The Peat Road

Another fab day, even warmer than yesterday so we were determined to make the most of it. Being Wednesday we headed up the road to Elphin first thing as they have a Wednesday craft market through the summer. I had hoped for artisan bread and maybe cakes but they weren't there apparently enjoying the weather instead. They did have venison sausage which Chris bought and some lovely hand spun natural wool but I was told I couldn't buy any! A lovely lady had a variety of art work and jewellery much of which featured hares. I love hares and after seeing them in Orkney I was tempted to a hand painted stone plaque. She showed us a leaflet of her husband at work on figures of wildlife. I asked he had one of a hare at the Achiltibuie Arts and she said yes, I saw it yesterday - £3000! They had just sold one this morning.
She invited us to visit their studio on the far side of Loch Broom, maybe.
Returning we visited Knockan Crag part of the 'Rock Route' of the NW geo park. A good trail with interesting information of the unique landscape here and views of the 'other side' of our mountains.

After lunch we headed a short way to walk along the Peat Road above the beach at Badentarbat. A lovely easy track with great views of the lochs and mountains all the way. At the end of course are the peat beds. We didn't chance the 'adventurous' return routes but we wanted to get to a view of our beach. There is of course always another hill when you do this so it took threes hills and the traversing of three peat bogs to get to this view. It looks over yesterday's beach at Achnahaird where we are staying. You can see the whole of Enard Bay and the little community of Achnahiard as well as the beach. The mountain is Quinag, part of the Assynt range, with Canisp beyond in the haze. In the extra I have turned a few degrees to take the other mountains we see often. They are left to right: Quinag; Suilven; Cul Beag: Stac Pollaidh and Cul Mor.
The other extra is the return along the Peat Road with a view over Achiltibuie and the Minch to the distant Torridon range of mountains to the south.
It had to be this one today as we probably won't do it again.