Relentlessly North from South Larnarkshire to Montrose and on to Inverness

It's comforting to return to a place, Blackwood in South Larnarckshire is the home of our old friends, Marie and Ernie Bonner, so good to see them again. Their church too is familiar, we were there on Sunday morning and then set out after lunch for Montrose to catch up again with our friends the Tulleys and to stay with Will's mum there. We ate tea-cakes with them and then taking a walk along the beach we saw a huge old white Lighthouse at the end of the Spit. This family are shortly going to emigrate to New Zealand with their 4 children so there is lots to discuss.

Next day we drove up the coast to Aberdeen visiting along the way an old but still functioning oat mill driven by a water wheel. Further on we took the walking track down to Dunnottar Castle, perched on an Island, high up on a grassy knoll and only just attached to the mainland by a tiny isthmus. Here were extremely steep cliffs covered with fern and moss, but with a well built much used track. The farm house at Inverarnie is high above the road and very welcoming. Dinner even included a starter course with Haggis! So we are well and truly in Scotland. The high hills are really just bare rock, granite, and smothered with loads of purple heather. Everything is so picturesque and in many ways similar to South Otago; especially the weather. The following day we visited the McQueens on a nearby farm where my friend Christine grew up. The served us Pheasant and took us to see the Covenanters' Hollow where secret services were held for the Faithful with lookouts on nearby mountains watching for Redcoats in the 18th Century.