New residents

Since the last newsletter there have been two new residents to the island. Tasha Fyffe and Brigg Lancaster had a baby girl, Mia, on the 27^th of July and Stuart Thompson and Grace Ferguson had their second  baby girl, Heather Grace, on the 13^th of January this year.

Bequest

A £10,000 bequest by Professor Everett is to be used to set up a fund to assist small businesses on the island. The fund will enable small businesses to access match funding and to make the island sustainable by encouraging business start-ups.  

Building Programme

Work is now well underway on Kildonan Farmhouse and although progress has been slow we still expect completion before the first of the guests arrive. Marie and Colin have managed to remain in the house throughout the work which given the airy conditions at times is quite an achievement. Next on the list is Brae Cottage which Stuart and Grace are soon to vacate when they flit to the Crows Nest permanently.

In readiness for their move a new plumbing and central heating system is being installed and decoration and kitchen installation  is being carried out by Grace and Stuart and an enthusiastic team of family and friends.

Community Hall

Its five years since the buy out of the island and with a lot of the priority work completed or still underway eyes have turned once more to renovating the Community Hall. Plans have been agreed which retain the character of the hall whilst adding to the structure and capacity. Improvements include a new kitchen/bar area, toilets and a store/changing room for musicians and other visiting groups. Improvements to the grounds surrounding the hall should give us ample parking areas and a pleasant outside area for those balmy summer evenings we get so often. An application is expected to be submitted to the Community Fund within the next few weeks with work starting this coming Autumn if the application is successful.

Crofting Reorganisation

The Crofters Commission is supporting the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust in a forward thinking scheme to re-organise existing croft land and create new croft land.  This will open up opportunities for current and new crofters.

The crofting townships of Cleadale and Cuagach are now in the preliminary stages of a process that will produce more manageable units and, in the future create new crofts from land previously not under crofting.  The land will form part of a new crofting resource.

Crofting continues to attract new entrants, offering the security of housing and land and an alternative lifestyle in a fragile area.  People are turning to crofting as a way of leading a new kind of life within the stability of a small community.

David Green, Chairman of the Commission commented: "The Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust initiative is a practical illustration of how the re-organisation of croft land can be used as a tool to revitalise crofting communities. Once the new land boundaries have been agreed, the townships can come together to devise an overall strategy for development and progression of the community"

Wildlife Report

Unfortunately the early summer of 2002 will be best remembered for the absolutely dire weather with frequent gales, low temperatures & almost constant rain.

Obviously this had a considerable effect on breeding birds with many species suffering badly. As usual Arctic Terns were worst hit with a record 180 pairs succeeding in raising only 3-6 young, with many newly hatched chicks found chilled & dead in early July. Many other species, ranging from Buzzards to passerines, were also affected by the weather & Red Throated Divers failed yet again due to egg predation by an otter. Despite all this, there were some bright spots with both pairs of Golden Eagles raising young & many small birds doing well with later broods.

Once again the main migration periods were fairly quiet though there were a few high spots. Two Tree Sparrows in the spring were the first since 1970 while two Rough Legged Buzzards in May were an island first. Autumn produced a Long Tailed Duck, a Pomarine Skua & 5 Crossbills, while winter has brought influxes of Water Rails & Little Auks.

Up until the end of July, very few Minke whales had been seen offshore but August & September offered ample compensation with large numbers suddenly becoming regular. A maximum. count of 30 between Eigg, Arisaig & Rum on August 22^nd was certainly exceptional. Minke whales apart, 4 species of dolphins were recorded – Common, Bottle Nosed & Rissos plus a Killer Whale on Dec 27^th. Porpoises were numerous throughout the summer with 25+ between Mallaig & Eigg on Sept 13^th

Overall it was an interesting summer botanically with all 12 species of orchid known on the island seen at one time or another. Three new plant species were added to the island list (Alpine Clubmoss, Red Currant & Squirrel-Tail Fescue) whilst another four species were re-discovered after long absences.

New Pier

Construction work on the new pier is now well underway with the alignment structure and slipway almost complete and the first layer of rock in place for the causeway. Work has continued throughout the winter with only a two week break for the festive period so fingers crossed that work can continue at this pace and we'll see the finished pier in Autumn of this year. In the next few months the piles and coffer dam should all be removed revealing the true size of the new structure. The rock removed from around the works is destined for the causeway.

Tragic Accident

On Saturday 25^th January, the islanders were stunned to hear that Brigg Lancaster father of recent arrival Mia had suffered a fatal accident when his jeep rolled off the track leading to his home. A talented woodcarver and meticulous joiner, 31 year old Brigg was a stalwart member of the Eigg Construction company. Our thoughts are with Tasha and Mia, Maggie and Wes and Briggs family, his parents Brian and Jean and his sisters Sarah and Jane.