A Little About Me And This Site

Discover Scotland > About Me

Writing about Scotland has been a revelation - and an education. Although born here and having lived here all my life I was surprised by how rich this beautiful country is in history, culture and obvious visitor appeal.

Hi, my name is John Gatens. Following a divorce in 2001, I came through what I can only describe as a dark period in my life, pulled through by the love of my daughters, Lynn and Lisa, (That's us in the photo, Lisa on the left, Lynn on the right, and I'm the thorn in the middle).


Since then I have come to appreciate the truly important things in life, and I now find myself very happy and contented, in a loving relationship with Rose, my strength and inspiration.

Round about the same time as my newly found direction and purpose in life, I had my first thoughts about building this website. Now, I never was much of a writer, I even hated writing essays in school, but I have a passion for Scotland. I have travelled the country enough to share my thoughts and experiences, even though I was a very late starter.

By that I mean, well, I did see some of the country as a boy, places like Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh Zoo, parts of the Highlands and Aberdeen.

But I neglected the magical West Coast of the country until .......

Well, here's the story .......


I live in Port Glasgow, on the Firth of Clyde, which is approximately a one hour drive to the banks of Loch Lomond (pictured here), and I was 41 years of age before I took the time to explore my part of the world, and when I finally did,
I wondered why it had taken me so long.

With a mixture of shame and excitement
I carried on further north, through the breathtaking scenery of Glencoe and on to Loch Linhe. A little further north and I arrived at Fort William and the magnificent sight of Ben Nevis.

This beautiful part of the country left a lasting impression, and these days I travel Scotland a lot, and I am always amazed by the natural beauty of the place. I have learnt to appreciate just how much the country has to offer, and I can now understand why visitors return here. So, passionate about my new found appreciation for my country, what better way of sharing my enthusiasm than building a website to promote Scotland.

So I've dedicated this site to promote Scottish Culture and History, Leisure Pursuits, Outdoor Activities, Events and all things Scottish. Building the site has been hard work in terms of the amount of hours I've put in, but when doing something you're passionate about it can be really enjoyable.

More than anything it's been fun, and if I'm completely honest with you, it was not as difficult as I imagined it would be, but then I did have the right help and guidance. I discovered by accident that ordinary people the world over, from all walks of life, are quietly building their very own successful websites, and now I'm one of them. If we can do it, so can YOU. Just read How I Built This Website without any experience or technical ability, and if you have a hobby, a passion or a dream, pursue it and make it happen.

I still have my full-time job working with autistic adults, and I have a passion for that too, so this website will develop as fast as time will allow. But the site's going so well I'll soon have to consider giving up the day job.

No amount of words or pictures can fully describe the beauty of Scotland. I just hope that maybe I have done enough to catch your imagination, stirred your curiosity, and inspired some of you enough to want to visit.

I hope you get as much pleasure reading as I do writing.

Thanks for visiting,

John.

Back To Top


Home | Contact | Privacy | Site Map