachan--a giant cyclops with one leg, a single tuft of hair, and a lone hand protruding from its chest. Glen Etive has caught the attention of modern storytellers as well, drawn to its history and beautiful scenery. A surprising number of TV shows and major films, like 'Braveheart' and the James Bond installment 'Skyfall,' have shot on location here.

Glen Etive is also one of Scotland's 40 National Scenic Areas, and is a favorite destination for white water kayakers, who journey here to shoot down the series of rapids, falls, and pool drops along the River Etive. Hikers trek the mountain trails around Ben Starav to the southeast and the Glen Coe mountains in the north. Some of these of hikers are known as 'peak baggers,' who make it a game to summit every peak in the region. So far, about 4,000 or so people have completed the entire list of 284 Scottish peaks, or 'munros' as they're known locally.

高地上的一个岛屿

在苏格兰高地，格伦艾蒂夫崎岖的环境激发了古代和现代说书人的想象力。峡谷是一个又长又窄的山谷，这个山谷特别美丽。它在爱尔兰和苏格兰民间传说中都有奇怪的脚注。这个名字本身翻译成“小凶猛的一个”，是为了纪念艾蒂芙，长期以来与附近的艾蒂芙湖联系在一起的盖尔女神。

根据一个爱尔兰神话，格伦·艾蒂夫是由悲剧女主角迪尔德雷和她的情人娜奥伊丝在被迫流亡后建立的。在苏格兰民间传说中，格伦埃蒂夫据说是一种神话生物法坎的家——一只巨大的独眼巨人，一条腿，一簇头发，一只手从胸前伸出。格伦艾蒂夫吸引了现代说书人的注意，也被它的历史和美丽的风景所吸引。很多电视节目和主要电影，如《勇敢的心》和詹姆斯·邦德的《天崩地裂》都在这里拍摄。

格伦艾蒂夫也是苏格兰40个国家级风景区之一，也是白水皮划艇运动员最喜欢的目的地，他们在这里沿着艾蒂夫河击落一系列急流、瀑布和池水。徒步旅行者沿着本斯塔拉夫周围的山路跋涉到东南部和北部的格伦科山脉。其中一些徒步旅行者被称为“峰袋客”，他们把登上该地区的每一座山峰当作游戏。到目前为止，大约有4000人已经完成了284座苏格兰山峰的完整列表，也就是当地人所熟知的“munros”。

艾琳多南堡，苏格兰 Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland (© CBW/Alamy)

A water loch-ed castle

Located on a small island where three sea lochs meet in northwestern Scotland, the current Eilean Donan Castle is just the latest incarnation of several monastic cells and Scottish clan strongholds that have occupied the small island since the 7th century. The first fortified castle was built in the 13th century to defend against invading Vikings who occupied much of Scotland at the time. An iconic symbol of Scotland, from the 14th-18th centuries, the castle was mostly held by the Mackenzies and defended by the Macraes, both storied clans of the Scottish Highlands. The castle was destroyed in 1719 by the invading British Royal Navy during the Jacobite Uprising, but was rebuilt along its earlier design in the early 20th century by Lt. Colonel John Macrae-Gilstrap.

苏格兰高地上的厄克特城堡和内斯湖 Urquhart Castle and Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands (© AWL Images/Danita Delimont)

A monster view in Scotland

People love a good mystery. Maybe that's why we've been fascinated by mythical creatures like the Loch Ness monster for nearly 1,500 years. We're looking at Urquhart Castle, a ruin founded in the 13th century, with Loch Ness behind it. As the legend goes, on August 22, 565, an Irish priest named Columba confronted 'Nessie' and commanded the 'water beast' away. Since then, people have claimed to spot, or even photograph the Loch Ness monster, as well as Bigfoot, the chupacabra, the yeti, and other creatures around the world. This subculture practices cryptozoology—the study of hidden animals. Are any of these beasts real? Probably not, but why spoil the fun?

内斯特角灯塔上空的银河，苏格兰斯凯岛 Milky Way over Neist Point Lighthouse, Isle of Skye, Scotland (© Shaiith/Getty Images)

Step into the dark

We're on the Isle of Skye, a fitting locale to celebrate the beginning of International Dark Sky Week, and not just because of its name. The Isle of Skye is one of several parts of Scotland that are set aside as Dark Sky parks, where the lack of artificial light makes stargazing a spectacular event, with or without a telescope.

First observed in 2003, International Dark Sky Week was the brainchild of then-high school student Jennifer Barlow. Her goal was to bring awareness of the impact of light pollution on people and the environment. Her efforts have made it a worldwide event and a centerpiece of Global Astronomy Month.

Chon湖上空的低空云，苏格兰特罗萨克斯 (© Alistair Dick/Alamy)

Silver birch (Betula pendula) woodland, Craigellachie National Nature Reserve, Scotland (© Nature Picture Library/Alamy Stock Photo)

The Lady of the Woods

Silver birch trees like these in Craigellachie National Nature Reserve have long been celebrated as symbols of purity and rebirth. In early Celtic mythology, bundles of their twigs were used to drive out spirits of the old year while in Scottish Highlands folklore it was believed that a barren cow herded with a birch stick would become fertile. Known as the “lady of the woods”, the old Gaelic word for birch, beith, can be found in some Scottish place names – the same goes for birk in England and bedw in Wales.

This nature reserve in Strathspey, in the Highlands, is known for its upland birch woodland, which is home to an impressive selection of moths among a wide variety of other creatures from dragonflies to peregrine falcons. The light, open canopy of silver birches also encourage wood anemones and dog violets to grow during the spring and summer – as well as offering a glimpse of panoramic views of Britain’s largest national park – the Cairngorms - which can be enjoyed, unobstructed, if you climb to the hill’s craggy summit.

An island for the birds

Those white specks scattered around the surface of Bass Rock are northern gannets—seabirds that spend their springtime breeding and nesting season on the islands and shores of the North Atlantic. At the height of the birds' Bass Rock nesting, roughly 150,000 gannets arrive to rear their chicks, making this location the largest gannet colony on Earth. There are no human inhabitants on Bass Rock—the lighthouse is automated. The tiny volcanic plug island is just over a mile off the coast of the Lothian region of eastern Scotland in the Firth of Forth.

星空迷