Click on pictures to see them enlarged in a photo stream. Comments: word verification on to allow anyone to comment but try and deter excessive amounts of spam! I LOVE getting comments!

Monday 23 July 2012

Ullapool and mountains....



As promised, here are the first of some photos I took on holiday last week. A friend and I had a cottage in Rhue, just outside Ullapool on the West Coast of Scotland. It had a stunning view of Loch Broom, mountains, and the Summer Isles. Ullapool itself is a lovely fishing village. It was founded in 1788 by the British Fisheries Society as a herring port and was actually designed by Thomas Telford. In the 1980s the harbour was filled with Russian trawlers (known as the Klondikers) but now it is just the small local fleet that use the harbour. Ullapool also acts as the gateway to the Outer Hebrides with a ferry taking cars, cargo and passengers back and forth. Many visiting yachts are moored in the harbour too. So it's fairly busy with folk travelling to and fro the isles, as well as those wanting to walk among the hills and mountains around Ullapool itself.  Though we thought it was much quieter this year than when we visited two years ago. This was confirmed by some local business folk and retailers we spoke to. Whether it is the economic recession or the British weather that is putting folk off is unclear.  But we did our best to put money in the local coffers - particularly the coffee and cake establishments ;-)




This is Sammy the seal (a grey seal) in the harbour ready to steal the bait from those fishing off the pier, or waiting for the boats to come in for a tasty morsel. The local children have named him Sammy - however apparently there has been a "Sammy the Seal" in the harbour for over 20 years - and Sammy has changed size, shape, colour, and even sex this year!  But whatever the seal - it's always called "Sammy" by the locals!






Here are the mountains I mentioned. I love wandering among the mountains (the bottom of them, not walking up them!). This is my favourite, known as Stac Pollaidh. I love it's knobbly spine - not unlike my own ;-) These photos were taken on the winding mountain road to Achiltebuie.




Not sure which this one is....




This is Suilven, another of my favourites.




Hmmm not sure of this one either....




There was, of course, the opportunity for refreshment in Achiltebuie, then I sat reading while J. went off to explore on foot a while.  I was puzzling how the inhabitants would get to this particular cottage! (Summer Isles in the background).




And then back to the cottage in time for a beautiful sunset..... More photos to follow later this week!








8 comments:

  1. Very beautiful! My friend Karen follows your blog and I hope you don't mind if I follow too! Your pictures are lovely - we are hoping to visit Ullapool and nearby areas sometime while we are on the holiday over the next 2 weeks :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Welcome Sharon! Delighted to have you as a "follower". The more followers I have the greater the incentive to keep writing. When I first started I wasn't sure if anyone was reading, so it's lovely to hear from people. Enjoy your visit to Ullapool. I recommend the boat trip out to the Summer Isles on the Summer Queen - the guide is very informative. And say hallo to the Mountains for me - I miss them so...sigh.

      Delete
  2. We may get to Scotland next year - at least it's high on the possibility list. If so, you can bet we'll be looking to meet you sometime. 8^)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OOooh yes - email me when you think you have some dates so I can make sure I'm around!! Exciting!!

      Delete
  3. We greatly enjoyed a trip to the Summer Isles last year ... in remarkably mild weather! Glorious blues ...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I took the trip out to the summer isles on the "Summer Queen" - I've some photos I'll post later this week. There were grey skies a lot of the time I was in Ullapool, but it was wonderful just the same.

      Delete
  4. Super photos of glorious scenery, Sian. I'm so glad your weather was good. :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was surprisingly good! Had a lovely walk in Bettyhill on the way back to SCrabster. Stunning wild flowers in drifts. Will post some photos soon.

      Delete