June, Hazel & I set off to circumnavigate Kerrera Island by hoof, 9 miles, and 1mile extra to/from the Oban ferry. Kerrera, until 1266 belonged to Norway, along with all other islands off Scotland's northern & western coasts. Horseshoe Bay, south of the jetty was where, in 1249, Alaxander II, King of Scotland died leading an army against the Hebrides, & in 1263 , King Haakin of Norway's fleet were defeated by the Scots, under Alexander III at the 'B...

Another big adventure, a road trip from Edinburgh to 'beaver country' in the Knapdale Forest, on the edge of Loch Coille Bharr, in Dubh Loch. Another gorgeous Scottish summer day (seriously, there was sun!), we bypassed Glasgow, taking some byways rather than highways to get to the trial site for reintroduction of beavers into Scotland. Knapdale Forest is in Argyll, one of the most stunning parts of Scotland - Atlantic woodlands with amazing mosses and lichens,...

Edinburgh Fringe Festival! The options so great, where do you start? Breakfast at Black Medicine in South Bridge, then a clever, poignant and fun one woman show on the life of Katherine Hepburn - sold out performance, and brilliant. From there, to the Scottish National Gallery to see a magnificent exhibition of artworks by Peter Doig, still alive, and the first major exhibition in Scotland where he was born in 1959. He grew up in Trinidad then Canada, studied...

The Fal River and inlet, an extensive estuary system, stretches from the capital of Cornwall, Truro, to the open sea between Falmouth and St Anthony Head. Mission today was St Just and St Mawes in the Roseland, both on a peninsula with such a mild climate that ferns, moss, and palms abound, along with boats and ferries on extensive waterways. Lady Viv, Annie her friend, and thereby of Mum's, & I had a day of sunshine, to explore. We took the 'King Harry' ...

Off to Banbury by train to spend a couple of days with friends in Bloxham. Setting the scene: Bloxham: honey colored stone houses and cottages with thatched, slate or stone rooves, walled gardens, window boxes, hanging baskets, stream running through the village, some cobbled streets.... Dorothy: Scot, giver of excellent, dramatic annual Bobbie Burns Supper's, ex actress and BBC TV, antique trader, car boot sale and fair junkie (especially fabrics), wicked s...