Creatures great and small

It was obvious that we were going to spend a lot of time walking in the hills and along the road - so Jack decided it was time to get a walking stick/shepherds crook. He found a lovely one in the local shop, a crook carved of ram's horn ending in the shape of a Scottish thistle. Murdo had one by the same craftsman that had been carved to order in the likeness of his old dog. Jack is still using his staff - cut down to a more useful height now that he no longer works with sheep.

Our walks across the moors and hills brought us in contact with some of the local wildlife. We would kick up an occasional grouse or spot a herd of red deer with the stags posed proudly against the sky - looking just like the Hartford logo! Wild geese were migrating south, and the loch and sea beaches abounded with shore birds - shags, cormorants, oyster catchers, ringed plovers, curlews, sandpipers, rock pipits and always the ubiquitous gulls. We learned that buzzards there were not bald headed black scavengers but beautiful large hawks. Often we'd see hoodie crows - large gray crows with black heads - birds heartily hated by the locals. These gulls could kill new-born lambs or peck out the eyes of a sheep that was down.

Our seed wall brought coal and blue tits, chafinches, robins, and wrens, and sometimes walking along the road, a lark would rise high into the sky pouring out her amazing song - then come plummeting back to earth settling back on a fence post. I was so glad I'd bought a book on Birds of Britain because I was seeing many birds that were entirely new to me.

And then there were the seals - we would see them in a bay that we passed driving up the Wee Mad Road, or basking on the islands when we went out fishing or touring. One night walking back from having tea at Murdo's we heard them singing - a truly unearthly sound - sent shivers down our backs. Shades of the Kelpie's song!