Under the Weather in Orkney

Yesterday it was benign in Orkney. There were clear skies, it was cold but easy to move around in. Today it was wild. Wind, rain and sleet. A lot of the attractions were closed because of the weather: Skara Bray, the Ring of Brognar (I went there anyway). The winds must have been at least 100kph, enough to shake the car significantly when it was parked. Not as bad as it can be however: Christmas Day had winds of 143 miles per hour. They were strong westerlies so I headed to the west coast to capture some shots of

the wave action.

These photos were really taken with some danger of being blown off the cliff. The cliffs were about 50-60 metres high and thick bands of spray were being blown 40 metres from their edge over my car. I was being blown sideways as I made my way to the cliff edge. I found a semi-sheltered spot and these photos are the result. Well worth the risk I would think.

Inverness and other places

Hi, I'm currently staying overnight in Inverness after driving up from Glasgow this morning. It's cold here but the sky is clear and the weather in the next few days should be fine. The forecast is for snow on Thursday. On the drive up it reached minus 7 degrees but in Inverness it has been about one degree all day. I've had a great lunch and dinner here at Cafe 1 and The Kitchen. Both were Dawn's recommendations and they were excellent restaurants. Tonight at The Kitchen I enjoyed some beautifully cooked Highland beef and watched the Ness River flow by, at a great rate of knots, I might add.

I went out to the Culloden Moor this afternoon to see the battle field where Bonnie Prince Charlie was defeated by the government troups in 1776. It is an open field for the most part but it has a distinct aura about it: in a sense it is a place of war graves. About 1500 Jacobites lost their lives here in the battle.

Yesterday I met up with David Mould (a really good landscape photographer) and he took me for a drive around The Trossachs to take some photographs together. We also returned to Loch Ard but the sun couldn't break through the mist so that part of the trip did not produce any worthwhile photographs.

On Saturday I went to Inverary and found it to be as beautiful as the last time I was here. Loch Fynne was like a mirror and the light was wonderful. I climbed to the top of a hill behind the Duke of Argyle's Castle and got a great view of the loch at sunset.

This is a photograph of Salvadore Dali's St John of the Cross, Christ's Crucifixion which is in the Kelvingrove Gallery in Glasgow. It is a wonderful painting and one of the attractions to the place. I took a guided tour of the gallery and really appreciated the range of works. The painting by the 'Glasgow Boys' were fabulous and in a way they mirror the impact of the painters from the Heidleburg School in Melbourne. It was a similar time period, at the introduction of the impressionist period.





I keep saying how wonderful the landscapes are here and hopefully the following shots demonstrate that.

David Mould took me to this place at dawn. It is one of his favourite trees. You can see why. It's on the Carse of Stirling.

The wonderful Loch Ard. It's not large but it certainly has some beautiful places to see, especially when it is misty and like glass, as in this photo.

This is a photo of Arrochar looking across Loch Fynne.

Loch Ard again.

A seagull in flight across Loch Fynne.

Glasgow

A scene from Loch Ard











The Wallace Monument. A pity the inside was closed for maintenance on the day that I was there.

I've been unable to access the internet since I've arrived in Glasgow so I'll do my best to catch up now. Scotland has been great so far: I have been to Loch Ard (just as picturesque as David Mould's photos); I've circumnavigated Loch Lomond; yesterday I went to the Wallace monument and Stirling Castle. Later I went into Glasgow for some sightseeing and to ge some fish for dinner. I got a pair of Ardbroth Smokies from a shop called the Fish Plaice. Shop is a flattering descriptor because it is more like a shed but the fish are so fresh. The fish is a special smoked halibut and it was magnificent (just grilled with some butter and served with some vegetables).

I'm staying with my friend Dawn at present and given that she works for the Food and Drink section of the government in internation exports she really knows her food sources. I'm planning to go up to Inverness next Monday and then go and spend a couple of days on Orkney. It should be quite a trip.

Stirling Castle. This is one of the best tourist sites that I have been to, the restorations are magnificent and the guides really know their stuff.

Photos

I've taken some interesting photos in the last two days. The first three were from yesterday after a snowfall during the night. I was interested in the patterns that the snow made on the tree branches and how the landscapre colours were reduced to white (obviously), black and the brown of the leaves. The last two were of the sunrise this morning. I had to work hard for these photos as it was minus 20 degrees and my fingers were frozen within 20 minutes, despite my gloves. I've taken some pleasing photos in Canada and can't wait to work on them when I get home.


The patterns in this photograph are almost abstract. This is one of the themes I like in my work.







Another set of abstract patterns.


















Here comes the sun. At last, it was freezing.



















Another view of the sunrise in monochrome.

New Year's Eve

Chuck, our genial host being .... eh... genial.
Jeannie toasting the New Year

The boys help bring the New Year in.
The girls get into party mode.

Dogsledding

Getting instructions for the ride: the dogs bark a lot, but only at each other; they are very friendly with people (very true); whoa (stop), hike (go); use the brake; don't overtake.
I may not look very elegant but it is minus 20 so you just dress for warmth.
Ready to go!

Deerhurst Resort

Deerhurst Resort at night. We all (Chuck, Jeannie, Chad, Marilyn, Nicholas, Jen, Dan and Angela and I) went out to here for dinner. The meal was superb. I had a lobster, scallops, mussels and fish main course. Great flavours and presentation). The resort was home to a G8 conference a few years ago.