The weather was beautiful this morning and, as I gazed out of the van window, drinking my morning coffee, it made me think of things that I shall miss. One of the best things about camping or caravanning is the walk to the loo first thing in the morning when the ground is so fresh and the whole world is bright and sparkly. Today I could see a great expanse of shimmering blue sea and the majestic Dunbeath Castle in amongst the green cliffs. It can also be one of the worst things, when it's cold and pouring down with rain. Luckily the van has its own loo for those occasions!
Dunbeath Castle from the Harbour
After dropping The Walker at Berriedale I drove back to Dunbeath and had time to wander along a bit of the Heritage trail, watch fish (couldn't tell if they were salmon or not) leaping in the sea and river and also pop into the Spar shop for lunch.
Later I went to the Clan Gunn museum. It was more interesting than I'd expected (not being a member - I used to know a Sue Gunn many years ago, but I don't think that counts!). Anyway, it's in an old chapel and graveyard, alone on the cliffs- very atmospheric. Apparently a lot of Americans, Australians and New Zealanders come here to visit to try to find their roots.The defeat at Culloden was the major break up of the Clans and, of course, it was the Clearances which led to so many emigrating.
I could have bought The Walker a Clan Gunn polo shirt to make up for the lack of whisky ones!
From Bernie:
Today's walk 13.7 miles : Cumulative 1254.9 miles
Learned from yesterday's lesson & only took to the cliff-tops where I'd walked before.... but that meant rather more of the A9 than I would have liked &, familiar story, the only hotel/pub en route now just does B&B!
Not quite free from yesterday's legacy - when stopping for lunch, climbing into the van & leaving the fresh air & cooling breeze, my legs burned & tingled from the thousands of nettle-stings & bramble scratches! Almost a relief to be walking again!
No pubs but plenty of llamas - how useful is that?!
Highlight of the Day: Tooters, Wavers, Stoppers & Gossipers!
I experienced the beginning of this phenomenon yesterday & today it just escalated amazingly! I suppose that's what comes of walking along a road, in good weather & at the weekend when lots of people are busy gardening! Several locals stopped me & wanted to talk about LeJog, a couple with a caravan pulled into a lay-by to ask if I was doing LeJog & I walked up the final bit of Berriedale Braes with a couple of cyclists, women in their thirties, who'd been going 2 weeks & were due to finish about 3.00 this afternoon!
Looking back into Berriedale
Add to this the tooting horns & waves - it made me feel like a celebrity, even though all the stopping & starting..... & all the talking, is quite tiring!
Of course, there are loonies in cars who seem not to see a walker at all & insist on overtaking whatever is in front of them: when the traffic is coming towards you it's easy enough to take evasive action, if a little painful at times, but when they're coming from behind it feels like the end of the world.
Parted company with the re-designated A9 at Latheron & it was significantly quieter afterwards - there's not much up the old A9 other than Wick & John O'Groats!
Lunched with the manager in the van at Dunbeath harbour, close to this fine memorial to Neil Gunn, the popular Scottish novelist who was born in the village. (Hence the Clan Gunn museum visited by the manager this afternoon)
The sculpture is called 'Kenn & the Salmon' & is based on a character & event in his novel 'Highland River' which won him the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction in 1937, enabling him to give up his job & become a full-time writer.
North-East Caithness & all the mountains have gone - still some good cliffs, though!
Finished the day approaching Lybster's large harbour along my 'safe' cliff-top route, passing the Caithness oil-well. Established in 2008, it is Scotland's first onshore drilling site & certainly took me by surprise; a quarter of a mile away is the restored 'Brethren Well', believed to have been opened by 6th century monks & used on these hilltops for fresh water for almost 1500 years!
Lybster Harbour
Beer of the Day: I've been trying to avoid this but Scotland seems to have run out of beer! Had a pint of 'Deuchars IPA' today from the 'Caledonian' brewery - hugely popular, it seems to be on draught in at least half of the bars I've visited. I find it rather tasteless & non-descript - not a knee-jerk reaction but sadly based on several rather dull experiences!
Supreme irony: having just about absorbed the day I've had in hand for weeks, I've just looked at Sunday's weather forecast - heavy rain all day! Doesn't seem fair, really!
4 days to go!
Things we're looking forward to doing when we get home (Walker): laying on the sofa with a good bottle of red wine & watching the start of the Premiership season. I did, after all, miss the end of last season...
Karen & Ann: good to hear from you, the manager is looking forward to a 'girly' night & having somebody to talk to other than me!
Ann: as you can see I've been extra-careful today but I'm hoping that, weather-permitting, most of the last 30 miles will be along beaches & cliffs.... most of which I've walked before & I survived last time! The sculptures, especially those that I've stumbled across in unusual & unexpected places, have been a real feature of the 'Scottish' stretch.
Pam: strange how I seem to have encountered far more females on this trek than males!
The sea-eagle spent some time in Inverness with a camera mounted in its eye - I thought it might provide a useful update to Alec's CCTV system..... 'eagle-eyed'!
Hi
ReplyDeletePrinted your pics of Dunrobin Castle and the seals on the beach to show CJ and Maddie. Maddie loved the castle and said Rapunzel lived there, in one of the towers. CJ thought the 'posing' seals were great - specially the one in front 'look at me, I can lie on my side, no hands, without falling over'.
Looking at the stretches of empty sandy beaches made me wish I was there.
Can't believe you've nearly finished LEJOG - and will miss the daily blog and photos.
Love to both, Julia