Recreation

I got away today. 

I took the 09:10 train to Blair Atholl. 90 minutes later I was hiking up Glen Tilt for 3 hours of good fresh air and exercise. The village was deserted. I saw only 4 groups of people on the trail. Ideal. 

Apart from those encounters the only sounds were birds singing and the river rushing downhill. Ideal. 

I had a picnic in a sunny spot with just a flock of sheep for company. Ideal. 

The trains worked well. They were on time and also very quiet. It was definitely a better option than driving. I enjoyed watching the cars trudging along the A9 at 60mph (or less at the never ending roadworks) while the train whizzed past at 80-100 mph.  

We did have a true ScotRail moment at Perth, however. After the train had been there 4-5 minutes, the automated public address announcement advised us…

“We have now arrived at Pitlochry. Next stop will be Blair Atholl.”

Seconds later, while still stationary at Perth, we got…

“We have now arrived at Blair Atholl. Next stop will be Dalwhinnie.” 
 
Not ideal…

The Blip is the view up Glen Tilt. The first Extra was taken from the bridge where I had my picnic. The other is my morning train heading north for its next stop, which may (or may not) have been Dalwhinnie.