Scottish Invasion

Piper competes at the Palmer Scottish Highland Games

Our original plan for our first few days with Morgan was to visit Hatcher Pass and its abandoned mine.  We discovered, however, that the pass was still closed due to snow and the area was socked in fog so thick we could hardly see two feet in front of the truck.  Oh well... another time.

When Liz announced that the town of Palmer was having their annual Scottish Highland Games, we jumped at the chance to meet her and Walter there.  While Morgan had visited a Highland Game several years ago, neither David nor I had ever been to one.   We had no idea what to expect.

Pipers warm up for group competition.

Snare drum competition warm-up

Clogger at the Palmer Scottish Highland Games

One of the greatest pleasures in our forays and adventures is the opportunity to get to know an area.  The Highland Games offered just that... music, dance, competitions, and a variety of characters.

Scottish Lad

A Scottish Lass with a familiar face!

My favorite visiting group was the raptor rehabilitators.  They brought several owls and hawks to educate folks about the birds.  All the raptors had been injured and were unable to return to the wild.  Some even posed for me.

The majority of the Highland competitions were all about strength and agility.  As an example, men threw a 52-pound weight between their knees, above their head, and over a bar.  One fellow almost made the world record at 19 feet, six inches!  Some threw weighted stones by hugging it to their chin, twirling around, and tossing them out.  Others tossed weighted hammers.

The most outlandish competition, in my humble opinion, was the caber.  A contestant would vertically lift a 127-pound tapered telephone pole, run with it, then toss it end over end.  The one that could make it flip most in front of his body won.  Incredible!

Morgan's description of the various games is much better than mine, so I invite you to visit her post (click here: Morgan's Highland Games post).  I wanted to include more visuals of the competitions we saw, including the combined bands playing Amazing Grace.  Unfortunately I cannot.  I took videos and have just discovered that I can't download them.  Ah... the frustrations of a new camera!

We left the games early in order to make our reservations at the Tek campground in Denali.  Now the question is... will Morgan see the mountain?