A Saturday Morning at Kelty Woods
Five of us — Gillian, Ruth, Ken, Bill and Ian — set off for Blairadam Forest, better known locally as Kelty Woods. We came for a day of photography and found plenty to keep us happily occupied.
Cloudy skies, the occasional burst of sunlight and damp ground after recent rain gave the woods a lovely autumn feel. We met at the lower car park, then followed the paths into the trees, cameras at the ready.
Before long, we were peering beneath the canopy and stepping away from the main tracks to photograph mushrooms and other little woodland details with our macro and zoom lenses. The fungi near the busy paths had often seen better days, but a chance meeting with a local dog walker pointed us towards a much more promising spot.
She knew the woods well and suggested following the rusty-coloured waters of the Kelty Burn until the path turned left. What a good tip. We found a wonderful variety of mushrooms there, along with plenty of other details to explore through the lens.
Birds called from high in the canopy, though the heron, cuckoo and woodpecker our new acquaintance had mentioned kept out of sight. We’ll have to look and listen carefully on our next visit.
We were so absorbed in photographing the woods that we ran out of time for coffee at DPA’s Kelty HQ — Gillian’s place. No one seemed to mind: it had been a great day out, and we’re now well practised and looking forward to next week’s trip to Glencoe.
3rd October 2026
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