Off to Gigha

Well I wasn't, but this ferry was. If you can look on large you may just see the low outline of the islands of Gigha and its tiny sister, Cara (the island my Cara is named after).

You cannot really tell from this shot but it was very blustery and when the rain showers came they were horizontal and very penetrating. Nonetheless the dogs and I had an interesting walk along the shore and I was intrigued by the clusters of what looked like Michaelmas Daisies above the high water mark.

We then ventured further down the western coastal road and after a welcome bowl of soup at a recommended tearoom at Glenbarr I decided to treat the dogs to a walk along a huge 3 mile sandy beach ...... Big mistake!! I didn't have my full waterproof gear with me and shortly after the start of the walk, with the dogs having a ball racing each other on the soft sand, the rain started in full force and I was faced with almost hailstone sized drops driving at me pushed by the strong winds. When I at last managed to lift my head it was to find that one dog had completely vanished! I called him incessantly and Cara tried her best to find him but he had disappeared in amongst the vast sand dunes with their tall waving grasses - it was obviously his idea of heaven. Two hours later I was literally soaked to the skin, frantic, with no phone signal, still without Bruce and a full hour's drive from my cottage. In desperation i persuaded a very reluctant Cara into the car and drove to find help at the nearest house. The young man there said he would phone the police etc and then come back to the car park - which he did and also stayed to help me look. With literally 20 minutes before the sun set, which would have forced me to abandon the search for the day, we found him, looking for me at last, totally wet through with a thick layer of sand all over him. It had been a most desperate 3 hours which I do not wish to repeat.

To add the problems, my camera did not enjoy getting so wet! ..... And is not playing ball at all now and I have no method of getting it properly dry in the cottage.