History!

A friend of mine, who grew up in Rosemarkie and who consequently is a fund of local knowledge and historical facts told me about the history of this spot. Poppy is looking towards a cave in the hillside, which until relatively recent was inhabited by a family of gypsies. (Old photos exist showing the mother of the family and some of the children) The floor of the cave has been excavated and it seems that it has always been used as a place of shelter, far back into prehistoric times.

The stream you can see in the foreground runs into the sea and above the shore is a steep hillside. Apparently the remains of deer were found during the dig along with tools and other implements. My knowledgeable friend explained that the herds of deer were driven to the cliff edge, they tried to escape by jumping down the cliff and fell to their deaths. A deer bone/antler factory existed in almost the spot where Poppy is standing near the stream.

Today I cannot imagine living in that bleak spot facing the waves and exposed to the icy blast of the wind. We walked back to the car along the path with freezing hailstones in our faces, with the thought of a nice hot cup of tea to be enjoyed by the wood burning stove when we got home.