FLOWERS, TREES AND ROCKS

We visited the beautiful Leckmelm Gardens near Ullapool during our holiday in June. The gardens are restored Victorian gardens set on the sloping shore of Loch Broom. Winding pathways meander through glades of Azalea and Rhododendrons. Many specimens of rare trees flourish and the ground supports an abundance of ferns, primula and wild flowers. The scent in spring is amazing.

Greg is enjoying his walk round the gardens.

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Sunshine on a tree.
Most of the trees and plants are labeled, but I couldn't find a name for this beauty .

Primulas and ferns compliment each other

One of the many little paths that invites exploration.

Death of a giant. I almost wept when I saw this great Weeping Beech that had become a victim of last winters terrible weather. Below is a photo of it in all it's glory when we visited two years ago. The gardeners have planted climbing plants around the old tree and planted ferns and other plants in nooks and crannies on the tree so that in a few years it will be a beautiful feature in the garden in a different way

The Weeping Birch in all it's former glory.

Azaleas above bluebells

These dead trees have been planted around with ivy and carved into the shape of chairs and still play a decorative and useful role in the garden

The "chair trees" seen from behind.

The day after visiting the gardens we headed north of Ullapool to visit Knockan Crag. This place is unusual because contrary to what is usual, the rocks here are older at the surface and younger further down. This was caused when continents collided and the rocks were crumpled and lifted. On and around Knockan Crag or numerous sculptures one of which Greg is going to roll down the mountain side. (I managed to stop him Phew!)

The, not very good, view from on the Crag, due to mist and drizzle.

A WILDLIFE BOAT TRIP

Whilst on holiday near Ullapool on the west coast of Scotland a few weeks ago, we enjoyed a boat trip out towards the Summer Isles.

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Below is a shot of Ullapool taken just as we were leaving the harbour.

Who's watching who? The seal seems to be enjoying our visit
Grey Seals and Common Seals (smaller)

Rocks, water and mountains make me happy.

A view down Loch Broom as we sail back int harbour.

ON THE BEACH

If Scotland enjoyed endless hot sunny days all summer long you can be sure our beaches would be nothing like this. There would be high rise hotels all along the shore and rows of sunbeds and sun shades, and of course lots of people. So OK, we get chilly winds and often grey skies, but we also enjoy peace and quiet. These pictures were taken at the end of June. How many people can you see on our beach.

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Bryan and Jarvis enjoying a paddle.

Covesea lighthouse in the distance.

Bryan doing a bit of rock hopping

Jarvis having a bad hair day

Crystal clear water in a rock pool

Looking back to Covesea village on top of the cliff.

Bryan reaches the top of the path back up the cliff path heading for home.

WELCOME TO GLASTULLICH

This is where we recently spent a weeks holiday. If you like a fast pace of life this is not the type of holiday you would enjoy. But if you like total peace and quiet, you would love it. The cottage has no electricity. It is heated and lit by gas. No TV, no phone, no mobile signal. no other house for 2 miles.

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Greg enjoying the view and his book.
This is taken from up the hill at the back of the cottage

Further up the hill and now showing the little barn where the baby owls live, and the sheep pen.

How's this for a view to look out onto from your window?

On this shot taken from the garden you can see the road up to the cottage

One of the visitors that were curious about us.

A herd of deer came by every day, often they jumped the fence and came into the garden. This one I captured at about 10 pm one evening. I'm afraid the flash has caught his eyes and I don't know how to fix it.

RETURN TO BALINOE

Last October Greg and I spent a week in this lovely cottage in the Black Isle. We were there again a couple of weeks ago so I thought you would like to see this lovely place in the spring.

Bryan and Jarvis were delighted as you can see.

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There is about an acre of garden with lovely views.


Ben Wyvis seen from the garden with it's summit in the clouds

I love all the different greens at this time of year

And finally how's this for a sunset?

Unfortunately I can't share with you any shots of the trips we made because, silly me, forgot to take the battery charger for my camera and the battery went flat. However you can visit my october blog if you wish.

RETURN TO WALK AT SPYNIE

You may remember joining me on this walk back in March. Just look what a difference a few weeks have made.

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Bryan and Jarvis heading off like dogs on a mission.
Brand new leaves on the beeches.

Look at the black clouds heading my way, luckily it blew over and I stayed dry.

I love the contrast between the dark Scots Pine and the light green Beech.

Delicate Dog Violet

A bumble bee feeding on a dandylion.

LOGIE STEADING

Originally built as a model farm in the 1920s, Logie Steading is now converted into a visitor centre to welcome visitors to the beautiful Findhorn Valley. there is a cafe, a great book shop with second hand and new books of all kinds, a craft shop and a farm shop selling local produce including Logie's own Longhorn beef and Jacob lamb. There is also a gallery selling paintings and many other crafts.

The cafe has some of the best cake I've tasted, well worth a visit for that alone.

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I love the clock tower above the entrance to the steading, even though the time on the clock is wrong

A view of the steading from across the field
This is Logie House. The gardens of the house are usually open to the public but sadly this year, because of damaged caused by the severe winter weather, the garden is undergoing extensive repairs and won't be open until next spring.

Here is Greg sitting in a bower made of living willow. The smile on his face is in anticipation of chocolate cake.

How's this for a pair of handlebars? This old breed of cattle is very hardy, easy to handle, long lived and best of all the beef is delicious. Sirloin steak for dinner tomorrow. Yum Yum

this one is quite young with shorter horns, they look a bit sharp to me though.

Logie stands above the beautiful Findhorn River and the walks along the riverside are wonderful.

I love it at this time of year with the new spring growth.

This is a "dead" stump of an oak tree, but as you can see, it's anything but dead. In fact, it's supporting moss, fern and a scotch pine.

In this shot you can see a stack of trees and branches at the edge which have been swept along by the force of the water after heavy rain and snow melt.

The water in this pool looks like black coffee.

Beech leaves freshly painted and polished by nature.

Can anyone tell me what these little yellow flowers are? I think they may be a type of Euphorbia but I'm not sure.
They are very small.