Celebrating Wibs' 40th birthday

Well we wondered if it was actually going to happen, but at the last minute the big fella came up trumps and organised a great meal for closest friends at the Sirloin in Hoghton.








As always Bev had made sure all Paul's past 40 years were well documented with a number of photo boards which featured all of us to some extent, bringing back many happy memories of past celebrations, holidays and general mucking about.

Bev had also made a fabulous cake, with Paul featuring dressed in camouflage as he tries to capture that perfect picture of a bird, proving that there is talent in the Webster house after all!


For once I managed to get everyone on camera at some point in the evening, and this included Carole and me too. The meal was fantastic and we had a great time reminiscing and generally taking the whatsit out of what is after all a top mate.

Manchester Velodrome visit

The National Cycling Centre, more commonly known as Manchester Velodrome, was built ahead of the 1996 Commonwealth Games, and along with the stadium, which is now Manchester City's home, it has become one of the Games' enduring legacies.

Britain's re-emergence as a dominant world power in cycling is in part due to the excellent facilities in Manchester, and I had the chance to go and visit this evening with the camera club, with the aim, hopefully, of taking some decent pictures.

The session we'd gone to photograph was devoted to a local club, who appeared to be a decent standard - certainly much to good for my photography as more often than not as they were just too quick for me!

We had access to all the seating areas, and without an audience I had time to set up the tripod to build this 180° panorama.



There were plenty places to look for photos inside the track circuit, from the racks of bikes to the track itself, but sports photography is more difficult than it looks and many of the images ended up being deleted once I got them on the computer.

A handful did come out quite well though, and as hopefully there'll be another visit in a few months, I may get chance to learn from my mistakes and have another go.

A fire drill with a difference!

Over the summer with the lighter nights, the camera club itinery includes a number of evenings out, but so far they've always fallen on days when I've had something else on. This week though the plan was to visit the local fire station, so I was pleased to coming along, even though I hadn't seen beyond the opportunity to take pictures of fire engines.

After a little confusion about the arrangements, the guys really came up trumps for us by changing into their gear and setting up a full drill in their practice area round the back of the station. Although the rain never stopped, it was quickly forgotton in a fast-paced hour or so where there was so much going on it was difficult to keep up and see the different picture opportunities available.




From a photography point of view, this was a real test in composition, swapping lenses frequently as the exercise developed, all the time trying to keep camera body and lenses relatively dry and the glass free from splashes.




The fire crew used water directly from the river behind the station (incredibly the hosepipe ban extends to fire crews too, at least when training), and simulated tackling a high level fire using the tower in the corner of the training area. This involved setting up the ladders quickly, and climbing through a window area to tackle the 'blaze'.

What I hadn't expected was the structure to the exercise; beforehand the station manager on duty called a drill and set out the objective of the exercise, then control was taken over by the watch manager, who was also being shadowed by as part of their training. Each firefighter had specific responsibilities, whether managing the water supply, laying hoses, supporting the ladders and of course directing the water jets.

Suddenly a series of whistle blasts sounded, this indicated that the 'building' was no longer considered safe, so all the firefighters in the tower had to exit quickly. Even here there were strict procedures to follow: I noticed only one firefighter was allowed on the ladder at any one time, and the ladder was always supported by another. With everyone accounted for, they then set up a ground-level jet, which could continue to douse the flames from a safe distance, and could even be left alone while efforts were concentrated elsewhere.

At the end of the exercise, the equipment was dismantled and dried, the hoses rolled up and the fire engine packed. After this the watch manager and station manager talked the team through the exercise, highlighting what worked well and what could have been better. To the untrained eye though, it was a very impressive display, especially as many on the team were new starters.

I wasn't aware that a number of the crew in Darwen are retained firefighters, having other jobs and careers too. They have to respond to a paging within five minutes to deal with the full range of emergencies alongside their full-time colleagues, and this makes the evening even more humbling. We talked about the anti-social behaviour fire crews experience, like hoax calls, which surely wouldn't happen as often if people could see exercises like this.

Historical Heysham

The little church at Heysham in its picturesque and dramatic setting overlooking Morecambe Bay must be one of the most important historical buildings in Lancashire, if not the country. It's certainly an impressive sight. Even though the ruined neighbouring St Patricks Chapel is probably older, St Peters, although modified over the years, is still fully intact and still in use today as the parish church.

Parts of the church date back to the 7th century, around the time St Cuthbert settled on Lindisfarne in Northumberland, and the bulk of the church is from the 14th and 15th century.

The site shares some similarities to Lindisfarne, being an isolated rocky outcrop overlooking the sea, and being reachable over dangerous sands at low tide (although in Heysham's case there are other ways to get there!).

St Peters is a grade 1 listed building and a scheduled monument - a nationally important historic building afforded additional protection above ordinary listed status.

There's a simple walk to be done around the headland, which takes in the very old and also the modern (power station and ferry terminal), in a circuit of only a couple of miles. From a photography point of view there's plenty photo opportunities, and if the light's right it's well worth a visit.

An afternoon with Jules and the pups

Today we'd arranged to go over at Lightwood in the Lakes to see Julie for the afternoon, however first I had an unexpected appointment with the dentist, having chipped a tooth over the weekend. Not particularly pleasant, especially when he explained that although he'd filled it for now (for forty quid), in six months' time it would need a crown. Terrific. Luckily as far as the blog's concerned there's no photo of this particular inconvenience!



Anyhow, from then on the day improved even though half my face felt numb for most of the afternoon (soup for dinner at the cafe at the Lakeland store in Windermere was not one of my finest hours). Julie's been nursing a litter of nine labrador pups over the last few weeks, all of which have names relating to chocolate bars, such as Twix, Buttons, Aero, Crunchie etc, and even (my favourite) the Milky Bar Kid!

Although five now have new homes, there are still four at the farm, though another two are leaving later this week.





We don't see Jules (or Ann and Barry for that matter) as often as we should, so it was a good opportunity to catch up, take some photos of the pups (although not surprisingly they wouldn't stay still!), and enjoy a great evening meal at the superb Masons Arms down the hill at Bowland Bridge - highly recommended.

Afternoon tea at Northcote Manor

As a treat to ourselves for our 40th birthdays, in the afternoon we headed over to Northcote Manor for a treat, where we'd booked afternoon tea.

At lunchtime we made our way to Clitheroe for a light lunch first at the Emporium, however the additional chips we'd ordered proved much more than we bargained for... not a wise idea given that we were due at Northcote Manor at four.









When we got to Northcote, we felt OK if not especially hungry, and when the food arrived we took a sharp breath - there was loads to eat! As well as the four different types of sandwiches each, there was a delicious selection of cakes including sticky date cakes, victoria sandwiches, Eccles cakes, chocolate cakes and scones with jam and cream.



Of course it was too good to leave, but by the time we finished we felt well and truly stuffed! (picture posed by Carole!)

Digging up the spuds

Since the beginning of April I've been trying my luck with growing some vegetables in a small plot around the side of the house. I'd planted about a dozen or so potatoes as well as a couple of rows of onions, and today would be the moment of truth as I dug the first ones up.












So far so good! I was hoping for perhaps a few more but there's at least half a dozen decent sized potatoes under each of the three plants I've lifted so far - should keep us fed for a few weeks!

Another birthday cake

Back home after our holidays and over at Jean & Kevan's for tea - plus another birthday cake!

Look what happens when we're going home!

Early morning on Skye, as we've a long drive to get home - and look at the weather!


This is the best view across the bay we've had all week, a pity we've had to wait until the morning we leave to see it.

Our house for the week has been wonderful, in a superb clifftop location, superbly kitted out and perfect if you want a week away from it all. Perhaps a little too remote to be practical, but nevertheless ideal for pulling up the drawbridge for a week.

Had the weather been better then we'd have taken a boat trip to Loch Caruisk and done a fair amount of walking, but it was not to be. Even so, the facilities inside the house meant we weren't stuck for things to do - and we've both come away feeling really relaxed, which was the main objective.

Hopefully the weather will be a little better at home for our second week off?

Finally some nice weather!

Our final day on Skye and at last the weather was set to improve enough for us to go for a little walk in the afternoon. Carole had her eye on the Blue Shed Cafe, at Torrin, the next village along. Torrin is close to the shores of Loch Slapin, a beautiful sea loch which extends right to the heart of the Cuillins, and the road hugs the coastline in a huge semi-circle around the head of the bay.

We parked close to the bridge at the head of the loch where there was room to leave the car without blocking the road, and walked the couple of miles or so along the road up to Torrin village. The Blue Shed is exactly that - a large wooden shed-like building painted a vivid shade of blue, which makes it visible from the road several miles away.

It's hard to imagine a huge passing trade here, but there were customers in when we got there, and an impressive selection of cakes and tray bakes to choose from too. So far the skies had remained overcast, but the forecast sunnier weather finally made an appearance which meant the return walk was much brighter and the scenery more spectacular.

Down by the shore the layers of seaweed deposited by the tide were exposed to the elements in different ways, giving each stripe its own colour, and this combined with the pebbles on the beach made for an interesting foreground and by far my best pictures of the week. What a difference a bit of sunshine makes!

Although facing a different bay entirely, these mountains are alongside the ones we can see from the house. Bla Bheinn on the left here is, at 928m, one of the largest in the Black Cuillins, and it can be seen behind the beach on the Elgol side of the coast at Camasunary. The next mountain pictured is Garbh-beinn at 808m and further round is Belig, slightly separated from the rest and a little smaller, at 702m.

Back at the house, the improved weather meant we could at last have our barbecue, though I had to light it around the back where it was sheltered, but it did meant that at last we could have our drink on the terrace!

Birthday girl!

We'd arranged the holiday this week to coincide with Carole's 40th birthday, a great idea even though it presented a logistical challenge in bringing all cards and presents with us too! It did make for a leisurely breakfast while Carole opened them all and took a few calls from well wishers.

Lunch today was a real treat - we'd reserved a lunch table at Kinloch Lodge, the only Michelin-starred restaurant on Skye and had a wonderful afternoon being wined and dined. We opted for a 3 course lunch menu, but after being shown to our tables we were served with a complimentary serving of carrot and white truffle soup too.

All the courses were sensational, as you'd expect, and when we took coffee and homemade fudge back in the drawing room we were nicely full without feeling totally stuffed.

Kinloch Lodge is on the east coast of Skye, not far from the new bridge and about 50 minutes from our house at Elgol. The house looks out over the Sound of Sleat and is the home of Lord and Lady MacDonald. It was once a hunting lodge for the clan MacDonald, who's seat is nearby Armadale Castle.

After plenty of coffee we decided to explore a little more of the island so we went back towards the bridge, where instead of crossing we carried on a quarter of a mile or so to the village of Kyleakin, where the old Syke ferry used to connect from Kyle of Lochalsh on the mainland. Kyleakin is now a bearth for plenty of yachts, but it is also superbly located with a cracking view across the water, the bridge and several islands beyond.

At the turn of the 19th century, Lord MacDonald from Armadale had grandeose plans to turn Kyleakin into a new town and port, 'New Liverpool', but these days you need a good imagination to visualise what might have been. These days there are plenty of signs of development here, but that's because Kyleakin is adjusting to a quieter role now the ferry traffic has subsided.

Back at the house, we had some champagne in the fridge ready to open, and although it was still too windy to drink it on the terrace outside, we could still sip the champagne whilst watching the weather through the large windows.

Return to Plockton

Our best chance for avoiding rain today was to head inland, and as Carole had mentioned holidaying in Plockton once many years ago we decided to pay a visit. Plockton is back on the mainland, but now with the Skye Bridge that's no issue, and within ten minutes of crossing we were there.


Plockton sits in a beautiful spot, sheltered from the sea but yet facing a fabulous bay, part of Loch Carron and framed by the mountains of Wester Ross. Although there was a breeze blowing and a few showers around, we somehow managed to avoid them and enjoyed ourselves exploring this quiet but spectacular part of Scotland.

A memorial to fallen airmen

Subtly positioned by the path right behind the house, a small plaque caught our eye whilst on our walk earlier. It was a memorial commemorating an air crash close to Elgol on a dark night in December 1982, which cost the life of American airman Lt Col Burnley L Rudiger.

Researching some other websites I learned that Rudiger was from Virginia and was ranked Major, but as he was listed for promotion at the time of the accident he was posthumously promoted to Lt Col.

Rudiger was an experienced airman, having flown F-111s since 1969, and was on a traing exercise from his base at the American Air Force base at Lakenheath, Suffolk. The aircraft was equipped with low-flying technology which should have prevented the crash, but something went horribly wrong and the plane crashed straight into Sgurr na Stri, the rocky mountain a few miles to the north.

Although the memorial only mentions Rudiger, a second airman, 1 Lt Stephen J Pitt from New York was also killed in the crash and both men left a wife and two children.

Although the memorial plaque is small and off the beaten track, surrounding it are a few pieces of wreckage from the plane, which adds a real sense of poignancy to the location. Overhead a number of military planes have been zipping over the water on modern-day training exercises - I wonder how many of those pilots are aware of the crash at Elgol back in 1982?

A relaxing day and a (very!) short walk

The forecast today showed another storm was on its way and the overcast skies threatened it would be sooner rather than later, so once again we planned to relax inside our amazing cottage on the clifftops.


The clouds had lifted a little, which allowed me at last to take this panorama shot from the terrace in the garden, literally just a few steps from the house.

Very faint on the extreme left is the Ardnamurchan peninsula, the most westerly point on the UK mainland. The island in the mid-foreground is Eigg, with the smaller island of Muck faint on the horizon just behind.

Next is Rum, dominating the southern view from the house, followed by Canna and then Soay, the closest island to Elgol, directly west across Loch Scavaig. From then on, the land is all Skye, round to the Black Cuillin mountains.

Before the rain we looked for the path round the back of the house, which ultimately leads straight to the mountains. We weren't going to walk so far, and when the rain started soon after we set off, we quickly turned around and headed back indoors!

Portree and a tour of the island

Having relaxed in the house all weekend, today we wanted to take advantage of some slightly better weather and see some of the island.

Portree in the east is the 'capital' of Skye, so we headed here first of all. Skye is the largest of the Hebridean islands, and the many mountains and lochs conspire to make travel across the island more difficult than first thought. Although Portree is only 18 miles directly north of Elgol, by car the distance becomes over 40 miles, twisting around several sea lochs and threading through mountain passes. The scenery is stunning though, so although the journey there took almost an hour and a half, it seem to matter all that much.

Parking in Portree was a bit of a problem, despite two decent car parks there were plenty of people here either on business or at leisure. We found a spot on the road which was available during the day, and looking over the wall there was a great view of the colourful harbour, which we'd seen in our guidebook and were to see again on numerous postcards. After a quick look round the shops we found a good spot overlooking the sea for our lunch, despite the shower which seemed to wait until we'd opened our sandwiches.

After lunch we decided to explore the west of the island by continuing on the main road to the coastal village of Dunvegan. The castle here has been the seat of MacLeod of MacLeod, chief of the clan MacLeod for over 800 years, the longest continually inhabited castle in Scotland. The village itself is small, situated on a sea loch, and the overcast sky added to the sense of bleakness.

The ruined church nearby was long since abandoned and the roof has now completely gone, along with some of the stones too. On top of Drum na Creige, the hillside behind, the entire village celebrated the millennium and their celtic past by hauling up and erecting a 5 tonne, 15 foot lump of rock known as the Durinish Stone, completely by hand. In the village is a photo showing everyone celebrating the occasion.

The road back to Broadford along the A863 is a spectacular drive, hugging the coast before pulling inland with the Black Cuillins looming large ahead. On the way back to Elgol we were pleased with ourselves for chancing the weather and exploring the island, a dramatic and inspiring place.

A breezy day in Elgol

The promised storm arrived during the night with horizontal rain and strong gales, that broke a couple of branches off the nearby trees and whipped up the sea into numerous white horses. By next morning the ferocity of the wind had subsided but there was still a bracing breeze and rain, so it was late morning before we ventured out.

The houses in the village are dotted around the hillside, some accessible only by tracks leading from the road. Heading down towards the quayside, we passed a small community centre where a variety of activities including badminton and circuit training take place regularly. As another squall blew in, we sheltered in the doorway, asking ourselves if this was really typical weather for July here?

At the harbour, the fishing boats weren't being used today, perhaps to be expected on a Sunday, but in any case the sea was too rough. Not surprisingly, the daily boat trips advertised here to Loch Coruisk or further afield to the nearby islands of Rum, Eigg and Canna were cancelled due to the weather.

Elgol is well known for its views of the Cuillins, Skye's famous mountain range, which provides the best mountaineering challenges in the UK. On a calmer day there's usually plenty of photographers on the pebble beach here with their tripods, all trying to capture the changing light on the mountains with dramatic rocks and waves in the foreground. Today though the views were a little less inspiring with thick cloud obscuring the peaks behind, and unsurprisingly there were few people around to take it in.

Despite the conditions we enjoyed our stroll down to the harbour and back, returning to the house refreshed before relaxing in front of another log fire.

Over the sea to Skye

An early start today for us today - 6am! - as we start the long 400+ mile journey to the Isle of Skye for a week's holiday.

Our journey took us up the motorway to Glasgow, then alongside Loch Lomond, over Rannoch Moor and through Glencoe to Fort William. From here we made our way through more spectacular countryside towards Kyle of Lochalsh, separated from Skye by just a narrow stretch of water.

Until recently, it was necessary from here to board the ferry, in the words of the song 'over the sea to Skye'. Nowadays however as you approach Kyle of Localsh along the A87, the new bridge to the island comes into view, elegantly spanning the water.

Once on the island, we headed for Broadford, a small village a few miles up the coast, before taking a left turn along what proved to be a 15 mile single track road to the tiny village of Elgol, on Skye's west coast.

Elgol is admittedly very isolated, however we both wanted to get away from it all for a week and our cottage here fitted the bill perfectly.

The sunshine we left behind at home was far behind us now, from reaching the mountains at Loch Lomond we'd encountered several heavy showers, and now in Elgol we unpacked the car with leaden skies overhead.

Before the forecast storm hit, we organised our first meal and got the log fire going. Hopefully the weather will improve in the next few days - we'll have to wait and see!