Borrowing an Island

This morning the loch was a bit choppy. It was windy, wet and stormy

Three weeks ago the loch was calm. It was warm and sunny and altogether lovely

Robin (son) and girlfriend Sarah came to visit. While staying they decided to paddle out of the loch and borrow an island.....just for a night                

After a lot of paddling....

....and paddling....

....they arrived, at the nearest one, they said, as they were feeling paddled out

They explored their island...

...and set up camp...

....and enjoyed their view with its stunning scenery and back drop of mountains 

And the most amazing thing of all is that borrowing an island can all be achieved from the bottom of the garden! True it does involve a bit of effort especially the trek back up the hill to the house to fetch forgotten items....but where else could we live with a back garden that opens up so many possibilities and gives access to such a stunning and beautiful place with The Summer Isles on the doorstep....nearly!

Thank you Bob and Sarah for letting me use your photos. I hope I've chosen the right ones? They were all lovely.  

Late afternoon sun

There is a lovely walk near where we live along by the river. This isn't the river, this is me looking up in the air....

The trees can be bendy and twisty

or tall and straight. On warm sunny autumn afternoons the light filters through the trees

We meet our friend Charles walking back along the path we are taking. He said he'd seen a huge variety of fungi. It was true I've never seen so many different shapes and sizes and colours. I need a book to identify them. Niels says that will delay the progress of the walk even further...there is enough faffing he says with me and the camera, a book would be tipping it over the edge 

Lots of spiders too. I'm sorry if you don't like them......scroll past him quickly! 

The river rounds a bend and a waterfall comes into view falling over the rocks. It's funny to think that the water here will eventually empty out into the loch at the bottom of our garden and into the sea.

quick quick

slow

Whoops....did Charles say he'd crossed this bridge? I looked and got as near to the edge as I was going to, but when my hands and feet started to ache and sweat I knew I was never going to cross it. There was a deep drop and a lot of water and rock below

We leave the river with it's beautiful waterfall and wonky rusty precarious bridge and head home back along the side of the hills. I love it, not only is it beautiful in the late autumn sun it is also empty. Apart from Charles and a man in the distance we can see walking his dog we had the whole place to ourselves

I'm here

I'm back! I haven't gone anywhere...

....apart from a little holiday in Sussex

We travelled  south and stayed in sunny Uckfield, although admit to switching the central heating on once or twice as it was rather chilly

We stayed at a friends house (no, not this one....this was Charlston House which we loved) while they were away on holiday

Our National Trust membership cards nearly wore out! We visited Monks House and loved this too

Standen House was a delight

London by night as lively and lit up as ever

We had a lovely time

but it was ever so nice to come back to our own house

even if I need to repaint the picnic bench...and don't feel confident in opening house and garden to the public..just yet!

A Drop of Rain...

Ok it may well be an ex-hurricane but Bertha has proved too much for the loch side lane. Collapsed trees and mud and raging torrents of water have cut off the lochside from the outside world!

There was a tail back of at least two cars when I walked along  to take some photos

It's rained and rained and rained....

It makes our little burn with it's leaky sides seem  pale and insignificant by comparison!

The water flows over the wall, turns right, fortunately, and flows back into the burn again!

It does rain here (it's Scotland after all) but generally not like this. Heavy rain since yesterday evening. There have been landslides in many places. James who diverted our burn is coming back to do some adjustments, he says, before the real weather sets in?!

Ps. One day the unattractive breeze block wall will have a drystone wall in front of it.....that's the plan.