Ashling looking beautiful in red.

To keep the sea-themed wedding complete, the wedding cake, made by a friend, was inspired by Ashling’s job as a marine ecologist.

Sea themed cake.

Two kits from different families have been seen exploring and foraging around the Knapdale lochsides with their parents and also swimming confidently. There is the chance that there might even be more kits elsewhere that haven’t left their lodges or been spotted yet as they are even more reclusive than the adult beavers and are hard to spot because they are so small.

The Trial organisers have asked wildlife lovers visiting the area not to get too close to the lochsides in the coming weeks so as to minimise disturbing these sensitive and fascinating animals.

For more information and exclusive pictures of the new beaver kits, visit the website of the Scottish Beaver Trial.

Yachts line up for the start of the West Highland Yachting Week

As the boats lined up to start the race at 2pm a film crew circled over head in a helicopter - no doubt filming some stunning aerial shots.

The Scottish Association for Marine Science's stand drew a lot of interest with its live sealife touch-pool

Making play-doh insects in the greenhouse kept the kids occupied when they weren't racing around on the lawn

Meantime, the Arduaine Garden Summer Festival was underway in the NTS Arduaine Garden next door to Loch Melfort Hotel, with local artists, music and children’s activities for all to enjoy and to raise money and awareness for keeping this precious NTS Garden open long term.

The Chartroom II Ceilidh Band played to entertain the garden visitors

Helicopter landing at Loch Melfort Hotel

Hugh just wanted to climb in it and be a helicopter pilot! The hens made a quick escape back to their house as the helicopter descended, but everyone in the Bistro enjoyed watching it take off and land.

"I want my own helicopter!"

Maurice Wilkes with red squirrel box.

Maurice and Rick installing the boxes.

This is a joint project to encourage more children to take an interest and visit the garden, along with educational benefit and, of course, creating a home for wildlife within the garden!

Pupils from Craignish Primary School learning about animal life in Arduaine Garden.

The Fort William courses are consistently voted the best in the world for their tough rock gardens and drop-offs, not to mention the spectacular scenery of mountains, sea lochs and islands in the upper reaches of the Aonach Mor, the UK’s 9th highest peak. This year, the organisers are upgrading the massive 555m Downhill course with new features and jumps to ensure that this is the most challenging and exciting event in the 2010 calendar.

Spectators are not only attracted by the exciting, high class cycling action, the World Cup Village is a hive of activity with special offers such as free bike checks, competitions, demonstrations, entertainment and the chance to try out the latest bikes in the World Cup Bike Test Area.

The event is always extremely busy with cyclists, support teams and spectators, and demand for the best viewing spots, accommodation is always high, as hotels, guest houses, and campsites are regularly full well in advance.

Alice's boat arrives at Loch Melfort's moorings.

Three men in a boat!

Clad in wedding dress, life jacket and yellow wellies, Alice made the short dinghy trip from her beautiful sailing boat and only had a two minute walk to the hotel where she, Chris and their guests tucked into a delicious wedding feast and enjoyed the magnificent, sunshine-bathed views of the Sound of Jura.

The bride makes her way to the hotel.

To help the beavers do this, the project team built two artificial lodges as temporary accommodation. Lodges take time to build and without adequate shelter, the beavers would be vulnerable. The interior of the lodge was baited with food and their bedding was laced with the beavers’ scent to encourage them to feel at home.

It will be interesting to see how the new pair settle in and what impact they have on the environment. The existing beavers have built their own lodges and evidence of beaver activity in the area is very noticeable with numerous tree stumps and felled trees. The effect of the beavers’ dams is quite dramatic. Since the beavers got to work, Dubh Loch has nearly doubled in size resulting in more habitat for wildlife such as frogs, dragonflies and water plants.

All of us here at Loch Melfort Hotel like to keep up with our furry neighbours’ activities and hope the new pair enjoy their new Scottish home.

For more up-to-date news visit the Scottish Beaver Trial website.

From Appin to Kilmartin, Tobermory to Taynuilt, public talks, exhibitions, open days and outdoor events about sea life in the Oban area will take place daily, and throughout the ten days experts in fields such as marine biology, local history and conservation will share their knowledge with the community and visitors alike. In addition, there will be hands on activities like cooking seafood in a restaurant, coasteering (rock scrambling, cliff jumping and swimming), beach cleaning, boat trips, guided walks, and, of course, ceilidhs aplenty!

Sound of Jura from Loch Melfort Hotel

Local schools are heavily involved and already the children have prepared friezes, 3-D models, costumes, dances, poems and presentations all centred around a marine theme.

The festival is organised by the Scottish Association for Marine Science and the full programme of events can be viewed at the Marine Science Festival website.

Improvements to the hotel, how it’s run, and our involvement with the local community have paid off, and we will continue these efforts in our ongoing goal to provide a top quality, luxury country house hotel experience for all our guests.

Small Country House Hotel of the Year Winners

The Scottish Hotel Awards are regarded as one of the highest recognitions in the hotel industry in Scotland and as winners we would like to thank all who recommended us.