Reset search
Scotland 2018Scotland 2018
SatelliteEdit route

Scotland 2018

August 2018
A photographic adventure to the Scottish Highlands accompanied, undoubtedly, by rain and midges. How will I cope, where will I get to, how much water and midge activity will I be able to take?
Follow me to find out! Read more
  • 25footprints
  • 2countries
  • 14days
  • 91photos
  • 0videos
  • 933kilometers
Follow Calendar Share Bucket list
Date ascending
  • TravelerScotland 2018
    Day 12

    Walking to Whitby

    August 28, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    After a relaxed start it was time to go walking so boots were fitted and a small bag packed with a waterproof jacket and a blackcurrant Ribena in case of emergency ... other blackcurrant flavoured drinks are available of course! The weather forecast was good so there was no need to take much.

    The first photo in this footprint is at Sleights and is of the fish ladder there. This is an intriguing place, as one stands on what appears to be the over-engineered and substantial foot bridge, where there was absolutely no sign of a fish, salmon or otherwise, and a notable lack of anything which can even remotely be called a ladder. At least at the Damn and Fish Ladder at Pitlochry (apologies for the bad language there) there were some concrete things, but here it appeared to only be a few random stones. It was a peaceful and pleasant enough scene however, not far from a railway crossing, and would be really interesting in the salmon fish ladder climbing season.

    The walk continued over styles and through gates with a goodly amount of chatting, interspersed with sections of ‘putting the world to rights’ and a sprinkling of ‘If I was a Prime Minister ...’ which, of course, is complete nonsense because the world doesn’t work as easily as everyone thinks it does. It especially doesn’t work the way a Trump thinks it does, but enough said about all that.

    Soon the first sighting of Whitby Abbey came into view then shortly afterwards, preceded by the distant sound of a whistle, one of the steam trains passed through which was a splendid sight with the steam puffing upwards, the drivers giving a wave and the passengers just sitting there giving no response. Clearly this train was the Old Grumps Express or maybe it was just too tedious having to respond to every Tom, Dick and Harriot who wave at the train like idiots.

    Finally, having been unsure at one point if it was the right or left path, the intrepid walkers arrived in Whitby where the first priority was to find a really nice cafe for coffee and cake. That mission was easily accomplished and it really was a lovely cafe even though Rob had no idea where it was. Definitely Whitby somewhere, he was certain of that!    Read more

  • TravelerScotland 2018
    Day 12

    The Boat Leaves in Two Minutes

    August 28, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    There were no plans for the rest of the day other than to spend some time in Whitby. It was a very long time since Rob had been there so he was looking forward to seeing it again. The cafe was somewhere in the upper part of the town so to get to the harbour there was a maze of tiny streets and passageways to explore then, all of a sudden, you pop out at harbour level to merge with a sea of people walking in all directions. It was holiday weekend of course and the weather quite reasonable so the tourist areas of the town were very busy indeed. What happened next came as a bit of an unplanned surprise because as Rob and his friend were walking along the harbour they were attracted to a twenty minute boat ride for only £3 and this seemed quite a bargain. They paid their passage and stepped aboard and Rob immediately started talking like a pirate and walking with a limp, which of course is compulsory when boarding any sea faring vessel. It was strange though, not Rob limping and talking like a pirate, because he simply couldn’t find a main brace to splice but he wasn’t going to let a little thing like that spoil the adventure.

    Twenty minutes later, and as advertised, the boat arrived back having left the harbour, sailed around a buoy and travelled back from hence it came. It was a pleasant enough trip in very calm seas and gave a great view back to the harbour and immediate coastline. Whitby Abbey really dominates the skyline and it was easy to see why it’s such an iconic feature of the area. Rob didn’t see a whale though, other than a few sitting on the boat who’d clearly consumed rather too many portions of Whitby fish ‘n chips.    Read more

  • TravelerScotland 2018
    Day 12

    Whitby Abbey

    August 28, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    There are 199 steps that take you from the town up to the headland where the ruins of Whitby Abbey stand next to St Mary’s a Church where Dracula is supposed to be buried. Dracula is a work of fiction of course but it doesn’t stop everyone searching the graveyard to find his grave. This can take a very long time because not only are there loads of gravestones, but many of them are seriously weathered so it’s difficult or impossible to read who lies there, but there is a grave near the entrance to the cemetery which you can see in the fourth photo of this footprint. It has a skull and crossbones on it and some believe this is where Dracula lies. Others believe it’s the grave of a pirate and others still think the symbol is simply the trademark of one of the stone masons of the time. Which is correct? You must decide.

    Surprisingly there weren’t so many people around here but that may be because it was quite late in the day. There was an ice cream van next to the entrance to the Abbey and Rob just couldn’t resist the opportunity for a ‘99’. The red sauce included isn’t the usual stuff you get elsewhere because here you get asked if you’d like Dracula’s blood on your cone. The answer has to be ‘Yes’ of course.

    The rest of the evening was spent in Whitby culminating with an Indian meal then back to a Goathland. Tomorrow would be an early start and Rob had already sussed out the car park charges in readiness - free until 9am.    Read more

  • TravelerScotland 2018
    Day 13

    The Final Photo Shoot

    August 29, 2018 in England ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    It seemed fitting that the final photo opportunity of the trip might be to catch a sunrise from Whitby pier. The weather forecast wasn’t hugely promising, as seemed to be the case for the entire two weeks, but there was a slight chance the cloud may lift around the time of the sunrise at 6.02am.

    Rob set the alarm and was leaving Goathland, having woken himself up with a coffee, at 4.35am so he could park the car and get to the pier for around 5am. It was still dark when he arrived but it is a pleasant time of the morning. It was dry and there were just a few people going about their business and all, without exception, said ‘Good morning’ as they passed. Rob chose his location and set up the camera and tripod then waited in the hope the right light would appear.

    At 5.30 fishermen started to arrive to try their luck from the end of the pier and everyone wished everyone else success with catching fish or capturing a sunrise. Fishing is way more successful it seems because the light never came and the clouds never parted but Rob still took photos and was hopeful he’d get a nice black & white image from the ones he took. Once again, Rob found it very calming being there with his camera whilst enjoying the ambience around him, but at 6.15 it was clear there was to be no spectacular sunrise and Rob packed his gear to leave. The fishermen had been busy though and one of them showed Rob the three good sized mackerel he’d caught, which was impressive for such a relatively short time.

    As Rob walked down the pier he met a fellow photographer who’d tried his luck as well. They chatted for ages about photography, photographic clubs, competition judges and compared cameras etc. That’s all pretty boring stuff for the average human but in those early hours there were two people exchanging thoughts and ideas and enjoying the moment. It was a lovely way to end that last photo shoot and who’d think that taking your camera for a walk was a worthwhile pastime ... and there’s no need for small plastic bags and a pooper scooper either.    Read more

  • TravelerScotland 2018
    Day 14

    That was Scotland 2018

    August 30, 2018 in England ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    That’s it then - the end of the Scotland 2018 adventure and it was as predicted with plenty of falling water from the skies and all those pesky midges of course.

    It’s never possible to predict how a trip will pan out and this one has been no exception. The weather has at times been disappointing with heavy low cloud making it hard for Rob to capture the images he was hoping for. This doesn’t make the trip a disaster or failure, it simply means the images he took were not as expected. It would have been brilliant to have better or more dramatic lighting but you get what you’re given.

    Lessons can always be learned and the main one is not to go to Skye in August. It’s simply overrun with tourists and there were a couple of occasions, particularly at the Fairy Pools, which were impossible for photography simply because too many people were there. August is not so good for midges either, but Rob was prepared for that and the measures he took were effective ... Avon Skin So Soft does work. The camping experience worked extremely well too (Rob will be doing this again) and managing power, charging the phone and camera batteries etc etc, away from mains electricity worked to perfection. Though Rob felt he stalled a few times, unsure what to do due to weather constraints and plans needing to be changed, overall it was a great trip. He felt some time was wasted but it was a holiday as well and there’s no crime in taking time out to reflect or simply to enjoy the landscape you become part of and there were many moments to be treasured.

    In terms of photography, the aim was to return with about a dozen photographs to be proud of which amounts to around one for each day of the trip. All being well, when Rob has had time to view his photos on the computer, that aim will be met.

    The photographs in this footprint are from Rob’s Canon camera and have been processed on the computer after he got home. The first is one of the photos taken of Dunstanburgh castle and this one is in focus even though it may not look pin-sharp once it’s uploaded to this blog. It was taken a little earlier than the one you’ve seen already when there was more light on the headland and castle ruins. It’s basically the same shot though.

    The second photo was taken on Skye just across the road from the campsite. It’s was almost dark when Rob took this and that’s the feeling he’s tried to capture. The moon hangs low over the Cuillins, casting its reflections into the river as the last rays of daylight fade away and the land becomes bathed in a gentle blue light. Soon the night will take the last of the colour from the landscape and the moment will be gone.

    ————————————————-

    I hope everyone who’s been following this trip has enjoyed the journey with me and that the photos I’ve posted and the diary I’ve written have been interesting as well as amusing in places, for that was my intention. Thanks in particular to Richard Valsler who has meticulously commented on the daily posts (you need a medal) but it is difficult to tell if anyone is following along even though I know there’s been a fair number of you. Thank you.

    Someone asked why I do this. I started the FindPengins blogs with my friend Tony during the first trip to Iceland in 2016 and really enjoyed ending the day reflecting on what had been done and also using my phone to capture the journey along the way. I enjoy it because it makes me appreciate more what I’ve been doing and the places I’ve been, and I enjoy it in the hope I will bring something of interest to other people’s lives as well.

    So thanks again to everyone who’ve made it this far .... there will undoubtedly be another trip soon.

    I wonder where it’ll be. Rob    Read more

  • 2024© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Blog
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Support
  • Legal notice
  • English