A PAIR of plucky Ross-shire fortysomethings are gearing up for the challenge of a lifetime.

AN up-and-coming designer from Ross-shire is making a big name for herself in the fashion world.

ORGANISERS of an innovative Wester Ross ceilidh scheme were this week celebrating the fruits of their labours.

A GAELIC singer with strong Ross-shire connections is determined to grab the opportunity of a lifetime "with both hands"!

COLOURFUL art with a no-nonsense message transformed the floor of a Black Isle village hall at the weekend.

MOUNTAIN rescue volunteers covering one of the most rugged and exposed parts of the country are setting their sights on a new base from which to provide their lifeline 24/7 service.

AN inspirational Ross-shire children's author, who has battled dyslexia all her life, is urging local youngsters to get their creative juices flowing.

MIKE Bates has more reason than most for relishing the prospect of Ross County's home clash with table-topping Queen of the South tomorrow (Saturday). His trip to Victoria Park has taken the ex-pat halfway around the world and will be the first County game he has been able to enjoy in more than 42 years.

THE Ross-shire Journal is to be commended for drawing public attention to the potential plight of the deer that have roamed the slopes of The Ben for generations.

OFF to London recently as sole Scottish finalist in a cookery competition was Dingwall grandmother Isobel Lewis – and she won!

A PLUCKY 12-year-old boy inspired to help injured people by watching his mother deal with her progressive disability has set himself a daunting task of swimming 500 pool lengths to raise money.

Gairloch High School chemistry teacher Dr Clare Caley jumped at the opportunity to help African youngsters and their teachers during an unforgettable work placement during her summer holiday. Swapping Wester Ross for Malawi was to be a life-changing experience.

A DINGWALL man's remarkable contribution to civic life in Ross-shire and well beyond will receive his honour tonight (Friday).

LIKE it or loathe it, there can be no doubting that television plays a major part in most of our lives, informing, entertaining and providing an endless source of office small talk.

AN Easter Ross librarian has opened another chapter on her burgeoning career as an author with the launch of her new book, Envoy of the Black Pine.

A PROFOUNDLY deaf teenager with a passion for horses has raised around £1,000 for the association which taught her to ride by undertaking an arduous eight-hour trek on her beloved pony, Cody.

A FORMER wartime Lumber Jill from Ross-shire has been recognised for her service in the Women's Timber Corps — 66 years after she first started work felling trees at the tender age of 19.

CROMARTY'S rising cycling star Magnus Davidson is already dreaming of representing Scotland at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games after being hand-picked by Lloyds TSB to join their Local Heroes initiative.

THE staff behind an Easter Ross recycling charity were this week recognised for the excellent work they do.

A gifted subscription to the Ross-shire Journal has sparked memories of the happiest days of her life for Mary Thompson of Sydenham Hill, London, who here reflects on a year with the area’s best-selling weekly newspaper.

SUMMER holidays. Two simple words that conjure starkly contrasting emotions depending on who you are, the state of your bank balance and what stage of life you have reached.

Easter Ross teenager Lorne Rostock took time out from a stint of work experience with the Ross-shire Journal to reflect on the challenges of life in a wheelchair.

A ROSS-SHIRE distillery is set to benefit from an overhaul as part of a major investment programme worth £45million.

A ROYAL Navy veteran from Alness who served on two warships during the Malayan Emergency half a century ago has been awarded a medal in recognition of his efforts.

A MEMORIAL in tribute to a fondly-remembered Dingwall supermarket trolley attendant is due to be unveiled in the grounds of the store.

LITTLE did I know on Friday afternoon that I would be spending my weekend witnessing marriages in an inflatable church, waving a giant pirate flag, chilling out in a flavoured oxygen bar, and eating oysters and hamburgers — though not at the same time.

“I HOPE that for the rest of your lives you will remember this day.” Those were the words Dingwall Academy rector Graham Mackenzie used to welcome his wide-eyed pupils to the first assembly held in the auditorium of the shiny new £28million school.

MORE than half a century ago Janette Goodall, a nine-year-old from Fortrose, first heard about a village with the same name half a world away in New Zealand.

STRATHPEFFER this week took a first step on the journey to put itself on the public awareness map.

A LOCAL writers group has gone from strength to strength after scooping the top prize at a national competition.

A LIFELONG friendship which helped a Contin woman get through her treatment for cancer has reaped rewards for a charity to help other patients.

MOVIE makers in the process of filming the life and times of an old Ross-shire school are having their work cut out due to camera-shy former pupils and staff members.

ONE of Ross County's backroom boys got the shock of his life when he was presented with a special award at a supporters' club end of season bash last Saturday.

A TINY Wester Ross community has cottoned on to an environmentally aware scheme that aims to radically reduce dependence on plastic bags.

A DINGWALL barman is losing no opportunity in gearing up for a charity fundraising Black Isle cycle ride.

A ROSS-SHIRE man who spent the last 18 months of World War II down the mines has finally been recognised along with thousands of other Bevin Boys on the 60th anniversary of their demobilisation.

GIRLS from a Ross-shire youth group have become more streetwise after completing a self-defence training course.

THE spectacle of more than 100 pipers and drummers of the Army Cadet Force marching together will come to the streets of Dingwall next month.

A NOSTALGIC trip down memory lane is planned for former pupils and staff of an Easter Ross secondary planning an anniversary celebration this year.

A HOLLYWOOD star may never know the impact she has had on a Highland family.

OLD soldiers in Ross-shire have dropped their guard to allow women into their ranks for the first time.

DINGWALL Army Cadet Kayleigh McMurdo (15), was presented with a St John Ambulance Young First Aider of the Year Award by her commanding officer.

A FRENCH family keen on spending their summer holiday in Dingwall to learn about its Viking and Celtic connections is seeking a Ross-shire resident who is willing to let them have the run of their home in July.

A FORMER Dingwall Academy pupil has been filling his ex-rector in on a stage career that has gone from strength to strength since he left the school.

CONGRATULATIONS to regular Ross-shire Journal contributor, Alasdair Fraser, who scooped this year's Sportswriter of the Year award at the Highland Media Awards.

THROUGH the mists of time I recall fighting against what felt like a hurricane on a ramshackle old bike en route to the youth hostel in the pretty little town of Stromness.

THE imaginative pupils of a Ross-shire school will bring their favourite storybooks to life as part of a full week of events to encourage a life-long love of reading.

A WESTER Ross beauty spot will be seen in all 27 member states of the European Union this year thanks to an eye-catching photograph snapped by an MEP.

A ROSS exile whose dream of publishing a book came true has revealed how he binned the offer when opportunity first came knocking.

A BLACK Isle lass found herself on the other side of the camera after her entry to a wildlife photography competition caught the eye of judges.

AVOCH Sea Scout leader Derek Martin has been awarded the Medal of Merit, one of the highest honours that can be bestowed on a leader.

A NEWLY-ordained Church of Scotland Inverness minister, who is following in his father's footsteps after an earlier career as a surveyor, is to take over the widespread Wester Ross charge of Lochcarron, Applecross and Torridon.

DAY trippers are being encouraged to travel along a scenic Ross-shire glen by the children who live there.

DINGWALL nurse Karen McKenzie has scooped the University of Stirling's 2007 RG Bomont award for excellence in clinical practice — after fending off competition from 320 fellow nursing students from across the Highlands, Western Isles and Central Scotland.

AN AVOCH primary school pupil has won the Ross-shire area prize in a drawing competition run by a project which teaches children how to stay safe.

A MAJOR bank has bid a fond farewell to loyal members of staff who between them have clocked up the best part of half a century serving it.

A SUCCESSFUL model from Easter Ross has proved she can cut it on both sides of the fashion industry, by scooping a respected Scottish design award.

CROMARTY will come alive at the weekend when huge projections will light up the whitewashed buildings in the Black Isle fishing village.

ECO-FRIENDLY students at an Easter Ross secondary are going the extra mile to try and save the planet.

IT IS one of the greatest mountaineering survival stories never told... until now.

UNBEARABLE heat, snakes, biting ants and wasp attacks were all things one Dingwall mum took in her stride as she faced the tough terrain of the Amazon forest, Brazil, to compete in the world-renowned JungleMarathon.

A WESTER Ross animals' champion has been recognised for her remarkable contribution to wildlife welfare.

A STUDENT exchange programme has contacted the Journal in a bid to find a home for a year for an enthusiastic youngster after his plans fell through at the last minute.

A PROMISING schoolboy inventor has been inspired by his granny to come up with an award-winning innovative mobility device to help the elderly and disabled move around indoors more easily.

A ROSS charity shop that raises cash for the Highlands' most popular local cause could face closure if more volunteers aren't found.

A DOUGHTY dozen who laced up their hiking boots for a charity fundraiser have pledged to make the event an annual affair.

A YOUNG floral designer whose business has blossomed in just two years has won a top business award and a £600 cash prize.

TAIN school pupils held a charity collection this week in memory of their inspirational classmate who died at the weekend, three years after he was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

AN Alness woman, who arrived in Ross-shire without a word of English, has been short-listed for learndirect scotland's Career Changer of the Year award, to be presented next week at this year's Celebration of Learning.

ROSS-SHIRE folk are gearing up to conquer their fear of heights next month — by abseiling down Dunrobin Castle in a bid to raise money for the UK's leading children's cancer charity.

A BLACK Isle family had a double cause for celebration with the highly successful graduation of a sister and brother.

A BLACK Isle therapist has pedalled to Amsterdam and back in a bid to give seriously ill youngsters a boost through the power of music.

A MARYBURGH lass had more reason than most to celebrate when her name came first out of the hat for our great CIS Insurance Cup competition.

AN MSP whose election to Holyrood helped sway the balance of power in favour of the SNP welcomed First Minister Alex Salmond to his new office in Dingwall this week.

A WELL-known and highly distinguished Ross-shire couple have celebrated six decades together in fine style.

A TEENAGER whose mum emigrated to Australia has returned to her Wester Ross roots to build on the hospitality qualification under her belt.

FRESH from picking up their Highland Cross silverware after proving their fighting fit credentials are these Easter Ross vets who bagged the duathalon’s female team trophy.

EVERYTHING in the garden came up rosy for Fortrose woman Mary Macintosh this week after the green-fingered Black Isler was plucked first from the hat in our exclusive planters competition, run in association with Munro's Nurseries.

IN recognition of his 15 years service with Invergordon lifeboat station, Saltburn's Douglas McBay was presented with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's Silver Badge.

A WEE dram, a bowl of porridge and a smoke-free lifestyle have served Muir of Ord centenarian Tom MacIver well down the years.

FASCINATING footage of school trips enjoyed by former pupils of an Easter Ross secondary school has been unearthed and lovingly restored by a retired teacher.

IT doesn't often take two hands to hold a strawberry – but you certainly wouldn't get many of these to a punnet.

POLICE officers in Dingwall are to be offered basic foreign language courses to help them communicate with the area's increasing population of Eastern European workers, it has been revealed.

IT'S not many artists who have the benefit of using their own newsagent as an outlet for their work – but then Allison Riddell has come a long way since she sold her first painting to a friend at school.

AN extraordinary project that will see Strathpeffer become home to five four-tonne wooden sculptures is nearing completion with the larger than life artworks due to be painstakingly moved to their new home in the next few months.

A SPECIALIST Ross-shire teacher is trading the comforts of a relaxed summer holiday for the challenges of an African country with strong links to Scotland.

THE first female Lord Lieutenant to be appointed in Ross-shire this week not only stepped into the history books with her new role but also followed in the footsteps of her late father.

POIGNANT tribute was paid to a much-loved family member at a couple's special day in Strathpeffer.

A FORMER Tain man who has landed one of golf's most coveted posts this week admitted his only regret about securing the dream job was that his late father wasn't around to share the joy.

A MAN who literally helped shape the face of Dingwall had a hundred reasons to celebrate this week.

ANYONE doubting Gordon Robertson's credentials of being a man who likes a challenge need only take a quick look at his "to do" list to set them straight.

THE Queen has conferred a very special honour on her Lord Lieutenant for Ross and Cromarty, Skye and Lochalsh, Captain Roderick Stirling of Fairburn.

ROUGH demos made in bedrooms could be a thing of the past for young aspiring musicians in Dingwall.

IT’S not everyone who meets their ideal other half through volunteering, but for Mike Haycox it was just one of several life-changing moments to come from his ventures into the sector.

Ian and Isobel MacKenzie of Dingwall, pictured last Saturday as they enjoyed an evening out at the Dingwall Fire Brigade Club annual party in the National Hotel Dingwall.

A BLACK Isle writer this week revealed how a chance remark almost two decades ago changed the course of his life and inspired him to explore the largely untapped history of the town which he now calls home.

CROMARTY is set to sparkle in 2007! That’s the message coming loud and clear from the Black Isle town as it gears up for a plethora of events set to cement its reputation as one of the Highlands’ creative hubs.

WITH guitars and drumsticks at the ready it was a battle of the bands in Tain, as budding rock stars showed what they were made off.

A BLACK Isle artist whose painting has helped a charity to raise in excess of £5million was honoured this week.

WESTER Ross contestants battling for the honours in the second annual Coigach Ba’ Game had to be made of stern stuff with hailstones attending the run-up to the event.

THE official launch of Highland 2007 is taking place in Inverness tonight (Friday) but Cromarty is gearing up for its own celebrations with the arrival of a new artist in residence.

THE temperature is rising in Greenland – and for once global warning isn’t the main culprit.

THE controversial businessman who launched a failed £17million scheme to create a Highland theme park on the Black Isle a decade ago has fired a broadside at “the poverty of imagination” in Scotland – and claimed the scheme is still “alive and well”.

A WOMAN who has run a girls’ group in rural Ross-shire for 30 years may just have overseen her last Christmas production – even though she has no desire to stand down!

A NEWLY extended Ross-shire cafe was this week hailed a community “lifeline” as plans were revealed that could see it used by a host of groups.

ROSS-SHIRE wood craftsman Jackie Vass has just finished making his latest Celtic harp after months of painstaking work.