True to my blog, I headed for the hills yesterday afternoon. Mr B and I had long eyed an alluring-looking track pointing towards a hill which overlooks the head of Loch Striven, and despite the deterioration in the already gloomy day I decided this would be a suitable antidote to the Games in Dunoon.
As you will see from the photo, there's a good view from up there, and a satisfyingly steep slope to look down. It was an unedifying scramble to reach the summit - a short scramble, as the road itself is pretty high at that point, but one of these wrenching clambers through wet tussocks, slippery outcrops of rock, and sudden slithers of mud. By the time I was taking photos (with my phone - I hadn't thought there would be anything to photograph, given the weather) we were soaked from the thighs down and it was beginning to rain. I had attracted an alarming number of ticks - alarming because they were big enough to see as they crawled about looking for a tasty bite - and the midges gathered in clouds and stuck to our wet arms.
But there's a perverse enjoyment in this sort of thing, and despite having to feel our way down with the poles (always harder going down!) we bashed along the last section of track with vigour and felt pleased that we didn't seem to be at death's door as a result. We didn't even stop to put our waterproofs on - didn't seem worth it by then.
Now: what on earth is that hill called?
shouldn't you be reassured by the fact that the ticks were large? The big ones don't give you lyme disease.
ReplyDelete(and you do realise that your constant flirtation with ticks does nothing at all to convince me to get outside more in this part of the world.)
Reassured maybe, but disgusted. And the flirtation is a necessary part of my obsession with Outdoors!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos from the cell! Chris, you might think I am crazed...my family certainly does!...but I cannot go outside the house without my camera! Yesterday, it was at home in a pocket near my knee in my capris as we walked about an amusement park! One must ALWAYS have camera in hand...this world has soooo much to see!
ReplyDeleteThe ticks....ewwwwwwww! I squirmed just thinking about them. Seems so weird that we have deer eating in our front "yard" and I have never seen any ticks here.
I loved your photos....it is always such an "atmospheric" feeling, looking down upon the earth! Very lovely there, indeed!