The thing about holidaying in Scotland is that you never assume the weather will be pleasant. Even in the summer, any hopes of enjoying sunshine can be blighted by midgies. A good day, therefore, is a bonus, not an expectation. How many times has someone said ‘It was wet but it didn’t stop us getting out’, when referring to a Scottish holiday?
It was with this in mind that we loaded our van and set off for Kinlochewe in Wester Ross. With unjustifiable optimism we included the bikes, and the sledge. Our rented cottage was small and cosy. We took enough games, DVDs, school work and laptops respectively, to keep ourselves entertained should the weather turn out to be predictably poor. But we were lucky. The sun shone for a large chunk of our time there, enough even for us to decide to stay an extra day. And the countryside was stunning.
And so we settled into a relaxing routine of leisurely late morning starts with bacon rolls, followed by a cycle or drive somewhere, ending the day with Monopoly or Scrabble followed by a DVD, a log fire burning.
The cycle runs to Gairloch and Upper Loch Torridon were easy, intermittently halted for photography. The drive to the Coigach peninsula was beautiful, even though we didn't manage to find the beach where years before we'd watched a stormy sea.
The drive to Loch Carron via Applecross brought back memories of a camping trip I'd taken decades before. The man of the time chose a remote spot to pitch our tent, naturally miles from any facilities, (what is it about men?) but near enough a tiny lake - or was it a pond - allowing some possibility of keeping clean. The highlight of that holiday was an alcohol-fuelled proposal of marriage, undoubtedly provoked by strong hints from me. For twenty four hours I wandered around in a euphoric haze in my new, unexpected engaged-to-be-married status, before realising that sobriety had brought him to his senses and caused his mood to plummet. Of course I did the only honourable thing and released him from his obligations. Six months later we split up, he to look for someone as clever as he believed he was, me to look for someone who wasn't as hung up on intellect. So that was Applecross.
We were lucky to find relatively cheap accommodation in an area as beautiful as Kinlochewe, even luckier to have four sunny days. None of this I take for granted.
Gratefully yours
Jane
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