The Summer Isles

Sometimes the weather and settings combine to make the most sublime of days.

The cruise on the Summer Queen to the Summer Isles was just one such perfect day

We left Ullapool

There were others , some under sail, some not

The Ferry to Stornoway slipped by

Look ahead, over to your left, the captain said.

And there in the sky a huge white-tailed eagle flew high above the boat

I had neither the skill nor the lens to capture this amazingly elusive bird of prey. It was a jaw dropping moment. Its immense size - a "flying door" in the sky. We could only lean over the boat rails and stare upward, open mouthed.

We arrive at the sheltered haven of Tanera Mhor, the principal and only inhabited island

in the group of Summer Isles

We sit in the garden overlooking the bay and drink fresh coffee and eat home made scones bought from the tiny

Summer Isles post office

In the late 18th and early 19th century this Island was a herring fishing station, but the herring

fishing trade has long since died and now tourism plays a large part

 in sustaining this tiny community

We leave Tanera Mhor, meaning "Harbour Island" from the Norse.

A comorant swimming with back awash, and neck upright swims by

It's like a painting

The Summer Isles separate sea from sky

The Seascape leaps over the water. Quite a different day from my birthday two years ago

Divers bob up and down in the wake

Ullapool comes into sight

I can't recommend this trip out on the Summer Queen too highly. It takes approximately four hours and

the wild life is abundant (though not well caught on camera by myself!)

And just sometimes, on occasions the weather is truly amazing and the highlands and Islands can be seen in their absolute wonderful sparkling best.