Hunting for treasure…

Spot the Cowrie! 

Cowrie shells, being the particular treasure in question here! They can be found on a few of the beaches up here, with the notable one that most folk know about being the big bay by the Balranald Campsite - the information on that one used to get shared by the warden who took the RSPB guided walk of the Balranald reserve, hence the widespread knowledge among even visitors to the islands! 

Also known as Groatie Buckies, the little shells are said to bring good fortune and safe travels to the finder - maybe being at the mercy of CalMac is why hunting for them is such a popular pastime here? That said, it is fair to say that both MrEH and I have barely a coat without a small collection of them in the pocket, and we’ve had our fair share of ferry issues, so perhaps even they don’t have that much power! 

Spotted Cowrie (right) 

Invariably at the beginning of the holiday I find them easier to find than MrEH - by the end his eyes have  caught up but for the first few days I get to enjoy a bit of one-upmanship on these very specific little treasure hunts. Sweeping my eye over a stretch of beach just filled with shells of all shapes and colours and pouncing on the tiny ridged spotty beauties. Small victories! 

Robyn. 

The journey…

 

Views from the A66

When you holiday in places that take a bit of travelling to get there - not long-haul flight type travel - the sort of thing with a lot of driving, an overnight stop, then a second day of more driving or whatever, you get used to considering the journey itself as part of the Holiday. We’ve been doing this for years with the Hebrides trips, and although the proper “ahhhh” moment of shoulder-dropping relaxation only really hits when we are on board the ferry to Uist, we both certainly feel we’re on holiday from leaving home. 

Callander hostel - highly recommended!

The Hebrides trip takes around 27 hours door to door with somewhere about 12 hours of that being actual driving. We factor in a stop overnight as far up into Scotland as we are confident will work - over the years we’ve stayed at Stirling, Falkirk, and the glorious hostel at Callander pictured above which has everything you could need for a very sensible price indeed. Then the following day it is an early start and a drive up either over the Skye Bridge or to Mallaig for a ferry from there. The route at that stage depends entirely on what timings work in relation to our ferry to Uist - if heading to South Uist with a drive up through Uist from there then that means straight to Mallaig and far more slack time during the day as the boat is later. If doing the shorter hop across to North Uist then that leaves from Uig on Skye and sometimes we can do that via the short crossing from Mallaig to Skye, a drive up through the island and then onto the bigger vessel to reach our final destination port of Lochmaddy.The alternative round the road and past that well known landmark of Eileen’s Doughnut….sorry, Eilean Donan Castle feels a bit more stressful somehow, plus, who wouldn’t want to shoehorn an extra ferry in there where they can? 

M V Coruisk - the Skye ferry

Our first couple of nights on the Island have almost exclusively for years been at the wonderful Moorcroft Holidays campsite at Carinish - just a 20 minute or so drive from Lochmaddy. We’ve been coming here for years, almost from when they opened I think, initially camping, then taking a room in their well appointed bunkhouse, and finally opting for the wonderful little “Hobbit House” glamping pods which are cosy and comfortable. We’ve visited enough times now that Catriona and Iain book us in to our favourite of the three pods, high up and looking out over the loch and across to Benbecula - it is enclosed by a beautiful stone wall and is just a glorious place to sit outside with a book, so long as there’s enough breeze to deter the midges! 

M.V.Hebrides departing Uig

The ferry crossings themselves are very much a highlight of the trip - indeed we have been known to book on a ferry crossing purely to enjoy being on the water and spotting the birds, marine wildlife etc. Even the short crossing to Skye might net sightings of gannets and Kittiwakes, and once on the bigger boat across to Uist the sea is alive with Guillemots, masses more Gannets, and depending on the time of year sometimes puffins. Skuas are a strong possibility, with the Great Skua seeming to make a bit of a recovery from the devastation Bird Flu wreaked on their population. A glimpse of a fin breaching the water sends up a cry of “Dolphins” from the first spotters- although it may just as well be porpoise or even one of the whale family.

Arrival at Lochmaddy on a calm day

The mindset of enjoying the journey is a bit hackneyed, but once you switch into it travel definitely becomes more enjoyable! 

Robyn

Small pleasures.

If you read my monthly reading post then you will be aware that I do like a book exchange - the small pleasure of rifling through a selection of books to find something new to read is very real - and that it is free is the icing on the cake. We remember to return books to them as well where we can - sometimes a book I have finished during lunchtime might find its way to one near work, and the telephone box housing a veritable mini library in a village not far from home also benefits. 

Sometimes rather than being an organised exchange it is just a little collection of discarded books on a wall of course - and it was one of those which prior to our Hebrides trip last year gave us a nostalgic little delight in the shape of an I-Spy book - I bet we all remember those don’t we! There we several there - I took one (the Cars one) which I felt would be suitable for our trip and left the others for someone else - and we thoroughly enjoyed it to the extent that we have now purchased a couple more - the On A Car Journey one above, and Wildflowers. Not expensive, and just the thing to add a bit of fun to a long trip! 

Robyn

Hebrides Countdown...

 

Without question, one absolute highlight of almost any trip to the Hebrides is the stunning sunsets you so often get to see. I'm reliably informed that you get similarly stunning colours at the other end of the day to, but unsurprisingly I'm rarely up to see that! 

I've been a bit lax over the last few years on taking photos with the big camera - phone cameras are so good these days that I have tended to revert to that for standard landscape stuff. The downside of this though is no longer getting around to saving shots back to specific albums online for that year's trip, or remembering to label them so I know where they were taken. The two here were both from one of our stays at Balranald Cottage though - and I recall the evening the top one was taken clearly as we spent some time watching a White Tailed Eagle flying over the small loch next to the cottage as the light gradually dropped. 

This years mission is to make sure I make better use of the kit that costs the sort of money I need to get value from it, and also to ensure that I upload things so I can find them again! 

Robyn

Hebrides Countdown...

...or "when two worlds collide"! This was something completely different and unexpected for me during last year's trip. We were walking on the beach in Benbecula, and suddenly heard a rather familiar noise which set my aviation antenna twitching. Sure enough, next thing, an RAF A400M joined the circuit for Benbecula airport! Having circuited a couple of times it appeared to vanish, leaving us wondering where it had disappeared to - it was no longer on the tracking apps but could simply have gone out of range of the nearest relay. A lovely and helpful pal with access to more detail on such things than I have was able to tell me that it had indeed landed at Benbecula though, so having finished out walk, we decided we might as well just pop along there and see if it was visible...

Happily, not only was it, but the same pal was also able to give me a rough timeframe for its expected departure, so we settled in happily (well, in my case, MrEH may not have been so chuffed) on the dunes overlooking the end of the runway. I won't lie, it was chilly, and at times damp, but thankfully shortly before my feet went completely numb, we saw movement and she taxied out along the runway! I was able to get a nice little sequence of shots including the one above which really feels as though it nicely sums up the remoteness of the location! Oddly enough, later on during the same trip we were also overflown low and VERY fast by a couple of RAF Typhoon jets - no pictures of those though, they were simply way too quick! 

Robyn

Oh we do like to be...

...beside the seaside - and none the more so than for an airshow, of course! It was a few years since I had been to Eastbourne, but particularly after the loss of The Royal International Air Tattoo last month, a nice 4 day show in the sun seemed like just the thing! We did have one little (!) glitch in the run-up when our accommodation - booked last October - was unceremoniously cancelled by the hosts just a fortnight away from the show, far from ideal allowing for how booked up everywhere gets in the area. Sadly this lead to the pal I was intending to be sharing it with deciding not to go, while I thankfully managed to secure a room in a lovely little B&B a mile along the seafront. This proved an absolute winner with lovely walks along the seafront to be enjoyed and some of the most delicious breakfasts imaginable, and all at a price lower than I was paying for the shared Airbnb place which has been refunded to us. If you find yourself needing accommodation in Eastbourne then "Number Ninety One" comes highly recommended from me! 

The four days of flying did see some variation in the aircraft displaying, although there were some ever-presents across all four days too like Sally B above - the only airworthy B-17 Flying Fortress in Europe and always wonderful to see. Sadly the Red Arrows were unable to attend, being forced to cancel a few days out as they were stranded in Canada following the completion of their tour of the USA with poor weather conditions meaning they were unable to safely cross the Atlantic. As the show organisers firmly said though, "the Red Arrows do NOT make Eastbourne!" - the RAF was still represented well with their Tutor and Typhoon aircraft, and of course the wonderful Battle Of Britain Memorial Flight. 

I think a highlight for a lot of folk was probably one of the "something a bit different" offerings in the shape of the Conair Turbo Firecat pictured above completing one of its water drops - as you can see it is a waterbomber for use in putting out fires which felt quite appropriate with the amount of wildfires burning across the UK at the current time! We saw this at the Midlands Air Festival earlier in the year as well so it was nice to get an extra couple of chances to photograph it! 

The BBMF are of course always a joy to see - this year without the Lancaster which is undergoing major maintenance so we are getting a chance to see the Dakota flying - this weekend planned to be with two Spitfires alongside, although we did sadly lose one of those to a technical fault for a couple of the days. As luck would (not!) have it the one with the fault was also the one being flown by my lovely friend Andy on those two days which was a shame (for him, too!). The BBMF also gave me my favourite photo (so far at least) of the weekend in the shape of the one above taken during the tailchase sequence with Andy (in AB910 with the invasion stripes) tucked in nicely behind the Dakota, and Sqn. Ldr. Al Luckins flying the clipped-wing Spitfire TE311 forming a tidy line directly behind them - even the props on all three aircraft have played ball for me on this one! 

Always a crowd pleaser is of course the RAF's Typhoon Display - with this year's outstanding display clearly being the Saturday one where pilot Tom Nation found every scrap of the moisture in the air on a very humid day! A bit of vapour (or "spluff" in aviation photographer parlance) always makes a display more dynamic to photograph - and never more so than when it is also teamed with a lovely blue sky as it was here! 

Outside of flying times there was plenty of fun to be had with the pub of course being the location of choice for evening socialising. We also had a delicious Italian meal one day, fish & chips on the seafront on another, and some very tasty ice-cream! Tim & Alysha were wonderful company, and it was as always great to see Claire although only relatively briefly this time. I was reminded what a lovely laid back show Eastbourne is too - and although it may not be next year when I next head down, I'm certain I'll back back again at some stage! 

Robyn.

Shhh…it’s early!

It’s not quite 7am as I start to write this - these days I find that on a weekend if I wake up any time after about 6am though, I just want to get up. Uninterrupted time to just potter about is underrated, and my usual weekend morning routine in the warmer months is to get up, pop the kettle on and head to the garden for a wander round. Want to come with me? Come on then…

We head out of the door and left - with the first thing that catches the eye being that painted-pallet table where the herb boxes live. They aren’t loving the hot weather mind you, and look a bit ratty I agree, but the petunias in the small pots in front are a different story and have been flowering away! Those are a garden centre clearance bargain as are so many of the bedding plants we have.

The Tromboncino Squashes are one of the undoubted triumphs of the year, and their comedy value cannot be understated. They are also growing like the clappers - I’ve got a fridge full and these two will need picking before long, with “long” being the operative word - MrEH measured the closer one yesterday and it was 2’8” for goodness sake! 

Next doors Honeysuckle is a welcome intruder over and through the fence - with its gorgeous smelling flowers in spring and early summer, and then the riot of bright red berries just now. We’ve actively trained it on our side so it covers the fence nicely now - there is a winter Jasmine as well but that takes a bit more attention and cutting back!

Our runner beans have been a disappointment this year which is a shame after the prolific crop in 2025 - we think the hot weather is to blame, there has been plenty of flower as you can see, but beans setting have been a rarity.

Into the corner created by the shed and office, and the first tomato plants. The mini greenhouse too -  can you spot the newspaper blocks MrEH makes ready for use on the fire in the winter? Obviously no need of the greenhouse at this time of year but it does work well for drying those out. A first aubergine plant in that little area too - we’re so pleased with these, those purple flowers alone are worth the effort! A courgette creeps in on the right too - this one is in a growbag and isn’t massively happy - we had a spare plant and nowhere to put it though and by now we all know MrEH’s take on “spare” plants, don’t we!

We didn’t have huge success with pepper and chilli plants this year either - but this is a Corno di toro Rosso sweet pepper which does actually seem to be earning its keep. 

Something that really does work well in growbags are Minibel tomatoes - just look at how much fruit is on there! I love this variety - tasty little fruit, compact and easy to grow and as you can see, prolific. They also fruit for a long period of time rather than the tendency of some varieties for everything to ripen in a rush. 

We still call this the “new” veg bed - it’s the one we created by removing a big patch of patio soon after we moved in, remember? The bronze fennel on the left is looking a bit sorry for itself now but it is absolutely covered in seed - a little more time drying and we’ll be nabbing those for use in cooking. Those Minibel toms get into the action in the foreground and then our main courgette plant - more on that in a second. A Savoury lurks in there - lovely with roast chicken, it sees a lot of use through the winter months, and in the summer when it flowers the bees love it. In the background there is sweetcorn and a few additional sunflowers - although none as big as the monster in the header picture which was one of the plants next door gave us in exchange for tomato plants. 

The courgettes we’ve grown this year are Sunburst - a flat squash style. A little less practical for cooking in some ways as they require some thoughtful cutting up, but the flavour is wonderful with a really nutty edge. Once ready to pick they look like flying saucers! 

Back to towards the house then and yet another space with tomatoes in it! In the foreground here though is mostly herbs - a beautiful tricolour sage bought on clearance from a favourite garden centre is loving life - I think I’ll find a more permanent pot to transfer that to before long. Parsley and basil are favourites although the parsley has struggled this year too - always a devil to grow from seed, we did finally get some plants but they aren’t really loving the weather I don’t think. The bright splash of yellows-green to the left is a bolted basil - I always let the first plant bolt to flower as it’s so popular with pollinators. The rhubarb is getting in on the action on the far left too - still producing more stems!  Honourable mention to the little watering can in front there - it was popped out on the windowsill in the communal space at the flat years ago - our “please take me” area for useful stuff no longer required by its original owner - and we gladly obliged. It’s a bit rusty inside but still very useful indeed! 

Finally then, looking across the area nearest to the house - an absolute mixture of stuff - more herbs, with the Lemon Balm in the trough being another garden centre rescue, there is a tarragon in there somewhere, another herb I love! The big purple pot has an elderly rosemary - that was brought with us from the flat. Strawberries - with this years runners starting to be potted up as well. I will pot on another two troughs-worth of those and then next year the original plants will probably be treated as spent and composted. Strawberries are great for providing their own replacements though! That pink geranium in the background has been a joy - it’s been flowering since not long after we bought it as a tiny plant - for anyone local reading this we buy our geraniums (and lots of other stuff) from Matthew’s Plants at Roydon - they absolutely never disappoint and the quality is superb.

There you go then - it’s not the biggest of gardens, I’d be the first to acknowledge, but we have packed a fair amount into it and the joy it brings is immense. The fact that it helps feed us well at this time of year is  the best thing about it - and makes the hard work worthwhile. Now though? Breakfast time..and that will NOT involve any home grown produce!

Robyn.