Installing the Lochnagar Stane at the Spittal o Glen Muick

[Gordon Ballantyne]

Today, a group of Mountaineers installed a commemorative stone - The Lochnagar Stane - by the visitor centre at Glen Muick. ( see previous posting for details about the Somme Lochnagar crater story )
The Stane had been delivered the previous week by RAF Lossiemouth Mountain Rescue Team.
Gordon Cooper ( GC ) and myself arrived first, to be greeted by Bryn the Spittal shopkeeper, Fiona the Spittal ranger and her stone-rolling spaniel Dylan.
We were also met by clouds of voracious midges, who breakfasted on our ancient bodies. Albie and Iain Forbes ( Frobies ) arrived to be the main course for the midges, followed by Steve Wagg who provided their pudding......
Fiona saved our bacon by gifting us a supply of Smidge before leaving for her estate duties.

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We attacked the hardcore below the chuckies to form the recess for the baseplate and filled it with postcrete,
then leveled it.

Starting the groundworks

Coffee was served while the cement dried - and in true cooncil workie fashion we leaned on our tools and vacantly gazed at the job....

Waiting for the cement to dry - true "workies"

Next the support pillar was fixed in position with its locating studs.
The main stone was manoeuvre'd into position and fixed on top of the black granite plinth.
With a few grunts and adjustments it was aligned by Steve, GordonC and Frobies while Albie and I "supervised".

GordonC levelling watched by Steve

Albie chats to Bryn as the project progesses

Frobes gets down to it

More postcrete was applied around the stane and the chuckies added. Frobes applied the finishing touches - job done !
The rain had held off, so the gazebo we'd brought hadn't been needed to be deployed.
We stood around admiring our handywork and were soon joined by interested visitors, who posed by the Stane. Bryn took our photo and we tidied up with Steve's barra. ( He'd also brought a proper pinch which was invaluable for levering out stones and nudging /prodding things into position ).

Manoeuvering the Stane into position

The Lochnagar Stane - job done

Albie captures the Lochnagar Stane

Tidying up

Bryn put the Lochnagar crater storyboards in the window of the visitor centre as the finishing touch.

The Lochnagar crater storyboards at the visitor centre

We then realised that we'd probably missed the opportunity to get one of the royals to unveil the Stane, but resolved to christen it with some Lochnagar whisky when we could assemble some "dignitaries".

Job done - Gordon Cooper, Gordon Ballantyne, Iain Forbes, Steve Wagg, Albie Fyfe.

Thanks especially go to Iain Forbes for organising the project and leading the "team" .
The RAF Mountain Rescue Mountain Rescue Association president Has Oldham gave his moral support, useful advice and detailed assembly instructions.
A special thanks to my neighbour and walking pal Gordon Cooper for his able assistance and the Lossiemouth Team for safely delivering the Stane to the Spittal.
Finally a special thankyou to the Balmoral estate rangers for supporting this project - Glyn, Fiona & Bryn.
( and the life-saving Smidge )

Bryn Jones manning the Balmoral Estates Spittal shoppie

And finally, finally, this year's Scottish RAF MRA reunion date has been announced by Creag Meagaidh - 7th November at Newtonmore !
Rumpy pumpy ! ( Search call by RAF MRT's in olden times )

GordonC and I retreated down the glen, with the intention of doing a wee Tump, but as the rain increased in intensity, we chickened out and opted for a coffee in the Ballater Bothy cafe - so no hills today - sorry.

[gaffr]

Good to see craftsmen at work....a fine job done.
The Rp call I first heard coming out from one of the teaching folks at Glenmore Lodge....only just opened then...we were there on a schools trip involving several schools from the two big cities in Scotland.

[Gordon Ballantyne]

Good to see craftsmen at work....a fine job done.
The Rp call I first heard coming out from one of the teaching folks at Glenmore Lodge....only just opened then...we were there on a schools trip involving several schools from the two big cities in Scotland.

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Thanks for that gaffr,

My recollection of RP was searching for a scoutmaster and his wife + two kids, who'd been out all night and walking along the N side of Loch A'an yelling RP up into the clag below the Stag Rocks when this chorus of voices came down from above.
We went up, located and fed them, then escorted them back over the Fiacaill o Coire Cas to the car park. A great feeling !


Cheers Gordon