Thank you

A big thank you to all those people who have contributed so generously and in so many ways to the project.

From greenkeepers who have lent equipment and given advice, friends who have made an investment, the staff of the Brahan Estate to Claudia and Jon's neighbours who toot their horns and wave as they drive past. There are people who have called in person to have a look, battled through snow and ice to lend a hand and who show interest from afar.

To each and everyone of you, we are extremely grateful and hope you have a very happy Christmas and fabulous New Year.

The picture is of the new Brahan Golf Club flags which have been very kindly given by friend in the USA. They arrived at the end of October and look amazing. I can't wait to see them out on the course.

Family Cesspit Project Part 2

Having moved the various concrete beams, Jon and Alisdair set about removing the first few rows of breeze block. They wanted to do this so that the top of the walls would be covered by a reasonable depth of soil and therefore not visible when grassed over. The pit had been well constructed and this proved to be the toughest job but they worked out a system using a lump hammer and pickaxe. We were all quite amused when Jon was splattered by a brick dropping into the depths of the solid tank. Alisdair saw it coming and I have never seen him move as quickly!

Continuing the recycling scheme, the concrete beams were layed across the entrance to the garage which had become very muddy.

Jon filled in the pit with some of the rubble from the shower block. The soil that had been dug out of the ground originally was piled to the side of the pit and was used too. Jon intends to make a grass bunker feature hence the depression.

So that was our holiday project and we hope you have found it informative.

Family Cesspit Project Part 1

On our visit to Scotland in October we were keen to help out again and Jon suggested that filling in the cesspit would be a fun project. This was located in the first fairway alongside the remains of the shower block.

After a quick lesson on cesspit design....the waste goes into a tank where solids settle out. Liquids flow into another tank from where they run out into a soak away and eventually the ground. Periodically the solids need to be taken away. When we started the excavation Jon had located the soakaway but wasn't sure where the liquid/solids tank was and if it had been emptied.

The first task was to clear away the fencing and all the overgrowth around the area.

That done, we uncovered a breeze block lined pit divided into three sections, the soakaway, liquid and solid tanks. To everyone's relief, the latter had been emptied. The pit had been capped with concrete beams and the picture shows Alisdair and Jon removing one from over the solid/liquid tanks ready for loading into the Cushman truck.

Keen as always to recycle as much material as possible, Jon and Douglas (the digger) removed several cubic metres of large gravel from the soakaway.

The final job before the area could be filled in was the rescue of four frogs from the liquids tank. Jon very bravely climbed down into the pit to scoop them into a bucket before Claudia released them by the stream.

We also found a fork, toothbrush, orienteering punch, batteries and various other rubbish which we disposed of properly.

To be continued

Loch Brahan

On my last entry I said that there was a puddle on the first fairway that would need some drainage works. Well unfortunately it has now grown into a full blown water feature which has been christened Loch Brahan...pictured below. Elsewhere on the course, Jon has borrowed some sheep from the farm next door to trim back some of the rough. With the weather having turned much colder, he is hoping to do the last cut of the season any time now and put the mower to bed for the winter.

Long Overdue Update

A bit of a break from the blog as I have been quite busy recently with various bits and pieces including a trip up north to see Jon & Claudia. Even though it has only been a couple of months since we saw the course, we could see plenty of progress. The picture was taken in August looking back down the first fairway towards the tee and the ninth green. All the tufty bits of grass have now gone and the fairways look great. The only problem is a rather large puddle roughly where my children are standing that will need a drainage solution. This has been caused by a deluge of rain during the last few weeks. I have some new pictures to upload over the next few weeks and look out for details of the family cesspit project!

Screaming!

It has been pouring with rain in Tollie during the last few days, in fact Monday was so miserable that Claudia & Jon spent the day in the office doing paperwork. Despite a drop off in temperature, the grass is still growing strongly and is quite difficult to mow when wet. Very frustrating and it brought to mind the sculpture pictured left. This was carved into a tree stump by expert woodsman Willie when he visited at Easter and reminds us of Munch's picture The Scream.

To remind everybody of the lovely summer months, the second picture is of teabreak time. We had been giving the fifth green its second cut having first raked off the cuttings from the previous mowing.

Lots of jobs done

These are pictures of the fifth green looking back down the fairway towards the tee position and fourth green. In the top photo the grass seed was just starting to grow and in the second, it is established and has had a couple of cuts. When Jon & Claudia first started work, the gap between the trees did not exist and it was impossible to walk through. They have worked very hard to clear away all the gorse and scrub etc revealing a burn in the process. Foundations for a bridge to cross this have just been laid. Elsewhere, drainage has been put in at the back of the sixth green to take away some standing water and Jon has been busy with the hired mower although the original one was whisked off to Musselburgh Race Course as theirs had broken.

The greens have all had their first top dressing of sand which is part of the process of making the playing surface even.

Still Growing, Still Mowing

Just a quick post. As the title suggests mowing the course is still taking up quite a bit of time. Jon & Claudia presently have a semi-rough mower on loan which is being used to deal with some of the stubborn tufty bits of grass on the fairways which the regular fairway mower would take a while to cut down. Jon has also been working on the area around the fourth green and fifth fairway with some help from his friend John, a golf course architect who has been staying recently. Claudia and Jon have also enjoyed having some guests to stay and Claudia has been perfecting her Scottish breakfasts.

The picture shows a view across several of the fairways on the lower part of the course. Claudia is on the mower and Jon is driving the Cushman truck.

Back to the Blog

Hi there, sorry there have been no new posts during the last month but the family and I have been up in Ross-shire looking at the course for ourselves. Wow, what an amazing difference! From rough grazing land has sprung a golf course. I must admit I was quite sceptical last autumn when Jon said that a bit of mowing would convert the scrappy grass with its pock marked surface into fairways, however he has certainly proved that he knows what he is talking about. With the fairways now cut and the greens growing in it is now possible to see Jon's vision and how he has used the landscape with the design.

For all it is just nine holes at present, the feel of the course changes as you go around from being more compact at the front to wide open spaces at the back of the land. The views are fantastic and the wildlife that is around is tremendous. During the fortnight we saw an osprey, red kites, deer, numerous butterflies and dragonflies amongst other things. Hopefully in the future people will appreciate these aspects every bit as much as the golf. The course is worth seeing in person and as mentioned before, Jon and Claudia have room for friends to stay. There is plenty to do and see in the area which is very accessible by road, rail or air. Contact Claudia on 0751 851 4650 (+44751 185 14650 from abroad)

The pictures show the transformation of the ninth green over the last few months. If you look back to earlier entries at the beginning of the year you will see how this area looked prior to the toilet block and some trees being felled.

First Green, First Cut

With the recent mixture of sunshine and showers, the grass on the greens is now growing away nicely. The picture shows the first green after its first cut. This was done with a strimmer, a little unorthodox but necessary due to the height of some of the grass and weeds. The 6th, 7th and 8th greens have also had the same treatment too. Elsewhere on the course, Claudia has continued to mow the fairways.

Claudia and Jon have also been busy settling in to the new bungalow. Claudia's cousin Robbie visited last week from Switzerland and enjoyed his visit very much. He will be pleased to know that some beds have been ordered for delivery soon so he wont have to sleep on the camp bed next time.

New Home

At the time of writing, Claudia & Jon are packing up their things once more and leaving Gardener's Cottage. The good news is that they moving into a bungalow nearby which is bigger and means that they will be able to have friends and family to stay. There are two en-suite guest bedrooms and the property has lovely views over the Beauly Firth as shown in the picture.

Contact Claudia & Jon via jon@brahangolfclub.ch

PS. The garden isn't looking at its best in this photo having been neglected by the previous occupiers. Jon faces the challenge of restoring the lawn to its former glory, Claudia has declared this to be his job as she only deals with serious mowing equipment these days!

Claudia's wheels are upgraded

This is Claudia showing off the new cylinder mower which is bigger, faster and gives a better cut. She is mowing around a tuft of reed grass. I quizzed Jon about these having spotted a number of them on previous pictures of the fairways. Apparently they are staying as an additional hazard though whether to catch out the golfer or Claudia on the mower is open to question! Jon intends to transplant some clumps to form reed bunkers as alternatives to sand traps. He tells me that the ball will roll up against the edge of the reed giving an interesting shot but didn't discuss the outcome if the ball lands bang in the middle...looks like we will have to find that out for ourselves.

Going Green

Jon reports excellent progress with the growing in of the greens. The seed has germinated well and the greens are looking green! The pictures are of the second green and the approach to the first.

If like me you were intrigued as to why Claudia was driving a bunker rake over the newly seeded greens a few weeks back (see previous post for picture) here is the explaination.

The bunker rake is a piece of kit that is used to do that in the vast deserts that are American bunkers. However over here where a hand rake will suffice, the rake attachement is removed and the wheels become important. These are knobbly and as well as pressing the seed down, create little impressions in the soil which trap rain and create shadows aiding germination.

Jon has continued to work extremely hard on his own including a 14 hour stint on the mower one day. They have been using a small ride-on rotary mower which was ideal for the first few cuts of rough grass but on Thursday take delivery of larger cylinder mower which will speed up the job...Claudia can't wait to get her hands on this new toy. Claudia has now returned home after several weeks in Horbury with Ivy. While she was away there was another incident filled night at Gardeners Cottage when Jon was woken up by a bird flying into the bedroom window only to be woken up a second time shortly afterwards by the curtain rail falling down!

That's all for now but watch this space for important news coming soon.

Final Green Preparation

Some action pictures of the final green preparation. They show Jon seeding the 9th and Claudia using the bunker rake to press in the seed...another new set of wheels. The third pic shows the grass starting to come through on the 5th. Jon has spent the last week clearing the trees that were felled from underneath the power lines and mowing as Claudia is still in Yorkshire. Today it has been too wet to work outside so Jon has been in the office and he has also managed to watch some of the football .

Finished!!

After a mammoth effort at the end of May, the greens are finally finished...hurrah! Claudia and Jon have put in some very long hours, often starting at six in the morning and not finishing until late in the evening. Seeding the greens took several days as a narrow spreader was used due to the contours of the land which meant that Jon had to do 5 passes on each green in order to lay down the correct amount of seed. He estimates a walking distance of around 9 kilometres per green and on one day alone seeded four...almost a marathon. Needless to say the lad is shattered but really pleased with the results. Meanwhile, Claudia has been mowing the fairways and absolutely loves this task. At the end of last month, they were able to take a few days off and come south to West Yorkshire for a bit of well deserved R&R. Jon has now returned to the Highlands but Claudia is staying on for a couple more weeks to spend some time with Jon's mum.

Apologies there aren't any new course pictures to add this this time but Jon hasn't had much spare time to send them to me yet.

Has Andy Goldsworthy been working at Brahan?

Sadly no. The bottom picture doesn't show a weird sun dial sculpture but some of the 4,000 or so stones and rocks which have been removed from the 6th and 7th fairways alone. However I'm sure it would win an environmental sculpture prize in a competition somewhere!

The other pic shows Claudia smoothing the ninth green prior to seeding. The green preparation has definitely been a labour of love, made even more arduous by the terminal failure of the hired rotorvator. The end is in sight though and the greens are being seeded this week. In the background of the picture, the fairways can be seen.

Wow!...All Taking Shape

The first picture shows some chaps from the electricity board felling trees which had been planted directly under the power cables. This has really opened up the views across towards the coast. Meanwhile Claudia has been working hard cutting the fairways and the second pic is of the eighth fairway after its second cut. We saw the course last October and are stunned by the transformation from rough grazing pasture to a neat looking golf course, can't wait to see it again in the summer.

Work has continued on the greens, this is taking longer than expected due to various problems with the rotovator. Jon has been removing stones today from the five greens already prepared and although the weather has been kind, it is bitterly cold again with some snow flurries. Let's hope it warms up again soon.

Claudia: Queen of the Fairways

Claudia has yet another set of new wheels this time taking charge of the motor mower and giving the first fairway its first cut. Driving the mower is not as easy as it would appear as the machine has rear wheel steering and handles very differently to a car. Jon says she was brilliant and wasn't put off even when it started to snow heavily. Apparently it has been bitterly cold again with snow on and off all day yesterday though fortunately it didn't settle. The top picture shows the first fairway after it has been mown and is taken from a position just to the right of the tee.

Elsewhere on the course, Jon has been rotovating the greens but had a bit of trouble when the rotovator would not break through the ground in places. This meant he needed all his digger driving skills to carefully remove the top inch of soil using the bucket.

Jon and Claudia have noticed lots of wildlife around the course and the cottage. They found a badger sett in the woods and Jon was nearly knocked over by an enormous hare the other day. Deer have been grazing in the cottage garden...will they save Jon from having to cut the grass, a job he has just realised will need to be done over the summer!

Has all the Fresh Air affected Jon's Dress Sense?

Take a look at this picture and judge for yourself paying particular attention to the gloves!

On the course, the greens are now all prepared for seeding which should start in the next week or so depending on the weather. The course itself wasn't greatly affected by the snow that fell on the Wednesday before Easter but it did inconvenience a friend who flew into Edinburgh that day. Fortunately Willy missed the train that got stuck in the snowdrift at Carrbridge but Claudia & Jon had to collect him from Pitlochry station and they finally got home in the wee small hours.

Willy is a skilled forester and very kindly offered to help out with some tree felling and logging. Jon says it was amazing to watch him working and that he has learnt a lot from him. On Easter Monday we all met up at Scone Palace on the outskirts of Perth. It was great to see Claudia & Jon and to meet Willy and the palace was well worth a visit.

Claudia's New Wheels

There was big excitement at Tollie recently when the small transport arrived. After a crash course (not literally) in off road driving there is no stopping Claudia and she is whizzing all over the land fetching and carrying materials.

The greens are just about ready for rotavating and seeding. The fourth needs a bit more soil laying which leaves just the ninth to finish off. There has been more snowfall this week in the highlands and Jon reports that it is bitterly cold again with temperatures down to -4 degrees overnight. He was working on the course on Tuesday for a couple of hours and couldn't feel his feet by the time he was done. However it was very worthwhile as one of the chaps from the estate helped with the fencing and showed him some tricks of the trade to make it cattle proof. The cattle are due back onto the adjacent land in the next few weeks so this is essential work.

Down at Gardener's Cottage, the snowdrops have been in bloom and have looked splendid. These are giving way now to daffodils. Jon & Claudia have been amazed by the amount of wildlife that is about and on Tuesday were watching a roe deer in their garden.

Going, Going, Gone

I am pleased to report that the old shower block that stood in the middle of the first fairway and was a blot on the landscape is no more. Jon had to obtain a special licence in order to demolish it as there was evidence that pipistrelle bats may have roosted there in the past. One of the conditions of the licence was that the local wildlife expert was present at the demolition to confirm that no bats were in residence. The first picture shows Jon and expert Steve inspecting prior to the roof coming off. The roof panels were in the main in good condition due to the 450 screws that had secured them into position...every crest and trough had one through it. Whilst this made removal slow going it does mean that they can be reused elsewhere on site. Likewise, the rubble heap that remains will be recycled as hard core later on. Fortunately the pottery had already been removed so there is no danger of that being recycled too! Wooden bat boxes have been placed in some of the trees as an alternative bat roost.

Elsewhere on the course, Jon has been hard at work preparing the greens ready for seeding and is on course to have this task finished by the end of the month. Claudia has just returned from her trip to Switzerland to see family and friends and not a moment too soon as there was another mouse incident at Gardener's Cottage whilst she was away...Jon returned home one evening to a horrible smell upstairs and couldn't work out at first what it was. He then remembered that some five days earlier he had been briefly awoken in the middle of the night by a trap going off in the loft. A few stomach churning minutes later, the source of the problem was located and dealt with.

Coming along nicely

Work has continued preparing the greens ready for seeding in the spring. The picture shows the first actual construction, Jon is digging out the bunker to the left of the second green.

There was a bit of drama another day when Jon was working on a ditch and a geyser erupted from a long forgotten drainage pipe which runs across the land. After making some repairs Jon has turned this to his advantage by adding some access points for future use.

Claudia has returned to Switzerland for a few days to catch up with friends and family. We were all amused last week to hear the headline news from there last week...Switzerland has run out of grit too...we thought it was just us Brits that couldn't get road clearance right!

Fog & Admin

Apologies for not adding this post sooner. I have been waiting for some new pics to arrive from Tollie but the weather has been too foggy recently for photography. So I thought you might like this shot from a few weeks back showing a storm front approaching the land.

Jon & Claudia have been busy recently with a variety of admin tasks, deadly dull but very necessary. Permission was received last week to demolish the toilet/shower block. This has to be done by the end of the month so watch this space for some good before and after shots.

On a personal note, Claudia & Jon have been putting down roots in the community and threw a couple of small dinner parties last week showcasing some Swiss specialities such as rosti and raclette. Claudia has found a local hairdresser and joined Weightwatchers...eight pounds lost in two weeks..well done Claudia.

New water feature for the fifth

The main focus of work this week has been the removal of almost a mile of old fencing some of which was so badly overgrown with grass it had to be dug out. Very tiring and cold work in grotty weather relieved by drinking many cups of tea!

There was a bit of excitement on Tuesday when the fuel tank arrived and was moved into position. This will store red diesel for running the greenkeeping equipment. Also of note has been the reappearance of the old duck pond by the fifth due to the melting of the snow. Will this become a permanent feature?....watch this space.

If it's not gorse, it's conifers!

Claudia working on a 'special branch operation' and not content with creating a European Gorse Mountain, Jon shows off on Mount Branch!

Timber..Tree felling on the first

The first shot shows the first fairway including the delightful toilet/shower block. This is hopefully to be demolished otherwise there will soon be a whole new meaning to the phrase 'drive through.' As mentioned previously the snowy weather has brought construction to a halt but Jon & Claudia have been hard at work felling the stand of trees to the right of the shower block.

The second picture shows how the view of the land has been opened up following the removal of the conifers. Once work is more advanced, Jon & Claudia will be planting some trees but intend to use native varieties such as oak.

There has been a bit of drama at Gardeners Cottage this week. First of all Jon managed to fall down the stairs..he promised me he just wasn't paying attention and had not been drinking. Then on Thursday the roof of the shed collapsed forcing Jon to do a bit of digging to rescue the bikes. Fortunately no damage was done other than to the shed of course but it did make us all pause to think about the poor souls in Haiti.

The pipe froze again

Oh yes it did and the tealights were drafted into defrosting duty again. Hopefully the problem has now been solved by an emergency purchase of lagging from Wickes.

Jon has continued to fell trees but hopes that the majority of the snow will have disappeared by today allowing him to get back to course construction. The land has drained well with the exception of a couple of areas where there is a bit of 'permafrost' beneath the surface.

The picture is from last year and shows the old drainage grip across the fourth green being filled in.

The burn on the second fairway

I particularly like these two pictures which were taken at the end of last year. They show very clearly just how much work has gone into clearing overgrown vegetation and the difference it makes.

Tollie in the snow

The picture shows the view down the side of the old scout hut and croft house (which will in time become the workshop and clubhouse) towards the sea.

Although the land is under thick snow there is still plenty of work that can be done. Jon is continuing to fell trees, apparently these are nice and dry at present and therefore good to work with.

The farmer has removed the last of the sheep, Jon says it was fascinating to watch him working his two dogs. He did feel sorry for one poor sheep which got totally stuck and had to be handballed through the snow until it could walk by itself. The departure of the animals means that the fencing can be taken down allowing the land to be seen as one large piece for the first time.

Pyromania

Just in case you have been lying awake wondering A. What have they done with all the gorse and B. Exactly how do you defrost a frozen pipe using tealights!

Jon & Claudia report temperatures down to -18 degrees C and around 18 inches of snow...though this is nothing compared to the Swiss winter of 98/99 when Claudia had to leave her apartment in Flumserberg via the first floor window as the snow was so deep.

Keep watching...have lots more pics and info to post over the coming days.