After the past three days of rushing about it was nice to have quiet day today. After breakfast we headed over (well round) the loch to Strontian and parked up in the Ariundle Oakwood National Nature Reserve. We had no other objective than to have a wander about but, as luck would have it, there was a well-signposted walk around these ancient oak woodlands.

It was, as you see bright & sunny but there was a fierce cold edge to the breeze which called for hats & gloves! That said there was a significant variation in that depending on even a slight change in altitude. We found a (dead) tree with interesting fungus – probably Horse Hoof Fungus.

The woodland is, in parts, fairly sparse and there were a good few dead trees, something we have seen a lot here (not counting the obvious forestry tax dodges). At all points the walk was very well maintained whether track, boardwalk or bridge and signage was enough but discreet.

There were also (not pictured) several comfy benches on the walk – always a bonus! Near one of them we discovered a cairn for Pip.

That was really it for the walk and for the day barring a visit to a quirky visitor centre café – excellent coffee and significantly heavy and very tasty pastries. My chocolate brownie would have fed a whole platoon and kept them going for a week! We returned home to have a restful afternoon reading & chatting as well as preparing for tonight’s dinner. I’m on cooking duty but I prepared my chilli last (and froze) my chilli last week. Defrosting needed some extra assistance from a complicated microwave with very tiny writing on it!

Because we have been enjoying this holiday so much these (usually) daily updates have fallen by the wayside a little. So a compendium of the last 3 days as we contemplate our last full day.

Monday – after the lovely day that Sunday was we woke to a more overcast day. Our objective for the day was to explore more of the Morvern peninsula (where Sunday lunch was taken). We headed to Ardtonish Castle Gardens and spent a very pleasant time wandering around. A lovely place with an impressive house, clock tower and altogether very pleasant. We returned to the cottage and spent the afternoon chatting, eating drinking and generally having exactly the kind of holiday we wanted.

Tuesday – what a glorious morning! Our plan was simple – Mull – so back across the Morvern peninsula to Lochaline to pick up the ferry to Fishnish. It was glorious – coffee was taken at the Bakery & Tearoom, we spotted the Edward the 8th postbox and, most importantly, lunch. The Fisherman’s Pier wins awards and rightly so – sitting by the clock tower munching on haddock, chips & mushy peas is a great thing to do. A couple of purchases were made and we headed back tired but happy.

Wednesday – with another fine day in prospect we packed a lot into the day. I was determined to get out for a local walk – the choice is limited as we are in deer country so much of the land is fenced off. A good walk nevertheless. Once back & breakfasted we set off to explore the Ardnamurchan peninsula. Oh my – what a trip that was! Narrow single track roads, a stunning viewpoint an excellent coffee in Kilchoan and the (community owned) lighthouse at Ardnamurchan Point. Back here we had a simple pasta meal and an early night.

All in all a cracking day if a bit challenging for Ally as the driver.

Sunday is known as the day of rest and so it proved today. After a leisurely breakfast we went out for a little walk – ahead of us is Loch Sunart and behind us is a big hill so the choice was (roughly) west or east. Since we arrived from the east we decided to head west.

Quiet as this place is it is the road linking the ferries at Lochaline and Ardgour so there were clusters of traffic at regular intervals – yes, even on a Sunday! It was a beautiful calm, still morning as the photos will attest.

We did see a fair bit of ‘wildlife’ including the following – our first impression was a of a large bird of prey perched in the tree. Close-ups proved us (slightly) wrong 😉

After our nice short walk we came back to the cottage to prepare ourselves for lunch. We had the foresight to identify and book at a place some 20 minutes away – the Boathouse Restaurant on the Kingairloch estate. It was a lovely drive down ever narrowing roads (and we started on single-track with passing places!) on what was by now a glorious day.

Our dinner was just superb – my cod loin main was perfectly cooked and Ally & Vanessa both had scallops which were also top notch. The drinkers (me & Nessa) had a really very good rosé (from Domaines de Météore) with it. Starters and desserts were also brilliant as were the the two people running it – the chef and a waitress who, we discovered, had lived at Sheepwash Bank which is a mere spit away from where Alison lived back in the day.

Needless to say we had a light supper – cheese & charcuterie again! – and quite an early night. One last bonus, missed by me but seen by Ally & Nessa, were the two pine martens who visit this place most nights.

Monday plans are fluid by which I don’t necessarily mean rain – we will decide as the day dawns.

Another of our year of ‘70th birthday treats’ finds us up in the west of Scotland visiting an area we have skirted round many times but never explored in depth. With us for this particular treat is our very good friend Vanessa.

We had a particularly wonderful dinner at Osteria in North Berwick on Friday night followed by a reasonably early start on Saturday morning. We may have overdone the packing as the car was absolutely full with the 3 of us, our luggage and the ‘supplies’ we brought. The self catering cottage (Achleek) is, in broad terms, is near Fort William – more precisely it is on the shores of Loch Sunart pretty much opposite Strontian.

Saturday’s journey up was pleasant and uneventful and it was especially pleasing to have such ‘unusual’ (as in fine dry & quite warm) weather. On the way we stopped in Callander for coffee (and a purchase see below), just outside Tyndrum for a good light lunch and eventually we got the Corran ferry over to Ardgour.

The cottage is fine for what we need comfortable and well equipped with stupendous views to the west. A little explore revealed some neighbours (seals!). We did little else on Saturday except launch into a fine selection of cheeses and meats washed down by decent wine. Of course an early night was required

Did I mention facing west? The sunsets promise to be spectacular!