Wigtownshire Ramblers Castramont Loch Whinyeon February 2012

Saturday the 25th of February.

Today's walk will be a tester for me after being incapacitated.

It's a 'B' walk north of Gatehouse of Fleet.

Today's leader is the 'Weaver', and I'll leave it to her excellent writing style for the report.

It will follow the images as per usual.

We number 18 today.  

Knocktinkle Car Park

The car park was erected in 2005

Betty Murray Usher founded the Drystane Dyking Association of Great Britain

( being a Murray descendant, I wonder how far back in time I'd need to go to find a connection ?)

Grey Hill and Benfadyeon

Views to Gatehouse and Fleet Bay, and east towards Cairnsmore of Fleet

Top of Benfadyeon

Loch Whinyeon

The old sluice gate and pipe that once pumped water through the hill to Gatehouse

Heading north

Top of Craigtype

Heather, bog and tussock towards Fell of Laghead

Fell of Laghead

Downhill to the  Laurieston Road

Following the Castramont burn.

View of Rusco Castle 

Culreoch

Charolais 

The wood as you can see, is spelt different to the hill and burn. According to the Canmore website the big country house (no pictures, sorry) goes by either Castramont, Carstramon or Castramon. Very confusing !

Some gorgeous trees in the woods

Odd looking fungi covering nettles

An array of trees. Bottom right tree seems to have returning visitors if the carvings are to be believed

The oak trees of Carstramon Wood were once managed to produce charcoal for iron, copper and brass smelting

Lagg farm at the Doon of Castramont

Back to the cars

Well, I completed the walk, but boy did I ache later

Here's the Weaver's report

Ramblers’ walk Saturday 25^th February

Fair weather greeted 18 ramblers when they met at Knocktinkle car park, Gatehouse of Fleet, on Saturday. This was a welcome change from the dreary wet walking days of late, but still there was no sunshine.

The car park is a fairly new facility dedicated to the memory of Betty Murray Usher who died in 1990, and whose family were the proprietors of the lands through which the day’s walk would explore.

The immediate steep climb up Grey Hill and Benfadyeon caught out those who had not walked for some time. The way across the wet lands was not too boggy and the extensive views from the top were worth the effort. A 360 degree panorama was laid out, covering many of the hills the company had walked in the last year.  In the west, from the Mull of Galloway peeping out behind the Isle of Whithorn, to Ben John, Cairnharrow and the masts of Cambret Hill, the view continued through Cairnsmore of Fleet, before taking in bronze moorland and the forests of the Grobdale walk.  To the east, with Loch Whinyeon in the foreground, it was easy to trace an earlier outing through the Glengap forest.

The route now descended to the shores of Loch Whinyeon, and the sluice gate and remains of the tunnel which used to take water to the mills in Gatehouse, were explored. The modern outflow could be seen on the opposite shore, where the water now flows eastwards, to the works at Glengap.

Two more hills were climbed, Craigtype and the Fell of Laghead, the highest of the day at 292metres. Now the hardest work was done and the company approached the Castramont walk by crossing the Lauriston road and following a forest road for some way under the Craig of Grobdale.

Once on the rather muddy path, energy was restored by a lunch break overlooking Castramont Burn, before continuing by bridges and walk boards to Culreoch farm road. The sound of rushing water accompanied the walkers and a rather fine waterfall fell picturesquely through the trees. A new dry stane dyke, bounding the fields above, was a fitting reminder that Mrs Murray Usher founded the Dry Stane Dyking Association of Great Britain.

Once on the farm road, bordered by old sessile oaks, it was downhill to the Carstramon woods entrance, where the walkers once again endured a steadily rising path. Through fallen beech leaves and increasingly wonderful gnarled old coppiced beeches, the way meandered through the woods, which are maintained by Scottish Nature. After a brief view of Castramont House well below the path, the destination of the coppiced wood – charcoal platforms - were examined. A low wall and a cleared grassy circle are all that remains of this ancient craft.

Laghead Burn was crossed when the road was once more reached and the farm track past Lagg was taken for the homeward stretch of the walk. Here a heralder of spring was spotted; a lone, shiny, golden celandine glowed by the path.

A gentler walk, gradually uphill, past unused pheasant pens, and many fords crossing the burn, was followed, until the cars could be seen and approached across grassy fields, to end a varied and pleasant walk. The ramblers then retired to Galloway Lodge in Gatehouse to replenish their energy.

Next week, a 6 mile circular walk round Bladnoch and Wigtown, is planned. Meet for car sharing at the Breastworks, Stranraer, 9am, Riverside, Newton Stewart, 9.30am, or at Wigtown Town Hall (NX 434554) 10am. If going straight to the start, please phone walk leader, 01776 840636. All are welcome 

Straiton - The Monument and Bennan Circuit

Tuesday the 21st of February.

I've taken my last penicillin tablet to finish my course of antibiotics.

I'm hopeful of completing a little walk today.

I'm away up to the conservation village of Straiton in South Ayrshire to walk with a rambling friend.

There are a number of walks on the Ayrshire Paths website in this lovely little village.

After meeting up in the car park, and getting geographically acquainted with the area layout we decided on the Monument and Bennan circuit.

(We obtained an illustrated leaflet and map of the walks from a weatherproof holder in the car park)  

We begin by walking through the village's Main Street.

To the north is the Fowler's Croft Development which won an award for architectural design in 1984 from the Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland in honour of the thoughtfully designed properties which complement the existing village architecture.

It's a colourful start in the village.

Nice enough for a macro.

I feel a bit of a traitor uploading this picture of McCandlish Hall. The others in Google Images don't show up any cracks. Maybe it'll be re-plastered for the summer....

  

....but even on this dull day it still looks lovely and quaint.

The route takes us a little way down Newton Stewart Rd. The primary school is just a short distance out of the village. Just beyond the school we begin to climb.The monument is our first target.

My fellow blogger from Ayr did this walk last December with the Cunninghame Ramblers 

As we begin to gain height the view behind us is of the school.

I'm optimistic of better weather but it turns out my walking partner has heard a truer forecast.

We get quite a few mini showers throughout the day.

The path is easy to follow with regularly spaced way-markers. Through Barbellie woods  we reach the upper slopes of Craigengower (The hill of goats) and onto Highgate Hill. It's a short but steep climb to the monument.

It's a bit raw at the top.

The monument is a memorial to Lt. Col. James Hunter Blair mortally wounded at the Battle of Inkerman in 1854. 

The family seat of Blairquhan Castle  lies a little to the west of Straiton.

From up here we can look west to the triangular plantation on Bennan which will be our next climb.

The path now takes us in a southerly direction over undulating slopes to bring us down to the road at  Culdoch. After crossing the road we follow the Water of Girvan a short way to reach Craigfad bridge.

Over the bridge is the quite impressive house of Craigfad. It too needs a fresh coat of plaster and whitewash. We mistook a crumbling patch of plaster as a coat of arms.

Just beyond here the path/track turns back towards Straiton.

I got the above collage of pictures before the rain came on again.

The path, a little way back, is running parallel to the Water of Girvan.

Upon reaching the triangular plantation of Curroch Wood we stop for a bite to eat.   

 Because of the light rain showers, my camera was in and out of it's carrying case all day.

We took the path up Bennan Hill to the viewpoint. Here's a passage from Gordon's Blogpost " The leader explained at this point there used to be a view finder explaining all the local landmarks but health and safety have decreed the area unsafe as it can get quite wet and slippery where it once stood."

It was a bit of a drop the other side of the fence, but the path up to the top was a bit of a liability anyway.

It is a bit of a disappointment after the climb.

I took the last pictures of the day up here.

I zoomed in to take this one of Bennan Stables.

There's been a substantial conversion since W.F. Millar took this picture for Geograph in 2007.

In this last picture the Water of Girvan takes a big loop round the edge of the village.

Our path back to the car park is off this picture to the left and beyond Bennan Stables.

A fallen down tree at the bridge we crossed  is almost the width of the river. Any-more heavy downpours and I'd suggest this bridge was in danger.

Since it was my first real walk since being ill, we decided to call it a day. I couldn't have gone much further anyway.

It may have been a dull day but it didn't detract from the beauty of Straiton and it's surrounds.

This is a future Wigtownshire Ramblers walk. 

Flixborough, the first of June 1974 - For the record - Part 1

Disclaimer                                                                                      

This post contains images and text from a number of different sources.All images have been scanned by me  from old publications and cuttings.The copyright of these belong to the respective publications and their owners and is presented for recording my recollections of a day in my life.

Should anyone object to any of these images or any part of this post please contact me and if necessary I will remove the offending image or paragraph.

Scunthorpe Telegraph - The biggest story we ever covered

Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph

Back in 1974 I was employed as a Chemical Process Operator at the Nypro plant at Flixborough.

The name Nypro came from  the words Nylon Production.

There is an american company who also go by the name of Nypro and who's name comes from Nylon Products and bear no relation to this now defunct company.

On Saturday June the 1st at just after ten to five in the afternoon the place went up.

At the time it was the biggest peacetime explosion the country had seen. ( It was capped by the Buncefield Depot  explosion in 2005 )

Here are three more links to the Flixborough blast.   

Explosion Liaison Group Meeting

Health and Safety Executive

Wikipedia

Now here's my recollection of the day.I've scanned my statement to the enquiry and it's published a little further on.

It was a Saturday we were down to minimum staff as quite a few folk had wangled the day off to go to the annual Appleby Frodingham Gala in nearby Scunthorpe.

  

I'd been up to the Sulphate plant to take my readings and headed back to the control room.

What happened next is condensed into my official statement.

Other recollections will follow this. 

Statement of JAMES DEANS of 8 Pheasant Close, Scunthorpe.

I am an operator on the Sulphate Plant and 

have been employed by Nypro for over three years.

The Sulphate Plant is to the west of the factory as 

a whole but must be distinguished from the Oleum Plant 

although both Plants share the same control room.

On the day of the accident I was working the

3.00 p.m to 11.00 p.m shift. We work the shifts on

a rota basis but the personnel of each shift remain

together. I was with my usual colleagues and during

the course of the afternoon I carried out my routine

duties. Certainly I noticed nothing unusual.

At approximately 3.30 p.m I took samples from the Plant

to the laboratory for analysis in the usual way.

At about 4 o'clock I went round the Plant taking readings

and thereafter I returned to the Oleum control room.

As a matter of routine we take readings every two hours

and thus my next task was again to walk round my part

of the Plant at about 6,00 p.m in order to monitor the

instruments.

The Oleum control room is on the ground floor,

the switch gear for the area being above the control room,

I remained there from about 4.15 until about 4.50 when

I heard a noise very like a large balloon bursting.

The building did not vibrate but almost everyone in the

control room rushed out of the northern door.  I remember

grasping my safety helmet and rubber gauntlets as I went

through the door.  I think four of us rushed out and left

the Process Control Technician in the control room.

We all left in a hurry and thus we were aware that

something had gone wrong.

                                                                                         

Harry Nattrass, who was the Process Control

Technician for the shift, later told me that he had

tried to look out of the southern door of the control

room.

Having left the northern door we re-traced our

steps along the outside of the control room in a

southerly direction.  When we came round the southern

corner of the building we looked east above the Sulphate

Store.  The store consists of a reinforced concrete

wall some 10 to 12t high and above the wall the roof

structure was being reconstructed.  Basically the

roof is a wooden structure and as work was being done

on the building it was possible for us to see through

the top half of the southern part of the building which

had been partially demolished.  We saw what I would

describe as a "heat haze" from the direction of Areas 1 

and II.  Initially there was no flame but within literally

a second or two flames shot into the air above section 25.

We could just see the tops of the high vessels but not

the rest of the section,  I would put the height of the flames

at approximately 70 or 80 ft.  There was a lot of blue in

the flames and I think there was smoke at the same time.

It also appeared as though the flames were shooting out

behind the heat haze but this is not altogether clear in

my mind.

We had only been looking at the flames for a moment

or two when there was a huge blast which knocked me 15 or

20 yards in a westerly direction. Frankly I was not

conscious of any movement but at one moment I was standing

watching the flame and the next I was simply lying on

the other side of the road which runs in a north south

direction to the west of the Oleum control room. I

can remember no noise between the original sound which

I heard and the huge blast but I would assess the time

which had elapsed at approximately 30 seconds.  There

is no doubt in my mind, however, that I saw flames

before the second bang occurred although the second

explosion followed almost immediately upon the sighting

of the flames.

After I had recovered a little from being flung

across the road I regained my feet and ran between the

Pyrites Store and the new Acid Plant in a westerly

direction towards the bank of the river Trent.  I seem

to remember seeing Bill Lodge running from the Plant

and three or four of the boiler men.  From the river

bank I was taken to hospital and I can remember little

more about the events of that day.

The only other experience I have of difficulties

in the factory was when there was a fire on the Hydrogen

Plant.  Apart from this incident I know of no other

particular difficulties suffered by the Plant in the

last three years.

JAMES DEANS

Statement taken by Herbert Smith & Co. on 12th June,1974.

Now for parts of the story that haven't been written (or if they have I haven't seen them)

I landed about fifty feet from where we'd been looking. I must have been unconscious for less than a minute I guess. Acid tanks were either side of me, but miraculously they hadn't ruptured. I've always maintained that what saved our lives and that of the villagers of Amcotts across the River Trent was the reinforced concrete wall of a new warehouse still under construction deflecting the blast upwards. Mind you, it was the roof trusses landing on my back and legs that caused my injuries. I had deep bruising and displaced adipose tissue which I can still feel today.

Most of us on Area 3 once we'd recovered headed for the wharf, the line of immediate safety.
If the ensuing fire reached the large ammonia tank then even Scunthorpe would be in danger of being wiped off the map.
The majority of us were running for our lives. I did hear later that Jan from Mousehole, Cornwall went back to see if he could help anyone. There were other heroes that day, but Jan from Area 3 is the only one I recollect.

I later learned that our PCT (Process Control Technician) Harry had run towards the opposite door when the blast happened and he ended up underneath it covered in rubble.
Later when the fire and rescue teams reached our control room, they could here a voice but couldn't find him until they realised they'd been walking over the door he was under.
Harry was hospitalised for a while, but recovered well enough to live to a good age.

Now while we ran for safety it was later reported that a certain senior worker and of almost retirement age (I don't remember his name, but he was a bit of a character), overtook everyone to get to the road first with a broken ankle !
By the time we'd reached the road, the Fire and Rescue services were just about on the scene, but were being delayed by people who'd driven down to see what was happening.

Me and my best friend Colin were eventually taken up to the hospital.
Now what happened next has perplexed me ever since that day.
Because the blast had been so huge many buildings suffered damage in the neighbouring villages and even as far away as Scunthorpe. This caused dozens of minor (and maybe one or two major) injuries and suddenly the hospital was inundated.
After being dropped off just inside the hospital entrance a senior police officer on seeing me and Colin in our white overalls and walking OK, got hold of us and promptly put us on traffic control at the hospital gates. Of course, me and Colin knew no better so we ended up directing traffic for the next couple of hours.
It wasn't until months later that I thought about it and years later when I'd wished I'd found that senior officer and sued him for dereliction of duty and unnecessary suffering.
Here's a couple of guys, both injured and in obvious deep shock being made to prolong their distress because he couldn't do his job. If he is still alive and ever reads this I'd at least like an apology.
With respect to the families of those seriously injured and dead, me and Colin weren't the only ones to suffer.
Those couple of hours on point duty also had our families wondering if we were still alive.
My wife, looking after our four young daughters (the twins weren't yet 5 months old) was sick with not knowing, and when I eventually turned up the scene was one of unbelievable relief.
We didn't get any medical attention that day. Colin had damaged eardrums, and I've already mentioned my injuries.
I spent the following week with visits to the doctors and the hospital for x-rays and every day walking from my house to Bridges Road from where I could watch the plumes of black smoke still burning.
As well as the physical damage, for the next few years my nerves suffered. 
I'd get scared by the sound of lorries passing too close, and any loud noise would have me jumping out of my skin.
Years later I realised I'd cheated death and my outlook changed. Nothing bothers me any-more. 

Much has been written about what went wrong at Flixborough and it became a blueprint for countless Health and Safety directives as well as being used by the worlds fire services for training manuals.

In the immediate aftermath of the explosion the press, especially local, were having a field day with interviews, stories and pictures. I was interviewed for the Yorkshire Post though I never saw a copy.
My wife though kept a few cuttings and  after all these years in a brown envelope are almost turning to dust.Here are the ones I've managed to scan.

The first eight are from the Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph.

    All the above pictures from the Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph

These next two from the Sunday Mirror

And three from the Daily Mirror

So that's my story for posterity.

Here's a Youtube clip from the time.


My next post, part 2 will be to publish what I think might have been the last issue of the company magazine the 'Nypress', which includes tributes to the 28 men who lost their lives.