An eight wheel Argocat all terrain vehicle which was used mainly to transport men and soft loads such as plants out to the further reaches of new forests where no vehicle roads existed.

This special Caterpillar D4 with extended drive shafts and gear housing to accommodate the extra wide track plates was categorised as D4 SLGP (D4 Model Super Low Ground Pressure) and capable of pulling a plough on the deep peat flows of Caithness and Sutherland.

Even simple tasks like cone gathering and seed harvesting were made easier by automation in the 1980s. Using a cherry picker saved time, increased safety for operators, and yielded more viable seeds.

This hybrid crane and lorry was made by Steyr - the model number was KSK16. Here it is parked on a viewpoint, probably crossing Rannoch Moor before entering Glencoe, complete with local bagpipe buskers in full Highland dress.

The sunny front of the Dorran type bungalow house so typical of many foresters’ house built in the 1960s or even earlier.

The 1980s were the early days of attempts to bring in a variety of mechanised felling and tree processing machines which could be suitable for Scottish forest conditions. This is a view of the boom of a Kockums GP felled tree processor (stroke delimber) in the throes of stripping the branches off and cross cutting a tree stem.

Boom and head of a new Kockums feller buncher, dealing with a Douglas fir.

One of the modern excavators being used to dig some fire dams in Waternish Forest, Isle if Skye.

The demonstration of the Kokums 84-31 is thought to have taken place at Culloden. These were such tough durable machines it is possible that it may have been a reconditioned model brought over from Scandinavia.

The Muskeg, made in Canada, was a very versatile forestry vehicle. It was expensive, but was capable of carrying heavy loads up very steep slopes and also on soft ground.

Aerial shot of the Newton Nursery, in use since the 1950s, and greatly expanded by 1980.

4 x 4 Ratagan County Tractor with hydraulic crane conversion, hauling a 4-wheeled bogie with side pins.

The cable crane is set on a large clearfelling site in Glen Brittle Forest and has initially extracted some larch pulp wood, but is now taking out quite long lengths of Sitka spruce log wood. The Sitka being harvested here was likely planted in the 1930s.

Close up of Fobro plant slackener showing the effect of the blade lifting the young trees as it passes under them.

An aerial view of the cultivation experimental area within Tiendland Forest in Morayshire. This important experiment trialled quite a number of cultivation treatments, as can be seen from the plots.

Tim Taylor, Chief Forester at Torrachilty Forest (nearest to camera), is host to Bob Cathie, North Scotland Conservator (middle of group), on a visit to Glensgiach in very fine weather.

This Bruunett is a processor only, as the grab lifts trees already felled and places it on a bed where it is run through delimbing arms and cut into products. The saw is shown cutting off the log.

John Keenleyside says: “The Polyhouse had a capacity of 100,000 cuttings... The main thing we found out was that the addition of conifer bark compost resulted in 100% rooting… This made huge changes to the success of propagation in the horticultural industry.”

John Martin, North Conservancy Mechanical Engineer, with one of two aluminium water buckets, which he designed to attach to a fire-fighting helicopter.

This is a shot of a fire at Culloden Wood being tackled by a PLM helicopter, using John Martin’s bucket design, with drop down hose and fire foam.

A group of FC staff working on the first otter haven, built on the Kylerhea narrows.

Well known Scottish writer and hill walker Tom Weir is present at the opening of the Kylerhea Otter hide on Skye. With Tom is Ron Johnston (right) who was the Forestry Commission District Manager of Wester Ross and Skye.

Mike Aldridge: “This was a technique devised by the Foreman Roy Neish and harvesting squad at Huntly to solve a problem… Much of their felling involved large Norway spruce and they found it was almost impossible to retain trees on the stump. The physiology of local crops produced a brittle hinge that invariably broke, allowing the tree to slip off the stump, making it impossible to gain a bench of sufficient height. Though the complex felling cuts took longer than conventional methods, it guaranteed a perfectly positioned bench.”

A Kockums 84-31 converted to drive a large log chipper mounted on its rear, along with a self emptying storage bin. Assembled by BRUKS of Sweden.

Don Amer was in charge of the Forestry Commission Radio Branch in Scotland and North England from 1968 through to his retirement in 1989. He and his small team were responsible for setting up and maintaining a country wide net work of radio base stations, installing and maintaining radios in vehicles, machines and offices as well as experimenting with and developing new innovations and systems.