Friday 19 April: After the excitement of Rubha Hunish, a quiet hour or so down by the pier at Uig. The ferry departs for the outer isles, and a working boat ties up.
The far north
Rubha Hunish: the northernmost tip of Skye. We could see it yesterday, over to the west. It’s a fine morning, and if I get there soon, I should be able to park the car without trouble. Without a doubt, it’s the only way to beat the hordes. The walk to the cliff tops (Meall Tuath and Meall Deas) overlooking the Hunish peninsula is becoming popular, but not all visitors are prepared to take the precipitous route down the cliff face. The peninsula itself is wonderful – gentle grassy slopes 50′ – 100′ above the sea, with superb coastal architecture along the east side – stacks, an arch – fine views and the sound of nesting seabirds. The views, admittedly, could be clearer – it’s been hazy all week, and we’ve barely seen the outer isles. But it’s great here – just me, the gulls, a few gannets, cormorants and – was that a golden eagle?
As I approach the cliffs for the scramble back up, there are one or two figures on the headland, by the bothy, and as I make my way back along the path, I meet an eclectic cross-section of humanity. Some respond to my greeting; others look straight through me. Did I fall off the cliff and perish? Am I a ghost?
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=141529&Y=875608&A=Y&Z=120
To Rubha na h-Aiseig
It’s become a favourite – super coastal scenery and lots of space, and no-one else around. Rubha na h-Aiseig is very nearly the most northerly point on Skye – beyond the little island of Trodday, there’s just the sea, all the way to the north pole…
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=143969&Y=875858&A=Y&Z=120
Staffin strolling
We’ve driven here from Uig, over the bealach – past the car park for the horribly busy path to the Quiraing. There must be 70-80 cars crammed into every available space (apart from that taken by the burger van). I believe, along with several other destinations on Skye, that’s it’s become firmly lodged on the “World Top 50 Selfies” list… (what a shame!)
We squeeze past people struggling to park, and find ourselves in Staffin, for the very gentle walk over the hill and down to the shore south of the slip. Coming back up the well-engineered ancient path is slightly less gentle, but we can manage. Other than a few excessively loud voices at the slip, it’s really quiet – the only other person we’ve seen close by is a fisherman. On a fine, sunny, warm (for April) afternoon, Staffin’s shore is a great place to be.
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=149198&Y=868006&A=Y&Z=120
A quiet glen
Monday 15 April: We’re in need of a good leg stretch – somewhere out of this cold south-easterly wind. The forest road up Glen Hinnisdal could be just the thing… It may be a forest road, but much of the woodland has been cleared – there are fine views up the glen, and, on retracing our steps, down to the coast and Loch Snizort.
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=141515&Y=857530&A=Y&Z=120
An hour at Summerlee
Friday 12 April: I think it may have been longer. We’ve time to kill, and we could do with a drink – and those pineapple tarts look good… The “Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life” is well worth a longer visit than ours – the indoor exhibits are fascinating, the cottages beside the mine provide evocative snapshots of ordinary industrial-era lives – and did I mention the trams and the railway locomotives? More than 40 years ago, I saw No.9 and “Robin” when they were working for a living. Long and inactively retired (the locos, not the author), it would be great to see them restored to steam.
Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life
April sunshine
The sunshine is warm, but the air’s cold today. Fortunately, the outdoor tea area at Benthall Hall is sheltered from the breeze, so we’ll enjoy our al fresco refreshments without a shiver. The bluebell season is just beginning, the chestnut leaves are emerging (they remind me of pale green cormorants drying their wings) and the oilseed rape is brightening the fields – sunshine even when the sun’s gone in…
Cheshire Lines
We’ve been on a brief (and fairly limited) exploration of railways in Cheshire, focusing on the town of Northwich, whose railway station still looks like a railway station, complete with canopies (on ornate iron columns) and a Joyce (of Whitchurch) clock, which has stopped. Almost exactly 40 years ago – April 1979 – I was on a railtour which also stopped (briefly) at Northwich station. Standing beside the old loco shed was a line of tank wagons, which I guessed were used for storing fuel for diesel locomotives. Look at the middle two – how old are those frames? What were they originally used for? There’s an estate of modern houses where the loco shed stood. I wonder what happened to the wagons?
More photos on Geoff’s Rail Diaries: “More Cheshire Lines”
Sunnycroft
It’s in Wellington, Shropshire – a “rare suburban villa and mini-estate” according to the National Trust. We’re exploring this property on what began as a grey afternoon, though as we left the house, the cloud was clearing. An interesting place – a former owner seems to have been obsessed with clocks… The trees in the avenue are Wellingtonia – they’d have to be, wouldn’t they?
An hour in Ironbridge
I’m trying out some new kit – an hour in Ironbridge might be worthwhile. Wow – it’s busy! Oops! – after the first few photos, I’ve accidentally set a “creative” effect which has over-cooked the colours. I’ve tried to tone them down a bit, but really they’d benefit from a bit more tinkering. It’s hardly worth the effort – I could take them again (on a quieter day…) if I wanted.
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