Hitting the high road

I've enjoyed today. I realise much of my enjoyment comes at the expense of my left knee - still suffering from what I imagine is a strained ligament - and my left ankle - sprained so often it's liable to do it at any time - because I tend to ignore both in the pursuit of happiness. And you'll realise both from my photo and from the number of times I go on about it that a good walk well away from habitation and other people is better than anything in the world when it comes to the feel-good factor.

Today we returned to the high forest road that takes us round the head of the Bishop's Glen to where we can have a view south down the centre of the peninsula to Arran and Bute - and Kintyre, today, beyond Arran. The burn in the photo, a mere trickle the last time we were here, was cascading picturesquely down the brown rocks in what I regarded as an unspoiled bit of hillside, not dug or planted for forestry. And just because today I was focussing not on the spectacular views - a panorama from Ben Lui in the north, via the Clyde as it headed west towards Glasgow, to Arran - but on what was under our noses, I'm adding an extra of some immensely vivid moss in a ditch, topped by a face of local stone which is interesting to look at but a less than satisfactory building material (we know this from the back wall of our house). The photo is completely unaltered - the colour leapt up at us.

And the "us" there encompasses us and our friends, whose company we were glad to resume last Saturday. There's only one slight problem: two short people (me and Mr PB) walking with two taller people. The wee legs have to work that bit harder ... I think I'll be taking it easy tomorrow.