For the past six(?) seven(?) years we have holidayed in the most perfect little cottage on the shores of Loch Fyne, spending our time boating, eating, paddling, swimming (them, not me- I am not totally mad), eating, reading and spending hours between the tide lines looking for things.
Mostly it is the crab hunting which gets the most excitement and enthusiasm, lifting up rocks and seaweed and finding The Biggest. But we like picking up interesting pebbles, skimming flat stones, feeding mackerel guts to the hermit crabs and generally mucking about by the water.
In the past, the vast seaweedy areas have been largely ignored by me, except when I am cursing on it as I slip carrying a heavy boat down the the water's edge, or when I am throwing little bits of it onto a beach fire and watching it change colour to the brightest green. They are not the most inspiring colours and really do stop you from moving with any speed over the shore.
But this year, one sparkling sunny morning before breakfast I took a mug of tea and wandered down to do some beach combing. I didn't get very far because I was suddenly over-whelmed by the beauty and variety of the weed. Instead of just trudging over it I crouched down and really looked at it. It twinkled and shone in all manner of colours from darkest black to acidic lemon yellow. Reds, oranges and greens. Really quite stunning.
Of course I didn't have my camera with me and had to finish my cuppa and go back for it. By which time the light was quite different.
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| egg wrack |
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| bladderwrack |
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| black bladderwrack |
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| green bladderwrack |
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| toothed wrack |
I did have the bonus of seeing some deer prints in the sand though. They run over to a tiny island across from the cottage at first light and are cut off when the tide rises. I have never seen their prints before. And loads of moon jellyfish which were bumping against me wellies.
There must have been about ten different varieties just in our little patch of shoreline. And they are so beautiful to watch from a boat when the tide comes in and they sway upright in the water.
What were your holiday surprise moments?
It's now about three weeks since we returned from our holiday up on the shores of Loch Fyne. We have been to this cottage three times now and it never fails to amaze us. It is simply stunning. Secluded, quiet, RIGHT ON THE LOCH and beautiful beautiful fantastic scenery.
This year, Small had his first attempt at fishing. He now has his own little rod and tried very hard to catch something for our supper. The fish didn't bite all week and we had to rely on the seafood place in nearby(ish) Tarbert, 20 miles down the road. However, we did eat THE most delicious scallop I've EVER tasted. It was hand dived by BigBean!!!
One day we went to Crinan for lunch and a mooch about. It is the most pretty little place you could imagine. Teeny tiny white cottages, a lighthouse and this stone house which overlooked the bay. I fell for this house big time. We ate a delicious lunch at the Oh-So-Smart Crinan Hotel. Time runs at a different rate up there and boy were we ready for our food when it arrived. We did have to wait but it was so worth it. Fish and seafood which had most probably been swimming and blowing bubbles that very morning.
The locks and canal are pretty amazing too and we spent quite a while watching some flashy boats starting the run along to Lochgilphead.
A bit of beachery. And we found this very Darth Vadery piece of nature. Much debate went on about what it was. No concrete conclusions were made but The Beans would be very happy to hear what you think it might be.
Wierd, isn't it?
Of course, we did a bit of sculpture. The cottage has a concrete pier beside it and this is where we always do our stone art. Much searching is done to find appropriate noses, lips and hair. The glamourous lady above has a ready prepared barnacle nose which SmallBean found most entertaining.
Here is the full line-up. Smallers creations were mutant to say the least, quite on par with albino Darth above.
Oh, the excitement of going Loch Dipping...
And thanks to Steve Backshall, 
This fella was alive and kicking (can crabs kick?) when Small brought him up to the cottage. Doesn't he look pleased with himself? Small, not the crab.
I'm not so sure that this poor little toad had such tender handling from Smaller. She has no inhibitions or worries about catching beasts at all and her grabby little hands were never going to let him get away. When we did let him go, he crawled off (in a bit of a panic I do believe) so I think that the trauma was all mental, not physical...
Well, if you're going to blog about Scotland there's got to be a Highland cow somewhere, hasn't there?
Mr Pine Marten came visiting to eat scraps and crumbs. Just a couple of metres away form the sitting room door!!! You don't see this very often in Cambridge.
Or this. The view from the garden. I think BigBean is pining just a little bit. And if I'm honest, so am I.
