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angledgeWhen I got home this evening, I realized that my previous post, a link to seolta's LJ, referenced a friends-only entry, thus negating my attempt to provide a short-cut description of the weekend's planned road trip.
Oh well, I'll just have to show you where we went.
Our fearsome threesome for this trip consisted of Mission Commander and Shuttle Pilotseolta, Chief Navigator and First Fruit Bat spiffington, and Deputy Assistant Rubbish Bin Manager (Second Class) angledge. Leaving seolta's automobile Comet behind, we picked up our rental car, promptly dubbed him Cupid, and roared up the A9 towards Inverness. We then cut across the Highlands (marasca & katieledge, we took this same road on our Highland adventure - the A82), shooting westward to Ullapool. From there, we wound up the West Coast along tiny, single-track roads until we reached a magical wonderland, which I shall call the Land Where Roads Go To Die. We travelled a few more miles on a nearly-dead road, and arrived at ...
The Most Beautiful Croft in All of Scotland
Quick definition: a croft is a small farm. Ray & Anna, the wonderful owners of this croft, engage in a bit of everything: creeling (lobster trapping), vegetable farming, cattle, sheep, poultry, forestry, etc. Their croft consists of hills, woodlands, a small loch, & access to a beach. And what a beach!
seolta & I swam in the sea at this beach for nearly a half-hour. While it was definitely cold, it wasn't as bad as you might think. I'd estimate the water temperature was 63-65 degrees Fahrenheit. We used seolta's mobile phone to take a couple photos on the beach:
We stayed in the visitor's quarters at the croft, a little outbuilding called the Bothy. But we were far from the only visitors! That night, Ray & Anna were also hosting a guest farm worker from Germany, friends from Hong Kong, & relatives from Dingwall & Oxford. Thirteen people crowded into the kitchen for dessert! That's what "Highland hospitality" is really about.
The hills surrounding the croft were perfect for hiking, so we made like sheep & clambered over them, stopping to rest on the heather & to admire the astonishing views around us. The most prominent mountain was Suilven, which is currently for sale! Asking price: four million pounds.
With the sun beaming down upon us & a brisk Highland breeze, we had perfect hiking conditions.
After hiking, swimming, & showering, we piled back into Cupid & hurtled South back toward Ullapool. Our afternoon & evening in Ullapool were rather quiet, although an amusing three-legged race was going on in town. Pairs of costumed competitors were roped together at the ankle. They then had to go to every pub in town (six, we think) & drink a pint. We stayed the night in a hostel in Ullapool, reading stories & going to sleep early.
Sunday morning, we got underway after an absolutely amazing breakfast at the Ceilidh Place. Our first destination was Stac Polliadh (prounounced Stack Polly, more or less), a mountain that near Edinburgh would be amazing but in the Highlands seemed rather average. We clambered partway up its slopes before turning back in the face of pressing engagements elsewhere (& buzzing hordes of midges).
We then embarked on a mad, mad, mad, mad whirlwind tour of some of the most overwhelmingly beautiful scenery ... EVER. To those of you who have never visited the Highlands I say: you don't know what you're missing. I'm looking over my collection of photos from the trip, & they are insufficient to convey the majesty of the scenery.
So I'll go with the goofiness of the scenery's denizens instead. Look everyone, Highland Cows!
Fin.
seolta's LJ, referenced a friends-only entry, thus negating my attempt to provide a short-cut description of the weekend's planned road trip.Oh well, I'll just have to show you where we went.
Our fearsome threesome for this trip consisted of Mission Commander and Shuttle Pilot
seolta, Chief Navigator and First Fruit Bat spiffington, and Deputy Assistant Rubbish Bin Manager (Second Class) angledge. Leaving seolta's automobile Comet behind, we picked up our rental car, promptly dubbed him Cupid, and roared up the A9 towards Inverness. We then cut across the Highlands (marasca & katieledge, we took this same road on our Highland adventure - the A82), shooting westward to Ullapool. From there, we wound up the West Coast along tiny, single-track roads until we reached a magical wonderland, which I shall call the Land Where Roads Go To Die. We travelled a few more miles on a nearly-dead road, and arrived at ...Quick definition: a croft is a small farm. Ray & Anna, the wonderful owners of this croft, engage in a bit of everything: creeling (lobster trapping), vegetable farming, cattle, sheep, poultry, forestry, etc. Their croft consists of hills, woodlands, a small loch, & access to a beach. And what a beach!
seolta & I swam in the sea at this beach for nearly a half-hour. While it was definitely cold, it wasn't as bad as you might think. I'd estimate the water temperature was 63-65 degrees Fahrenheit. We used seolta's mobile phone to take a couple photos on the beach:We stayed in the visitor's quarters at the croft, a little outbuilding called the Bothy. But we were far from the only visitors! That night, Ray & Anna were also hosting a guest farm worker from Germany, friends from Hong Kong, & relatives from Dingwall & Oxford. Thirteen people crowded into the kitchen for dessert! That's what "Highland hospitality" is really about.
The hills surrounding the croft were perfect for hiking, so we made like sheep & clambered over them, stopping to rest on the heather & to admire the astonishing views around us. The most prominent mountain was Suilven, which is currently for sale! Asking price: four million pounds.
With the sun beaming down upon us & a brisk Highland breeze, we had perfect hiking conditions.
After hiking, swimming, & showering, we piled back into Cupid & hurtled South back toward Ullapool. Our afternoon & evening in Ullapool were rather quiet, although an amusing three-legged race was going on in town. Pairs of costumed competitors were roped together at the ankle. They then had to go to every pub in town (six, we think) & drink a pint. We stayed the night in a hostel in Ullapool, reading stories & going to sleep early.
Sunday morning, we got underway after an absolutely amazing breakfast at the Ceilidh Place. Our first destination was Stac Polliadh (prounounced Stack Polly, more or less), a mountain that near Edinburgh would be amazing but in the Highlands seemed rather average. We clambered partway up its slopes before turning back in the face of pressing engagements elsewhere (& buzzing hordes of midges).
We then embarked on a mad, mad, mad, mad whirlwind tour of some of the most overwhelmingly beautiful scenery ... EVER. To those of you who have never visited the Highlands I say: you don't know what you're missing. I'm looking over my collection of photos from the trip, & they are insufficient to convey the majesty of the scenery.
So I'll go with the goofiness of the scenery's denizens instead. Look everyone, Highland Cows!
Fin.
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no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 12:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 09:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 11:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 01:01 pm (UTC)I'm glad you're serious about that photography class. I think you'd really excell and love it at the same time. Who knows, maybe you'll end up blowing off that really insane job that you have right now that I couldn't even begin to describe to anyone, let alone myself to become a photographer. But, somehow, I don't foresee the money being as good;)
<3
so poor
Date: 2004-08-09 01:25 pm (UTC)As for that stuff (http://www.livejournal.com/users/angledge/107537.html?thread=234001#t234001) you say you didn't understand, here's the simple version: I put lots of data into a computer. I use it to make pretty, pretty maps. Then I stare at the maps until someone tells me it's time to go to the pub. That's all there is to it!
no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 01:53 pm (UTC)Obviously, I'd encourage anyone with any interest in photography to take a class. ;) The class I took a year or two ago was definitely focused on art photograhy and was all black and white, which isn't for everyone, I'm sure. My friend
P.S. Moo!
no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 01:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 02:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 02:46 pm (UTC)MOO!
Re: so poor
Date: 2004-08-09 02:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 02:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 03:44 pm (UTC)I have a much more niggly task to download and play with pics from phone and time to wait to develop my SLR films, so my photos may take a while.... Don't think that would stop the words tho *grin*
Seolta's verbose ramblings
no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 03:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 04:50 pm (UTC)Re: so poor
Date: 2004-08-09 06:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-09 08:44 pm (UTC)so inaccurate
Date: 2004-08-10 08:25 am (UTC)US total land area = 3,787,319 square miles (125 times larger than Scotland)
England is not an interchangeable term for the United Kingdom, & Scotland is not part of England.
Your spurious use of molarity to describe the concentration of Pretty is SO BAD. How, exactly, do you define a mol of Pretty?
You, sir, are a Bad Scientist.
Re: so inaccurate
Date: 2004-08-10 10:32 am (UTC)Re: so inaccurate
Date: 2004-08-16 06:27 pm (UTC)You can call me Vulgar
Date: 2004-08-22 04:35 am (UTC)Re: You can call me Vulgar
Date: 2004-08-22 11:45 am (UTC)Re: You can call me Vulgar
Date: 2004-08-22 03:20 pm (UTC)If you want to recover for 4 or 5 years before buying us a mountain, that's okat with me. ;)