Grant Hutchison's Blog, page 32

Tamiya 1/48 P-47D Thunderbolt “Razorback”: Part 1

I’m using the Tamiya kit to model a specific aircraft, again. This is going to be a Republic P-47D-22-RE Thunderbolt, on the complement of 135 Squadron RAF in Burma from April to May 1945. Its American serial number was 42-25818, with a British serial of HB981. It was what the RAF called a “Thunderbolt I”—what’s … Continue reading Tamiya 1/48 P-47D Thunderbolt “Razorback”: Part 1 →

Gangrel

ˈɡæŋɡrəl gangrel (noun): a vagabond, vagrant or wandering beggar; a lanky, loose-limbed person; a toddler (Scottish hillwalking: a person who wanders far among the hills)   Only the real gangrel penetrates this remote corrie with its shivering waters and black Sgurr. Hamish Brown, Hamish’s Mountain Walk (1978) Brown is talking about Loch a’ Choire Mhoir, … Continue reading Gangrel →

Three Locked Room Mysteries

‘I will now lecture,’ said Dr Fell, inexorably, ‘on the general mechanics and development of the situation which is known in detective fiction as the “hermetically sealed chamber.” Harrumph. All those opposing can skip this chapter. […]’ John Dickson Carr The Hollow Man (1935) “Locked Room” mysteries are stories in which the central puzzle involves … Continue reading Three Locked Room Mysteries →

Pentlands: Kirk Burn Circuit

Bell’s Hill (NT 204643, 406m) Harbour Hill (NT 207653, 421m) Capelaw Hill (NT 216659, 454m) Allermuir Hill (NT 227661, 493m) Caerketton Hill (NT 235661, 478m) Castlelaw Hill (NT 224647, 488m) 14.8 kilometres 685m of ascent I’ve been meaning to get back to the Pentlands since my previous trip, last year. This time I wanted to … Continue reading Pentlands: Kirk Burn Circuit →

Ordnance Survey OpenData In QGIS 3: Part 1

Recently, I’ve been preparing my UK walking maps using the Ordnance Survey’s free OpenData products, which I’ve rendered into maps using a free, open-source Geographical Information System, QGIS. I thought I’d write a little bit about that, now that I’ve got my maps looking more or less as I’d like them. For this first part, … Continue reading Ordnance Survey OpenData In QGIS 3: Part 1 →

First Venice, Then Vienna

Though there are some disagreeable things in Venice there is nothing so disagreeable as the visitors. Henry James, The Century Magazine, vol. XXV (November 1882) We haven’t been to Venice for close to three years, so it seemed like time to go back. We were a month or two earlier than our usual timing, and … Continue reading First Venice, Then Vienna →

Letters From Abroad: Edh and Thorn

If you were transported unconscious to a foreign country and then wakened in the street, a glimpse of this plumber’s van would tell you exactly where you were—only Icelandic contains the two unusual letters that feature in that first word viðhaldsþjónusta (“maintenance services”). In fact, the Icelanders refer to their letters ð and þ as séríslenskur: “uniquely … Continue reading Letters From Abroad: Edh and Thorn →

Braes Of The Carse: Glen Carse Tour

Balthayock Hill (NO 189240, 219m) Unnamed Point (NO 191237, 208m) Unnamed Trig Point (NO 193231, 184m) Glencarse Hill (NO 185227, 182m) Pawns Hill (NO 180229, c.125m) Goukton Hill (NO 180218, 99m) Pans Hill (NO 184216, 105m) 11.3 kilometres 387m of ascent You’ll have spotted that I’m having difficulty coming up with descriptive names for some … Continue reading Braes Of The Carse: Glen Carse Tour →

Carl Miller: The Death Of The Gods

For almost all of us, the technology that we draw around us closer and more intimately with every passing moment is also something that we understand only more and more distantly. As it becomes smarter, better, more pervasive and more essential it also becomes more mysterious and arcane. The phones in our pockets are now … Continue reading Carl Miller: The Death Of The Gods →

PeakFinder

Back in 1995, a little packet of laminated cardboard diagrams fell through my letterbox. Dave Hewitt, editor of The Angry Corrie, wanted me to write a review of these items. Which I did—it appeared in TAC25, Nov ’95-Jan ’96. They were called ViewFinder Panoramas, they’d been created by Jonathan de Ferranti, and in my opinion … Continue reading PeakFinder →