“Oh, to be in England now that April’s there” Robert Browning may have had a point, though he was writing from the lush warmth of an Italian spring, rather than the chilly dampness of a northern Scottish season. The last fortnight’s scattering of lovely sunny days may soon seem like a dream if the weather forecast for this area is to be believed.
With luck the promised showers will be of rain, rather than the snow which accompanied our journey north at the beginning of the month, but
wintry showers are not beyond the bounds of possibility by the weekend.
Thank goodness DH and I took advantage of the sunny weather to get out and
about a bit. The landscape of the North-West Highlands is wonderful whatever
the weather, but in sunshine it is truly spectacular and our respective cameras
have been working overtime.
The road north on a snowy April Fool's Day
Ben Loyal the morning after our arrival
And a week later after a beautifully sunny Easter.
The Kyle of Tongue heading north to the sea
A symphony in grey - no leaves to soften the trees yet
Clouds over the mountains of Sutherland herald a change in the weather
A very different sunset this evening
Still,
at least the disappearance of the sun gives me an excellent excuse to abandon
gardening for family history research, which is proving ever more absorbing as I learn the techniques of finding and assessing the wealth of information available online. Knitting too is coming on apace, with the weekly knit & natter group enabling rapid progress on my latest pair of socks.
I’ve also been busy reviving the almost forgotten art of knitting a new toe for the socks which DH’s iron toenails have worn into a hole. There’s too much work in a pair of hand-knitted socks to throw them into the bin at the first sign of weakness and it’s been fun giving a couple of pairs a new lease of life, even to matching the pattern of the self-patterning yarn. I knew it was worth keeping all those remnants of yarn from the many pairs of socks I’ve knitted over the past few years.
Now all I have to do is to spend more time on my shamefully neglected clarinet and my life will be in perfect balance again, which
is more than can be said for Simon’s rather bedraggled cat.
These photos are just a taster of the ones I have waiting for future posts, Ricky. I just don't want to bore my readers silly with too many at once. :-)
I probably deserve your quip about my boarding tendencies, but at least my remnants of yarn have only ever filled a small shopping bag, not a rather large barn. :-) Yarn and jam-jars (and of course books) are my hoarding weaknesses.
I don't think any of our cats were fond of water, though they had great fun playing in the snow.
I presume you mean 'hoarding' rather than 'boarding' :-) I do take your point regarding the amount of space occupied by your hoarded goodies over and against that of DH. And I confess that books are my weakness too.
Well spotted, Ricky. I do indeed mean hoarding. Oh for an edit facility in Blogger comments. :-) I've never been able to throw remnants of yarn away if they could possibly be used to make or mend something and self-patterning yarn is particularly pretty....
These pictures are so beautiful. What an amazing place to be able to spend part of your year. I hope the weather improves, but in the meantime being in Scotland on a cold, blustery day with a cup of tea in hand and some knitting on your needles sounds quite wonderful.
Thanks, Kristie. Scotland, and particularly for me, the North-West Highlands, is so beautiful that it calls out to be photographed in all weathers and seasons. I just need a better camera. I'll be knitting and nattering again tomorrow morning and now I've picked up the instep stitches on my latest sock, the foot should just zoom along between mouthfuls of cake and sips of tea or coffee. :-)
I loved seeing these photos. April has been so capricious here also. Snow, sleet, rain, sunshine, black clouds, wind, sunshine. All of this happens in a span of a few hours. This comes from living in the valley at the foot of the mountains. I love it in some ways, but it does seem to be disruptive to one's longing to be outside in the spring. I can relate to Simon's cat.
Glad to see you are busy using that hand and the wrist is getting stronger.
Sorry to hear that April has been playing her weather tricks on you too, Sally. This seems to be the way of it in many parts of the northern hemisphere this spring and it can be very frustrating. The poor plants in the garden don't know whether to blossom or go back to sleep. My wrist is doing very well now, thanks, and the physiotherapist told me to go on using it as much as possible.
Love the photos Perpetua! Especially the contrast of Ben Loyal ... I was surprised to see all the snow had melted in such a short time. Poor Simon! Most cats I have known prefer the warm indoors than rain!
Thanks, Shirley. I can't get enough of Ben Loyal in all weathers and light conditions. It constantly changes throughout the day. This was relatively late snow, so not very thick and Ben Loyal isn't as high as it looks (about 2,500') and snow melts much more quickly there than on neighbouring Ben Hope which is over 3000'. Like you I've nnever know a cat that likes getting wet, but I know others have.
Such magnificent outlooks in any weather, Perpetua. Wonderfully posted. I think I might have mentioned at some point that last fall I introduced our granddaughter, Kezzie, to Simon's Cat. She loved it! When they were in a few weeks ago, she asked if we could "do Simon's Cat" instead of a story book one night. :) We did - and more than one.
Penny, DH and I never tire of the wonderful views in the Highlands, especially the marvellous combination of mountains and coast we have here. Yes, you did mention that you had introduced Kezzie to Simon's cat and I was delighted to hear it. The cartoons are so appealing to adults and children alike and would make perfect bedtime stories. :-)
I am amazed at the difference in Ben Loyal after just a week. Love the photos and Simon's Cat. Pleased to hear the wrist is improving. Enjoy your spring and summer.
Thanks, Susan. Glad you enjoyed them. At this time of the year the snow doesn't stay around too long, except on the highest mountains further inland. A few sunny days can make a surprising difference close to the coast here..
I loved the first line of your post! Like the other commenters, I am stunned, too, by the gorgeous vistas. I have been to Scotland but a long, long time ago and really just to the cities -- Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh -- so I don't know much about the wilderness areas.
That's an oft-misquoted line, Betty, though very appropriate this year given the glorious spring weather the UK has been enjoying recently. I'm glad you enjoyed the landscape images so much. You really have to visit the Highlands to get the full picture of Scotland.They are a world away from city life and in fact are the area from which many of the C19th Scottish migrants to North America and Australia/NZ originated. The landscape is glorious, but it has never been easy to wrest a living from it.
I'm impressed with the sock knitting. I'd be kept busy with my boys as they like to wear socks instead of shoes, including outside (but not too far outside...).
It's as glorious in its own way as the wonderful mountain scenery you show us in your blog, Sarah. Sock knitting is just plain fun. Much easier than it looks, eminently portable and just about everyone can't have too many socks. Mind you, knitting for growing feet would be a lot more work. :-)
What grand and wonderful scenery you have in northern Scotland. I love the two pictures of Ben Loyal, and what a difference a week makes. April is capricious here, also, and suddenly the temperatures dropped overnight by ten degrees C, plunging us into winter with record-breaking April lows! Probably go back to summer next week, though... Happy Knitting!
The Highland scenery is endlessly fascinating, Patricia, and its aspects change with the weather, often several times a day. I would have thought a 10C drop in temperature would be welcome after your extreme summer heat this year., but we do like time to acclimatise, don't we? Your weather is swinging from summer to winter and back again and ours from winter to spring and back again. :-)
Hari OM Thankfully, at Dunoon, we are just a little below that line of cloud - but it is on its way here too. Making the most of your time as ever though, we note! This land surely does 'sing' when the sun brushes it's lines and your photos pull even at this 'local's heartstrings... YAM xx
You'll be interested to know that the line of cloud has retreated temporarily, Yam, and today has been glorious again. But change IS on the way and I'm getting ready to dig out the woollies again. :-) I love this landscape in all weathers, but clear, bright sunlight really highlights the bones of the hills and mountains.
Bother, we won't overlap yet again, as we're heading south a fortnight this weekend. One of these years perhaps... I'm guessing the higher peaks inland are still snow-capped and likely to get more, but i hope you manage some sunshine during your stay.
The scenery here is so incredibly dramatic. It is just like a stage set with the action coming from all sides. And, from morning to night, one day to the next, one can never really know what to expect. Yes, capricious but, also, stunningly beautiful in all her guises. Surely this is a view from which one can never tire or ever have enough.
You've summed up the enduring appeal of the Highlands perfectly here. This landscape has so many faces depending on the play of light and shade or the vagaries of the weather. The combination of mountains and coastline is wonderfully satisfying and yes, we could never tire of it.
Glad you enjoyed them, Annie. I must confess to feeling almost proprietorial about the extraordinary beauty of the North-West Highlands and love sharing it with people who may never see it for themselves, just as I too revel in glimpses of places I will probably never visit.
I share the view of your previous commenter, "spectacular" is a good word for your surroundings. Not, as you know, my favourite type of landscape, but nevertheless breathtaking. It's good to hear that your are regaining your manual dexterity (how's that for a phrase) and that you so greatly enjoy your Highland visits. Simon's cat does ask for the woes that come his way but one can't help feeling sorry for the little monster.:-)
Spectacular can be an overused term, Ray, but it really does apply to this totally unspoiled corner of Britain. I love the combination of mountains and water. My manual dexterity continues to improve and I can use my left hand and wrist just about normally now, despite the odd semi-numbness of the fingertips, probably the result of a bit of nerve damage. As for Simon's cat, I share your views entirely. :-)
Thank you Perpetua for a timely post... I officially become an "Older Active Person" on Saturday... and a touch of Highland breeze has worked wonders... lovely views of an area I know well... thanks, Tim
Glad to have blown away the slightly depressing aspects of a Big Birthday, Tim. :-) I have another of those coming up next year, but prefer not to think about it yet. I've taken so many photos this time, thanks to the glorious sunshine, that you'll be getting at least one more helping before we head south again.
Birthdays depressing.... never.... apart from a few stiff joints early doors... I still feel young... plenty to do, plenty to see... I act my shoe size, remember... 7 and one half... or eight in walking boots. Men never grow up... we are all Peter Pans.... it is just that the toys seem to get bigger, faster, more expensive.... or just more complicated... but that is when you do need the services of a real seven and a half year old... they don't find such things complicated at all... a friend's ten year old designed and networked their house... I think, tho' that that was so's he could operate their 12" astronomical telescope from the bedroom!! I've always told him that he should find a nice house up near yours... with no light pollution and the chance to see the Aurora Borealis!
I'm guessing that's the 2015 equivalent of asking a six-year-old to programme the video recorder, Tim. :-) Like you I don't feel my age most of the time and long may that continue. The odd creak here and there, but nothing too terrible. By the way Tongue has street-lamps, so there's a teensy bit of light pollution here, but not once you've left the village, though I've yet to see the Northern Lights. One day perhaps...
Dear Perpetua, The landscape that you have shown , is spectacular. It looks very bleak too.! So pleased you are having some sunshine. I couldnt even think how one would start to knit a pair of socks and with a toe .. I remember my paternal grandmother knitting socks and mittens. Lovely post. Happy week val
You're absolutely right, val. The North-West Highlands are very bleak, as well as beautiful. It's a harsh landscape, both because of the weather and because of the thin, stony and infertile soil, which means it was always very hard for people to make a living from it. Socks are really very easy once you have a straightforward pattern. I find gloves much harder because the fingers are so fiddly. :-) So I stick to knitting socks.
Oh, I really hope the snow is over for you now. I know all too well how late in the season it can feasibly snow. My husband and I once lived in northern New York near Lake Ontario. I remember that it snowed the week before our wedding, which took place on May 25. It was worrisome. I laughed about your husband's iron toenails because my husband has them too! Occasionally, I have a leg slashed in the night when he turns over in bed. This, in addition to all the ruined socks. :)
So do I, Jennifer. To be honest i think we'll probably get away with some sleet showers here at sea level, but I fully expect to see the mountains with snow caps again by the end of the weekend. The latest iIever remember having snow back in Wales was towards the end of May 1975 and 10 days later we were at the beginning of a summer-long heatwave!
I chuckled at your mention of the damage a husband's iron toe-nails can inflict. I try to keep well away from DH's nowadays. :-)
What breathtaking scenery you own up there. Truly dramatic, nothing like the gentle hills here in Shropshire or just over the border down your (other) way.
It’s always good to pick up on absorbing hobbies, having been away from the net I have looked at my writing with a fresh eye, and gardening too. We have been truly spoilt with a wonderful and unusual weather pattern this past week. I am almost keen to welcome some rain, otherwise I might have to get the hosepipe out.
Breathtaking and dramatic are exactly what this wilderness area is, Friko. There is nothing tamed or domesticated about it, as there is with the gentle hills of the Marches and Mid-Wales. Extraordinarily beautiful, but also bleak and very harsh for those who have tried to wrest their livelihood from it in the past.
Family history research has proved very absorbing indeed, though totally internet-based so far. I'm laying it aside for a while otherwise I shall take root in my desk-chair which isn't a good idea at my age. I do hope you get some rain as we have. The gardens and fields need it at this time of year.
The scenery of the North-West Highlands looks extremely dramatic. I particularly like the photo of the winding road with nothing but range after range of hills and mountains. Researching family history with the help of the internet and knitting are satisfying ways to spend time on rainy days. Good to hear you've also had some sunshine and hope the last weeks of your time in Scotland are relaxing ones.
The North-West Highlands is a true wilderness, with large areas of immensely dramatic, beautiful, but bleak countryside which is almost totally uninhabited and much of which is only accessible on foot. You can see that in the photo you refer to, in which the road is the only sign of human presence as far as the eye can see. Knitting is proving good exercise for my hand ad wrist and the family history research has been so absorbing that I've neglected my music rather badly in recent weeks. In fact I'm about to get my clarinet out and start to remedy that. :)
Welcome to my blog, Cecilia. I entirely agree with you that it's the capriciousness of April that makes it such a lovely month. We can never take it or its weather for granted. :)
It is indeed wonderful, Christine, one of the most distinctive of Scottish mountains. It isn't actually very high - a Corbett, not a Munro - but because my photos are taken almost at sea-leve,l its 2,500 feet look very dramatic. I wrote a post about in the early days of my blog, before you started reading it. You might like to double- click on the photos to see them in the Lightbox:
The Highlands never fail to appeal whatever the time of year or whatever the weather. There is something special about the colours in Scotland, even your symphony in grey has so much appeal. I was admiring the snow on the mountain tops which reminded me of the snow we have just seen on the mountain tops in Kashmir. Similar but different if you know what I mean.
I know just what you mean about the colours of Scotland, Rosemary. All those muted browns and greens and greys with just the vivid yellow of the gorse or the rich purple of the heather to add contrasting highlights.This visit we've also been lucky enough to have blue skies to turn the sea and kyle blue. The highest mountains still have the remains of the winter snow even now and from the forecast may have more before long. The mountains of Kashmir must have been a wonderful sight and I look forward to your photos of them.
Thank you for the promised photos of the spectacular scenery around your current abode, Perpetua. Greatly appreciated.
ReplyDeleteHowever, your comment about keeping all those remnants of yarn, makes me think that you are more like your DH than you may care to admit :-)
As for Simon's Cat, a certain ginger creature of ours, would probably enjoy being out in the rain, knowing his great love of water.
These photos are just a taster of the ones I have waiting for future posts, Ricky. I just don't want to bore my readers silly with too many at once. :-)
DeleteI probably deserve your quip about my boarding tendencies, but at least my remnants of yarn have only ever filled a small shopping bag, not a rather large barn. :-) Yarn and jam-jars (and of course books) are my hoarding weaknesses.
I don't think any of our cats were fond of water, though they had great fun playing in the snow.
I presume you mean 'hoarding' rather than 'boarding' :-) I do take your point regarding the amount of space occupied by your hoarded goodies over and against that of DH. And I confess that books are my weakness too.
DeleteWell spotted, Ricky. I do indeed mean hoarding. Oh for an edit facility in Blogger comments. :-) I've never been able to throw remnants of yarn away if they could possibly be used to make or mend something and self-patterning yarn is particularly pretty....
DeleteThese pictures are so beautiful. What an amazing place to be able to spend part of your year. I hope the weather improves, but in the meantime being in Scotland on a cold, blustery day with a cup of tea in hand and some knitting on your needles sounds quite wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kristie. Scotland, and particularly for me, the North-West Highlands, is so beautiful that it calls out to be photographed in all weathers and seasons. I just need a better camera. I'll be knitting and nattering again tomorrow morning and now I've picked up the instep stitches on my latest sock, the foot should just zoom along between mouthfuls of cake and sips of tea or coffee. :-)
DeleteI loved seeing these photos. April has been so capricious here also. Snow, sleet, rain, sunshine, black clouds, wind, sunshine. All of this happens in a span of a few hours. This comes from living in the valley at the foot of the mountains. I love it in some ways, but it does seem to be disruptive to one's longing to be outside in the spring. I can relate to Simon's cat.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you are busy using that hand and the wrist is getting stronger.
Sorry to hear that April has been playing her weather tricks on you too, Sally. This seems to be the way of it in many parts of the northern hemisphere this spring and it can be very frustrating. The poor plants in the garden don't know whether to blossom or go back to sleep. My wrist is doing very well now, thanks, and the physiotherapist told me to go on using it as much as possible.
DeleteLove the photos Perpetua! Especially the contrast of Ben Loyal ... I was surprised to see all the snow had melted in such a short time.
ReplyDeletePoor Simon! Most cats I have known prefer the warm indoors than rain!
Thanks, Shirley. I can't get enough of Ben Loyal in all weathers and light conditions. It constantly changes throughout the day. This was relatively late snow, so not very thick and Ben Loyal isn't as high as it looks (about 2,500') and snow melts much more quickly there than on neighbouring Ben Hope which is over 3000'.
DeleteLike you I've nnever know a cat that likes getting wet, but I know others have.
Such magnificent outlooks in any weather, Perpetua. Wonderfully posted.
ReplyDeleteI think I might have mentioned at some point that last fall I introduced our granddaughter, Kezzie, to Simon's Cat. She loved it! When they were in a few weeks ago, she asked if we could "do Simon's Cat" instead of a story book one night. :) We did - and more than one.
Penny, DH and I never tire of the wonderful views in the Highlands, especially the marvellous combination of mountains and coast we have here.
DeleteYes, you did mention that you had introduced Kezzie to Simon's cat and I was delighted to hear it. The cartoons are so appealing to adults and children alike and would make perfect bedtime stories. :-)
I am amazed at the difference in Ben Loyal after just a week. Love the photos and Simon's Cat. Pleased to hear the wrist is improving. Enjoy your spring and summer.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Susan. Glad you enjoyed them. At this time of the year the snow doesn't stay around too long, except on the highest mountains further inland. A few sunny days can make a surprising difference close to the coast here..
DeleteI loved the first line of your post! Like the other commenters, I am stunned, too, by the gorgeous vistas. I have been to Scotland but a long, long time ago and really just to the cities -- Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh -- so I don't know much about the wilderness areas.
ReplyDeleteThat's an oft-misquoted line, Betty, though very appropriate this year given the glorious spring weather the UK has been enjoying recently. I'm glad you enjoyed the landscape images so much. You really have to visit the Highlands to get the full picture of Scotland.They are a world away from city life and in fact are the area from which many of the C19th Scottish migrants to North America and Australia/NZ originated. The landscape is glorious, but it has never been easy to wrest a living from it.
DeleteWhat beautiful scenery!
ReplyDeleteI'm impressed with the sock knitting. I'd be kept busy with my boys as they like to wear socks instead of shoes, including outside (but not too far outside...).
It's as glorious in its own way as the wonderful mountain scenery you show us in your blog, Sarah.
DeleteSock knitting is just plain fun. Much easier than it looks, eminently portable and just about everyone can't have too many socks. Mind you, knitting for growing feet would be a lot more work. :-)
What grand and wonderful scenery you have in northern Scotland. I love the two pictures of Ben Loyal, and what a difference a week makes. April is capricious here, also, and suddenly the temperatures dropped overnight by ten degrees C, plunging us into winter with record-breaking April lows! Probably go back to summer next week, though... Happy Knitting!
ReplyDeleteThe Highland scenery is endlessly fascinating, Patricia, and its aspects change with the weather, often several times a day. I would have thought a 10C drop in temperature would be welcome after your extreme summer heat this year., but we do like time to acclimatise, don't we? Your weather is swinging from summer to winter and back again and ours from winter to spring and back again. :-)
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteThankfully, at Dunoon, we are just a little below that line of cloud - but it is on its way here too. Making the most of your time as ever though, we note! This land surely does 'sing' when the sun brushes it's lines and your photos pull even at this 'local's heartstrings... YAM xx
You'll be interested to know that the line of cloud has retreated temporarily, Yam, and today has been glorious again. But change IS on the way and I'm getting ready to dig out the woollies again. :-) I love this landscape in all weathers, but clear, bright sunlight really highlights the bones of the hills and mountains.
DeleteI'll be herding this was in a month - I'm sure I'll be blessed with a few snow flakes, I usually am.
ReplyDeleteBother, we won't overlap yet again, as we're heading south a fortnight this weekend. One of these years perhaps... I'm guessing the higher peaks inland are still snow-capped and likely to get more, but i hope you manage some sunshine during your stay.
DeleteHello Perpetua,
ReplyDeleteThe scenery here is so incredibly dramatic. It is just like a stage set with the action coming from all sides. And, from morning to night, one day to the next, one can never really know what to expect. Yes, capricious but, also, stunningly beautiful in all her guises. Surely this is a view from which one can never tire or ever have enough.
Hello Jane and Lance,
DeleteYou've summed up the enduring appeal of the Highlands perfectly here. This landscape has so many faces depending on the play of light and shade or the vagaries of the weather. The combination of mountains and coastline is wonderfully satisfying and yes, we could never tire of it.
This world of ours is wondrous and the corner of it you're currently occupying is spectacular ... thank you for sharing these stunning images :o)
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed them, Annie. I must confess to feeling almost proprietorial about the extraordinary beauty of the North-West Highlands and love sharing it with people who may never see it for themselves, just as I too revel in glimpses of places I will probably never visit.
DeleteI share the view of your previous commenter, "spectacular" is a good word for your surroundings.
ReplyDeleteNot, as you know, my favourite type of landscape, but nevertheless breathtaking.
It's good to hear that your are regaining your manual dexterity (how's that for a phrase) and that you so greatly enjoy your Highland visits.
Simon's cat does ask for the woes that come his way but one can't help feeling sorry for the little monster.:-)
Spectacular can be an overused term, Ray, but it really does apply to this totally unspoiled corner of Britain. I love the combination of mountains and water.
DeleteMy manual dexterity continues to improve and I can use my left hand and wrist just about normally now, despite the odd semi-numbness of the fingertips, probably the result of a bit of nerve damage.
As for Simon's cat, I share your views entirely. :-)
Thank you Perpetua for a timely post...
ReplyDeleteI officially become an "Older Active Person" on Saturday...
and a touch of Highland breeze has worked wonders...
lovely views of an area I know well...
thanks,
Tim
Glad to have blown away the slightly depressing aspects of a Big Birthday, Tim. :-) I have another of those coming up next year, but prefer not to think about it yet.
DeleteI've taken so many photos this time, thanks to the glorious sunshine, that you'll be getting at least one more helping before we head south again.
Birthdays depressing.... never....
Deleteapart from a few stiff joints early doors...
I still feel young... plenty to do, plenty to see...
I act my shoe size, remember... 7 and one half...
or eight in walking boots.
Men never grow up... we are all Peter Pans....
it is just that the toys seem to get bigger, faster, more expensive....
or just more complicated...
but that is when you do need the services of a real seven and a half year old...
they don't find such things complicated at all...
a friend's ten year old designed and networked their house...
I think, tho' that that was so's he could operate their 12" astronomical telescope from the bedroom!!
I've always told him that he should find a nice house up near yours...
with no light pollution and the chance to see the Aurora Borealis!
I'm guessing that's the 2015 equivalent of asking a six-year-old to programme the video recorder, Tim. :-) Like you I don't feel my age most of the time and long may that continue. The odd creak here and there, but nothing too terrible.
DeleteBy the way Tongue has street-lamps, so there's a teensy bit of light pollution here, but not once you've left the village, though I've yet to see the Northern Lights. One day perhaps...
Dear Perpetua,
ReplyDeleteThe landscape that you have shown , is spectacular. It looks very bleak too.!
So pleased you are having some sunshine.
I couldnt even think how one would start to knit a pair of socks and with a toe .. I remember my paternal grandmother knitting socks and mittens.
Lovely post.
Happy week
val
You're absolutely right, val. The North-West Highlands are very bleak, as well as beautiful. It's a harsh landscape, both because of the weather and because of the thin, stony and infertile soil, which means it was always very hard for people to make a living from it.
DeleteSocks are really very easy once you have a straightforward pattern. I find gloves much harder because the fingers are so fiddly. :-) So I stick to knitting socks.
Oh, I really hope the snow is over for you now. I know all too well how late in the season it can feasibly snow. My husband and I once lived in northern New York near Lake Ontario. I remember that it snowed the week before our wedding, which took place on May 25. It was worrisome. I laughed about your husband's iron toenails because my husband has them too! Occasionally, I have a leg slashed in the night when he turns over in bed. This, in addition to all the ruined socks. :)
ReplyDeleteSo do I, Jennifer. To be honest i think we'll probably get away with some sleet showers here at sea level, but I fully expect to see the mountains with snow caps again by the end of the weekend. The latest iIever remember having snow back in Wales was towards the end of May 1975 and 10 days later we were at the beginning of a summer-long heatwave!
DeleteI chuckled at your mention of the damage a husband's iron toe-nails can inflict. I try to keep well away from DH's nowadays. :-)
What breathtaking scenery you own up there. Truly dramatic, nothing like the gentle hills here in Shropshire or just over the border down your (other) way.
ReplyDeleteIt’s always good to pick up on absorbing hobbies, having been away from the net I have looked at my writing with a fresh eye, and gardening too. We have been truly spoilt with a wonderful and unusual weather pattern this past week. I am almost keen to welcome some rain, otherwise I might have to get the hosepipe out.
Breathtaking and dramatic are exactly what this wilderness area is, Friko. There is nothing tamed or domesticated about it, as there is with the gentle hills of the Marches and Mid-Wales. Extraordinarily beautiful, but also bleak and very harsh for those who have tried to wrest their livelihood from it in the past.
DeleteFamily history research has proved very absorbing indeed, though totally internet-based so far. I'm laying it aside for a while otherwise I shall take root in my desk-chair which isn't a good idea at my age. I do hope you get some rain as we have. The gardens and fields need it at this time of year.
The scenery of the North-West Highlands looks extremely dramatic. I particularly like the photo of the winding road with nothing but range after range of hills and mountains. Researching family history with the help of the internet and knitting are satisfying ways to spend time on rainy days. Good to hear you've also had some sunshine and hope the last weeks of your time in Scotland are relaxing ones.
ReplyDeleteThe North-West Highlands is a true wilderness, with large areas of immensely dramatic, beautiful, but bleak countryside which is almost totally uninhabited and much of which is only accessible on foot. You can see that in the photo you refer to, in which the road is the only sign of human presence as far as the eye can see.
DeleteKnitting is proving good exercise for my hand ad wrist and the family history research has been so absorbing that I've neglected my music rather badly in recent weeks. In fact I'm about to get my clarinet out and start to remedy that. :)
Isn't this the fascination about April, that it is often so capricious, I love this word. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to my blog, Cecilia. I entirely agree with you that it's the capriciousness of April that makes it such a lovely month. We can never take it or its weather for granted. :)
DeleteI can't believe I've never seen Ben Loyal. It looks wonderful.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed wonderful, Christine, one of the most distinctive of Scottish mountains. It isn't actually very high - a Corbett, not a Munro - but because my photos are taken almost at sea-leve,l its 2,500 feet look very dramatic. I wrote a post about in the early days of my blog, before you started reading it. You might like to double- click on the photos to see them in the Lightbox:
Deletehttp://perpetually-in-transit.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/queen-of-scottish-mountains.html
The Highlands never fail to appeal whatever the time of year or whatever the weather. There is something special about the colours in Scotland, even your symphony in grey has so much appeal.
ReplyDeleteI was admiring the snow on the mountain tops which reminded me of the snow we have just seen on the mountain tops in Kashmir. Similar but different if you know what I mean.
I know just what you mean about the colours of Scotland, Rosemary. All those muted browns and greens and greys with just the vivid yellow of the gorse or the rich purple of the heather to add contrasting highlights.This visit we've also been lucky enough to have blue skies to turn the sea and kyle blue.
DeleteThe highest mountains still have the remains of the winter snow even now and from the forecast may have more before long. The mountains of Kashmir must have been a wonderful sight and I look forward to your photos of them.