Let the Games Begin!
If you’ve been on holiday in Scotland this summer you may have already enjoyed the spectacle of a Highland Games. The season runs from May to September and by August it’s in full swing with some of the most prestigious Gatherings happening this week in Argyll. Today it’s the turn of The Argyllshire Gathering in Oban and this weekend the World Championship takes place in Dunoon with the Cowal Highland Gathering.
The Argyllshire Gathering is a very traditional affair, but it stands out from the crowd because of its world-famous Piobaireachd Piping competitions that take place the day before. On Games day (always the last Thursday in August) the winners of this prestigious event join the Oban Pipe Band to process with the Gathering Stewards from Station Square in Oban town centre, to the Games Field at Mossfield Shinty Park.
Just a few days later, the Cowal Games takes place in Dunoon. It claims to be the largest Highland Games in Scotland and the event is spread over 3 days with a wide range of activities to complement the traditional athletics and games at its core. It also has the added bonus of hosting the World Highland Dance Championship – which adds to its popularity.
A week later Braemar with its Royal patronage and celebrity guests takes place in the Highlands. This event, held on the first Saturday in September, can trace its origins back over hundreds of years and claims to be the world’s oldest ‘modern’ games having been organised on a regular basis by the same body (the Braemar Royal Highland Society) since 1832. According to its website: “While there have been Gatherings of one sort or another at Braemar since the days of King Malcolm Canmore, nine hundred years ago, the Gathering has been run in its present form since 1832. During much of that time large crowds have come each year to acclaim their Monarch as Chieftain of the Braemar Gathering.”
The exact origin of the Gathering is shrouded in mystery – as with much of Scotland’s heritage the games are linked to ancient Ireland and are thought to have been brought across the water to what is now Argyll in the 4th century when the Scots Tribe settled in Dalriada and created the first Kingdom of Scotland.
So what exactly can you expect to see at a Highland Gathering?
It does vary but at its core are the traditional Highland Games themselves with instantly recognisable events such as caber tossing and throwing weights. The caber (often a reclaimed telegraph pole, but formerly a Highland Pine or similar long straight tree trunk) is around six metres in length and the competitor must lift, balance and ‘toss’ the caber so it flips completely. The aim is to land the caber as near to the 12 o’clock position as possible.
Highland Games are a magnet for the bagpipes and performances in the field are often accompanied to the drone of pipes. You will also see Highland Dancers competing for prizes, hill races (one of the most traditional athletic events), standard track races and these days some fun races which may be anything from a sack race to three legged race. The Games are all about participation and spectators are invited to take part in many of the open events.
Inevitably with a Gathering of Scots, there is plenty of food and drink to make for an enjoyable day of family-friendly entertainment.
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