A SCIENTIST who has spent the past two and a half years on an Antarctic island studying birds is in a flutter about her next challenge – the Etape Loch Ness.
At just 800km wide and 5km long, Bird Island was home to Dr Lucy Quinn during a research project into the albatross and other seabird species for the British Antarctic Survey.
The nearest civilisation was a two-week boat journey away in the Falkland Islands and her only human companions were three other scientists in the winter, rising to nine in the summer.
Now the 33-year-old says the weather conditions there – where temperatures can fall to -25C – have prepared her for returning to Scotland and training for the annual bike challenge.
The 66 mile race is now in its fifth year and will start from Highland capital Inverness on Sunday, with Quinn’s dad Murray, 71, also set to be amongst the 5,600 competitors.
Quinn, who lives in the city, said: “There was not a lot of room to roam on the island, so I got to know every inch of it really well.
“Although I’m originally from Northern Ireland, I came to Scotland to study and did my PhD in Cromarty on the Black Isle at the Lighthouse Field Station. I fell in love with both the Highlands’ scenery and friendly people, so after returning from Antarctica I decided to relocate to Inverness.
“I felt that after spending such a long time in isolation, I wanted to do something to reintegrate back into normal everyday life and to motivate myself to get back on my bike, which I really missed while I was away.
“That’s why I decided to sign up to Etape Loch Ness – it’s been great to get out on my bike and enjoy the countryside and having so much space around me.”
Quinn’s research involves the decline of albatross populations and the health of world oceans. She appeared with Sir David Attenborough in TV nature documentary Blue Planet II discussing her work on the impact of marine plastic ingestion on seabirds.
She said: “Working on Bird Island was a complete dream of a job. I loved living amongst nature and enjoying such a simple way of living. Although at times I did feel a little bit isolated, it also felt liberating to be so far away from the stresses of everyday life. Living in that landscape and amongst the animals on the island was very calming and a real privilege.
Quinn added: “I am feeling anything but calm now that Etape gets closer. This is the first time that I have ever taken part in a cycling event and I am now actually feeling quite nervous about it.
‘‘My main aim is just to enjoy the ride – and to complete it before I get picked up by the sweeper vehicle.”
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