Walkers, Water and Squally Showers...

One blustery wet and cold day last October

.....me and my friend Mary

....went for a walk with a group of people

...organised by Scottish Heritage (I think) to  look at some old iron age remains (I think)

It's a long time ago now and honestly I've forgotten quite what we were doing apart from getting very wet

It rained. A cold wet penetrating rain that got in under collars and cuffs and down the tops of walking boots

We stopped to look at something that was vaguely to do with the iron age. But I can't remember what it was and  my glasses had water running off them

Aged iron, and iron age are not the same thing. This very large iron container was left behind after the second world war by the military presence up here in the Highlands

We carried on up  the hill past the age iron box in a brief spell of sun

Once at the top it was unbelievably windy. Mary hung on and tried to smile for the camera

We huddled together for warmth and to stop being blown a way. I don't know where the iron age remains had gone, maybe we were sitting on them

We were very bedraggled and soggy as we returned to base

The rain picked up and turned to sleet and we lost our guide. Fortunately Mary had a map and the group stayed together. My camera is shower proof but not suitable for underwater. This was driving freezing sleet and I was beginning to lose the will to take photos. I put the camera back in my rucksack, (which was wet.)  At the end of the walk and after we had dried out we agreed it had been a good walk even if our guide had mislaid us for a while. It got a bit muddly he later explained.  He thought we were with someone else who knew the way back. The surprising thing is, even though we weren't that far from civilisation it was very easy once we got cold to lose our sense of direction and concentration.

Bright blue to turquoise

A walk along the coast from Achmelvich beach to the ruined mill at Alltan'abrad. The walk isn't very long but it hugs the coast and even when it isn't especially sunny the colour of the water close to the shore and in the rock pools is startlingly blue. Meanwhile a little further out the black backed gulls, cormorants and great skuas (we think) made a very loud noise as they squabbled over the food....mainly the skuas grabbing  every titbit  from the smaller cormorants. I don't have a zoom lens so without the binoculars it would have been hard to identify the noisy rabble squawking and bickering on the rocks.

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