Call of the wild!

What better way to spend a hot day than on the water. We spent two hours on Loch Glencoul in Assynt and didn't even need a cardigan.

We enquired at the Kylescu Hotel, which have taken over the running of this summer excursion and incidentally is looking very good after refurbishments, on Monday and were told it wouldn't run with just two so we had to ring and check this morning. There were 4 of us and a dog plus the boatman, who had brought along his homemade peanut brittle and shortbread! In addition there was a young man in yellow wellies giving us a commentary on the location, the use of fishing creels and mussel ropes and the wildlife.

As,you can see there were lots of seals. Grey and Common seals living quite happily together. They were visible because of the low tide and most stayed put as we passed. Lots of young seals who apparently ride on their mother's back in the water. There were young gulls and Oystercatchers on the rocks too with a fair scattering of Greylag geese. Otters are much more common now but sadly we didn't see one.

At the end of the Loch is the highest waterfall on the British mainland, three times higher than Niagra but a mere trickle by comparison. The ravine where it falls was created like a Fjord and this of course led us onto the geology of the area.

The Glencoul thrust plane is a much studied area and was the birthplace of modern geology as scientists discovered older rocks (Lewisian Gniess) above newer rocks (Cambrian Quartzite) and spent many years debating how this came about.
We also touched on Gaelic names. Inchnadamph was mentioned, a place we had passed through near Loch Assynt. It means 'meadow of the stags' and we had seen a field of deer on our way through. There were so many my first thought was a deer farm but no, it was explained that this is the place that a herd of stags settles for the summer before the autumn rut.
We just had to go back that way and take a closer look. There they all were. Incredible. We counted at least 36. Didn't count the seals there were far too many!

So on this hot day in the highlands the wildlife has taken priority over the scenery. I just couldn't choose so it's a compilation I'm afraid.

PS for reasons best known to blip this is crisper in large!