The Rough Bounds

A stressfull frantic day fitted in to ferry time tables.

I carefully planned this one because we had to approach these two site surveys on foot, or rather as foot passengers on this fast little boat. Although we had access to an old Land Rover at the other side it isn't the same as working out of your own car. You might need an allen key to adjust something or need a spare pencil, battery etc.
I put everything for the trip in the boot and I knew that when I had emptied the boot on to the pier at Mallaig everything was there for the outing. It still formed a small mountain of yellow boxes, survey legs and a couple of stuffed rucksacks which had to be man handled down steps on to the boat.

The up side is that Knoydart is a beautiful and remote part of Scotland. The small village of Inverie can only be accessed by boat, or foot with considerable effort, or I suppose by private helicopter. The peninsula is home to three very valuable Munros. Valuable because they are so difficult to access.

Juneau, state capital of Alaska, is in a similar if larger scale situation. You have the small city with roads, offices, shops, schools, it isn't on an island yet you can't drive to it from the rest of America or Canada, just air or sea access.

We weren't spoiled with lovely weather today. We got soaked and the midges were hellish. When I unpacked my kit at the house this evening to dry I opened the theodolite box and bunch of Knoydart midges escaped in to our hall.

Anyway this is a view from the boat heading across Loch Nevis this morning. Soaking wet mist hanging off the mountains and never offering a full length view of any of the majestic peaks which I know are there and rise from these shores.

There is no hint of proportion in this image and it could be mistaken at first glance for some misty sea inlet in Alaska