Highlands and Islands 2022

 Friday May 20 The penultimate day of a trip is always a mixed pleasure. Enjoying where you are, whilst knowing that it's come to an end, and also looking forward to the comforts of home again. To-day's dichotomies were compounded by the uncertainty of travel arrangements. Finally, late morning, I had an email from CalMac stating that we were on the 5 o'clock ferry, not the 8 a.m. on which we were originally booked. Ian and Sue are also on the late ferry. Very unsuitable for our needs, we have no choice. That brought up the problem of where to stay the night. No way was it feasible for Pam to drive as far as Carlisle Todhills after getting onto Skye at 7 p.m. I found us a room at Dumbarton Travelodge, north of Glasgow, which has a 24 hour desk. I then phoned them to inform of our late arrival, probably between 11 and midnight I hope. That will give Pam a night's rest before travelling home - we need to be there on Sunday. That done, we went to Bayhead for fuel - 4p per

Thursday May 19  We both enjoy Berneray. The drive there is both scenic and productive. The road puddles were testimony to the heavy overnight  showers, the sedge bent over to hug the ground, proof of the wind's ferocity. We have been unlucky with the weather this year.  Committee Road is the shortest route across the north west corner towards Sollas and Berneray. A Short-eared Owl hunting in the shelter of the roadside fence - we couldn't stop -  was an early bonus. Almost as soon as we'd turned off the Lochmaddy road towards the Berneray causeway, we noticed a dark bird being mobbed by gulls. It flew low away from us, jinking to avoid the unwanted escort. A male Golden Eagle. It was pointless taking the Borve road, it's windswept at the best of times, we drove straight to East Beach overlooking Harris. Via the Seal watchpoint.   Ungainly slugs out of the water, streamlined elegance when in their natural element.  We lunched, I did the word games in the paper, Pam anno

  Wednesday May 18 Hearing heavy rain lashing the bedroom window, I was in no hurry to get up this morning. When I did get to the end of a chapter I'd promised myself would be the last, and opened the curtains, the sky was an almost cloudless blue. A Raven flew by. The Sallow hedging was bent double. Out of the front window, it was overcast, the mountains invisible in their grey shroud. That about sums up the weather.  For us, the biggest problem is that it keeps the birds hiding in shelter. One excellent fact is that it was the bad weather which gave us the good Skua passage last weekend. The wind direction and speed both have to be right for that. It was, for the first time since 2015 - which was even better. As we drove towards Committee Road, a female Hen Harrier quartered the field inland from the sea. We stopped in a gateway so that I could attempt some photos. This is the best of a pretty poor lot.    A distant Short-eared Owl was the only bird we saw before reaching the Rap

Tuesday May 17 Yesterday, two Curlew Sandpipers had been reported at Baleshire, just down the road. We started there, seeing our first Short-eared Owl of the day as we turned for the bay. We also had our first sighting of a Cuckoo, having previously heard several.  Whipped-up sea behind us, I scoped the grassy field behind the parking area, seeing only about fifty Ringed Plovers. I re-read the WhatsApp message - they'd been scared off by an Arctic Skua and not seen again. Back over the causeway to the main road south to Benbecula, via Grimsay. The gardeners who decided that planting a Palm Tree on the Outer Hebrides, was a good idea, were on the supreme end of the optimism spectrum. The ones that survive look like loo brushes.   The northern shore of Loch Eynort/Aineort ( depends which signpost you read), seemed to take ages to reach today. The detour to Baleshare, two stops at supermarkets for papers, and busy traffic made the thirty miles seem slow. We always give precedence to w

 Monday May 16 Sue and Ian calling round to return the borrowed portable moth trap enlivened the morning. They'd caught one moth last night, none the night before. This one a Shark - which we've never caught in our garden although others have. Our MV had another lovely female Emperor Moth. The caterpillars from the first caught, continue to eat voraciously, growing by the day. Despite the rain, we still went out, south to Benbecula. Stinky Bay had a host of Eiders, no gulls, nor waders. Arctic Terns, Mute Swans, and a pair of Wigeon on the phalarope loch. On to the bigger Co-op a few miles away at Creagarry. Where next? Maybe The Range area.  We turned off the A 865 where it's signposted Hebridean Jewellery (I haven't been tempted yet), where there is a loch. Previously there were four, now there are three, summering Whooper Swans. As is usual, their necks are stained deep yellow from the peaty water.   What we call the very Stinky Bay, wasn't to-day. We parked on a

Sunday May 15  Waking to a beautiful sunny morning, our choice of Berneray as to-day's destination seemed a good one. The views there are stunning, not easily photographed, especially from the car, but one can never do them justice. A wide angle lens and panorama vision would help.  Our moth trap held four moths of four different species this morning.  A Pebble Prominent    Flame and Twinspot Carpets, and a Red Chestnut.   CommRo was devoid of birds, apart from a distant, and rapidly disappearing, Short-eared Owl. The whole drive of thirty plus miles was devoid of birds, plenty of time to look at the scenery. and to avoid the many cyclists. The ferry to Lewis was being prepared at the North Uist end of the causeway, the car queue at the other end.  The distant mountains are on the Isle of Harris. About 50 Arctic Ringed Plovers on the machair at Borve were flushed by a tractor, A few Twite, Wheatear and the usual Lapwings and gulls did not stay long either. On to the high machair cl