Is this real?

Is this really Scotland? Scotland is having an unusual run of warm-hot weather, at least where we are on the north west coast. 

Sunsets seen each night from our home at the beach near Arisaig.

Camusdarach Beach. Seen in the Local Hero movie. We paddled, the water was only a little cold. People were swimming. The sand was very hot on our feet as we left.

Next to the main Camusdarach Beach.

The harbour at Arisaig. On our way via an hour long boat trip to the island of Eigg, the long blue shape with the fin on the horizon.

Cliffs above Laig Bay on Eigg.

Charlie, the island's only taxi driver, drove us the short distance from the harbour to his house overlooking Laig Bay, telling us many stories of island life and history. His t-shirt did say 'Don't believe a word he says...!' But we did have fun. Look him up on you-tube.

Walking down to Laig Bay beach. It was hot.

The wondrous wide beach of white sand marbled with mineral sands. The island of Rum floating on the blue water.

Another day of sunshine. On the ferry with supplies for the remote community on Knoydart Penisula which has no road access.

The view from Knoydart's only cafe. Not too shabby. 

One more sunset from our kitchen window at about 10.20pm. The sky still glows blue until after midnight as we approach the longest day of the year.

Next stop - Mull
 

Lazing in the sunshine - The Lakes

This cannot possibly be The Lakes, can it? I mean, it always rains here. The Lakes are one of the wettest regions in Britain. We have been here before, in summer  and it rained almost every day. But look at this weather! Ridiculously sunny and dry, maximum temperatures of 19 and 20 and 23. This is the view from the driveway of our cottage for the week.

Our home was a slated-roofed stone cottage on the edge of the village of Grasmere.

I really wanted to go fell walking, which means walking up those surrounding hills and mountains, enjoying the freedom of feeling like you are above and away from all the business of worldy life, but, alas  I am still using crutches to rest my darn knee. So, we did bus trips and short very easy strolls/hobbles. 

Buttermere

Look at those fells!

Honiston Pass on the bus. The bus drivers are incredible! Negotiating narrow winding roads, often pausing the squeeze past oncoming vehicles with millometers to spare.

Allan Bank in Grasmere, one of the houses William Wordsworth lived in.

I sat sketching in the bay window of the room that was once Wordworth's study while Sheryl went for a fell walk.

Coniston Lake. A cruise on the elegant 163 year old steam gondola. Surprisingly quiet.

Old Man Coniston is the highest peak above the lake and the village. On a previous visit, I climbed that mountain  surrounded by cloud and wind, a surreal experience.

Lunch in the village of Coniston, at the foot of the mountains.

Lake Windemere is the largest and busiest of the Lakes. Its towns are too busy for us.

Canada geese have joined the tourists and taken over. 

Our final day. The tiny hamlet of Skelwith Bridge has a lovely cafe with the best food and a deck on the forested River bank. 

After lunch we went for a walk up the river to the Langdale Valley and Elterwater. And then back to the cafe for the best scones and an iced coffee as it was hot in the sun.

This easy path is officially part of The Cumbria Way, one of the long distance walks on our list that we are now not doing for obvious reasons. All I can do is gaze longingly at those mountains at the end of the valley. My knee is improving. I walked over 2kms today, and even walked some of that without the crutches.

One of my favourite residents of The Lakes, a Herdwick sheep. A local native breed.

Tomorrow - we head north to another country.

Hobbling

Hobbling around North Yorkshire. 

I found a jigsaw puzzle in our cottage, only one piece missing. Read a Vera novel. We spent a week here and went out every day, but I am still mostly sitting and still using the crutches.

My private taxi driver, Sheryl drove us around to see villages and moorland. This is Staithes.

Did a bus tour around Whitby which is too big and too hilly for crutch-walking and rather drab and crowded. Saw the famous Abbey but didn't bother to go in - too touristy, too many people and too much Dracula merchandise. This is where Bram Stoker wrote Dracula and where Captain Cook set sail to 'discover' Australia's east coast.

Driving across the moors had to substitute for long walks over them. The views were rather dramatic. We saw where the Coast to Coast walk crosses the moors and valleys, so you could say we have been on another long distance walk.

We saw lapwings, curlews and plenty of sheep.

Reivaulx Abbey ruins, a day of peace and serenity. The Cistertian monks knew how to find beautiful locations for their settlements.

Robin Hood's Bay was the most attractive seaside village that we visited. It has no known association with Robin Hood who never existed anyway, no one knows why it has this name.

We sat on the terrace of the pub and watched two men walk onto the beach to complete their Coast to Coast walk, wishing that was us.

Enjoyed chips and cider on the small terrace of the cosy Bay Hotel.

Found an owl in the woods near "England's best view." The view was nice but we've seen better.

We were wondering how to fill in our last full day, watching Michael Portillo on the tellie on one of his train journeys and he went to Bempton Cliffs. Over an hour's drive but we went. Wow! So many nesting seabirds and so close! 2 1/2 hour's and 177 photos later...

Easily accessible on a well-formed path with several viewing platforms. Possibly a thousand people spread out along the cliff tops and at least half a million birds nesting on the cliffs, floating on the waves and soaring and circling in the air. Awesome!

Did I say the birds were awesome!! The next day we packed and left the North Yorkshire Moors, heading west toward The Lakes, stopping to see Malham Cove in The Dales. It is a short easy walk, if you are not on crutches, but I managed it.

Next stop - The Lakes. Will this dry weather hold in one of the wettest regions of England?