See 
High in Glen Clova
Blair House is the School’s Field Studies Centre. It is situated at the head of Glen Clova, north-west of Kirriemuir, about two hours driving time from Edinburgh. The area is a nature reserve and designated national scenic area.
The following words accompanied the gift which made possible the purchase of Blair House in 1969:
“It is to be for the School to establish a centre in the hills of Scotland where pupils may stay and find facilities to walk, climb, fish and study nature in rough but friendly conditions, and where they may learn to appreciate the beauty, isolation and peace of the hills.”
The Importance of the field centre
Blair House is used on many weekends by various groups, for activities ranging from Biology and Geography fieldwork to Art and Music; there is an annual winter visit by the Mountaineering Club. As well as field work and art work it is also an excellent place to study undisturbed, to improve fitness, to observe wild nature and to practise cookery.
For city dwellers the experience of the great outdoors is a valuable connection to the natural world. Our lifestyle's reliance on a man-made environment must never blind us to the importance of the wider setting of human activity.
Geits at Blair House
During each Summer Term since 1977 the Geits Classes have visited Blair House. The purpose of this exercise, which has proved very successful, is to introduce young pupils to outdoor activities under careful supervision of teachers and senior pupils.
Each Class spends three days at the Centre and participates in a programme which includes map and compass work, safety in the hills, elementary rock-climbing, and hill-walking according to ability. There is a climbing expedition, up the mountains Dreish and Mayar, a full day walk up the valley, and various other activities in the surrounding area.
Older Pupils
Thirds go on an optional three-day outdoor exercise in September. Under close supervision by staff, they do orienteering in the forest, rock-climbing in a quarry, a demanding all-day expedition up a gorge, and spend two nights in tents, beside the field centre. Fourths do a biology course at Blair House, where they carry out tree and river studies. There is a biology lab for analysing the results. Blair House is used most weekends by various groups, for activities ranging from Biology and Geography fieldwork to Art:
- Geography students. Sixths and Sevenths do studies of the river and the nearby corrie, Corrie Fee.
- CCF. On one field day per year, the centre is used by the Combined Cadet Force.
- The Mountaineering Club also occasionally has meets in winter using Blair House as a base.
Blair House
One of the highlights of this year’s Art Exhibition was the massive monochrome studies of rocks in the Glen Doll quarry, made near the start of the session. The intimacy of the accommodation and the immensity of the landscape provided a perfect stimulus for this year’s Art Department theme. Towards the end of the session the A-level Politics class added intensity to their study leave by taking forty-two hours at Blair House, eight-and-a-half of which were spent in supervised revision. The Geographers were there in early summer, and the Biologists in the spring. The Geits’ trips seem, to judge from the log books, to have been as successful as ever. In the autumn a group of Boarders, mostly from the Far East, discovered a bit more of what Scotland has to offer, as they saw deer and walked by the South Esk. During the Summer Term Blair House was slept in for thirty-eight nights by a whole range of different parties.
G. H. Harris
Outdoor Activity Courses
Thirds at Barcaple
Mountain biking on a world championship course was definitely one of the highlights for many, but the other activities that involved teamwork and leadership, such as the challenge course, were also popular. The ropes course provided plenty of chances to get muddy and the raft building turned out to be rather wet for some groups! |
Challenges
While the teachers might have wished that a little more sleeping was done by some of the pupils, they couldn’t have asked for more energy and enthusiasm to be put into the activities. The groups displayed some excellent teamwork, and remembered to thank the fantastic instructors that had helped them learn new skills. As a teacher I thoroughly enjoyed the trip, but I know that the pupils were the ones that enjoyed it even more. Some even testified that it was the best trip they had been on! |
This was the third time that a group of
Thirds headed off for the Abernethy
Centre in Barcaple and the group
was one of the largest we
have taken. With great
excitement we piled into
a coach and minibus
and set off. Three
hours later we arrived and settled into dorms. There wasn’t much time for sitting
down to lunch, as activities started that afternoon — and seemed
to continue almost constantly for the next four days. 
There were opportunities for everyone to try something new, and many persevered with difficult activities and conquered some of their fears. Community living was also a new experience for some of the boys, but — to everyone’s relief — the food was tasty, rather than being one of the challenges to endure! In the evenings the torches came out for hare and hounds, or other such wide games, then it was supper and sometimes a DVD before bed. This page is: Edinburgh Academy /information /activities/ outdoors.htm
