Start of the NC500

Started my day with a short run around the woodland, shower, brekkie with the birdie friends then on to Clootie well, a small, natural well that people over many centuries (dating back to pagan times) believed if you washed clothing in the well then left it to dry, as the clootie (cloth) rotted it would heal your ails. Now it has become a vast washing line full of all manner and number of clothing/socks/rags draped around the woodland! Bizarre. I couldn’t bring myself to add to it though. We did a little walk around the woodland then headed on to Chanonry point with the hope of seeing dolphins. No luck there but did see a couple of seals bobbing in the water. Was nice and sunny so sat on the beach for a bit then on to Fairy Glen falls, another lovely walk in the woodland to a couple of waterfalls then back on the road to Cromarty for tea and cake by the sea.
On our way back out we stopped at an egg box shop, a large vending machine in the middle of nowhere vending eggs. Genius. We needed some anyway so grabbed a dozen then headed out of the island, officially joining the NC500 route up to Dornoch, to a commemorative stone dedicated to the last witch (Janet Horne) to be legally executed for witchcraft in the British isles by being stripped, tarred, tied to a barrel then burnt alive at the stake. This was in 1727. Though sunny, it was starting to get windy so we headed on to our stopover for the night in Golspie, by the beach. Went for a v windy walk then a chat with the fam before getting our fish supper to eat in the van. So very windy out there, hoping it dies down.Read more