Schools celebrate nature with poetry
Winners of the 2022 John Muir Trust (JMT) Lochaber wild poetry competition have been announced, with entries in both English and Gaelic celebrating the connection between language and landscape.
Despite the challenges created by Covid, this year’s competition attracted almost 600 entries from 19 different primary schools across the region from Invergarry in the east to Isle of Muck in the west.
Entries were submitted in both English and Gaelic, with around 80 poems submitted in the latter, and winning and commended poems were displayed in the exhibition space at the Fort William Mountain Festival for the public to enjoy.
Nathan Berrie, JMT conservation officer, said: ‘It has been a real privilege to read about how young people in Lochaber interact with wild places.
‘Whether it was spending time on their bikes in nature or simply just a walk in their local woodland, each poem offered a special insight into why nature is so important to us all.
‘It was a difficult task to decide the winners. Some stood out because of their captivating subjects. Others attracted us with their descriptive words, flow and rhythm, conjuring up that special quality of an animal, or a place, or the feel of taking part in something outdoors in our wonderful wild weather.’
The John Muir Trust wishes to thank all those who took part, including pupils, schools and teachers, The Highland Book Shop and Comunn na Gàidhlig for their kind donation of book tokens as a prize and to staff at the Nevis Landscape Partnership and Comunn na Gàidhlig who helped judge the poems.
Run annually, the competition is scheduled to take place again next winter to coincide with the Fort William Mountain Festival 2023.
Roll of honour 2022
English P1-3: 1, Moira Simpkinson (Strontian); 2, Arran O’ Connor (Arisaig); 3, Suilven Holmes (Kilchoan).
English P4-7: 1, Rowan MacLean (St Columba’s); 2, Katie Pescod (Banavie); 3, Freya McCarthy (Eigg).
Gaelic P1-4: 1, Angus MacAulay (Acharacle); 2, Eoin Burton (Mallaig); 3, Holly Livett (Acharacle).
Gaelic P5-7: 1, Olivia MacGregor (Acharacle); 2, Donnie MacAskill (Acharacle); 3, Anna Fothergill (Mallaig).