Tuesday 28.11.2023

 When, at midday, the clouds cleared and the sun emerged in a blue sky we set off, hoping the sleety showers that had blown across all morning would hold off long enough for us not to get drenched. 

Long shadows with the sun picking out patches of frozen rain that had settled on the grass: it was really cold and we didn`t hang around.

The woods were squelchy underfoot, the path deviating a little at one point where a half-fallen tree we normally ducked under had slipped further down, blocking the path,

but the light was beautiful, the air sharp and clean and we definitely had the best of the day for almost at the exact moment we stepped indoors the clouds rolled in, the sleet returned and soon the light was gone for the day. Not even the dogs wanted another walk, preferring to install themselves as close to the fire as possible....and stay there.

Sunday 26/11/2023

As the sun came up this morning it momentarily cast long golden shadows across the field I can see from our window and set the autumn leaves on fire, a majestic sight.  By the time we got out on the road the clouds may have drifted in but they were quite high, with patches of blue sky dotted about.

It was cold and still and pure walking weather, so much so that we did both of the longer loops we sometimes do, simply to postpone returning home.

Sturdy trees, their pale grey trunks cloaked in vibrant mosses, bright yellow gorse which seemingly never stops flowering unless it gets really cold, and the road beckoning us on....just a little further....just round this bend.......

On the spur of the moment yesterday, legs a bit restless, dog number one and I set off for Bennachie. Another cold cold morning but bright as we left Rowantree Car Park (the only one where you don`t have to pay 👍) 

It offers the boskiest approach to the hill  

such that when you finally emerge above the trainline the views almost take you by surprise.

For no particular reason decided not to head for the very top but instead took a right turn to walk across a path not just less travelled but in my case I`m pretty sure never travelled which took us across the flanks of the hill, a long circuitous occasionally boggy path, pausing (and posing) at cairns and making the very best of the clear day.

In the last of the light this evening took the dogs for a scamper on our top field: it was very cold, very still, the sky was on fire in the west

while everywhere else lights twinkled and sparkled. I stood still to take it all in and at that moment two long skeins of geese passed overhead in quick succession, calling into the icy air. Doesn`t get much better. A good weekend`s walking.

  

 

Tuesday 21/11/2023

 Not everything is dying back at this time of year and on an overcast November day like today the lichen and moss (and yet again, as every year, will have to look up the difference) were positively glowing. Lichen decorating a tree trunk or draped over branches in artsy arrangements, 

gnarly little wood creatures munching on fungi

 or, my favourite today, trees that look exactly like they`re wrapped up warm all ready for winter. 

Sunday 19.11.2023

 A birthday walk on a calm, dry, mild afternoon, not at all what they forecast but welcome nonetheless. Wheelie bins blown over on the road and far fewer leaves on the trees than the last time we were round the woods so at some point there`s been a bit of a hooley but somehow didn`t notice. Today was all muted colours and autumn scents, the light already beginning to fade though it wasn`t so late. 

 Could be we missed the windy day because we spent it slumped, recovering from a Walk, as in a long walk with a proper name, which himself, whose birthday weekend it is, suggested as a way of marking the event. 

Portsoy to Buckie along the Aberdeenshire/Moray Coast is known as the Six Harbours Walk. Every year a charity walk along the route is organised by a local Rotary club ( https://www.sixharbourwalk.com )

but it`s a simple enough route to follow - as long as you keep the sea on the same side the whole way. 😉

We set off on a cold, brilliant morning and stepped out briskly to try and warm up, Couldn`t have picked a better day for it - clear vistas all round.

The track is easy to follow though occasionally veers away from the immediate coastline a little and sometimes, in the kind of slippy conditions we encountered, requires a bit more concentration

but as well as the breathtaking views there is plenty to hold the interest, not least the six eponymous harbours, each with their own character and history. And it`s always good to arrive somewhere on a long walk to discover a tea and coffee trailer you weren`t expecting.........especially when it marks almost exactly the halfway mark.

For the record the coffee (and tea) were excellent and my slice of Bakewell delicious. 👍 

( https://discovercullen.com/coffee-at-the-kings )

Mainly though there was the simple pleasure of walking on a beautiful day, taking lungfuls of icy air and watching the birds wheeling over the water as well as the satisfaction of arriving at the final harbour just as the light was fading. Fish and chips never tasted so good (even if I did overdo it a bit) and it still felt worth it despite the next 24 hours of cramp, aching muscles and creaking joints. 🤣🤣

Sunday 12th November

 Carpe diem as they say so we were out there just after nine under the clearest of clear ice blue skies,  the white frost on the grass crunching satisfactorily underfoot. The sun, though still quite low in the sky, was beginning to melt the ice on the road and the cold nipped at the nose and ears despite there not being the whisper of any wind. It truly was the most glorious of autumn mornings, the mist suspended over the ground in places or beginning to swirl and dissipate as the sun found it.

Stopped probably too often to take pictures but it`s impossible to do it justice really - at least it is with my camera. The contrast in colours was irresistible though 

as was the clarity of the view.

and the almost mystical light.

It was the kind of morning, empty of people and especially with only the one dog at my heels (the one that doesn`t need to be on a lead because she always comes back the minute she`s called 😉) that demanded a longer walk.

So, with the mist still ambushing us round corners where the sun hadn`t quite penetrated,

we headed back out on to the road, still slippy in places, and even took a slight detour for a pic of the little graveyard at the crossroads which looked especially peaceful with the long shadows on the neatly cut grass.

And then, one of those serendipitous moments that is one of the great delights of walking (and also because we were still lingering, unwilling to abandon the day) I stopped for a proper look at the phone box (mothballed some time ago) and the post box next to it, still operational. As I lined it up for a pic, wondering how long it has been there, I noticed something I hadn`t registered before, despite using the box every now and again over the last 30 something years.

Not the handy little cover over the slot which keeps the contents safe from the driving rain and snow.....no,suddenly realised something I might have expected to see wasn`t there...........here`s a clue.

I pondered this as we finally turned for home, the frost still lingering on shaded ground the sun was never going to reach, 

sheep grazing peacefully where it was spreading a little warmth.

A quick Google when I got home revealed (courtesy of the postal Museum - who knew?) this delicious little snippet:

"You will find, however, that in Scotland pillar boxes do not have ‘EIIR’ on them. This is because some Scottish people did not accept Queen Elizabeth as the second monarch of her name, since Queen Elizabeth I was never ruler of Scotland. Earlier pillar boxes with the cypher were vandalised and even blown up, and because of this they instead depict the Scottish Crown."

Yay! Quite right too. 😉

So - coffee, a shower, a light brunch of leftover kedgeree (very P.G. Wodehouse) and I reckon the Diem had been well and truly Carped.

Friday November 3rd

 To borrow a word from the weather forecasters - changeable. Dizzyingly changeable in fact. It is perhaps the essential characteristic of British weather and the result of living on a little island buffeted from all sides. 

Walking through it on a regular basis only serves to emphasize that changeability, not to say unpredictability, and not least because that old saw about no such thing as bad weather only the wrong clothes is confirmed every day: peer out of the window, open the door and take a sniff.......warm coat?.... waterproof coat?....scarf?.....shirtsleeves?

Herewith a sample of daily delights, whatever the weather:

The most stand out thing from yesterday`s soggy walk in the woods is the way the relatively mild but very wet weather has resulted in an abundance of fungi......some I don`t think I`ve ever seen in there before.  Beautiful `fairy-tale` mushrooms:

but these were my absolute favourites......  

...................................if there aren`t sprites of some sort involved I`d be amazed. 😉