April 5, 2020

Woodlands of Scotland

Photo collection appreciating Scottish trees. 

The region where I grew up had around 50% of land covered with forests1 – it was easy to take them for granted. Now I am based in the UK, where forests cover only about 13%2. Still, that is more than where I lived before moving to the UK some five years ago3. That said, I now value woods more than before, and if I have time, chances are that I visit one. In my opinion, the nicest UK woodlands are in Scotland, and that's where this post comes in: it is a collection of pictures I took there and why I think that.

While Scotland is above the UK's forest area average, most of the Scottish coastline is treeless with either rugged or agricultural terrain. There are some exceptions, though:

Tentsmuir Forest at the shore of Fife

...but most of the action takes place inland.

Scone's Pinetum.

Cultivated or wild, deep or thin, they look fab regardless of the season.

Craigvinean Forest

Glenmore Forest

Local forests also often reveal other gems worth admiring:

Glenfinnan Pinewood

Wildlife, rivers, rock formations, waterfalls, and also human-made structures, such as the Dunkeld Cathedral:

Behind the structure stands this nearly 300 years old Larch:

Speaking of which, there are many remarkable old trees in Scotland. One of Europe's oldest known trees is here, the Fortingall Yew:

Fortingall Yew has an estimated age of around 5000 years4.

Another cool one is near Balmerino Abbey:

~450-year old Spanish chestnut


And then there are lochs! When they are surrounded by the neat forests, it is an affair.

Lochan nan Craobh Loisgte.


Navigating through local woods is relaxing, no matter the form of transportation.

Whether by a car...

...on foot...

..or on a bike.

Being surrounded by pretty trees always seems to make things better for me.


If you would you like stay a bit longer, some photo captions above have links to stories about my visits there. Alternatively, you might also these posts:

Castles

Collection of Scottish ruins.

a trip to a valley with a beautiful waterfall and much more.

All my articles featuring rich forests.

You can also visit my Blog Archives for more categories and topics. Thanks for reading!

Sources:
  1. Global Forest Watch
  2. Forest Research/Forestry Commission UK
  3. Kansas Forest Service/Kansas State University
  4. Forestry and Land Scotland

Published by: Jakub Stepanovic in Collections

 

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