RETURN TO DUFFUS CASTLE

Back in the summer I took you on a visit to Duffus Castle, but at the time because of a recent hip replacement I could only get shots from the flat area outside the castle. Now I'm "good to go" so we can explore further. Duffus is a Norman motte and bailey castle. The castle was a fortress-residence for over 600 years. It was originally an earth and timber castle but was burnt down in the 13th century and rebuilt in stone and lime. This shot is taken from the bottom of the motte within the curtain wall. The buildings on the left were storage rooms, the steps lead up to the tower. I don't know if this was the original way. You can click and enlarge the pictures for more detail.

No warriors on the battlements now, but a Hercules plane from the nearby RAF base reminds us of a more modern way of defense,

The way into the tower.
This is the dark narrow space just inside the doorway shown on the previous shot. There was a staircase through the opening. At the opposite end is a gard robe and below a dungeon.

This picture shows that it doesn't do to build a big heavy tower on top of a man made hill on boggy land. The remains have slipped downwards. Through the doorway is a latrine.

Here we are inside what remains of the Lords Hall, you can see slots in the walls where beams would have been to support an upper storey.
You can see above the windows that the stones have slipped.

Another shot taken inside the hall, the curved stonework in the centre is where the staircase would have been,

The name Duff is said to come from the gaelic words dubh uisg which means black water. Although the castle is now surrounded by farmland, it was once on the edge of Spynie Loch and surrounded by water and marshland. After all the heavy rain we have had recently, it's easy to imaging how it would have looked. The line of reeds is the castle moat.

This is another view looking out from the tower doorway showing the curtain wall the wall on the right has a doorway.

Another view of the tower
The doorway in the curtain wall is the one from the previous shot

In this shot you can see the faults in the walls and also see where the top of the motte has begun to slip away and recently been reinforced

And finally, remember the sliding toiled, well here it is again taken from outside the castle
just to show how far it has slid over the years.

TORRIESTON WOODS AND BLACK ISLE

Today I am sharing a selection of shots taken a while ago. This first one is of the rocks in the Black Burn which flows through Torrieston Woods, I like the reflections. Click on pictures to enlarge them.

Greg enjoying a quiet moment and a cup of coffee on a well placed bench by the burn. The dogs are keeping an eye on him.
Autumn colours

More reflections in the crystal clear water.

This is a beachside road in Rosemarkie, we enjoyed lunch at a Bistro here and watched dolphins in the Moray Firth.

An attractive church in Strathpheffer

We came across this waterfall whilst walking in the forest at Contin.

VISITING BIRDS AND A VIEW OF THE RIVER

We often have birds visiting our garden to feed from the many treats we offer, below is a Yellow hammer, it's worth clicking on the pictures to enlarge and see more detail

After rain, and when the tide is in, we get large flocks of herring gulls feeding on the field behind our house. I caught these taking flight after they were startled by my dogs.
We call this beautiful pheasant Tricky Dickie, he visits most days and seems to enjoy watching us through the window. I love his bronze feathers.

He's having a really good look in now, he doesn't go away when we move around the sitting room. Maybe he's waiting to be invited in.

This is a shot of the River Lossie

The sea is on the other side of the dunes on the opposite bank. Looking towards Lossiemouth
If you enlarge the picture you will be able to see the bridge which takes you over to east beach. In a few weeks there will be big flocks of ducks on the water along with gulls redshanks oyster catchers and of course herons.

AUTUMN AT BRODIE CASTLE

Brodie Castle is a short drive away and a place we visit often, It looks beautiful now that autumn has arrived. Click on pictures to enlarge them.

If you have a castle you have to have a view and it's even better when you can have a lake to enhance the view.
My dogs love it here. How can such a large tongue fit into such a small dogs mouth?


There is a lovely walk round the lake.

A silver birch changed to gold. These next shots are taken in the Castle gardens.

These are a few views of the Castle. If you fancy staying here it's possible to rent an apartment in part of the Castle for holidays.

ROGIE FALLS

Today I am sharing a selection of pictures taken at Rogie Falls near Contin in Easter Ross. Click on pictures to enlarge them. The dogs are ready for another adventure.

This looks like an old stone wall but is in fact the bark of an ancient birch tree.
I love the way plants grow on other plants, every spare inch seems to be used, the bark of the old birch is supporting a host of lichens and mosses.

A lovely view of the falls and the bridge over the river.

The trees were just beginning to chang colour when we were there, I bet it's stunning now.

The pretty bridge across the Blackwater river.

The falls taken from the bridge

The veiw from below the bridge.

The turbulant water beneath the falls, easy to see why it's called Blackwater River

This is a man made fish ladder built at the side of the falls to help the Salmon to get above the falls. You can see it quite clearly on the picture of the bridge. .

A big fungus growing amongst more mossy things. We often complain about the rain we get in Scotland, but without it we wouldn't have this lush vegetation or lovely rivers and waterfalls so I'm prepared to put up with it.

Here is a Rowan Tree growing out of rock.

We spotted this bus shelter when driving through the pretty little coastal town of Fortrose and had to get a shot of it. You could say it's a great bit of re-cycling and I suppose if the bus didn't turn up there's always the boat.

HIPS LIPS AND HUNTIN FOR FAIRIES

These plump rose hips on the Rugosa Roses in my garden are much loved by the birds. They also make great rosehip syrup. Click on pictures to enlarge them.

This sunset from a few weeks ago was taken from the back of our cottage. Is it just me, or can you see lips in the sky?

Another shot of the same sunset taken a bit further to the east with straw bales on the horizan.

These next shots are from our Black Isle holiday. We paid a visit to the Fairie Glen at Rosemarkie, a lovely nature reserve. We saw lots of birds, dippers, wagtails and a woodpecker, but not one fairy, we even sent the dogs on a fairy search, but no luck.

We found these strange very small fungi. The shot is a bit blurred, maybe due to the fact I was almost standing on my head. If anyone knows what kind of fungi they are I would love to know.

More fungi growing on a dead tree, no fairies sitting under them.

A lovely burn flows through the reserve which is where we saw the grey wagtails.

This shot is looking back to the mill pond where dragon flies hovered over the still water.

The path took us along the side of the burn and ever upwards until we arrived at a series of waterfalls. Not a fairy in sight, maybe they had gone on holiday, but still a lovely walk and worth the climb to the waterfalls.

A VERY STRANGE PLACE

During our recent holiday on The Black Isle we visited the Clootie Well near Munlochy. I should explain that a "cloot" or "clout" is a piece of cloth or even an item of clothing. The well was and still is by some folk, believed to possess healing powers against ill health and bad luck and curses. People would take cloots belonging to the afflicted then walk three times round the well, dip the cloot into the "magic" water and then tie it to a tree. As the cloot rotted away the healing began. Judging by the amount of cloots there are a lot of believers out there. If you click on the pictures and enlarge them you'll see a variety of different articles.

Believe me, it's a very weired place.
The water from the "well" is now channeled into an unattractive concrete sink.

Here is the old station at Strathpeffer which has been re-cycled
and now contains a museum of childhood a bookshop and a cafe with yummy cakes.

This lovely cottage used to be a railway cottage

A view across the rooftops of some of the houses in Strathpeffer

This is Strathpeffer Spa Pavillion where events and concerts are held.

A number of wooden carvings adorn the grounds of the pavillion, here you can see Greg, the hat you'll notice is a different one, saying hello to Garry. Garry was a giant, although only a small one at 15ft tall, who fell asleep on a hillside. Some naughty children tied his hair to the heather and when he began to slip down the slope he was brought to a painful halt as you can see by his expression.

I'm sorry to say I can't remember the story that goes with this buxom wench, except I think she's a Vicking, but she's pretty impressive and has someone on her back

A HOLIDAY IN THE BLACK ISLE

Although we only live an hour away and have often driven through on our way to the west coast, we have never stopped to explore this beautiful part of Scotland. This all changed last week when we rented a lovely bungalow for a week. We arrived during a storm with strong gales and heavy rain , but found the house cosy and warm. It is set in an acre of garden with mature trees and surrounded by a stone wall . Click on photos to enlarge them.

When I got up the next morning the storm had abated and this is the view I saw from the cottage window. The first snow so far on the top of Ben Wyvis and a lovely rainbow to greet the day. The view extends to reveal the Cromarty Firth to the right of the shot and Conan Bridge to the left.

Two days later the view had changed and the mist filled the strath, hiding the trees and farms.

The mist now starting to rise.

The early morning sun highlighting the golden bracken on the hills above the mist.

LOCH AN EILEIN

During our recent holiday in Aviemore we visited beautiful Loch an Eilein, part of the lovely Rothiemurchas Estate. Pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them.

A lovely view of the Cairngorm Mountains across the Loch.
Many little paths meander round the edge of the water.

Sunlight shining through the old Scots Pine.

There are also lots of grand old birch trees.

We found a bench at the edge of the Loch where we enjoyed a picnic.

The ruins of a 13th century castle. During the 1380s that dirty rotter Alexander Stewart, The Wolf of Badenoch, who by the way was the Grandson of Robert The Bruce, occupied this castle and is believed to have added a fortified tower. For more on the Bad old Wolf go to my blog POSTCARDS FROM ELGIN PART TWO.

We found this at the edge of the loch opposite the castle. I've no idea what it is, but with a bit of imagination it could be The Wolf's washing up bowl, or foot spa.

AFTER THE RAIN

Two weeks ago I posted pictures of our holiday in Aviemore. See AVIEMORE HOLIDAY PART TWO . On the Thursday 3rd of Sept the north of Scotland endured 36 hours of continuous heavy rain. The first picture below shows the Alt Mor burn gently flowing from the Cairngorms to Loch Morlich The following were taken along the same burn on Friday 4th. Click on the photos to enlarge them

Now surging towards the loch taking with it parts of the bank and trees, the burn has lost it's gentle nature.

The dogs especially Bryan, are usually keen to paddle in burns and lochs, but when a footpath suddenly turns into a river it's a bit bewildering.

Greg wishing he'd worn his wellies.

It's amazing to see, how, after rain, the trunks and branches of trees light up with lovely green lichen changing the appearance of the woodland.

A BRIEF TOUR OF BURGHEAD

A visit to Burghead Village which lies about five miles from home. This view is of Burghead Bay with it's long stretch of golden sands backed by miles of woodland walks in Roseisle Forest.The pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Rooftops above the harbour

This is the remains of the ramparts of an iron age fort, the biggest in Britain dated back to the 4th -7th century which stretches across the neck of the headland. The fort was destroyed after the construction of harbour in 1805, the white building is a heritage centre.

Below is an artists impression of what the fort would have looked like.
This photo shows what would have been the central ridge

These hazardous steps lead down from the fort to the harbour/

Colourful fishing boats in the harbour which at one time was a very busy herring fishing port

The old harbour buildings have been turned into flats.

This poor man was having awful trouble getting the engine of his boat to start and we couldn't help with a push start either.

Here we have the entrance to Burghead "Well" which was discovered in 1805 when excavation work was being done. It is believed to be early Christian in date is an 11ft chamber hewn from the rock and fed by a spring. The size suggests it was used for purposes other that drawing water but no one knows what it was really used for.

This is the far right corner of the well, I couldn't get the whole thing in. The water is very dark and the steps down and the walls damp and slimy, in fact it feels quite spooky.

The dogs obviously want to leave and get back to the surface.

On 11th January each year the Burning of the Clavie takes place. This involves a half barrel filled with wood shavings and tar fixed by a hand wrought nail to a 5ft pole. The contents are set alight and carried by a Clavie King, often a fisherman, and accompanied by others is paraded around the village before finally being taken to the Dourie Hill and placed in the "alter" shown below.

The Dourie Hill and alter

AVIEMORE HOLIDAY PART TWO

These pictures are of a walk we took in Glenmore Forest, some of which follows the Alt Mor burn. Click on pictures to enlarge.

I love the colours of the forest at this time of year.
Reflections in a still pool.

A pretty wooden bridge over the burn and a grand old scots pine.

Map lichen on a boulder by the burn.

The Alt Mor burn flowing between alder birch and willow trees.

A view of the Shepherds hill. I climbed it a few years ago, you never know I may manage it again before too long.

Another old pine, the smell of the pine and the heather in the warm sun was wonderful

Bryan looking grumpy because I called him to come out of the water.

Watch out, Papillons hunting.

A WEEK AT AVIEMORE

We have just returned from a weeks holiday in a cottage at Aviemore and I thought you would enjoy the following shots. Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

This is the cottage we stayed in at Avielochan Farm. The cottage is close to a lovely lochan where osprey fish and golden eye and tufted ducks are resident.

This is the road round the loch
A view of the Cairngorm mountains lit up by the evening sun taken from the door of the cottage

Another shot from the cottage of the sun rays breaking through clouds.

A view across the loch from a bit further down the road.

This is Greg standing in the middle of an iron age hut circle, the entrance is to the right of the picture.

Looking back across the loch to where the cottage is to the left of the house with the red roof. The hut circle is in the foreground

Another shot of clouds rolling off the mountains . I will share more pictures of the holiday later.

MORE POSTCARDS FROM ELGIN

Here are some more pictures taken in Elgin. Cooper park is very popular with families and the day we visited they were having fun on the boating lake.

Click on pictures to enlarge them.

There are lots of ducks in the park and these two very tame Muscovy ducks are hoping for a free meal. They didn't have to wait long.
Elgin Cathedral viewed from Cooper Park. The Cathedral was consecrated on this site in 1224, but 20 years later was damaged in a fire. In 1390 Alexander Stewart, known as Wolf of Badenoch surged out of his stronghold at Lochindorb Castle and in revenge for the sentence of excommunication passed against him by the Bishop, burnt the town of Forres then moved on to Elgin and set fire to the Cathedral which was very badly damaged. The Cathedral eventually died of neglect after the Reformation in 1560 but the ruins are well worth exploring.

This is the remains of the Bishops house.

The plaque with information

I spotted these heads below the gable you can see them on the other shot too

More of the ruins of Elgin Cathedral

The West Front

Close by the Cathedral is the Biblical Garden which has lovely flower beds and statues depicting people from Bible stories.

This shot shows Jesus and Mary

Another shot of Jesus and Mary

This one is the father of the prodigal son

Some of the colourful flowers found around the garden

A WALK IN ROSEISLE FOREST

Now that I am getting my fitness back after my hip replacement, Iam enjoying getting back out into the wilder places that I love so much. This walk was in Roseisle Forest which has many footpaths through both mature and newer woodland. This path crosses a burn at the bottom of the steps so was a test for the new hip. To see more details just click on the pictures

Whilst Greg and Bryan wait at the top, Jarvis comes back down to hustle me on.
There are lots of Rowan berries ripening at this time of year.

Although I hate it when areas of the forest are clear felled, areas of wild flowers appear a couple of years later to add variety to the forest

The heather smells of honey in the warm sunshine and is enjoyed by bumble bees.

Bryan looks very pleased with himself after having a dip in the burn and then getting covered in sand.

I like the way the light shines on the heather in this shot and the lovely silver colour.

The "dirty dog" has now found a big hole with a strong foxy smell around it.

A chap just has to go and take a look. Jarvis is egging him on but won't be so brave himself.

A short time later and after running through long vegetation hunting for small creatures Bryan is once again looking pretty clean.

A POSTCARD FROM ELGIN

Elgin is seven miles from us and is where we go to do our main shopping. The name on the town's seal is Helgyn implying Norse links. Below are a few shots of some of the more interesting buildings and a bit of the history when I can supply it. Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Shoppers on the High Street

St, Giles Parish Church,designed by Archibald Simpson 1825-28, is built in the Greek Revival style.
The Tower is the oldest surviving building in High St built in 1631 but added too in 1876.
Isaac Forsyth founded his circulating library here in 1789, the first such library in northern Scotland.

One of the many "closes " in Elgin.

This is Thunderton House from 16th century, home of the King when passing through, and later the town house of The Earls of Moray, Dunbars of Westfield and Lords of Duffus. The building was founded in the 14th century is now a pub and serves good bar meals. If you enlarge the picture you will see, above the ivy on the right, a painting of how the building looked earlier.

The plaque outside Thunderton House

I don't know where the stern looking Bishop? originated, but he is now installed in the wall down one of the closes. He doesn't seem to approve of Greg.

Another strange piece of masonary

A lovely stone staircase at Thunderton House, there is a boot scraper near the top of the steps

The Granary, bar and club and an Italian resturant next door make modern use of old buildings

Elgin Castle once stood on this hill, but now only a few walls remain. It was a royal castle and it is alleged that King Duncan died here of wounds inflicted by Macbeth. King Edward 1st occupied the castle for four days in 1296. The hill is now called Lady Hill possibly because the chapel was rebuilt in 15th century. The monument is an 80ft tall Doric column surmounted by a statue of the 5th (and last) Duke of Gordon.

Due to recent cutback in funding Elgin Council have had to employ street cleaners who don't need paying. Who'se a clever gull then?

A PICNIC IN THE PARK

After we had been to the re-cycling centre at Forres last week, (see previous blog) we went to Grant Park to enjoy a picnic. Below is a selection of photos of the various floral displays in this lovely park. Click on the photos to enlarge them.

Greg and the dogs are impressed by this giant squirrel, you can see if you enlarge the picture that Greg has even lent it his hat. I just managed to stop Bryan from peeing on it.

This is the view from the bench we chose to enjoy our picnic

One of the fountains in the sunken garden. This garden is where Forres House once stood before it burnt down.

RECYCLING

Spurred on by Linda's blog about recycling, we loaded

the car and set off to the recycling centre at Forres. It was busy with other likeminded people and catered for everything from garden waste to bathroom suites. The amount of stuff for sale was equally impressive as the photos show a small selection of what's available.

Skis anyone? there were also skiboots by the dozen
This department was furniture of all kinds

The toy section was very popular with the kids and everything going very cheaply. You can see more detail by clicking on the photos to enlarge them


There are some new "recycling machines " in our field, the big ones recycle grass into milk and feed it to the calfs who turn it into beef.



Cute or what?

DUFFUS CASTLE AND WESTFIELD FUN DAY

Determined to make the most of the light evenings , the dogs and I went to Duffus Castle which is a stones throw away from home. The Castle rises above what used to be Spynie Loch and consists of an outer bailey surrounded by a moat, a walled and ditched inner-bailey, and a great stone keep on top of a motte. Inside the keep a staircase within the wall thickness and parts of rooms can be seen. The keep contained a great hall on the first floor.

Click on pictures to enlarge them.

The late evening sun has turned the old stonework a lovely golden colour.

A small window can be seen high up and an opening into the inside of the wall

On the other side of this wall are cellars and store rooms.

Can you see who is on rampart patrol, these Papillons are more like goats than dogs.

A close up of the stone walls reveals tiny ferns

On the right of the picture you can see that part of the north corner has sheared off and slipped part way down the motte
It contains a latrine

At Westfield house we were entertained by part of the RAF Lossiemouth Pipe Band

This is a Police sniffer dog who has just successfully hunted out some drugs that her handler had hidden to show us what she was capable of, she's now asking for her ball.

A MIXED BAG

Click on photos to enlarge them.

This photo was taken from the back of my cottage at 10-45pm

The next evening at around 9-30pm on the other side of the cottage we we treated to a rainbow

I don't know the name of these little floweres but they are very delicate and loved by hoverflys

These next photos are taken at Clasach Cove, a short distance down the coast from home and one of my favourite places. The dogs love it too.

Bryan looks very small on this shot

A collie dog just peed on this rock. He just turned up from nowhere all by himself and left a message which my two are "reading" with great interest,

After the rock sniffing session,it's into play mode

This cave goes a long way back in the cliff. It's known as Gordon's Stables. The story being that Gordon of Gordonston a local land owner hid his horses in this cave to prevent them being taken during the Jacobite uprising.

Gordonston is now a famous school where Prince Charles and his brothers were educated. Princess Anne's daughter Zara Philips and her brother Peter also attended .

The cave in this picture goes through to the seaward side of the cliff

More fun on the beach

DOING THE TOURIST BIT

Although I normally drive the three miles into Lossiemouth once a week

to top up with bread ,milk etc, I thought it would be good to look at it from a tourist point of view, so camera at the ready and Greg in tow, bribed by the offer of lunch, we enjoyed a couple of hours in the pretty seaside town.
The picture above is taken from just outside the Lossie Inn where we had our lunch. In the foreground is the river
Lossie just before it joins the Moray Firth, in front of the river is where the railway used to run, now turned into gardens. Beyond is the open water of the firth. The pointed hill in the far distance is the Cullen Bin, well worth a walk to the top for great views in all directions. The sand dunes in this picture were created by placing rail carriages on the beach so that the blowing sand would bank up and form dunes insted of blowing into the river and silting it up.If you click on the photos it will enlarge them and you will see more detailThe old harbour buildings have been restored and now house a museum about the old fishing days, a cafe with delicious home bakes gift shops and the Harbour Master's office

People enjoying the sunshine outside the cafe, it looks quite continental

One of the lovely flower beds that somehow survive being so close to the sea and the salt laden winds

This harbour was a full of fishing boats a few years ago, but now, like so many others, it is used as a marina for pleasure craft.

This little boat is for sale, all on it's own on the other side of the harbour away from the big fancy boats, it would be about the only one I could afford.

Another view of the boats

Tourist enjoying the warm weather with icecreams and drinks on the esplanade

This bridge takes you over the mouth of the River Lossie and onto East beach,beyond the bridge is Seatown, the original fishing village. When the tide is out and the water low it',s possible to see the ribs of one of the old fishing boats in the sands of the river. In the winter hundreds of ducks spend time here , It's lovely to walk along the banks of the river and then into miles and miles of pine woods

A SUMMER EVENING AND MORE SMALL THINGS

Yesterday evening the weather was so good, warm and not a breath of wind, that I decided to take the new hip for a wander down to our village. Our village consists of five houses now, but at one time it boasted a shop and a pub. I read somewhere that Alexander

Graham Bell who invented the telephone, spent his honeymoon in one of the cottages

This photo is of the first cottage in the village right on the edge of the cliff. Click on pictures to enlarge them

about nine o' clock and the sun is getting lower in the sky and making a pathway of light across the water

The other direction shows the dunes and lots of gulls on the beach and in the water

When I got back the garden was filled with the scent of warm honey coming from these strange flowers on my Newzealand Flax plant which the bees adore

I did warn you about me getting hooked on small things, these are the seed heads on my Sinecio Bush. To my mind they are just as attractive as the yellow daisy flowers.

This next picture is for ADULTS ONLY. ONLY TO BE VIEWED AFTER THE NINE O'CLOCK DEADLINE

Sex on a Ragwort flower, I caught the little devils in the act
Ahh bless, more nature

MORE MACRO AND REMEMBERING MY NEIGHBOUR

Be warned I've got really hooked on small things,and hope I don't bore you all with my close ups. I know these are classed as weeds and I admit they are growing in my garden, but hey it's nature. Click on pictures to enlarge them

I found this pretty moth on one of my rose bushes, I'm afraid I don't know it's name, if anyone can tell me I would be grateful Sorry it's a bit out of focus, but I had trouble getting up close because big thorns on this Rugosa Rose

The next three photos are taken on my neighbours croft, these are new neighbours as the old man who used to live here died last year and I really miss him. He was a very small man only about five foot four tall but as tough as an ox. He was well into his nineties but put in a full days work in fact the day before he died I saw him putting new fence posts in one of the fields. Once I caught him on his cottage roof, sweeping the chimney from the top. He was a mine of information about our area and the history of the place and he told me stories of being a child and peeping out of the cottage window when the local smugglers were heading to the beach. Alas I can,t stop and chat to him now, but am really glad I had the pleasure of knowing him. I don't have any photos of him, but lots of memories. Hope you don't mind me sharing my thoughts.

My dogs in the cow field

Shower clould gathering over the croft, you can just see the rooftop of my cottage bottom right

GETTING UP CLOSE

I have admired many peoples close up shots of flowers insects etc. so thought it about time to have a go myself. These two are taken with the automatic setting on my camera until I get better at using it or get another lens. The hover fly doesn't show up too well but I am quite pleased with the little bumble bee. At one point there were three of them on that rose but they were buzzing about and make the picture fuzzy.

Click on the photos to enlarge them, you can see the pollen on the bee's legs and on the first picture the hover fly has blown the pollen up onto the roses petal

I took this photo the other evening when we let the dogs out for their last pit stop, it was
11-15 pm

A FEW PICTURES OF HOME

Today I am sharing a few shots from around my home. This is my limit for walks just now, but I am hoping to get the OK from the hospital next week so that I can drive again.

The top picture is the view from the back of my house looking across the Moray firth.

Below are some of my new neighbours who are fascinated by my two Papillons who are looking for rabbits on the other side of the fence. Click on pictures to enlarge them.

They are now setting off to join in the fun by galloping alongside the dogs, who don't care by the way.

The view from just outside the garden gate looking over to Ben Rinnes Ben Aigan and Ben More

This is a view of Lossiemouth Lighthouse, I think it was built by the Stevenson brothers.
Lossiemouth can be seen to the right of the photo above the sheds of Covesea farm.

My little home on the hill, when we moved here there were no trees just a rough field, but now after eighteen years we are very lucky to have lots of trees and shrubs which has brought us plenty of birds to enjoy.

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

I was reading in the sitting room at 10.30 pm and happened to look up from my book. This is what I saw through the patio doors. I quickly grabbed my camera and shot these photos. They are taken through the glass so not quite as sharp as I would have liked.

If you would like to join in with Skywatch clickhttp://skyley.blogspot.com/
Click on photos to enlarge them

It looks a bit like a tornado, but it's the vapour trail of a plane climbing over the Moray Firth in Scotland

MISSING OUT THIS YEAR

Tomorrow we should have been setting off for a week in a cottage near Ullapool on the west coast of Scotland for a weeks stay in a cottage that we have rented for the last couple of years, but, because I'm not fully recovered from my hip operation and can't drive yet, we are staying at home on the east coast of Scotland. I am posting a random selection of the holiday we had in the cottage last year.

This is Greg sitting on the rocks above the River Ullapool in Glen Achall just a little way from the cottage.

Click on pictures to enlarge them

This is a view of the Corrieshalloch Gorge a very deep box gorge not far away
We visited these lovely gardens one day and spent hours wandering upa and down the winding pathways amongst the lovely trees and flowers on the banks of Loch broom, the gardens belong to the Leckmelm Estate.

This is Glastullich cottage that we rent, for pure solitude it takes some beating. There is no electricity and cooking and lighting is by gas, so as you can imagine it's like stepping back a hundred years. There's no phone signal either and no TV. But sitting in the garden is better than any TV with the view of the hills changing with the light and the weather from minute to minute. The silence is only broken by the drumming of snipe,the calling of curlew and the occasional bleat of sheep.
Each night at about 11 pm (it is still fairly light here all night) a herd of red deer would visit the garden and keep the lawn and shrubs in trim and there was a nest with baby barn owls in the barn which amused us with their antics each evening. You can be sure we'll be back next year.

The shores of Loch Broom with a shower looming

The view from outside our holiday cottage looking down the glen to Loch Achall

Another view of Leckmelm gardens

Just to finish off, a lovely rhodadendron bloom

ON THE ROCKS

Although my nre hip is feeling great I am not allowed to go wondering too far, especially as we live along a dirt road which is also a hill. I walk daily half way up the road where I can see the sea, mountains and gulls plus some new sheep that have arrived in the field today. The photos I am posting today were taken a few weeks ago and reflect my love of rocks and all their little additions of lichens lumps and bumps. Click on photos to enlarge them. These stones are in the dry stone wall along the side of our lane.

I like the pimples on this oneNo not a rock but he's good to look at

The rocky cliff and a small cave on the beach just below our village

The gorse just coming into bloom.

You can see where the water has worn away the base of the cliff, the sandstone erodes quite easily

I love this great lump of rock, there are so many things growing on it and I imagine a dolphins nose peeping around the front of it.

We do quite often see dolphins along our coast and recently basking sharks

HIP HIP HORAY

Back to blogging after three weeks and now the proud owner (I think) of a brand new titanium and ceramic right hip, (sorry no photo, don't want to scare you all away)

Apart from being a bit bored (no driving jiving bungy jumping etc.) I am doing OK. Because I have been unable to get out with my camera I thought I would share these pictures I took just before I went into hospital. They are all taken at our nearest, just over the field, beach.

This is a view west towards a coastguard lookout tower.

Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

The path down to the beach, a mass of yellow gorse or whin bushes as they are called locally.

The flowers smell of coconut.

A view from a grassy bank where I often sit while the dogs exolore the rocks looking for mink.

SKYWATCH FRIDAY AND TORRIESTON WOODS

Today I am killing two birds with one stone so to speak. The first two pictures are for Skywatch Friday, so if you fancy having a go yourself click here.

This picture is of the sky above the bell tower of Duffus Old Kirk

Click on photos to enlarge them.

the sky seen from my garden gate in the evening

The following pictures are of Torrieston woods near Elgin which is one of my and my dog's favourite walks. These photos were taken about a month ago so many of the trees are still bare.

I quite like this because it gives a better view through the trees.

There is a convenient bench by this bridge, a very good spot for a flask of tea and a snack, and whilst I sit and listen to the birds sing, the dogs explore the banks of the burn.

I took this shot because the sunlight filtering through the trees lit up the heather and made the new growth of birch glitter. You can imagine how lovely it looks later in the year when the heather blooms and the woodland floor hums with the sound of bees and the sweet smell of the heather drifts through the woods


Jarvis is pondering wether or not to go for a dip. He decided not to, if that had been Bryan he would have been straight in. The woodland flowers are just beginning to bloom.

I love the reflections in the calm water in this part of the burn


As you can see Bryan thinks it's pretty good here, and as all Papillon owners will know when Paps like somewhere the best thing to do is go into ZOOOOOM mode.
Look at the big smile on his face.



This is a view of the path down to the bridge the bench can be seen on the other side of the bridge.

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Once again it's SKYWATCH FRIDAY time. If you would like to post your own pictures click here.

You can click on these pictures to enlarge them.

These are what I refer to as stacking clouds, I believe they are created by the wind blowing them over hills.

The moon in the blue sky at around eight o'clock in the evening

A bit of my garage roof (not intended) and sycamore trees with a cloudy sky.

All of these pictures were taken from just outside my cottage

TRUE COLOUR THURSDAY

This week the colour is CERISE. If you want to join in with your own colours visit Blue's blog.

You can click on the photos to enlarge them.

This ribbon is round one of my vases of birthday flowers. A cerise toe on a sock my daughter bought me, I have another one just the same!

My lovely Grandaughter wearing a cerise top.

ALPHABET WEDNESDAY

Alphabet Wednesday's letter this week is P

P is for Pansy. I don't have any real ones so have tried to draw some using watercolour pencils.

To join in the fun click here

Click on photos to enlarge them

P is for Papillon, this is Bryan aged nine

and this is Jarvis who is five

THE OLD KIRK AT DUFFUS

I love wandering round old graveyards. Not only for the history found in them, but also for the peace and quiet and the wildlife. Here are a few images of Duffus Old Kirk that I took a couple of weeks ago. There were lots of baby rabbits and birds were singing in the old trees that surround the graveyard. The woods at the front were full of wild garlic, not yet in flower but already giving out a pungent smell.

Click on the pictures to enlarge them

This old stone wall is covered in lichen and there are ferns and toadflax growing between the stones
I love the vaulted roof of the kirks porch.

This is a view of the empty shell of the kirk

A mix of tomb stones and lovely old trees

The watch hut where some poor chap had to spend the night guarding the bodies for fear of grave robbers. Rather him than me.

One of the many strange tomb stones. I don,t know why they show the dislocated femurs, each side of the skull, if anyone knows I would love to hear

I wonder why this one is upside down

This stone with it,s horn blowing cherub is almost at roof height, I wonder if it originated elsewhere.

A view of the outside of the kirk.

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Friday is Skywatch day, if you want to join in and publish your own photos click here

Click on the pictures to view them full size

A lovely blue sky through the blossom of my wild cherry tree.
A lonely herring gull over the Moray Firth

The sunset through a broom bush taken from home

Another picture from my back door

STILL LIMPING

Last Monday I went into hospital for a hip replacement, I sailed through all the usual tests and prepared myself for the operation on Tuesday morning, which as it happened, was my birthday.I was woken at 5-45 am for a shower and given a sexy gown to wear which always shows your bum because there are never enough ties on it. Of course I wasn't allowed anything to eat or drink so made do with the smell of my neighbours bacon and coffee. The theatre nurse came and told me she would come back at 9am with a sedative tablet and I would go "down" shortly afterwards. Then ten minutes later the Consultant arrived and informed me that seeing as my hip was worse than normal he wanted another Consultant involved, but they didn't hve the required equipment to hand. So here I am back at home until they get the right hardware and call me back in. The good news is I GOT MY BREAKFAST. Today I thought I would share some flowers, because we all like flowers don't we? even if we are not in hospital Ha! Ha! Click on photos to enlarge them.

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

To join in Skywatch Friday click here

This is me looking up at the sky through the branches of a tall pine tree.

A lovely blue sky seen through a tracery of bare branches.

The evening sky seen from the back of my cottage

Lovely colours through the trees in my front garden

Tonight the sun set over the Moray Firth lighting up the mountains beyond

This will be my last Skywatch for a while. I am going into hospital on Monday for a hip replacement but look forward to continuing when I get home

TRUE COLOUR THURSDAY

Todays colour is RUST

If you want to join in with your own Rusty photos visit Blue

on her blog

Here are some lovely rust coloured beech leaves on the tree and on the ground. This photo was taken last November on the shores of Loch Lochy.

These are bark paintings, done for us by my adopted Aboriginal family when we lived with them for a while in Arnhem Land a few years ago. The rust coloured paint is made from crushed rock.

Lovely rust colour caused by iron in the cliff

This will be my last True Colour Thursday for a while. I am going into Hospital for a hip replacement on Monday,and not quite sure how long I'll be away.

ALPHABET WEDNESDAY

This week the letter is N, if you want to join in click here , Click on photos to enlarge them

These are my Neoprene boots, very warm and waterproof.

N is for NEW,
leaf buds and catkins on a birch tree

NARCISSUS

Bright yellow to cheer us after the bleakness of winter

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

This is my first attempt at Skywatch Friday, I have looked at many lovely and often dramatic pictures from other people, so thought I should have a go myself. I have gone for a contrast between the unpredictable skys of the north of Scotland and the hot sunny skys of Malta.

To join in the fun click here.

Where the sky meet the sea over the Moray Firth
Five minutes later, a heavy shower caught me without a raincoat, I should know betterLooking skyward to one of the watch towers on the defence walls of Valetta

The tower of St John's cathedral

Bright blue sky on the west coast of Malta.

TRUE COLOUR THURSDAY

The colour this week is Lime,

Sorry if this is cheating but you can't get a much truer lime colour than this can you?

If you want to join in visit blue on her blog

The true colour lime

or is this the true colour lime?

NNot to worry the end product tastes really good

ALPHABET WEDNESDAY M

If you want to join Alphabet Wednesday click here

M is for Malta, so hot and so dry,

M is for mountain with snow in the sky,

M is for mischief for Monkies and More,

A Mallard we saw on a loch, by the shore.

A view of Valetta taken from a boat in the Grand Harbour

The Cairngorm Mountains in early Spring

Cheeky Monkies

A lovely male Mallard duck

MY BACKYARD

In my previous blogs I have shown photos of the lovely places we visit in the Moray and the Highlands. In this one I am sharing my own back yard so to speak and sharing the bits just around our home. No two days are the same,it changes according to the weather and of course the time of year.

Bryan and Jarvis ready to go, they know where the local rabbits live.
This is our view of the Moray Firth looking north from the cottage,

This is our "village" just down the lane from us, consists of only about five houses now but at one time I believe there was a shop too.

Past the village you can see Lossiemouth Lighthouse,now unmanned. Parts of the buildings are now holiday lets.

This is the view from our cottage looking south,Ben Rinnes can be seen in the centre of the photo

This is the pond in the farmyard. It used to be a mill pond, now it's a haven for birds, Mallards and moorhens nest there and there are some huge carp.

This is home, sometimes the road gets full of snow in the winter and we can be stuck for days at a time. It pays to have a store cupboard.

Looking back from half way down the garden. Our garden is for wildlife and dogs, so no neat flower beds. Lots of plants can't survive here because of the salty winds we can get at any time of year. Most of what we grow is tough shrubs and hardy trees, we also have a resident wild rabbit which would soon take care of tender young plants. Mind you it keeps the dogs amused by hiding in the Rugosa Roses and they run round and round the bushes avoiding the vicious thorns which are keeping Brer Rabbit safe.

TRUE COLOUR THURSDAY

True colour Thursday this week is black and white, my first picture is of my dog Jarvis enjoying himself of the beach.

Written in black and white

My black and white beads.

If you want to join in True Colour Thursday, visit Blue

SCOTLAND THE BEAUTIFUL.BRAVE AND BEYOND

A stay in the Cairngorms last week gave me a chance to try out my new camera.These are a few pictures of the places we visited and a few more from the Highland Wildlife Park, there are more "wild things" on my last but one blog.

I love the colours in this photo
There were dozens of frogs in these pools all busy doing what frogs do in early spring.

Interesting trees at Revack Estate

Choppy waters of Loch Inch.

The pack waiting to be fed

King of the swingers

The lookout

Alphabet Wednesday

This is my first Alphabet Wednesday, the letter this week is L, so I have a Liquid Lake,

If you wish to join in click here

Here is a lovely Lily

A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE

We have just spent a few days a Granton-on Spey being fed and watered and waited on.As we had no dogs with us we felt the need to borrow a few courtesy of the Highland Wildlife Park.

Tiger Tiger burning bright

Who's a clever monkey then?

I think this one was meditating.

Pair of oyster-catchers

A lovely lapwing not at all bothered by the camera

A grand red deer stag and his "girls"

I've never seen a horse retrieving before, shortly after taking this photo he chased us off.

A bit of hanky-panky in the rushes.

SRANGE BEINGS IN THE WOODS

These are a few of the wood sculptures to be found in the woods at Feshiebridge near Aviemore.

This one I love I can imagine him striding all over the the Glen after dark, checking up on things.

This is Feshiebridge

I love the way the sculptor has kept most of the tree natural. As you can imagine the woods look very different in the spring and summer. I love it at any time.

POETRY IN MOTION-NOT

This blogger thing's quite new to me, I've only done a few,

I sometimes wonder if my life seems very dull to you,

But just for now I'm happy to wander with my dogs,

Taking lots of photos to publish on my blog,

But when my new hip's fitted I,m sure you all will see

a more exciting person that's waiting to be free,

be back to how I used to be

FAST AND LEAN AND KEEN,

Cos though my body's sixty-nine

my brain is seventeen.

A wind swept Jarvis doing a spot of rock climbing
This is the rock he was going to climb, but he chickened out.

Greg tossing the caber in Kinloss woods

Good dogs waiting for old limpy to catch up

THE COLOUR BEIGE

This weeksTrue colour is beige, to join in visit blue blog

Here are some beige bales lined up in a field near home.

A beige bargain, my four pound jacket

A little beige bull on my fridge with a message I'm in favour with..

Some beige reeds blowing in a strong March wind.

A close look at a beige bale of straw.

Some beige curlews hardly visable on a beige field.

True colour this week is beige, not too easy I thought. Anyway the "boys" and I have been out for a scout round and come up with a few.

THANK GOD FOR THE NHS

Training aid for the tyre jump or tunnel in agility
A very handy grooming table

A sponge for mopping up those little "accidents", well it happens

sometimes

Very handy ball "picker-upper"
I am going into hospital next month for a hip replacement. Now, I'm pretty sure I

didn't tell the hospital I am a dog fan, but, they must have found out somehow

I won't be allowed to bend from the hips for about six weeks after my op. so they have

very kindly sent me these very handy gadgets to help. How kind is that.

BEACH BOYS

Bryan in his favourite element
Who needs to do agility when you have places like this to play in.

The "old boy" exploring the rocks at Clashach Cove
Looking down from the cliff path, the cave in the centre of picture
goes through to the sea.

When on the beach, you just have to have a paddle.

Jarvis going through to "the other side"

Now after getting wet, it's into chase mode, I love the way Bryan

leans into his corners.

We spent a lovely couple of hours here in warm sunshine,and only five

minutes from home, we are so lucky.

Didn't do my arthritic hip much good climbing up and down the steep path,

never mind it was worth it.

TRUE COLOURS THURSDAY

This week the colour is green. This is my little green brain training

machine, believe me, when you get to my age you need it, yesterday it told me

I am 47----It lied..

Tthis is some green tough plant that grows in the sand dunes
it has small black berries in summer.

This is Jarvis on the GREEN at Hopeman Golf Course

Looking over the gorse bushes to EVERGREEN woodland.

This meme is hosted by Blue. If you'd like to play along visit her blog.

THE COLOUR VIOLET AND A SLIGHT DECEPTION

Following the colour theme like gennasus and blue. I didn't think I

could find anything violet then I remembered my pot of

flowering heather by the front door.

Will this pass as lilac,it's some strange flowers I found on a

Leyllandii tree down the road.

Bryan and Jarvis looking miffed with tabby kitten


Maybe if we don't look at him he might go away.
Did I manage to fool you, of course the kitten isn't real.
I saw it for sale on a trip to a garden centre and couldn't resist him,
he looks so lifelike, well I think he does how about you.

A MEAL WITH A VIEW

After excercising the dogs in the morning, we decided on a little "us"

time,and headed to town to support our local econemy by lunching

out. This place was offering credit crunch lunches which appealed,so

we enjoyed a lovely meal, no cooking, no washing up , great.

A view from in front of the Inn

Not a bad place to be enjoying a meal, there were seals in the

water on the other side of the river

THE BOYS, BIRDS AND BRODIE

I take a rest during our walk round Brodie Lake but the boys

don't look to keen on sitting down
Both dogs in hunting mode,notice Jarvis tries to keep to the dry bits.

On a walk round the lake at Brodie, Bryan is up to his favourite tricks,

checking out the water, you never know what might be in there after all,and he is a spanial, even

though a small one.

A sunny March afternoon so a visit to Brodie Castle seemed a good idea.

In a couple of weeks this avenue will be edged by thousands of

dafodils

There was no one there so the boys enjoyed a "mad chase" across the lawn.

On our walk round the lake Jarvis has to keep his eye on Greg,

who kept going ahead.

They both keep an eye on me,walking slower because of a bad hip.

the swans, ever hopeful, come to see if we have any bread. There were also

lots of malards, tufted ducks and a couple of teal on the water. We were also lucky to see

a pair of tree creepers in the woods.

ANOTHER VISIT TO THE CASTLE

Yesterday we had another visit to the castle. I'm not

sure if Bryan is looking for frog spawn,or, more likely,

deciding to go for a paddle. I hope he doesn't, because the water is much

deeper than usual just now. Bryan has had a fasination with water ever since he was a pup,

nine years ago,and at home he spends ages digging in the water in our bird bath much to the disgust of the birds.

Looking on with distain at a young Labrador who wouldn't

return to his owner. They would never act like that now, would they!!!

FOUR MORE LEGS AND A POINTED NOSE

This weekend my daughter's dog came to stay.

She is called Biscuits,named by my Grandson because, when they rehomed her

from the dog kennels that was what she responded too. She has been with the famiily for

over nine years now. She loves to organize my two in true collie fashion and uses her long nose

to poke them on their way

ready for the off, today it will be a trip to the woods to avoid the typical
March weather, sunshine,strong wind and heavy rain,all within ten minutes.

The good the bad and the pointy nosed.

Waiting like good dogs for some horses to go by.

A roe deer just passed over the track, Bryan and Biscuits track it,

Jarvis say "so what"

A GRAVE EVENT A VISIT TO OLD KIRK YARD

getting a better view, the boys are interested in history

or,

more likely the resident rabbits

A sad story of a family's tragic loss of their children, maybe due to

some awful disease such as cholera or scarlet fever

An old graveyard full of the history of local people from a bygone age

many of the gravestones depict the trades of the person buried,

and we always seem to find something new every time we visit.

The oldest one we have found so far is 1595.

Bryan smelling the snowdrops at the foot of the old kirk wall

A Trip to the castle

Investigating

molehills before digging up

WHASSS THAAAT

Duffus Castle on a cloudy windy March day, just a short trip from home where Bryan and

Jarvis love to get wet and dirty

Winter on the hill

Our garden
another view of the garden showing the bird tree, plenty of room for dogs.

First Post

Say hello to the boys,

Bryan and Jarvis

This is Jarvis