Just visiting.............

For a long time I've harboured a desire to visit the Islands off the west coast of Scotland so when I saw an advert for the Harris Mountain Festival I made a decision to go along. There was no charge for the walks offered and there was a good deal on accommodation at the Scaladale Centre. Travel wouldn't be a problem - I could use my bus pass to get to Ullapool then use the ferry as a foot passenger to Stornoway.

I dreamed of blue sky, golden beaches and wild mountain places. Mmmm!

The travelling was a doddle although the grave warnings of gale force winds sent me running to Boots to buy some anti-travel sickness pills for the ferry - boats not being my favourite way to go - especially those that go up and down and round.......

While waiting for the delayed ferry in Ullapool I took one of the pills and then watched a couple of harbour seals popping their heads up in the bay - obviously also waiting for the ferry to arrive.

There was a good deal of up and down and round but I kind of dozed my way through it all. I was briefly fascinated by my co-travellers. Two ladies knitting, a group playing cards and others laying flat out on the seats covered by coats, sleeping. I suspected they may have been the frequent travellers.

{Finally arriving in Stornoway - the bus station}

{Heb Hostel, Stornoway}

Stornoway was wild, wet and windy but I found a warm welcome at the Heb Hostel. The next bus towards Tarbert wasn't till the next day - giving me time in the morning to take a different bus to the standing stones at Callanish. It was an awe-inspiring place so I spent quite a long time wandering around the stones, although by the time I came to take a couple of pictures there were quite a few people doing the same thing making it difficult to get just the stones in the frame.  Eventually I hid from the wind in the cafe hugging a cappuccino until my bus back to Stornoway was due.

{Main circle of stones at Callanish}

{More standing stones at Callanish}

When I finally arrived at Scaladale there were two other walkers already staying for the Festival. A stroke of luck for me as I discovered that moving around on the island without a car was going to be really difficult. Both of the ladies came from Yorkshire and I thoroughly enjoyed their company during the few days we shared. One of them was interested in the TGO Challenge and has since emailed me to say she's ready to send off her application for 2014! I feel like a missionary.....

I had a short walk up behind the Centre, with great views between the showers over Loch Seaforth. The sudden squalls were accompanied by strong, cold gusts of wind.

{The Scaladale Centre}

{Information board behind the Centre}

{The view from the top}

The walk the next morning was advertised as an 'Eagle Walk'. The assembly point was the car park at Bhiogadail, not far from the Centre, and I had been prepared to walk back along the road to it but gratefully accepted a lift from my two new friends. Quite a big group set off and we scanned the sky for Golden Eagles. The ranger led us to the bealach and then up hill to a small top over looking Loch Langabhat. The storm was still lingering and despite the wind we did get a couple of good sightings of large birds of prey.

{Bird watching....}

{View of Loch Langabhat}

The evening was spent in Tarbert listening to the first time Chris Townsend had delivered his Scottish Watershed Walk talk. Brilliant photos, but the route itself looked very hard.

Until I met the ladies with their car I had been going to miss the thursday walk as there was no way to get there on a bus. Fortunately I was delivered to the start point which was beside the beach at Scarasta. Without a path and sploshing through some very wet pools, the group climbed to the top of Meabhal. There were great views from the top and a trig point for the young ones to play on!

{Trig point on Meabhal}

By the time we had had lunch and descended back to the beach car park the sun was out. At last the blue sky and the golden beaches!

{The beach at Scarasta}

On the way back to the Centre we took a detour to the beach at Losgaintir, wandering through the dunes, looking across the sound to Taransay.

{View from Losgaintir beach}

The beautiful weather didn't last long and by the next morning the heavy mist, wind and rain were back. I ditched plans for the hill above Tarbert and took the bus all the way to Leverburgh. I had planned to walk along to the old Chapel and get the later bus back. Getting off the bus was difficult, the wind was so strong it nearly took my legs from under me. I wandered about for about 8 minutes, then, as the original bus was still there, I hopped back on, to the amusement of the driver and went back to the Centre!

{Windswept Leverburgh}

Next morning I made my way back, eventually, to Aberdeenshire - where it appeared to have been a lovely sunny and warm week. My island adventure was done.

Till the next time.................................

Walking in the Borders...........

Once the gales had calmed down the weather improved during the week, reached a peak then deteriorated rapidly again to a huge storm on the Friday night. A new D of E group had arrived by then, and I watched them struggling to put up some big flappy tents.

Later, as the rain and wind became more persistent, I decided to make a last dash to the toilet block. Opening the door I was met by the sight of ALL of these D of E girls, rucksack contents tipped onto the floor, wet clothing hanging over every door, and so much damp air my glasses instantly steamed up.....not quite the experience they were supposed to be having!

Apparently, by the morning, two of their tents had collapsed and some of the girls had been taken home. That accounted for the cars which came and went in the middle of the night.....worried parents!  I wondered whether those girls would ever camp again.

Anyway.....the Walks............

1. Innerleithen Circular - This walk on the first day was not really the one I signed up to do. I met a group by accident at the St. Ronan's Wells visitor centre and was invited by the leader to join them for the afternoon. After the tea and cake we wandered on down to the river banks while the leader told us about the historical background to Innerleithen. The town had once had several large mills and warehouses. The proximity of the Tweed and Innerleithen Water being key to those industries.

{Buses were organised to/from walks - all part of the daily charge}

2. Tweedbank to Clovenfords by Torweedlee Broch - This walk was lead by a Ranger from the Scottish Borders Council Ranger Service. It took in the northern part of the Gala Circuit and we had some good views of the Eildon Hills. After exploring the site of the ruined Broch, we finished up sitting outside the Inn at Clovenfords waiting for our bus, a large glass of blackcurrant and soda with ice in my hand.....other drinks were available......

{Sir Walter Scott's statue outside the Inn at Clovenfords}

3. Stobo Circular - I chose a shorter walk for the day so that I could hop off the bus in Peebles and go to the John Buchan Centre. In the end I didn't do that as it was such a glorious day I walked the six miles back to Innerleithen from Peebles on a newly opened footpath alongside the river, mostly along the line of the old railway.

{Glorious views from the Peebles to Innerleithen path}

{Halfway to Innerleithen - the old railway station is put to good use}

The circular walk beside Stobo Castle was a pleasant wander partly on the John Buchan Way. Dropping down towards the Castle (now an 'exclusive' health club) we only had time to peer into the Japanese Gardens. At the start the local farmer had entertained us with a rather lengthy talk about his life and work which meant the pace of the walk was a little faster than was comfortable for some of the group. Trying to 'hurry' doesn't really work as the time taken waiting for the back of the group to catch up slows the whole thing down drastically. In my opinion it's better to keep a steady reasonable pace for everyone.....

{Lunch spot on the edge of the forest}

 4. Blackhopebyre to Innerleithen - This was a rough walk over wild ground above Innerleithen. We climbed Windlestraw Law and Glede Knowe. Our morning break was taken in the grouse butts and there were great views over the hills. Fortunately the ground was not too wet and we managed to skip lightly over the boggy stuff on the tops.

{View from my grouse butt.....}

{Reaching the trig point..............}

5.  Rhymer's Walk - This was probably my favourite walk of the week. First we visited (or rather didn't visit) the Eildon Tree Stone. This stone marks the spot where Thomas the Rhymer first met the Faery Queen. After this he acquired prophetic powers enabling him to make some significant predictions - I can't remember what they were! The group leader showed us the stone from about 50 m away........it was a shame we didn't just go and look at it!

The route then took us above Melrose, between the Eildon Hills over Bowden Moor to Cauldshiels Loch. The return to Melrose through Rhymer's Glen was stunning. This last part of the walk took us onto the land once owned by Sir Walter Scott as part of the Abottsford House estate.  Waiting for the bus in Melrose we found an ice-cream shop.............

{Looking over Melrose}

{Cauldshiels Loch}

{Follow the Leader - down to Rhymer's Wood}

{Spooky - but stunning! The path through Rhymer's Glen}

6. Abbotsford House - Friday dawned wet and misty. The previous evening after the Rhymer's walk I had decided that a visit to Abbotsford House was a good way to end the trip to this part of the Borders. I have long been a fan of Sir Walter Scott; my Kindle has a collection of his work which I dip into from time to time. The rain hammered down the whole time I was there. The visitor's centre was very informative, and I bought a couple of books in the shop. Tours of the house are taken with audio units, and very interesting it was too.

{Abbotsford House}

Because I was camping I didn't attend any of the evening events that were on offer - and I had to leave before the last day and missed the closing ceremony and parade through Innerleithen. However, I did enjoy the Festival. The walks were really well organised, and a reasonable cost (£6) which included bus transport as required. At the end of every day there were cakes and tea available for a donation. The organising team were friendly, helpful and cheerful......I'm going to look out for the Festival next year when it'll be based around Jedburgh.

{Memorable view from the tent}

Base camping in the Scottish Borders.......

Languishing with the grandchildren in France I realised I was missing my regular two or three walks each week and gradually becoming rather lethargic as a consequence. I searched on the magic web for a remedy once we had waved goodbye to the Shanghai contingent and it had all gone very quiet.

Without too much effort I found that the Scottish Borders Walking Festival was due to run from 1st to 7th September. There were four or more walks every day and it was being hosted jointly by Innerleithen, Walkerburn and Clovenfords for 2013. More investigation followed and I discovered there was a campsite in Innerleithen - so a plan was beginning to form..........

When first I was old enough for my bus pass I had had a vague plan to use it for a Grand Tour all round Scotland so it appeared fairly painless to use the pass and travel to Innerleithen. I could catch the service bus to Aberdeen, Citylink to Edinburgh then another service bus to Innerleithen - it would cost me the booking fee for Citylink - 50 p.

I had resealed some small tears in the fly sheet of my MSR Hubba backpacking tent so I was looking forward to testing it out. Thinking about base-camping in a very small tent I decided I would have to take a few extra 'luxuries' to make day-to-day living more comfortable. I splashed out on a new 60 litre duffle bag to hold my camping stuff, clothes and a restricted amount of clothing - made by Osprey, it has rucksack straps to carry it though I had to take a day sack as well for the daily walks.

The 'extras' I decided on were my Kindle loaded with a good choice of books, one of those camping mat seat contraptions and an extra 99p plastic groundsheet to put at the entrance of the tent.

The camp site was booked (£9 per night) and the walks chosen at £6 per day.

{Helpful signs in the village}

{Sunday's Registration centre was easy to find}

The travel plan went well and I arrived in good order, struggled a bit walking with the bags down to the camp site but had no problem later finding the place to register for the next morning.

The camp site was quite full when I arrived - a couple of D of E groups, weekend caravanners and the camping field was chock-a-block with a group of motor bikers. I found a fairly sheltered alternative pitch next to a caravan and behind a hedge. More by luck and laziness than judgement, I stayed there for the week and managed to avoid the flooding at the end of the week!

{My pitched tent - after a heavy shower}

{First morning - still wet and windy too!}

An extremely windy first night meant I didn't sleep at all so after registering at the Walk centre I withdrew from the first day's walking, had a quiet morning dozing in the tent and then investigated the town instead.

{St Ronan's Well}

In the afternoon, after a sandwich and coffee in the local cafe, I wandered up to St Ronan's Well. This is an historic spa, popularised by Sir Walter Scott, and well-known as a health resort during the nineteenth century. From here the first bottled mineral spring water 'St Ronan's' was given Royal approval in 1900.  The museum was open and I was welcomed with a cup of tea and a piece of cake and joined the members of one of the shorter walks for the remainder of the afternoon.

Back with the group at the Registration centre - there was more tea and plenty of cake! So the day which had started badly in the morning turned out to be quite a good introduction for the rest of the week.............

{Just a sample..........}

Update on my shoulder injury....

FINALLY I'm beginning to get some improvement in my right arm. It even begins to feel like 'my' arm again...something it hasn't done since the middle of June when I broke the head of my humerus into three parts. There's still some way to go before full movement returns but it's a lot better.

Just before we went away on holiday to South East Asia I had an appointment with a consultant in Aberdeen. I don't really like the idea of having private health care but the NHS left me no option. Because I had returned from France with the injury I wasn't 'in the system'. My doctor refused to refer me for an x-ray, he said I'd had enough of those, and I was told it might take 12 weeks to get an appointment for a specialist opinion in Aberdeen.

The clinic x-rayed my shoulder and the consultant discovered there was very little healing in the break. There was also some damage to the nerves causing the muscles not to be able to lift my arm at all. After a chat with me he advised that I stopped taking any ibuprofen which apparently can be linked to slow healing of bones.

While we were on holiday I began to notice some improvement and by the time we arrived back home I was able to use my arm for some easy household tasks - like turning on the kitchen tap! The consultant has confirmed that the bones are at last showing signs of healing but it is very slow.

I can still only sleep in two positions - either on my back or on my left-side and I often wake myself by trying to move my arm somewhere it doesn't want to go. However, I can now eat, cut food, clean my teeth and just this morning, I managed to touch the top of my head briefly! I'm looking forward to being able to pin my hair up - wearing it down means it often gets caught in a zip, a door-handle or becomes electrically charged by wearing a fleece! I know - I could get a hair-cut but I haven't plucked up the courage to do that - yet.

Walking with a rucksack is now more comfortable - I was beginning to get worried about that. I didn't fancy trying to get everything into a bum-bag. Although carrying anything very heavy might not be possible for a while yet. Because of that I have had to invest in a shopping trolley to use to bring the groceries up the garden.........

I have been doing some simple exercises every morning - the local physio gave me several sheets of these to do. A couple of paracetamol do dull any pain I might have by the end of the day.

So it's not so bad.....

Reflections......

Standing and waiting for the bus.......it's a bit chilly with the promise of snow in the air, but I'm not complaining. There are beautiful shades of Autumn on the trees and the sun is low in the sky. I'm home.

Our trip to South-east Asia was a great adventure. It was only the second time I've flown long-haul but it wasn't too arduous. I'm only just sorting out the photos and the memories so I can share a taste of it all here.

The holiday divides itself into four parts - for the first we explore Phnom Penh and the history of Cambodia, in the second we are joined by the family and go to Siem Reap, the third is shorter, just a couple of peaceful days by the sea  and for the last part, we spend a busy week living in Kuala Lumpur.

In the meantime........

{Looking across the flooded fields in rural Cambodia}

Intermission........

All packed up and ready to go............

Cambodia and Malaysia this time. A catch up with the grand-children and some hot sunshine!

I'll post if I can - if not - it'll be when I get back.

{Under the Balmoral Bridge}

More Millau trip............

I'm still waiting for the weather to settle and all the nasty wet slush to go so I can get out on the longer walks I had planned for this week. Otherwise I'll be doing the training for the TGO Challenge at the same time as the Challenge......

There are two separate weeks of leading for HF on the cards before May - both in Northumberland based at Alnmouth. It would be great if some sunny days came along for the coastal walking - the beaches are stunning in good weather. I've been doing some 'homework' and have been reading a very informative book about the Border Reivers. I hope some of the information sticks so I can pass it on to the guests!

I've sorted out my photos now from the trip we took to see the Millau Viaduct so I'm going to post a few here to help pass the time............

The route took us through the Cote du Rhone region with vast vineyards on both sides of the road.

{A strange roundabout with giant wine bottle corks near Valreas}

{Cirque de Navacelles - I 'borrowed' this photo}

On our way back from Millau we visited an enormous natural hole in the ground called the Cirque de Navacelles. Without really planning to, we drove along the really steep and narrow road which leads down into the Gorge. There, we had a wander and a picnic. Some of the trees were in blossom and were full of butterflies including several swallowtails. An amazing place and obviously inhabited for many centuries despite the difficulties of access. My photos don't really give a good sense of the vastness of the steep sides to this valley so I found the above picture which tells the story better than I could.

{Photo of the old village which has steep cobbled streets}

{My photo of the road into the Cirque taken on our way back out!}

The complete medieval village of la Couvertoirade was a highlight of the trip - especially as we came upon it quite by accident. We camped in the visitors' carpark overnight so we could take the walk around the ancient ramparts the next morning. It was a real treat. The village seemed to be frozen in time so it was almost like being in a time-machine!

{The first view over the ramparts}

{Walking above the roof tops}

{Photo taken while walking around the village alleyways}

The Millau Viaduct was equally amazing although it had the appearance, even close up, of being one of those 'architect's impressions'.

{The Viaduct from underneath}

{Photo taken while driving across the Viaduct}

When actually driving across the Viaduct on the autoroute it's hard to understand the scale of the structure. It is quite a feat of engineering and even though it does seem rather alien to the landscape it sits in, it certainly has a beauty of its own.

{Photo taken from the official viewpoint}

Bullet train to Beijing.......

While we were investigating our proposed visit to Beijing we were alarmed to hear that there was a smog warning for the city - perhaps it wasn't going to be possible to make this trip after all. However, after a few days checking the weather forecasts we decided to go ahead. Trying to navigate some websites to book accommodation and visits proved rather fruitless so eventually I came across a site called 'china.net' which was offering organised tourist trips to the capital. Most of the packages included flights but we had already chosen to travel on the Bullet train. This meant that although the train took longer it would be an interesting journey - sightseeing out of the window was a more attractive option than sitting on an airplane. Finally we booked up a 3 day package with an extra day, which included the hotel room, being met and dropped off at the station, our own all day taxi, an English speaking guide along with breakfast every day, lunch for two days and a special 'Peking' duck dinner.

Mr Xu kindly offered to help us get some tickets for the bullet train to Beijing. It's incredibly useful to have someone like him around in a place like China. Not being able to speak the language is a great handicap but if you couple it with not being able to read it either then things can get really difficult!

So here is what we were going to do:-

Nov 7th: (B/L/D)

Today we will take you to visit Badaling Great Wall, Jade factory, Changling of Ming Tombs. Then having a Peking Duck Dinner in the most famous Quanjude Restaurant.

Nov 8th: Free day in Beijing

Nov 9th: (B/L) Beijing Departure

After your breakfast, take you to visit Tian'anmen Square, Forbidden City, silk store, Temple of Heaven and Summer Palace. Then drop you off at railway station for train back to Shanghai. Tour finished.

The Shanghai Hongqiao station was large, very modern with 32 different platforms, a huge screen (fortunately with some English numbers on it for the train services) and quite a few organised groups of tourists wandering around. I think Mr. Xu was worried about us when he dropped us off at the Departures door but it was all very simple. The train was spectacular. It was clean, modern, with loads of space at our seats. All the way to Beijing it travelled at 306 km/h, smoothly and efficiently, mostly on a raised track, past miles and miles of fields and the occasional huge factory.

{Chinese high speed trains}

We arrived on time, and met up with Helen, our guide and our taxi. We were soon deposited at the Howard Johnson Hotel right in the centre of Beijing.  There were many fewer skyscrapers than Shanghai so the city had a more open feel. Luckily the smog had cleared. 

{Beijing South Station}

{The view from the window of the hotel - the clock woke us with its distinctive chime!}

{Looking the other way from our room - across the city skyline}

{The main Railway station - right opposite our hotel - but not the one we arrived at}

We unpacked and settled in, looking forward to being picked up the next morning for Day 1 of our tour.

More from Moganshan Mountain..........

{Looking down Moganshan village to the market area. Under the arches we found local women selling huge bags of mushrooms they had collected in the forest along with large bottles of the best soy sauce you've ever tasted!

{One of the local praying mantids}

{Crossing a very deep ravine on a beautifully constructed rope bridge}

{Walking down to the Lodge}

{This, I think, was some kind of fungus - but I might be wrong!}

{At Chairman Mao's country retreat - his bedroom on show}

{Stretching our legs, long and short, at the motorway services}

{An amazing potted plant outside the Lodge}

{An interesting rock formation on one of the walks}

{A spider on its web beside a lamp-post - I'm glad it wasn't in the bath!}