This was one of the lovely summer days like we used to have
before global warming: sunny with a light breeze to keep the
midges away. We only had three explorers, Alexander, Maighsi
and Roanna, plus helpers Kate and Mairi and Bess the dog making
her third expedition.
This was a route the explorers and helpers (but not the dog)
had done before so we moved pretty quickly over familiar ground
and I didn't get huge enthusiasm for my studious interpretation
of the coffin cairns along the track.
We made a slight detour onto a little promontory where I do
my monthly bird counts, but a scan with the binoculars did
not reveal so much as a feather in the place. At this point
Maighsi executed a spectacular fall onto the rocky shore,
but was back up to speed in no time. We carried on past the
dwindling remains of an old VW van and splashed our way to
the gate and took a rest on the beautiful new fish farm pier.
This was a good place for a Tunnock's wafer and a photo opportunity,
but soon we were back on the track and making our way towards
the Dalilea road.
The explorers remembered the rock outcrop near the corner
and we stopped and found some quite good mica crystals - these
were the white variety, muscovite. There were some Scotch
Argus butterflies and several small dragonflies around this
area.
Halfway up the hill is a house called Austin's Croft where
my friends Roy and Ailsa once lived and we did a detour to
look at the old place, which is almost a ruin now. In the
living room we saw paintings of trees on one wall, which I
have since discovered were done by Jackie, who now lives in
Glenfinnan. The explorers thought the house was interesting
but they weren't keen to move in right away.
Then we carried on up the hill, pausing to look at the gateway
where schoolchildren waited before setting off across the
hill to Brunery.
There was quite a bit of traffic on the road coming down and
we only stopped at one point to look at the bridge called
'Drochit a'Gorroch' where they used to say an old witch sat
on the parapet and tried to grab boys as they went by. Roanna
sat on the parapet but she didn't look like a witch at all.
Finally we reached the cars and went back to Acharacle, only
Alexander and Mairi came since Maighsi and Roanna were involved
with the Raft Race at two o'clock. Alexander did a drawing
of the bridge with the witch sitting on it. He also shows
the witch's cat and broom, which seems to have two seats -
I presume the cat rode pillion.
John
Dye
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