The crofters Home.

It was actually pitch black inside. How people used to live...

This post is out of sequence but I can't move it...

While the rest of the country drowns...

How wonderful to live in the north east this year! I can't imagine what the fields of Sandal Farm look like and although I desperately miss my animals, I do have the sun as compensation and my new wide ranging chickens who are now foraging in the garden, being stalked by Moss.
This untidy bit of garden is at the front and gets the sun all day. You can see beyond the sprawling heathers, there is a cleared piece of land which now has 10 strawberry plants on it. , carefully netted to prevent hungry little beaks getting to the flowers and fruits and also slug pellets, which although are pet friendly, I'm certain will do no critter any good.
The hens are obviously used to being handled and one came and sat on my lap while I forlornly nursed a cold yesterday. They don't seem to have got the idea of putting themselves to bed at night but are easily plucked from the ground and put back in their run.
Whenever we are absent, the chickens will live in their house and run so they don't need to be locked up evry night.
They won't like it, after they've enjoyed the freedom of the garden but better that than death by cat.

Enough of the April Showers but I've got a job.

The rain comes over in sharp heavy showers which leaves huge puddles on the roads and the Mossie has turned into a nightmare bog. The horses are standing as still as they can on the highest parts of the land. In between showers, the sun is actually very hot and the vegetation and tarmac steams as the surfaces rapidly dry off.

Talking of steam, this is the engine that Ralph, as a trainee fireman/stoker, has had a hand in making go forward. It is the job of the driver to ensure forward motion but it is the fireman who provides and regulates the fuel to propel the beauty forward. He has spent 2 days on the plate and will take him a while to be fully trained up (no pun intended).  On his other days he has replaced a washbasin, cleaned up wheel cogs so they turn, rubbed down, greased, drilled holes, scrapped off dirt and rust...and so on. Ralph is very good at the minute tasks that refurbishment of vehicles entails but here he is also enjoying the comaraderie of an all male enviroment. Being in the clothing industry, then nursing, it is almost a unique experience. He comes home with a dirty face and his hands are a disgrace, so it is just as well he isn't nursing. Patients would run a mile.

Yes, I have a job. Same as I was doing in Bradford only instead of Pakistani wives, it's Eastern European staff. There are many many of them and they are delightful! Good fun, committed and hard working.

Hurray!





Highland Life Museum.

Free entry. A lovely sunny day. Interesting and not one bit stuffy.

The house is an example of one that I may have lived in in Grantown on Spey a few years back. There were also older examples of how the MacDonalds may have lived in their Glen when life was cold and harsh.

I have lots of photos but Blogspot only seems to accept one or 2 at a time. Best go on the website to see what is there.

What I really liked was that the buildings were inhabited by local people and so their stories were real. The bicycle repair man who loved clocks and so built a lean-to on his house in the twon of Nairn so he could indulge his hobby, collecting, repairing and inventing wierd and wonderful machinery in order to do so. His workshop looked like my dad's. Everything was saved and mostly stored. But some things were made use of, his iron bedstead was cut in half length ways and made into gutters on his shed. How unique and inventive.

I wonder what possible use my dad had for the collection of castor wheels he collected, or the old irons. He won't have any use now though; age has made work in his garage impossible. He is still hoping that Ralph will take up where he left off and Ralph is busy donating it all to the Steam Railway. Now that's another post.

Snow use.

Plans for a canoe trip have been postponed and Ralph took the car instead of the mtoorbike because snow was lying this morning. It has been coming down in flurries on and off for 2 days but inbetween the sun has shone and it is very hot then.

I walked in the morning yesterday and had to stop to take my fleece and jacket off. I sat on a bench overlooking the Cromdales which are picturesque with their fresh snow lying lightly on the upper slopes. The Cairngorm mountains were not visible at all. I wonder if people are manging to ski. Locals have bought their annual ski pass and used it 3 times this winter! There is still time, we are quite far north after all.

The garden flowers have been battered by the snow. This picture was taken at 2.50pm Sat and shows the sleet laying the daffs low.

I have picked a good crop of rhubarb though and that is stewing ready for our first crumble tonight! Yum.

Ralph is on his training to be a steam engine fireman so should be warm and exercised today.

The hens have arrived.

This is one of the 3 young PoL hens that arrived yesterday. She is very timid and hasn't ventured out of her tidy new home. I relented and put feed and water in their house yesterday because it was obvious Miss Shy wasn't going to be persuaded to descend the ladder.

However the other two are out and about in their fox proof run despite the extremely cool showery weather we are having this morning.

Sightseeing.

After the frantic weeks of sunshine and outdoor activity, I spent 5 days with my friends, Sonia and Amber who had arrived to snow capped mountains, grey sky and on-and-off rain. Luckily each day we managed to avoid the heavy showers and had at least half a day in dry, even sun!

The trips included a visit to the Ospreys at Loch Garten, the beach at Nairn, a trip up Cairn Gorm (more reindeer photos!) and a trip to the River Findhorn which is pictured.

Moss was delighted by young company although was very naughty, taking advantage of them with some outrageous behaviour. I say them, because Amber was be-friended by the 3 young lassies who walk with me and their mum and Moss on a regular basis.

I'd not been to this section of the Findhorn before. It is used for white water rafting and I could tell it was way and beyond my own kyacking/canoeing skills.

Something to aim for...

The Osprey. The Siskin.

On a visit to the RSPB reserve at the beautiful Loch Garten, I was priviledged to see Odin. This male Osprey was late to mate with his partner of the last 3 years. Beaten to the act (which is viable for 14 days) he stood guard over the established nest and his humiliation and despair was clearly visible on the CCTV camera that you can see in my photo. The female had disappeared that morning, obviously (so the RSPB volunteers assured me) distressed that she had mated with the new, younger male who had beaten him to it.

Now "Odin" sits on his tree overlooking his empty nest and you can't help thinking; Mills and Boon of Strathspey.

The sweet little Siskin in all his colours to attract a sweet little Siskin girl, cheered me up. Despite the sudden snow and cold which has left the daffodils and primulas flattened and the small birds returning to the bird feeders, the males are in all their glory preparing for the serious business of mating and raising their young.

It's all love and lust and longing in the bird world.

Surprise Surprise!

Woke up to 4 " of snow. Ralph tried in vain to scrape it off the solar panels as it is so sunny but he couldn't get up high enough. It is warm and sunny so the thaw is rapid.

Meanwhile he is getting on with the new wall paper in the kitchen. I labelled it "flowerpower" on my Facebook page!

Last night I bid for a kyack on E Bay and was successful. It is much lighter than my pink boat and I will be able to take myself off to explore the lochs and rivers, but not today!

Mountain Biking.

What a fortnight of activity. I need a day off today (Monday 2nd April).

This is me sitting at the foot of Sluggan Pass, having taken the route from Nethybridge to Glenmore and returning via Sluggan, and then over to Boat of Garten to see the newly returned Ospreys (none in sight!). It turned warm and sunny and Jo and I stopped for a drink in this quiet spot before we joined the road again.

I was really pleased that my confidence is growing on the rough off road tracks and it is great to cover the ground so quickly. Sclotland is great for off road biking as many shooters tracks and forestry tracks take you deep into the mountains. There is open access so you are allowed to go where you like but deer fences, even with stiles, can present challenges to the biker and the dog walker! These fences are probably 15 foot high. No problems on this route though.

Creag Dhubh

This the view from the steep slopes of Creag Dhubh, near to Newtonmore. It is a climber's crag so a steep pull up the side of the crag, then a dramatic path leading to the top.
Jo, Moss and myself, walked up on Sunday which was a little overcast and a cold wind, but the views were absolutely amazing. This view is down towards Loch Laggan which eventually leads to Fort William. The river is the Spey. The source of which is on the eastern hills above Loch Laggan and there are 2 sources but as we agreed, how you can identify one source from the many burns that lead into a valley which eventaully becomes a single river, is hard to tell.
Spectacular, shame the borrowed camera and the cloudy sky didn't show just how beautiful it is.