Iain MacDonald BBC Scotland

Back in 2003, Good Morning Scotland sent reporter Iain MacDonald off round the highways and byways of the country to document the Scottish parliamentary election campaign.

Now, four years on, he is doing it again. Older - but not wiser - this is his weblog of the 2007 Tour of Scotland.

It's curtain up time and the organisers are getting worried.

This is supposed to be an event for young people, but at the moment those that have actually turned up are comfortably outnumbered by the adults.

The event is, let's face it, supposed to be part of the process of combating apathy among young voters and voters-to-be.

Young people said they were 'talked down to them'

But right now it looks like the kids can't be bothered turning up to have their apathy treated.

Still, the political parties are all here ready and waiting to pour their assembled wisdom into young ears.

The format, in this Inverness city centre youth club, includes a mock election and speed dating where the parties table hop every 10 minutes, making their pitch to the young - those voting this time and those who will vote next time.

And as the evening gets older they do start turning up in reasonably respectable numbers for a city centre on a weekend evening.

There's a briefing on the voting papers and the different systems to be used for the different elections, Holyrood and councils.

Arthur McCourt, who's chief executive of Highland Council, and the returning officer next Thursday says he's not convinced that all the adults involved in the major poll necessarily understand the new systems.

One young lady plaintively enquires if she can just pick her favourites by using a highly scientific method - "eeny, meeny, miny, mo".

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Actually, she can if she wants.

So the show gets under way and the candidates leap around the tables getting warm under the collar and, in some cases, using big words.

I know this from one of the kids who says a certain Big Party talked down to them and immediately lost any chances of getting his vote any time soon.

The candidates appeared to be enjoying themselves and the youngsters had plenty of questions.

It was all very slick and very impressive - apart from the fact that the 10 minute bell encouraging candidates to move on to their next table was an upturned pot from the kitchen.

Do not ask for whom the pan tolls.

The original votes had been cast before the speed dating and Arthur McCourt announced that the SNP won that, with one of their candidates taking to the stage to thank the returning officer - and predict exactly the same result on 3 May.

But it must be said that, after hearing from the candidates, around a third of the kids said they might think again about where to cast their vote.

Modern studies

The Greens were particularly impressed with the number of youngsters who listened to their arguments and then said they would seriously consider a green vote at the first opportunity.

One message from these youngsters is simple - instead of moaning about youth apathy the politicians should spend more time explaining their policies to young electors and soon-to-be-voters.

Then they might get a few more to the polling stations.

If you're 16, says one, you don't exist. Yet we're all doing modern studies and we understand what goes on. Better than our parents, some of us - and they've got the vote.

Bring the age down to 16 - if we can marry then, surely we have the right to vote.

I politely decline an invitation to match my political knowledge with theirs.

Gigha has been 'independent' for five years

Meanwhile, earlier this year I was on the island of Gigha to join the celebrations of five years of independence - or rather five years since the islanders bought over their own island from the previous private lairds.

And a very good party it was.

Gigha tends to be the example that those involved in supporting land reform quote when asked about the success of the process.

They're building environmentally friendly houses, they have a halibut farm up and running, there are three community-owned wind turbines churning out ten pound notes for the community, near the old pier.

New businesses are setting up and the school roll is sky rocketing to such an extent that the building has to be extended.

So Gigha is booming and still enormous fun even if they have become an incredibly business like community.

Five years on, the party and the various celebrations were great fun.

On the following night, I found myself down on the beach, while one visitor commemorated the death of his godmother on the other side of the world, in his native New Zealand - she was 100 plus, so it wasn't a huge shock - by playing pibrochs into the darkness and the foaming waves.

Hope they don't find out anything I don't want them to know

But this week I'm going to a much newer independent community - the biggest yet to mount a buy out.

South Uist Estates, which includes other islands as well, was bought out after a three year drive by the community to make it happen.

With backing from Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the Big Lottery Fund, they've done the deal.

Now they too have to get on with the future.

So what can a new executive offer them and what do they think they need? Well, in the next few days I hope to find out.

My colleagues on Good Morning Scotland will be in my birth place Stornoway.