Breaking Bad

Given I'm backtracking, before I go on with a post I've already written, I'd like to drop in the HUGEST of thank yous for all of your tremendously touching comments stars and hearts from yesterday's three year blipday   I love being on this journey with so many like-minded people and I have really enjoyed reading your thoughtful posts. Many, many thanks for spending the time to stop by.

Last night was a scene of contrasts from the morning so I'm recalling the events on separate days on purpose (and writing it first so I can get it out of my head).

I changed my mind from the castle I was going to stay at... I just didn't fancy it in the end. I found a place in the hills of Dumfries with a loch that sounded lovely. 

We stopped at Irvine for lunch and some dramatic rainbows and bird watching before heading off to Loch Trool.

On the way there, I was checking in my side mirror and spotted a huge horsebox-type vehicle as it came leaning round the corner looming over the car that was 100 or so metres behind me.  I was really surprised as I wasn't driving sedately and it had been uphill and round some particularly nasty corners. To my amazement, on a very short stretch of straight road, he (possibly she) swerved out and overtook the car behind me with inches to spare and with a bend ahead. It was crazy driving.  Well, I knew what was coming next!  

There was nowhere to pull over to let him pass and I refused to drive like a maniac around the bends to keep him off my tail so I got a loud horn for my sins. The probably 9-11metres of lorry was swerving across the road behind me so it could take the corners quicker (and probably intimidate me) and it eventually chose a straightish section to pass.  It wasn't wide. There were centimetres to spare. My wheel was on the verge and I had to brake as the great grey metal beast hurtled on by blowing its horn. If anything had been coming the other way, it would have been nasty.  The only phrase I can think appropriate to describe it is purposeful terrorising of motorists.  It wasn't personal. It was the driving of a mad person and I can only conclude they were on drugs because it wasn't sane; it felt like a scene from Breaking Bad!  

(I got most of the registration and have now reported it.)

So, when I got to what was my new base for the night, the campsite was lovely but when I investigated the loch, it was on a long remote road, down in a hollow, with no coverage and completely surrounded by trees and it didn't seem like I'd feel safe walking there in the morning. Perhaps my head was in the wrong place after the driving episode but I kept on going. Dusk was starting to creep in and there were some beautiful big coloured clouds around. I missed the turning for the campsite and carried on. Doh! Would I ever stop? Luckily, at Gatehouse of Fleet, I spotted a sign for camping and found it fine. Nobody was on reception so I found a space and hunkered down just in time for the darkness and the rain!

Oh, man, the rain! It hammered down like I've not heard in the van before. In fact, it was deafening. If I hadn't found somewhere on a site for the night, I might think some pathetic fallacy was going on from my film week. I turned on the awning light and opened the blinds to watch buckets of water being thrown past the window for an eternity. Sometimes it sounded like hail. And then the wildest of thunderstorms started and went on and on. It was madness!

...The magic of You Know Who?!  Maybe I should have stayed at the castle.

And then today!

Well, it couldn't have been more different.  The clouds were breaking up and I found this beautiful beach for breakfast and a play with Little Dog as the sun was coming up - what a joy!  I met a lovely lady to chat to who lived locally and told me not to worry too much about the quicksand notice (I did still worry a little about the quicksand notice!)

I had a big spruce up of the van... you can't beat doing a chore with such a wonderful outlook.  Then we took a steady drive home stopping for a coffee at the service.  But oh, dear me... coffee!  I didn't enjoy it one bit.  My favourite latte!  I've been drinking black coffee (without salt for those who read my plight) and feel I may be on the turn to preferring it unadulterated.