DAYS OIIT
LISTINGS
This section gives details at selected events ttlnp place in and around the
, Central Belt of Scotland this fortnight. Events are listed by area and than alphabetically. All subntisslons should be accompanied by a contact phone number for our intonation. Days out contpiled by Thom Dibdln.
BORDERS CENTRAL 8: TAYSIDE
I BLAIR ATIIIN. DISTILLERY VISITORS CENTRE Weekdays 9.30am-5pm. Saturday noon—4pm. Blair Athol Distillery. Blair Athol. £2. 0796 4722343. Only a skeleton staff work at this attractive distillery during the winter months. so it’s best to phone before hand to book. Your entrance fee for the one hour tour includes not only a dram of the Blair Athol twelve-year-old Single Malt. but also a £3 voucher redeemable against a bottle of the same. should you be seduced by its bouquet. Coffee shop with home baking. bar. free parkin t.
I DISCOVERY POINT Daily. 10am—4pm (Sun: 11am—4pm). Riverside Drive. Dundee. £4 (£2.90). 0382 201245. See photo caption.
I CD AND RECORD FAIR Sat 13. 10.30am—4pm. Roxburgh Hotel. Charlotte Square. Edinburgh. 60p (40p). 041 954 0931. Thousands of CD. cassette. LP. 7‘. 12‘ and memorabilia bargains are promised. Sell or exchange your old collection.
I IIOPETOIIN’S INSTORY Sun 13. 1.30pm HOpetoun House, South Queensferry. £2 (children free). 031 33! 2451. A bit of everything. from geography to the history of the Hope family. in this guided walk by the House's Ranger service entitled ‘The Life and Times of Hopetoun‘.
I ST ANDREWS SEALIFE CENTRE Daily. 10am-6pm. The Scones. St Andrews. £3.95 (£2.95). car park 60p. 0334 74786. Part of the national chain of hands-on Sealife Centres which display native British marine life in its natural setting. Rays. crabs. dogfish. British sharks and seals are all there. in exhibitions which constantly change according to the season. For the kids. there's a quiz trail. sea-lab (with baby fish born at the centre) and fet'lic pools. Talks take place every hour bew- een 11.30am and 4.30pm. Ticket valid all day. so you can pop into the town fora while then come back to your tattourite attraction.
STRATHOLYDE
I EARTIIIALN Sun 13. 2-4pm. Dalzell Country Park. Motherwell. Free. Meet at DalzelllBarons Haugh Car Park. Details: 0698 269696. A new way of looking at nature.
I FASHION SNOW Tue 15/Wed 16, from 7.30pm. Paisley Town Hall. Paisley. £3 (£2). Tickets from 041 889 4225. extension 2260. Charity fashion shows organised by Paisley’s Reid Kerr College for the Hospice Appeal Scotland. l’aisley's textile history will provide the theme for the evenings. local shops the
, clothes. while the college are providing
LDTHIANS & FIFE - i
the models. hair and make up and stage secs.
I NINE TO TIIE HIGH POINT Sun 13, 2pm. Gleniffer Braes Country Park. Glen Lodge. Glenfield Road. Paisley. Free. Countryside Rangers: 041 884 3794. A guided walk with the Countryside Rangers to the highest point in the park. Bring your binoculars to get full enjoyment of the spectacular views. Warm clothes and stout footwear advised.
. ’ w I I I I
' I MODEL, TOY AND RAIL COLLECTORS
i FAIR Sun 13. [2.30—4.30pm. Summerlee Heritage Trust, West Canal Street. Coatbridge. Free. 0236 431261. Collectors and dealers from all over Scotland are expected at this fair where models. toys. trains. science fiction and television memerobilia will be bought. sold. swapped and generally poured over. Free valuations of collectable items. Hamilton Village Model Rail Group will be displaying their working 1950s layout. Summerlee. ‘Scotland's noisiest museum’, is always a good bet for a day out with massive exhibitions of Scotland’s industrial heritage on the twenty-acre site. I MYSTERY RIDE FOR ST VALENTINE’S DAY Sun 13. 11am. Meet at The Obelisk. Glasgow Green. Free. 041 337 2871. Glasgow Cycling Campaign organised cycle to . . . somewhere romantic.
Perha s! All welcome.
I R TORE A 190i CENTURY SAILING SIIIP Sat 13/Sun 14. 10am onwards. Yorkhill Quay (signposted Glenlee from Yorkhill Roundabout exit on Clyde Expressway). There‘s free tea and coffee ifyou fancy lending a hand. No
2 experience necessar .
I RIOS AND RELICS IN THE MEDIEVAL
CITY Sun 20. 2pm. Cathedral Square by St
i Mungo's Museum. City archeologist.
1 Hugh McBrien. leads a stroll down the
I High Street to Glasgow Cross and the
; Briggait in search of traces and roots of
i the original Glasgow.
3 I SCOTTISH BRIDAL FAIR Sat 13/Sun 14.
} 10am—6pm/10am-5pm. SECC. Finnieston ' Quay. Glasgow. £4. (SECC ticket line:
i 041 248 9999). See feature in Valentines pages of Back List.
I VOLUNTEER DAY AT LOCIIWINNOCII Sun 20. 10.30am. Meet on the path at the Black Ditch Burn (entrance on Parkhill Wood). Details from Sustrans on 041 552 8241. Wellingtons essential!
I A WALK IN THE WILDWOOD Sun 20. 2pm. Drumpellier Country Park.
! Townhead Road. Coatbridge. Free. Meet in the Peace Garden. Details: 0236 422257. Leafless. but not lifeless! Discover the mystery of the winter
' woodlands.
I WINTER RAMBLE Sun 20. 2pm. Golf Driving Range. Strathclyde Country Park. Mote Hill. Hamilton. Free. 0698 269696. A quiet informal walk in the company of a knowledgeable countryside enthusiast.
SANG TAN
Snow-boarding at Cairnporu
As the half-term approaches and folk get tempted by the apparent ease with which the Olympians swoop down the Lillehammer slopes. the pistes are likely to get busier — if the wind calms down that is. Despite the relatively mild weather in the Central belt. snow cover has remained universally good at the top of the runs. Apart from Glencoe. where the wind has curtailed skiing. the season is living up to the expectations raised in December.
I GLENCOE Chairlift company: 08556 226. Closed Tue/Wed. The closest resort to Glasgow and Scotland’s first commercial resort. The first tow opened in 1956. It was particularly badly hit by the gale force winds, which is a pity. because when the skiing is on. all runs are complete with good. deep. fresh snow and a vertical run of 1400 feet.
I NEVIS RANGE Chairlift company: 0397 705825. Scotland‘s newest and hence most modem ski resort boasts the UK's only gondola system. The highest pistes in I Scotland are at the top of Aonach Mor
: (4006 feet). Creche facility: three—seven- years-old. Not so badly affected by the
wind. there is good cover on all the runs for all abilities. The upper slopes offer particularly wide coverage.
Olympic vreeltend On the Sat 12 and Sun 13. the Nevis range are organising Norwegian ski activities to celebrate the opening of the Winter Olympics with TV coverage from Lillehammer available in the Snowgoose restaurant. Out on the pistes. there will be displays of Telemark skiing with Norwegian ski racing in traditional costumes. On Saturday evening. String Jammer will be giving it Ialdy in the restaurant from 5-9pm. with the party continuing at the Mercury Hotel thereafter. On Sunday there is also an on- piste jum ing competition.
I CAIR ORM Chairlift company: 0479 861 261. Scotland's tnost famous ski area. close to the skiing town of Aviemore so there are lots of things to do off-piste. The resort is reckoned to be Scotland‘s largest. boasting 28 runs. All runs are complete. with wide. deep. well-packed coverage although the lower slopes are a wee bit soft. There has been so much snow that they had to dig the top tow out last week. which should mean that there‘s enough snow in the bank to last well into May. Snow-boarding is taking off in a big way with the ‘half pipe‘ complete.
I CLENSIIEE Chairlift company: 03397 41320/41343. Edinburgh‘s closest resort. The three valleys of Glenshee offer 38 pistes on 40km of runs and a massive uplift capacity of 18.500 skiers an hour. Creche facility: over two-years-old. Because the valleys face different ways. only three days have been lost to the wind. All runs are complete with firm- packed. if sometimes icy. snow. There is ‘plenty snow high up'. so much in fact. that in the third valley it is up to fifteen feet deep.
I TIIE LECIIT Chairlift company: 09756 51440. Scotland's best resort for absolute beginners. with easy green and nursery slopes right next to the car park. Creche facility: over three-years-old. The going is good. with three feet of snow on all runs. wide coverage and no problems with the south-westerly winds.
Night Skiing During February. The Lecht are putting on floodlit night skiing every Friday and Saturday. 6—9ptn: phone first to confirm.
I RACES Eat your heart out Lillehammer! Sat 12 Glencoe: West of Scotland Senior Championships.
Sat 12/300 13 Cairngorm: North of Scotland Children's Championships. Thurs 17 Glenshee: Rydens Scottish Schools Minors Race.
Sat 19/300 20 Nevis Range: North West of Scotland Senior FIS Championships.
I i E
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ALEX COUPAR
; I DISCOVERY PDIll‘l Dally, 10am-4pm (Sun: 11am-4pm). Riverside Drive, Dundee. £4 5 (£2.90). 0382 201245. An excellent venue tor a lainlly day out, the avrard winning
1 Discovery Point provides exciting rnulti-rnedia presentations telling the story at the 3 Antarctic Survey ship lllls Discovery and Scott’s 1901 exploration of the Ross Sea
which are only marred by the gratuitous appearance of Desperate Dan. Thrill at the launch of Discovery, gape in amazement at the three-screen presentation ‘locked in the lce’ about how the expedition was rescued in 1904 and marvel at the chunk oi genuine antarch ice, before wandering round the strip itself. Until 29 May, there is also an exhibition about the British Antarctic survey, with a complete base camp.
48 The List 1 l—24 February 1994