Training continues.....

Third day in a row (although I've only posted about two) I was walking yesterday - this time with the local Friday walkers.

Quite a lively group met up at Finzean Church car-park and after a while we set off at a fair pace to walk up to Tom's Cairn.

{Through the Finzean School garden}

{Tom's Cairn}

After the Cairn we met our first small patch of soft snow which was crossed without pausing. We had lunch at the entrance to the forest and then the real Challenge training started. We were being lead by Margaret, who, probably due to everyone doing more talking than walking, some how missed the turning we should have taken. A good Challenge situation! Plenty of GPSs were deployed and a major incident was averted. Getting lost in a forest is a good Challenge tradition........

{Somebody must know the way....}

To be honest nobody would have known we'd gone wrong if Margaret hadn't told us! We normally just follow the leader without any question.....

No harm was done and we even completed a careful climb over some barbed wire (the stile has collapsed) and made our way back to the village with no more trouble. 

{No sitting was tried here....}

 I did manage to miss the bus back home by about 15 minutes but having to wait in the Aboyne Cornerhouse Cafe was not too difficult. The cherry and chocolate chip scone and a pot of tea helped pass the time till the next bus came along.

Viewranger says we did just under 10 miles but it doesn't mention the blister under a toenail which I found on returning home. It was a day off today......

Just a taste of the Formartine & Buchan Way.......

After some 'complicated' consulting of maps and timetables a plan was hatched.  Louise would get the train to Aberdeen and I would catch the bus. Simples!

The bus was late and then even later at Aboyne where the school children alighted.....I did notice that the driver 'growled' at them as they got on and demanded their bus passes with more growling....I was glad I was just a pensioner with a bus pass!

The weather looked kindly and the heather was blooming purple on Dinnet Muir - could be a good day. The jiggling of the bus did make my shoulder and arm ache a bit but I am determined this injury will get better so I just ignored it......

At last I arrived at the bus station in Aberdeen and spotted Louise waiting patiently on a bench for me - a hug later we were boarding a bus for Ellon. We had quickly decided to start the walk there and return via Udny Station towards Dyce.

I had elected to use a tiny rucksack which worked well although there wasn't much in it apart from my lunch!   The old railway line was perfect for walking and talking - no need to navigate or even pay much attention to the underfoot conditions.

{Level crossing gates in the undergrowth}

{The pub we didn't visit............}

At Newmachar we elected to wait for the bus back to Aberdeen - probably a mistake as it was more than 45 minutes before it came along.... there would have been plenty of time to walk a bit further. However, the old shoulder was aching a bit so I was grateful for the bus which returned us to Aberdeen Station in plenty of time for our coffee and cake!

{Louise - consulting her GPS......}

Might even try some more of this Way - there are two spurs to follow after Maud - one to Peterhead and the other to Fraserburgh. 

Louise's much more detailed walk report is here

Keeping the Home Fires Burning.....................

...........there's a song in there somewhere!

Last week we had to arrange a visit from the chimneysweep. He's a lovely chatty man who spends 20 minutes cleaning the chimney, 30 minutes drinking coffee (sitting down, as he says that's the right way to drink it!) and 60 minutes telling us local gossip and stories. Great entertainment.

He has to do this once a year for the insurance cover on the house here.

{Photo of the chimney cleaning machine}

I'm glad if Him Indoors is here for it as our 'ramoneur' is a bit of a ladies' man! A natural charmer! He also speaks French very quickly and I find it hard to follow the conversation if I've got to supply an answer as well.

So now the stove is working much better with all that gunk removed.

{Photo of our wood burning stove}

Nothing quite as cosy as sitting, drinking tea and eating cake beside this fire.

Mmmmmm!