Skye

Saturday 11^th April 2016

Easter holidays again. This year we arranged to meet Duncan up in Skye. We rented a cottage called Creag Mhor at Sallachy near Kyle of Lochalsh. I would highly recommend this cottage as it has everything you need including two wood burning fires and is secluded as you have to drive about 3 miles from the main road just to get there.

Creag Mhor Cottage

Inside Creag Mhor Cottage

Day One.

Got up early and drove over to Glen Brittle Forest on Skye as we wanted to visit the Fairy Pools. We arrived at about 9;15 am thinking we would get the place to ourselves, but the car park was nearly full. From the car park we followed the trail towards the Cuillin Hills. Spectacular views all the way.

The Fairy Pools

Once back at the car we got the bikes ready for a curricular ride on some forest roads. Again the views were just breath taking. No matter how many pictures you take they will not do it justice.

Linda & Duncan
Loch Brittle in the back ground

Coffee Break
Loch Eynort in the back ground

Loch Eynort

Heading back to the car park
at the Fairy Pools

Day Two

Still sore from yesterday so we decided to go for a short walk over at Balmacara. The hill we walked was called Ard Hill and it only took about 50 min.

View from Ard Hill

Linda resting on a tree stump

After our walk we headed back to Dornie to visit Eilean Donan Castle. This castle has been in a few TV programmes and films. So we did the tourist things and took a lot of photo’s and also had lunch at the visitor’s centre.

Eilean Donan Castle

Eilean Donan Castle

Day Three

Rested from yesterday we headed back on to Skye and walked The Old Man of Stor. Another great day out with excellent views. On the way back we had lunch in Portree at the Caledonian Café.

Duncan having a rest on the way up

On route to The Old Man of Stor

The Old Man of Stor

Day Four

The weather is very mixed today so we went a bike ride at Coillemore near Balmacara. Up into the hills again away from the tourist’s, with only trees for company GREAT.

Day Five

Sunny and warm with a slight breeze today. Drove up to Plockton which is a small village with very narrow streets. We parked at the small beach car park and went a walk around the village. Stopped of for coffee and scones with jam and cream at a very nice café where the staff couldn’t be any nicer. I would recommend a visit to this café if your in the area.

Plockton

From Plockton we continued up to Stromeferry where we walked another small hill to work off the scone and cream. This hill was called Creag Mhaol and it only took about one hour. You can do it quicker but we kept stopping to take in the views. Back to Eilean Donan Castle for lunch then back to the cottage to chill out for the rest of the day.

Linda annoying Duncan again

Duncan thinks he's a squirrel 

Duncan cutting logs for the fire

Linda chilling out while Duncan cuts the logs

This was a great holiday, weather was good most of the time, the cottage was  secluded and relaxing and we managed to spend some time with  Duncan. 

  

Glentrool Midden

29^th March 2016

Got up early and headed down to Glentrool this morning. As we arrived at the visitor’s centre I was a little surprised at the state of the car- park. Sitting in the car looking out over the area all I could see was a lot of rubbish strewn everywhere. Some caught up in the grass at the sides and piles sitting as if it had been dumped out of vehicles.

     

As we got ready to start our ride the Forest Warden arrived. He got out of his van and emptied the ticket machines and then walked over to a pile of rubbish shook his head and went back to his van for a smoke. 

Loch Trool from Green Torr

        

View from Green Torr

We did the Blue Route which took us about an hour. When we returned, the warden was gone and the rubbish was still everywhere. I always thought that litter picking was part of his job.

The rubbish annoyed me so much that I picked it up and put it in the bin. People are so lazy and wrapped up in their own little world that they don’t seem to care what or where they throw rubbish it’s just so disgusting, I sometimes wonder what kind of midden they live in.

Stroan Bridge

River next to Cafe

All in all it was a good trail ride and the weather was fine but alas the café was closed so no coffee and toastie today.

Kirroughtree Again

25^th March 2016

The weather has been so bad over the winter months that I have not been out on the trails since October, instead I have been doing more road cycling. So the weather changed this week and I had some free time so we headed off to Kirroughtree for the day.

There was a lot of cyclists and walkers at the trail centre today but once out on the trails we only saw one other rider on the Blue Trail.

The Wife

We were a lot slower than usual due to it being the first trail ride this year, the muscles were not working very well.

The Gem Stane

We did see a Buzzard and a Red Squirrel but they were too fast for me to get a photo.

Once back at the visitor’s centre there was only three parking spaces left, this is the busiest I’ve ever seen Kirroughtree. I tried to get into the café but there were no seats left inside or outside and a long queue so no toastie for me today.   

                                                     

Hawker Hurricane crash site Loch Doon

30^th July 2015

Eighteenth of March 1944 an aircraft took of from a war time airfield in Ayr, Scotland. The flight was a navigational exercise over the local countryside. Mystery surrounds this flight, as no one knows exactly what happened. Witness statements say “that the aircraft came out off the clouds in a steep dive and never recovered, hit the side of a hill in deep woodland, killing the pilot”.

This story has interested me for many years, partly because I live near the old airfield and I have walked and cycled these hills all my adult life. So I decided to investigate the incident in more detail. The internet is a great tool, I got more information about the type of aircraft which was a Hawker Hurricane mk 1V based at Ayr Heathfield. The pilot was PO Roswell Murray MacTavish, a twenty four year old Canadian attached to 439 Tiger Squadron RCAF. MacTavish is now buried in Ayr cemetery.

I also managed to get the map co-ordinates for the crash site which would save me a lot of time searching the area. I loaded the co-ordinates into my GPS grabbed the map, compass and loaded up the bike.

I parked the car at the Dalmellington end of Loch Doon as I wanted to make a day of the ride and there was ample parking and a large grassy area with picnic tables.

From here I cycled out of the car park and turned left up the tarred road through the hills. As you travel along this tarred road you get your first sight of Loch Doon, then you cross a narrow bridge. It was at this point that I could smell the coffee, bacon and sausages being cooked. The smell was coming from a carry – out shop called the Roundhouse. As I passed the Roundhouse the smell of the coffee was so enticing it took all my inner strength not to stop, but I made a mental note to stop on my return trip.

                                               The tarred road towards Loch Doon

                                                   The first sight of Loch Doon

Carry on along this road and you come to the second narrow bridge which you cross over. After a few kilometres you arrive at Loch Doon Castle. The castle is worth a short visit to take some photo’s and you also get great views of the Loch itself. (you could also park here if you were walking to the crash site).

                                                 Views along the side of Loch Doon

                                                              Loch Doon Castle

                                                              Inside the Castle

From the castle you continue on the tarred road till you come to a junction. If you turn right the forest road will take you over to Loch Finlas, straight on is the forest drive road over to Loch Bradan, however you take the forest road to the left and you skirt round the bottom edge of Loch Doon. You get fantastic views up Loch Doon at this point. Follow the forest road and you pass a small cottage called Starr. This has been unoccupied for many years and the windows are bricked up. From here continue along the road and pass the junction on your right, take the next junction to the left. After a short time stop. If you go too far along this road you end up at a small farm. This is where your route planning skills are tested. If you have planned the trip right you should be next to a fire break, this is where you start to hike-a-bike up through the trees or so I thought!!!

                                          Looking up the Glen towards Loch Riecawr

                                                                Starr Cottage

My plan was to get to these co-ordinates and hike myself and the bike to the crash site. After about 50 meters up the fire break, sweat and sore legs later, I decided to dump the bike. The grass was long, wet and very boggy, every second step I took my legs sank up to the knees in gore. I marked the position on my GPS, grabbed the camera and the water bottle and set off up the hill.

After about 1 km – 1.5 km I came across a new forest road that is not marked on my maps. (I will have to find out where this goes to some day) From the road I crossed straight over and back in to the trees, I took five minutes here to catch my breath, it was a hard climb as there is a lot of trees blown down and you have to make a lot of detours which takes time and agility. From the new forest road you are only a few hundred meters from the crash site.

Continuing up through the trees you eventually come to the crash site. There is still wreckage spread over a fairly wide area. Most of the wreckage is the alloy frame work, but there is also an engine and what appears to be gears. The crater from the impact is still visible even after all these years.

                                                         The Hurricane Engine

                                                Some of the debris from the crash  

                                                  The crater made by the impact

I spent some time here thinking how lucky this country was to have such young men and women prepared to put their life’s on the line to defend it from the Germans. After a while I started back down the hill and located my bike. (great things these GPS’s) I then headed back the way I came as there is no trail up this side of the Loch that you can ride.

On my way back the bike mysteriously stopped at the Roundhouse, so I just had to go in and get a bacon roll. I carried on back to the car park and had my bacon roll and coffee from my flask at the picnic tables, BRILLIANT.

The ride was very interesting because of the history involved. I would certainly do it again, probably looking to use the new forest road that I found. Maybe I could talk my son Duncan into a wild camp come cycle ride here at some point.