A difficult expedition since
I only had a poor description of the Cat Rock and no clear
idea where it was. However, we had a lot of eyes to look for
it: Billy, Calum, Davy, Fern, Jonathan, Josephine, Maghsi,
Mairi, Roanna, Robbie, Roslyn, Rowan, and Serena, with Christina,
Fiona, Joanne, Kate R., Liz, Mark, Nicci, Pamela, Rupert,
Sharon and Simon with Huzal to hopefully sniff out the cat.
Before we started we had a look at the strange gravestone
of Alasdair of the Cats, in Acharacle churchyard. I explained
that he was a joiner who was said to have been murdered long
ago, but nobody was sure how many cats he had.
We all drove to the Free Kirk car park and set off up the
path next to Ala’s. The triple culvert proved a great
attraction at each end of the expedition but I got everyone
on the move up the hill and we soon reached the old Acharacle
Fank. We lifted a couple of sheets of iron lying on the ground
but saw no slow worms yet, it was too cold. Everyone explored
the fank, looking at the flagstone walls. I had a quick look
for the old Belmont water tank but didn’t find it this
time.
Then we all set off up the hill to the crest and moved along
it looking for the Cat Rock. We found only one big boulder
although we covered the ground pretty thoroughly. We carried
on along the ridge and then turned back towards Acharacle
hoping to find one of Mr Rudd’s old electricity poles
which I knew was in the vicinity, but we failed to find that
too.
However, we came down the hill and soon found the cultivated
ground of Mary Hamish’s croft and, a little further
on, the remarkable lynchets, although the explorers were more
interested in Tunnock’s wafers at this point. The adults
were also interested in wafers but there were insufficient
this time.
We crossed the hill towards Ala’s again and the expedition
got so strung out across the hill that it split and the last
ones had to search the hill before they found the rest of
the group. By that time we were well up the next hill to an
ancient piece of cultivated ground at the top known as Martin’s
croft. It’s not much to look at, a few dykes and ridges
and a lot of bracken – it must have been a rough place
to work.
Finally, after gathering almost everyone for a picture at
the high point, we set off quickly down the path and were
in the Blue Parrot in no time at all.
Once again, the explorers turned out some interesting pictures,
I picked out Calum’s wonderful study of the triple culvert
which shows the Ala’s croft, a collie and also the Free
Kirk in the background.
John
Dye
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