On the Road to Cleish

How quickly we become accustomed to sunshine and sparkle. On this sixth day of sun and no wind, I just hope this is not our spring and summer both come at once.

We decided to venture north into darkest Fife to visit the Baxter restaurant and shop near Kelty, a mining village with a name that seems to endorse the less than salubrious ambience of the place.

The restaurant lying on the road to Dollar, used to be called the Butter Churn, but has become much more upmarket with not only a restaurant but a shop selling colourful kitchen equipment which seemed to be the answer for a Golden Wedding present.

The buildings are fortunately screened by fir trees from the huge opencast mine which dominates the motorway on the road north, but seem liable at any moment to slip into the great gouge in the earth that is the coal face.

With a beautiful blue sky and warmth in the sun we drove up through the Blairadam forest and over the hill to the pretty village of Cleish with its tiny graveyard, wherin resides my predecessor.

Returning home by the motorway, we found a grey Edinburgh covered by low cloud.
How very disappointing to find spring had suddenly unsprung.