Tropical Depression ONE forms in Caribbean

...FIRST TROPICAL DEPRESSION OF THE 2006 SEASON FORMS IN THE
NORTHWESTERN CARIBBEAN SEA...

TROPICAL STORM WARNINGS ARE RECOMMENDED FOR THE CUBAN PROVINCES OF
PINAR DEL RIO AND ISLE OF YOUTH.

INTERESTS ELSEWHERE IN THE EASTERN GULF OF MEXICO SHOULD MONITOR
THE PROGRESS OF THIS SYSTEM.

FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE
INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED
BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE.

AT 800 AM CDT...1300Z...THE BROAD CENTER OF TROPICAL DEPRESSION ONE
WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 21.1 NORTH...LONGITUDE 85.3 WEST OR ABOUT
50 MILES... 80 KM...SOUTH-SOUTHWEST OF CABO SAN ANTONIO ON THE
WESTERN TIP OF CUBA.

THE DEPRESSION IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTH-NORTHWEST NEAR 12 MPH...19
KM/HR...AND THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR THE
NEXT 24 HOURS. THIS MOTION SHOULD BRING THE CENTER OF THE
DEPRESSION THROUGH THE YUCATAN CHANNEL INTO THE SOUTHEASTERN GULF
OF MEXICO TODAY.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 35 MPH...55 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER
GUSTS. SOME STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS...
AND THE DEPRESSION COULD BECOME A TROPICAL STORM LATER TODAY. AN
AIR FORCE RESERVE HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT IS SCHEDULED TO
INVESTIGATE THE DEPRESSION THIS AFTERNOON.

ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 1003 MB...29.62 INCHES.

STORM TIDES OF 2 TO 4 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS ARE POSSIBLE ON
THE SOUTHERN COASTS OF WESTERN CUBA AND THE ISLE OF YOUTH.

AT THIS TIME...THE MAIN THREAT FROM THE DEPRESSION IS HEAVY
RAINFALL. THE DEPRESSION IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE TOTAL RAINFALL
ACCUMULATIONS OF 10 TO 20 INCHES OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF CUBA...
WITH ISOLATED TOTALS OF 30 INCHES OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN. THIS
COULD CAUSE DEVASTATING FLASH FLOODS AND MUDSLIDES. RAINFALL
TOTALS OF 4 TO 8 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE OVER THE CAYMAN ISLANDS...WITH
3 TO 5 INCHES OVER THE NORTHEASTERN PORTION OF THE YUCATAN
PENINSULA. THERE IS ALSO THE POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY RAINFALL OF 4 TO 8
INCHES POSSIBLE OVER THE FLORIDA KEYS AND WESTERN FLORIDA FROM
SUNDAY INTO MONDAY.

Local Mod - 2

So, I went down to the Local Mod on Thursday and Friday to record some of the competitions. I also brought the camera. The latter was not a good idea. On Friday morning, I was called to one side by a high-ranking official within the organising committee to tell me to stop taking pictures, because there were children involved. What a sick world we live in. Oh, everybody else was taking pictures themselves, but that was presumably OK because they had kids in the competition and everything else. Just because I'm a bloke on my own makes me a child molester in disguise, I presume.

I told the chap in question that I was making sound recordings of the competitions; I'm not interested in what I saw, I was there to LISTEN.

Local Mod

On June 7th to 9th, the local Mod takes place here in Stornoway. What is a Mod?

The Mod is a competition, in which children (from age 5 or 6) and adults participate. It is a celebration of Gaelic culture, which is centered on the Western Isles. It is not just about singing and playing music, but also writing literature, reading prose and poetry and even sports. Shinty (camanachd) is a sport which bears a vague resemblance to hockey. Gaelic culture permeates through society here, and those attending the Mod sometimes spontaneously join in the refrain of a popular song.

The Local Mod is aimed at people from Lewis. Last October, the Royal National Mod took place here as well, and was a 6 day spectacular. I do not speak and cannot really understand the Gaelic language, so I focus on the music events. Music is universal, and transcends language and culture. I recorded some of the competitions last year, and you can access about 80 recordings on http://modmusic.bravehost.com. Please be advised that there is a bandwidth limit on a Bravehost site; you may encounter an error message to that effect. In that case, try the next day after 0800 GMT. Bravehost is located on the westcoast of Canada, and they reset the bandwidth counters at midnight their time.

Enjoy!

Videos

Just to tell everybody that I have a webcam (have had it since December 2005), which can be viewed on http://adb41.camstreams.com. The webcam shows what happens outside the window in Stornoway; it's primarily intended to show the weather (it really doesn't always rain here!). I do NOT show myself on the webcam. Occasionally, I show videos through this channel. I'll leave an entry on here when that is going to happen, linking back to this entry to remind you of the procedure.

The procedure is a bit complicated. I start the video more or less exactly at the time I advertise. That time is quoted in BST (British Summer Time). The webcam site has a clock, showing BST. If you're viewing from outside the UK, you need to make a note of the time difference. The videoclip (varying in length from 3 to 15 minutes) will normally be shown 3 or 4 times a day.

When I am about to start the video, the webcam will go offline. You need to press F5 (Refresh) to view the video. If I'm so inclined, I'll open the chatroom facility, but I've gone off chatrooms in recent times.

Ad banners

AOL have decided to introduce ad-banners to all journals, not just the USA ones. This will happen on the roll-out of version 6. I am aware that many J-landers fled the US to the UK when this happened in November, or abandoned AOL altogether. I think AOL is going to lose a good few bloggers out of this. Want to leave feedback? Don't think it's going to do any good whatsoever, but at least you won't have gone out without complaint.

http://journals.aol.com/yoelcrane/thedailygrind/entries/635

Long entry alert

My entry for today was very long, so AOL hiccups and sends out a wireless alert. LOL

Wednesday 07/06/06

Awoke to the news that MV Isle of Lewis is not sailing today because 8 crewmembers and an unknown number of passengers have gone down with a vomiting bug. The ship will be deep-cleaned through today. All bookings have been transferred to the MV Lord of the Isles on the Tarbert to Uig (Skye) route. This does mean that people who expect to travel through Inverness and Ullapool will not be able to make the alternative sailing. Two ladies who were due to stay with us tonight have therefore cancelled. I have my breakfast at the unearthly hour of 8.30, in the presence of a lady from Stirling who is in town for the purposes of adult learning. The other chap has overslept, and mrs B has to go and wake him up, lest he is late for work. At 9.50, mrs B and myself head into town to go on a bustrip round the West Side. The ferry and the tug are both still tied up alongside pier no 3. After buying a load of sweets in the Coffeepot, we leave at 10.10 for the first leg on a 4 stage journey round the sights. Apart from us two there is a German lady on board on a similar mission. We pass the site of the binfight at the Creedpark Corral, and experience the only shower of the day at Achamor. The driver waits at Cameron Terrace, in case anyone wants to change buses coming up from Harris. Not required. Arrive at Callanish at 10.45. We go straight up to the stones, through a flock of sheep. Some are shedding their fleeces prematurely, others have big lambs at foot; one is being headbutted. A group of schoolkids from Lochmaddy are also at Callanish. The Stones are very impressive and set on a commanding position, overlooking Ceann Hulabhig and East Loch Roag. A skylark is singing its head off. At the far end of the Stones, the wee tearoom is shut for renovations. Those have not been carried out by the look of things. A group of 3 are looking for a WC and refreshments, so we redirect them to the Visitor Centre. We follow in their wake. The coffee was nice, one of the two pieces of cake was nice. We spend some time browsing the shop, then have to wait for 1.15 bus on to Carloway. The bus to Stornoway arrives first, then another Galson bus pulls up. I tell the German lady how to get to the Gearrannan Blackhouse Village. A short ride, 15 minutes, brings us to Carloway, where we alight to join a minibus to Gearrannan. The sun is out, and it's pleasantly warm. The bridge at Carloway spans both the river and the Pentland Road. Finally, the minibus turns up. There are 7 passengers on board. Over at Gearrannan, at 13.50, we dive into the restaurant first. Late lunch, in the shape of fish & chips. Slightly bland, but fine. We subsequently amble through the village. A large load of straw lies behind the visitor centre, intended to replace the thatch on all the houses. The current thach looks dreadful, and the thatcher apparently forgot to insert breathing strips between the felt and the thatch. Result: rotted thatch. Each house requires 12 tons of straw. There is a line of foam outside the bay. As we have seen the museum, we do not have to visit it again. After a glass of juice, we rejoin the bus to reach the final attraction: the Norse Mill, just west of Shawbost. This can be reached from a small carpark on the eastern shore of Loch Roiseabhat. A neat gravelpath leads over a low ridge to the mill and kiln. The mill no longer works, but mrs B tells me her mother used to go down there in the 1940s. A lady walks down the path with her 5 year old son. The little lad tells us exactly how the mill works. She mentions that she is not entirely happy after 2 years in Lewis - the wind never stops. The kiln and the mill are housed in separate buildings, neatly restored. The bus back to town leaves at 5.05, after mrs B digs out a few plants she would like to have in her garden. She then notices a second cousin coming on the bus in one of the villages, so a pleasant ceilidh is had there and then. The run between Barvas and Newmarket is done at a slow pace, we "only" take 10 minutes 15 seconds. Previous record was 8 minutes 58 seconds over 9 miles. Average speed 60 mph. We return to the bus station at 5.45 - strange to see the ferry docked at this time of the day. On return to Newton, Mrs B takes in two men to take the place of the ladies who cancelled. A fishing boat is reported having hit rocks 15 miles outside Carloway. The coastguard is marshalling resources, helicopter, rescue teams, private vessels, to come to the boat's aid. The search for the missing fishermen north of Skye has been abandoned, although they were not found. Their fate is unknown.

Tuesday 06/06/06 afternoon & evening

During the afternoon, the Hebridean Princess (luxury cruiseliner) and the ocean going tug & supply vessel Normand Master come into port. The HP had come across from Ullapool to allow passengers to go ashore for tours of Lewis. 8-day cruises on this ship, an old Calmac ferry, cost up to £7,600. Yep. That much. The Normand Master is a brandnew ship, only 3 years old, built to the latest specs. She is 82 m long, 20 wide and has a draft of 7.5 m, which is very deep for a ship her size (4,400 tonnes). The tug creeps into port, with a pilot on board. She finally berths at number 3 pier, on the ferry berth. By 8pm she'll have to shift to give way to the ferry. Another vessel, whose name I cannot make out, spends a few hours working on the light beacon off Arnish Point. A short sharp shower passes at 3pm, with another one by 5. I have sent an email to the Mexican weather agency, asking them to confirm the rainfall totals for Acapulco this weekend. Methinks the NOAA (US weather agency) got their units in a twist. I just cannot believe that 1,000 mm of rain would fall in 3 or 6 hours, without washing the place into the sea. The tugboat retreats into Glumag Harbour (which is 42 ft deep) while the ferry berths for the night. Fog comes down after 9. As soon as the worst of the fog lifts, by 9.45, the Hebridean Princess departs for St Kilda. The tug goes alongside no 3 pier. The Princess will be carrying the Queen later this summer, when she comes to Stornoway for her 80th birthday celebrations.

06/06/06

Today is also the 62nd anniversary of the D-day landings in Normandy, France. On the 6th of June, 1944, a huge invasion force landed on beaches in northern France, an effort that heralded the beginning of the end of World War Two. After three months of steady progress, the march north towards Germany was halted after the abortive crossing of the River Rhine at Arnhem, Holland. It was another five months before a fortuitous crossing of the river was made at Remagen, south of Cologne. Combined with an onslaught of Soviet forces from the east, this finally brought on the demise of Nazi Germany on May 8th, 1945.

Those that lay down their lives in this campaign are remembered on Armistice Day, November 11th. It is important to include in those commemorations the millions of people who were exterminated as part of a premeditated act of mass murder in dozens of camps across occupied Europe. The name Auschwitz is synonymous with cruelty beyond imagination. The remains of the camp are still there, but I am not likely to visit it. Way too evocative.

This entry is to those that brought down Nazi Germany. And to those who fell to its evil. There are still those who seek to deny or negate what happened.

Lest we forget.

Temperature warnings

40 degrees- Californians shiver uncontrollably. People in Scotland sunbathe.

35 degrees- Italian cars won't start. People in Scotland drive with the windows down.

20 degrees- Floridians wear coats, gloves, and wool hats. People in Scotland throw on a T-shirt.

15 degrees- Californians begin to evacuate the state. People in Scotland go swimming.

Zero degrees- New York landlords finally turn up the heat. People in Scotland have the last bbq before it gets cold.

20 degrees below zero- Californians fly away to Mexico. People in Scotland think about a light jacket.

80 degrees below zero- Polar bears begin to evacuate the Arctic Scottish Boy Scouts postpone "Winter Survival" classes until it gets cold enough.

100 degrees below zero- Santa Claus abandons the North Pole. People in Scotland throw on their Big jumpers.

173 degrees below zero- Ethyl alcohol freezes.. People in Scotland get frustrated when they can't thaw their kegs.

460 degrees below zero- ALL atomic motion stops. People in Scotland start saying "chilly, you cald an aw?"

500 degrees below zero- Hell freezes over. Scottish people think about supporting England in World Cup!!!!

Tuesday 06/06/06 - morning

Mrs B received one more guest, and he didn't come until after midnight. She was not best pleased, and when she's not pleased, you'd better hide. The poor chap apologised his way in the door, and out of the door again at 6.40. I am awake myself at that hour, and cannot sleep, so I join mrs B downstairs for a bacon roll. It's a brilliantly sunny morning, and at this early hour, the sun shines through the back window until 7 o'clock. The ferry departs for the mainland at 7.25, with the workers in the fish factory slowly ambling up the causeway. High cloud moves across the sky during the morning, obscuring the sun by 11 o'clock. A starling chick had left the nest, but it can't fly properly. A dirty big seagull alights on top of the caravan, slavers and swoops down to carry the hapless creature away for his elevenses. Two hoodie crows quickly speed to the scene of carnage on a nearby rooftop. This totally silences the excited chattering in the clematis, where the starlings were nesting. Mrs B is distraught, I'm kicking myself for not chasing the gull away.

6 6 6

Today is 06/06/06, which comes very close to 666, the Number of the Beast, more concisely: the Devil. I tagged above image from a feature on a leading website (ahem), which explained all about other unlucky numbers such as 13. Anyway, I'm supposed not to be superstitious, so I'll touch wood, cross fingers, avoid walking under ladders, do not go near houses that have black cats in them (had one myself for 15 years, poor old Tom) and throw salt over the requisite shoulder if I spill some.

Missing fishermen

Police divers searching the wreck of FV Brothers have found no trace of either crewman in it. Local info in Stornoway suggests the boat was damaged, and the escape hatches were open. The strong tidal currents in the Minch account for the liferings to be 35 miles away from the wreck, and may well have carried both men away as well. Hope has all but been abandoned to find them alive.

Monday 05/06/06

Although it's only 8pm, I thought I'd take the opportunity to write today's diary.

At 4 am this morning there was thick fog. So thick in fact, that it was not possible to see much beyond the seawall on the other side of the street. By 5.30 a.m., the causeway was just distinguishable through the fog. At 7.30, Goat Island and the Coastguard Station were clear, and the Arnish Lighthouse was just about visible. The ferry left, blowing her foghorn every minute. Heard later that the Uist to Harris ferry had to go to anchor half way through its crossing, because the fog made it impossible to navigate. The Sound of Harris is too treacherous to sail by radar alone. By late morning, the fog had lifted and the low cloud quickly burned away. The wreck of the fishing boat "Brothers" that I mentioned over the weekend will be surveyed by police divers today. She lies 40 miles to the south of here, just off the northern tip of Skye. A big cruiseliner, Astor, lies anchored off Sandwick. Her passengers are ferried ashore with tenders, and buses are on standby to take them round Lewis. Two French fishing boats leave port, having effected a crew change. Tropical depression 2E has now moved east along the Mexican west coast and is at the point of dissipating. As I go into town at 2.20, the last of the low cloud vanishes and it turns into a gloriously sunny if cool afternoon in the breeze. Have tea outside with mrs B, but it's a wee bit chilly. The starlings are making a racket. Yesterday, they all had a panick attack, just because a cat walked past. It looked in with a look on its face as if to say "I'm only walking past, what's the fuss?" The Astor departs at 7.15. Tomorrow, the Hebridean Princess will take her place. The HP is a lot smaller, and she'll dock at no 1 pier. More info on quite a few cruiseliners can be found at www.cruisecal.com, which includes itineraries and webcam links.

If I have anything else to report, I shall do so in a separate entry.

VisitHebrides

One of the things that keep me occupied during the day, apart from looking out of the window at either the weather or passing ships, is going on the messageboard on the above website, www.visithebrides.com. The messageboard is there to help those that wish to visit the Outer Hebrides. I think I know the place well enough to help prospective visitors out with queries about camping, accommodation, sights to see and routes to travel. One person sent me an email today (Monday 5th) to thank me for my efforts.

Hi there,
Just wanted to thank you for the useful info&insights you gave via your weblog and the VisitHebrides site about Stornoway and The Islands.

I have been checking in for quite a few months since I first decided to go out there on my bike, which was when via the Hebs site you sent the link to your weblog. I persuaded a pal to join me on the strength of what I knew - which is what I knew from you mostly - and we had a great cycling holiday, going from Vatesay - our fave place as it turned out (or was that Berneray?), up to Lewis between 21-30 May.

We found your info to be reliable and it helped shape a very memorable trip.We arrived in Stornoway knackered on Sunday last week after cycling 45 miles over the dreaded Clisham from Luskentyre. Encountered hail and snow up on top of there as we huddled together and ate noodles from our stove,in a bus stop in the mountains above Harris listening to Radio 4! Its the most inspiring and funniest holiday we ever had - either of us. Stayed in The Royal Hotel in Stornoway on Sunday night last week as the Stornoway hostels in the Rough Guide we had seemed shut down.Needed night under bricks,not canvas! Cost more than the the rest of trips' accommodation put together, but fantastic to have a shower and be in a real bed with real TV and lights! In all, including the Inverness-Ullapool stretch we did 265 miles. Amazing for 2 amateurs who just cycle to work&back in Liverpool.Made me laugh to think you were somewhere nearby as we sat in an icy wind on the quay,waiting to get on the ferry to Ullapoollast Tuesday morn by Somerfield..!

Many, many thanks and here's to you fullfilling your own goals as you have helped us fullfil ours on our trip to the Outer Hebs which will hopefully be the first of many.

Regards

Ach, makes it all worthwhile, doesn't it :-)

Photo scavenger hunt #78

I have recently started to contribute to the Photo Scavenger Hunt, as organised by Krissy and her sister Val. This week's theme is Black and White. This past winter saw some light conditions, which leeched all colour out of the scenery. I have pulled some of those images together in the above gallery. Enjoy!

Sunday 04/06/06

Am woken by a very bright sunrise at 4.45 am. A powercut occurs at 5.26 am, which we find out about later, when all the electrical clocks turn out to be on the blink. The search for the missing fishermen has been scaled down after the wreck of their boat was located to the north of Skye. The liferings of the boat were found 35 miles away, in Loch Broom, northwest of Ullapool. The weather is grey and misty, with a force 3 wind. At 4.30 pm, the lighthouse boat comes into port. It carries a helicopter on deck. The sailing yacht Scorpio comes in under windpower at the same time. Four guests come to stay: a German girl with her mum and a Swedish couple. Everybody is very disappointed that everything is shut on Sunday. Heard that before, didn't I. Dinner was tatties [potato mash] and mince, with green cabbage. Rhubarb crumble with custard as a sweet. At 8pm, the MCS Lenie comes into port; she is a small tug. The evening here remains very peaceful and calm, with reflections in the water.

Rainfall

If anyone is thinking of going to southwestern Mexico at the moment, I wouldn't recommend it. They have had two tropical depressions on their doorstep, and over the past 24 hours, the rainfall totals have gone off the scale. Since midnight GMT today, Acapulco has had 76 inches of rainfall, which is roughly equivalent to 1,900 mm. The average rainfall in London in a year is 800 mm. Totals are until 14.45 GMT - more is expected as tropical depression TWO-E continues to slowly drift inland. She is expected to dissipate by late Monday.

Saturday 03/06/06

The Canadians are leaving for the mainland on the lunchtime ferry. We say farewell at 11 o'clock, after which they head into town. Their hirecar is losing oil; it's a 06-reg (i.e. less than 3 months old) vehicle. The house seems empty all of a sudden. It's dry this morning, but quite grey. At 2.30, I nip into the arts centre An Lanntair [The Lantern] to view two exhibitions by two local artists. Angus Morrison (1870-1942) lived at Ness, north Lewis. His paintings are strongly maritime, with images of the ships he sailed on. He also showed an image that is familiar to me, the Doune Chapel at Filiscleitir. The second artist is Joanne Breen, a lady of Irish extraction who made Lewis her second home. She died in 2002. Her work, tapestries, are made with discarded threads and cuttings from Harris Tweed looms, and strongly influenced by the colours and shapes of the Lewis moor. The search for the missing fishermen yields a partial success: the boat is found sunk just off Eilean Trodday, a mile or so north of Skye. Two of its liferings were found nearby. The crewmen were not in the vessel, and the search for them goes on. Very low cloud drifts below the tops of the Arnish hills. A fine drizzle falls in the middle of the afternoon, but it brightens up very slowly through the evening. The sun comes out at 9.25. The second tropical depression in the Eastern Pacific does not pack much of a punch in terms of winds (below gale force), just dumps 471 mm of rain on Acapulco.

Missing fishermen

The search for the missing fishermen was resumed early this morning (Saturday). At 5pm this afternoon, it was announced that the wreck of their boat, FV The Brothers, had been located in the water near Eilean Trodday, just north of Skye. Unfortunately, there has been no sign of the two crewmen. One of them was due to attend his grandmother's funeral yesterday.

Lingering light

The accompanying pictures, taken at 1 a.m., show the light that lingers in the north at the depth of the night up here. Sunset: 10.20 pm, sunrise: 04.25 am. Darkest time of the night: 01.20 am. The solstice is 18 days away. Stornoway is at 58° N (London is at 51°N, Vancouver (Canada) at 49). We are 8° south of the Arctic circle, hence the lingering dusk. At Lerwick, on the 60th parallel, it remains formally light all night, although the sun does set for a few hours. It's magical.

Missing at sea (2)

The search for the fishing vessel The Brothers was called off at 6pm tonight (June 2nd), when the weather closed in. Realistically speaking, there is no chance for the men to be found alive, unless they managed to gain the shoreline. Will update tomorrow, Saturday. View this report on BBC Online

Friday 02/06/06

A dreich start to the day, windy as well. A fishing boat is reported missing out of Gairloch, on the west coast, and the whole of the Minch is being scoured for it. Not just by the Coastguard, but also 3 lifeboats and about 5 fishermen. Oil and debris were found off Gairloch, but their connection to the incident is uncertain. By 6pm, the search was called off due to deteriorating visibility. A large Norwegian boat, the Ronja Pioneer, comes into port at lunchtime. A fishery protection vessel, the German boat Seeadler [Sea Eagle] comes in as well. Go into town at 4pm on a mission, to find a copy of Metagama. This is a book about the boat of the same name on which hundreds of Lewismen emigrated to Canada in the 1920s. The book is out of print and unavailable. I'm also having quite a job finding today's Glasgow Herald. This contains job adverts, and is much sought after. The Canadians are having a meal in house tonight, after driving round the West Side. The weather closed in, and they went no furthern than Barvas. A nice time was had by all on this, their last evening in Stornoway. Tomorrow, they're off to Inverness.

Missing at sea

Reports came in this morning that the fishing vessel The Brothers, registered at Banff (eastcoast), but operating out of Gairloch, was overdue. She had left the westcoast harbour of Gairloch at 2 am on Thursday to fish for prawns. Her return had been anticipated for late Thursday evening, but the alarm was raised when The Brothers did not return. Coastguard, five fishing vessels and a lifeboat are scouring a huge area of sea between Kyle of Lochalsh and Cape Wrath in the east and the Western Isles and Skye to the west. An oil slick and wreckage were found at Gairloch, but are not though to be related to the incident.

Unfortunately, the fishing industry is the least safe industry to work in. In the 18 months that I've been in Lewis, several fishermen have gone overboard, and were never recovered from the sea. They usually wear oilskins, which will quickly weigh you down. The seawater temperature of the Atlantic varies between 9 and 14C (48 and 57 F), which gives you a survival span of 45 minutes. Other men have suffered injury and have had to be airlifted off their boats, up to 200 miles west of Lewis.

Thursday 01/06/06

Breakfast at 10 am, on a grey and windy day. As I'm a little the worse for wear, I'm not up to much. It's supposed to be 15 C outside, but doesn't feel like it. News comes through that the Duke of Rothesay, Prince Charles, is visiting the Isle of Rum. The Phoenix Trust, which the Prince patronises, is having a look round Kinloch Castle on Rum to see how they can assist in the £6m restoration of the building. The Kinloch Castle Friends Association gives more information, as does a separate entry in this journal. I direct the Canadians to the Iolaire Monument, after which they go on to meet more long-lost cousins. I get the regional papers in. The Gazette is full of the non-compost mentis fracas on the Lochs Road last Saturday. A senior member of the Health Board could be summarily dismissed for breach of confidentiality. Three patients died of cancer, after follow-up investigations and treatment recommendations did not reach their GP following their admission to hospital in Stornoway and a subsequent diagnosis of cancer. In one instance, the discharge letter took a mere 8 weeks to reach the GP. Normal is 1 week maximum. Total breakdown of communication, total meltdown of the organisation. I go for an amble up the Goat Island causeway, looking round the boats on the island. A minibus full of workers (from Poland, Byelorus and the Baltic states) for hares past and pulls up outside the fish processing plant. Mrs B's granddaughter comes to collect the clothes her granny ordered for her. The young lady will be 11 in August. The Canadians don't come back until after midnight, but we still lay on a ceilidh until 1.30 a.m.

Isle of Rum and Kinloch Castle

Kinloch Castle is what's known as a folly. It was built in 1897 by George Bullough, an industrialist from Accrington, Lancashire (England). He had money to burn, and no expenses were spared in the construction of this red sandstone pile. It's not just the grand scale of the castle, it's the interior that take your breath away. It was designed to so in George Bullough's day, and still does. The bathroom had 14 different showers and douches, the bedrooms were laid out in the best finery money could buy. The ballroom has a grandpiano from 1902, which I played myself in October 2004. The piano stands on a tiger skin. It is surrounded by a gruesome sculpture of a monkey eagle, Japanese vases standing 8 feet tall. An orchestrion, which can play a number of musical instruments mechanically, is installed. It's one of 6 remaining in the world, and the only one that'll still play. Until World War 1, there was a heated conservatory which housed an alligator, seaturtles and tropical birds. A hydroelectric plant (still in use) provided the power required. After the Great War, the conservatories fell into decay. The alligator was shot, the turtles released into the sea and the wee birds died of cold. The last descendant of the Bulloughs, Lady Monica, died in 1957, aged 97. She followed her husband the 8 miles to the family mausoleum at Harris, on the southwestern face of Rum. Over the shoulder of Fionchra, past Salisbury's disastrous dam. It's a rough track, which takes 3 hours to walk and 3 hours to drive. Efforts to improve the road fail, precisely because of its calamitous state. These days, the castle is plagued by damp and rot. The former servants quarters are in use as a hostel or hotel. As I indicated, I visited Rum in October 2004 (see the relevant entry in the Northern Trip - The Start journal).  I'm sad when I think of Rum. None of its indigenous residents remain, they were all forcibly removed in 1826, and Rum has since been the domain of red deer. After 1957, SNH (Scottish Natural Heritage) took over, and Kilmory Glen (on the northern side of the island) became the focus for behavioural studies of the deer. Thirty people, all SNHor castle employees, live on the island. Plans are afoot to boost this number to 80, unrelated to SNH.

Rowan Trees

The rowan is said to have magical properties. In these islands, when a new house was built, a rowan was planted beside it to ward off evil spirits. The rowan was said to be wise, and was privy to everything that happened in the house. It celebrated the births and the marriages that took place, and mourned those that passed away in the house.

In the 19th century, thousands of people were evicted from their land. Others left of their own volition, seeing no future in the West of Scotland. The house would remain, and slowly fall into ruin. The rowan tree would remain, and mourn the disappearance of its inhabitants. It would recount the happiness and the sadness. And forever sigh in the wind, hoping for the people to return.

Robert Burns wrote a poem about the Rowan Tree:

The Rowan Tree.

Oh! Rowan Tree Oh! Rowan Tree!
Thou'lt aye be dear to me,
Entwined thou art wi mony ties,
O' hame and infancy.
Thy leaves were aye the first o' spring,
Thy flow'rs the simmer's pride;
There was nae sic a bonny tree
In a' the countrieside
Oh! Rowan tree!
How fair wert thou in simmer time,

Wi' a' thy clusters white
How rich and gay thy autumn dress,
Wi' berries red and bright.
On thy fair stem were many names,
Which now nae mair I see,
But they're engraven on my heart.
Forgot they ne'er can be!
Oh! Rowan tree!
We sat aneath thy spreading shade,

The bairnies round thee ran,
They pu'd thy bonny berries red,
And necklaces they strang.
My Mother! Oh, I see her still,
She smil'd oor sports to see,
Wi' little Jeanie on her lap,
And Jamie at her knee!
Oh! Rowan tree!
Oh! there arose my Father's pray'r,

In holy evening's calm,
How sweet was then my Mither's voice,
In the Martyr's psalm;
Now a' are gane! we meet nae mair
Aneath the Rowan Tree;
But hallowed thoughts around thee twine
O' hame and infancy.
Oh! Rowan tree!

Dusk

The above picture was taken at 10.38 pm tonight. Want to see more for yourself at any time? Check out the webcam.

Logging in - or not

Had one heck of a job getting logged on for emails tonight. I went through AOL France, Germany, Canada, UK and USA. And they all reported a fault in the Screen Name Service. Persistence paid off, finally managed to get through at 10 pm (BST).

By the way, beware of virus alerts from anyone that is NOT your anti-virus software. A very dangerous scam is in operation, which can hold your files to ransom ("Ransomware"). A 30-digit password can be purchased by buying from a Russia-based on-line pharmacy. One person had to pay $75 to get her stuff back.

Advice: if you haven't already got them - install a firewall and anti-virus software, and use a spyware catcher like Ad-Aware. Some people are definitely out to spoil your on-line experience, it would seem. Yuk.

Wednesday 31/05/06

Nice morning, fairly sunny, but with a veil of high cloud moving across. Rain is expected for later today. The Swiss guests go off on the early ferry. The Dutch ones are heading out to Callanish for the morning, before leaving on the lunchtime boat. The gentleman used to work for the same shipping company that mrs B's late husband used to work on in the 1950s. At 11 a.m., a group of 4 Canadians come in, who have come to seek out long-lost relatives in North Tolsta. As in, go to the Post Office and ask around. Directed them towards the right roads and generally a nice chat was had by all. As the Dutch folks had left their luggage in the bus station, they are not coming back to Newton, so I meet them as they come off the Callanish bus at 12.15. It's windy and cold outside. The sun slowly disappears behind the veil of cloud, which presages the arrival of a weatherfront from the Atlantic. Rain is expected before 6pm. I go out to post a delayed letter at the Sandwick Road postal depot. Rain arrives at 4.30. Read that the ferry on the Armadale - Mallaig route is out of action. As a result, the Small Isles ferry has to take over, before and after its scheduled runs to Eigg, Rum, Muck and Canna. She cannot carry coaches. The Canadians return at 10.30 pm, having traced their relatives in Tolsta and Stornoway. In order to celebrate, some Canadian whisky is brought out. A good time was had by all, until after midnight.

Excitement

For those of you who think nothing really ever happens in Stornoway (not true), I'd like to refer you to my separate journal, devoted to a storm which took place on 11 November 2005. This is the nameday of St Martin, hence the journal's name: St Martin's Storm. You need to start at the last entry in the journal; don't worry, it's not very long.

Tuesday 30/05/06

The two couples disappear for the day - one heads for the Uists via Uig beach. Bit of a diversion. Apparently there is a kite-flying festival down there that I don't know about. The Swiss couple goes on the 9.10 bus round the West Side. It's a cloudy yet bright day. Still cold. Isles FM blunder by telling us that the Costa Classica cruiseliner was here yesterday rather than on Sunday. The barge is still dredging for hawsers and other discarded materials in the Glumag. It's taking rather longer than planned. Tropical Storm Aletta in the East Pacific is downgraded to a Tropical Depression, and the NHC is no longer issuing warnings about her. The Coastguard were busy this weekend rescuing people from the sea this weekend. A cruiseliner was detained at Harwich (Essex) because of a viral infection on baord. The lunchtime ferry brings an elderly couple from Amsterdam, who are over for a 24 hour visit from their campsite in Ullapool. They have been caravanning up and down the north and west of Scotland, and still have about 3 weeks of their holiday left. Mrs B's ovendoor gets seen to by an engineer, because it tends to pop open in mid-session. At 3pm, I go for a walk round the Castle Grounds as far as Cuddy Point. A heron is fishing in the Inner Harbour near the Stepping Stones. At Cuddy Point, there is a Marie Curie Cancer Care memorial garden. Return uphill behind Lady Matheson's Memorial and Lews Castle. As I walk back down Kenneth Street, I come across the Dutch folk, who are in danger of being overrun by cars. A large lorry is parked in the street, forcing drivers to mount the kerb. Somerfields is full of tourists. Americans asking the girl at the checkout if she needs to see their card, whilst paying cash. Erm? Later on, the MV Explorer hoves into view at Arnish Point. She is a small, 2400 tonnes, cruiseliner, which sails on cruises to the Antarctic. Explorer can take 108 passengers and has 53 crew. The boat measures 74 by 14 metres [246 by 46 ft], can do up to 13 knots and has several auxiliary craft. Some of those are used to ferry passengers ashore. Explorer leaves Stornoway before 11pm; a flying visit.

CarnivAOL

Paul at CarnivAOL has incorporated my entry of 6th May this year in his oddity cabinet, entitled CarnivAOL. As my part of the deal, I link back to his entry. With pleasure actually, as it is a multi-coloured bunch of entries from all over J-land. Enjoy!

Aurora Borealis / Northern Lights

Tonight (May 30th), there is an increased chance of seeing the Northern Lights. You need to be south of the 55th parallel (USA readers are fine, unless in Alaska), have an unimpeded view of the northern horizon and NO light pollution on the northern horizon, or in your immediate vicinity. Those using shortwave or mediumwave radio may experience severe interference.

Have a look on http://www.dcs.lancs.ac.uk/iono/aurorawatch/

Tropical Hurricane Season

The season for tropical hurricanes is upon us once more. At the moment, there are no active systems in the Atlantic, but the National Hurricane Center has warned of another very active season, like 2005. The USA can expect several major systems to come barrelling through, not just into the Gulf of Mexico, but also veering up the East Coast.

Atlantic Tropical Hurricanes can come to haunt the UK as well. Although they require seawater temperatures of 27C / 80F or over to be sustained in their intense state, their remnants regularly get incorporated in the North Atlantic jetstream. One such remains caused the October 1987 hurricane in southern England. It was an "ordinary" Atlantic depression, but with a nasty sting in its tail. Beware.

You can keep an eye on the storms (sic) by visiting http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/, which incorporates an RSS-feed. You can select which area of the world you want to have warnings for. Although some of the pages are quite technical, the advisories are in plain English.

Monday 29/05/06

Our Australian guest heads out for the sights on the West Side. Gave him a timetable for his staggered journey, with stops at Callanish and Gearrannan. He is set to return to town at 5pm, to join the 5.30 bus to Tarbert. The weather isn't very good; as the morning wears on, a litany of showers pass through, one or two with hail mixed in. Is this really May 29th? Temperature (9C) would suggest something more like February. On the other hand, the National Hurricane Center in Florida announces the first tropical storm of the East Pacific season: Aletta. She is not very strong, just galeforce winds (35 - 45 kts). She is situated just under 100 miles west of Acapulco, lashing the coast with rain. An RSS feed to the NHC site keeps me abreast of developments. The pen I use for the written journal finally gives out after 5 weeks of loyal service. Today, two couples come to stay. The first arrive on the badly delayed ferry (it's 2 hours late for an unknown reason). They are Swiss, and don't have much English to show for themselves. Consequently, Mrs B calls on me to help them out by talking in either French or German. My French is rusted, so I carry on in German. The other couple call in at 5.15, after I had gone into town to buy a new pen and the Monday papers. I welcome the guests, as mrs B was delayed shopping. A new promotional paper has been printed, which tells me that the Cleitir Hotel at Sildinis [Balallan] has been renamed: it's now the Erisort Inn. The Cleitir was badly battered after the January '05 hurricane, two windows blown in and a good many slates off the roof. The evening ferry arrives at 9.30. Light fades at 11.30.

Viewings

I don't know which counter tells the truth, but the AOL one says there have been

5000
pageviews since starting this journal on October 8th, 2004. The sitemeter lags behind, but they use a different definition. Nonetheless, thanks for taking an interest.

 

Ghost Story

Jeannette, over in Jeannette's Jottings featured a ghost story in her last entry. Which I thought was a pretty good excuse to tell a ghost story I read about a year ago. It centres on a village which is now derelict; it's called Kinloch Resort (pronounce Raysort), on the border of Lewis and Harris. Today, it's a mournful place, difficult to reach. You need to traipse across 5 miles of the soggiest moorland you'll ever find in the island, or across the Harris hills.

Years ago, when Kinloch Resort was a small but thriving community, someone sent for a carpenter. He had to come over the hills from Harris, and brought all his own timber. After the job was finished, he was going to leave any timber left over in the village, but the villagers told him to take it back with him. So, the carpenter loaded the timber onto his horse and started the trek up into the hills. After a while, he heard a strange tapping noise. As if a hammer was striking wood. Tap, tap, tap. The man turned round, but nothing could be seen. The wind was sighing through the moorland grass and the river gurgled in its bed. He shrugged and continued the climb. The tapping sound returned. Tap, tap, tap. He whirled round, expecting the children from the village to be scarpering downhill, back to Kinloch Resort. Nothing. At length, the tapping sounds ceased, and the carpenter returned to his home. He found his wife seriously ill, and although he tended to her immediately, she died that same night. The next day, the carpenter gathered up the wood he had brought back from Kinloch Resort and started to build the coffin for his wife. Tap, tap, tap, his hammer went. A shiver ran down his spine, as the sound was awfully familiar. Tap, tap, tap. The same noise that had echoed across the empty moorlands above Kinloch Resort. As if to say - you'll be hearing this sound very shortly. When you're building your wife's coffin.

Sunday 28/05/06

A latish start to the day. Weather is changeable with the odd shower between some bright intervals. I have breakfast for 10, the Aussie guest has his at 11. I watch Landward on BBC1, as it featured a problem with foxes in the islands. Foxes are not native here, and cause devastation amongst both wildlife and farm animals. At 1pm, a large cruiseliner appears from the south. It's the Italian cruiseliner Costa Classica, on her way round the UK, with a complement of Italian passengers on board. They have come on a bad day - it's Sunday. Nothing is open, nothing runs (except for taxi's). Normally, cruiseliners arrive at 7am, and a fleet of coaches will ferry  passengers all over the island. Not today. After the liner anchors behind Arnish Point, the tenders ply back and forth to bring passengers to the town - and back to the ship. The Costa Classica can carry up to 1,300. Tender upon tender disgorges passengers onto the ferry linkspan. As I walk through the deserted town centre (normal on a Sunday), the streets echo to the sound of excited Italian voices. They point to the 'cathedral' (just Martin's Memorial Church). The rain starts to fall and it's just such a sad sight. Nothing there for those poor folk. I find a webcam positioned on the bridge of the cruiseliner, and look back at Newton, 2 miles to the nroth. The Costa Classica is visible on my webcam. Heard that yesterday they were giving away compost bins at the Creed Industrial Park. Every household in Lewis is entitled to 3 bins. So, all Lewis pile up and down the A859, miles and miles of tailbacks (on the A859, unbelieveable), fraying tempers and the Highway Code in the compost bin. The give-away was halted, police closed the road and that was that. Mrs B goes up to Engebretsen's at 3.30. This is the only shop open in the whole of Lewis and Harris, and it's absolutely heaving. The last passengers return to the cruiseliner between 5 and 6. She weighs anchor at 6.10, and I watch her move out of sight, also using the ship's own webcams. Next port of call - Invergordon, 30 miles north of Inverness. Interesting to see Stornoway from a cruiseliner - she was anchored west of Holm Point. Oh, did I mention that Big Brother has started in the UK? Won't mention it again. Mrs B serves me a very nice dinner at 7pm, consisting of salmon and sirloin steak. Very yummy.

Saturday 27/05/06

Fairly early start today, certainly for mrs B. Her first set of guests leave at 6.45, the young lady who is running the half marathon leaves before 8. And I'm at breakfast at 9.15. The half marathon starts at 10.00. I encounter the first runners on South Beach Street at 10.10. They have covered 1½ miles in 10 minutes, pretty good going. Police close off the streets. The course leads round to Sandwick, Moss End, across to the Castle Grounds to finish at the Porter's Lodge opposite the Coop. At 11 o'clock, I accompany mrs B to a very limited car-boot sale outside the Young Man's club on Bayhead. Only 6 cars present, and not a lot to be had. Our return to town gets interrupted by a heavy shower. We shelter in the Red Cross charity shop. Some very old and tired books there - e.g. the Guinness Book of Records 1986. The postcards are nice. Return to Newton at 12.30. The athlete's luggage is returned at that hour, but the young lady herself doesn't appear until 15.30, some 3 hours after her promised return. Tut tut. Another beefy few downpours close the afternoon. I spend the evening watching police car chases from the US. I win nothing on the lottery. Oh, an Australian man comes to stay the weekend.

Memorial Day

I gather that tomorrow, Sunday 28th May 2006, is Memorial Day in the USA. Did not know that until this year, shame on me. Although I am not British, I make a point of observing the Remembrance, Memorial (etc.) days of those countries who helped to liberate occupied Western Europe in the Second World War. In Britain, the date is November 11th. In most of Western Europe, the day is May 8th, VE-day. In Russia, it's May 9th. They lost 20 million people in the Second World War.  

Have a good Memorial Day over there in the USA.
Have a nice Bank Holiday in the UK.

Friday 26/05/06

After yesterday's nice evening, we're confronted with a wet and miserable day. A fine to moderate drizzle falls throughout the day. Willie calls in during the morning, as does one of mrs B's relatives, who is helping her with the ironing. One guest cancelled his stay, after he decided to leave for the mainland straight after his bikerun up from Tarbert. The other guest does turn up. She is an American student at Oxford, up here for the Half Marathon. Her luggage was mislaid at Edinburgh. Although it is not formally lost, it is no use to her as it cannot reach Stornoway until 12.30 tomorrow afternoon. The race starts at 10 a.m.. The young lady goes off for a flying visit to the Callanish Stones (grand total of 37 minutes there). Later on, I assist her in planning her trip south to meet up with a friend. Two problems crop up. (1) It's a Bank Holiday. (2) The prospective meeting place (Fort William) is packed out with folk attending the World Championships Mountain Biking. I suggest she travel through Skye. She won't arrive there until 9.40 tomorrow evening. A German / Spanish couple take the place of the man who cancelled. They had come to Stornoway, expecting to find a ferry leaving at 7pm. Not until the end of June, folks. BBC Island Blogging is off air all day, after a fault prevents everyone from logging on. The rain stops at 6pm, leaving a cloudy but relatively mild evening. Night falls at 10.40.

Quite a contrast, isn't it. Yesterday, I had 80 pictures, today's grand total - 3. Just to show you what it was like through the day.

Parallel blog

I would like to draw attention to my parallel blog Arnish Lighthouse, which I run on the BBC's Island Blogging project. Much like Northern Trip, I run it virtually anonymously. Only a few know who is behind the Lighthouse Blog, which gives me virtually unfettered freedom of expression. In a small community like Lewis, everybody knows everybody else, and you can't put your head too far above the parapet. Because of the way life has panned out for me in the island, I'm in the strange position which allows me to lambast things like the NHS Western Isles, which is in meltdown, the attitude to the Sabbath etc. Arnish Lighthouse is a topical journal. I hope you'll call round and enjoy the read.

Alert - no alert!

I've been told that only a "wireless alert" was sent out following my last entry for 25/05/06. The entry was rather long. So - an alert for an alert. Long live AOHell...

Thursday 25/05/06

Have a chat with Diana over breakfast regarding her work (fundraising for community owned forestry) and windfarms. She leaves for Harris later today, after a seminar in the Town Hall here. I clean up computer files, putting things onto CD-ROM. Saves a gigabyte or two. At midday, the cruiseliner Alexander von Humboldt puts in an appearance. She was in twice last year. Although the green funnel is the same, she seems to look different. The A. von H. can take 440 passengers, measures 12,331 tonnes and has come in from Invergordon this morning. This summer she will be around north Norway, moving to the Caribbean this autumn to end up around the Antarctic in March 2007. Prices of those cruises go up to 14,000 Euros, although they last up to 6 weeks. I go over to Goat Island at 3pm to view the Orinda, on which Mrs B's brother in law Willie sails Hebridean waters in the summer. Climbing on board is a bit hairy, as she is still on the slipway, so it's a high ladder. Eek. It's a neat little boat, 36 feet long, with all necessary conveniences. Afterwards, I head into town to get the Thursday papers. These are full of NHS scandals. The latest is the death of cancer patients due to a complete breakdown in communication between hospital and GP. The discharge summary for one patient took 8 weeks to reach the GP. The recommendation for further urgent tests was ignored, which led to the patient's death within 2 months. Absolutely beyond belief. At 6.30, I report to Goat Island again, where the Orinda is due to sail for an evening's cruising. It's a nice if cool evening. Departure is delayed due to engine and battery problems. First, the battery is flat. A pair of jumpleads, supplied by Willie's second helps to put life back into it. Once the engine runs, that'll recharge the battery. But the engine doesn't run. It releases a cloud of smoke into the cabin, and it turns out that the alternator belt is slipping. That is fixed, but now it turns out that one of the ball bearings on the alternator is kaputt. The engine will run, but it's not advisable to sail miles tonight. Another boat is also being sorted. The Sgoth (a traditional fishing vessel from Ness) lies moored in the Newton Basin as well, and is being used as a resting and defaecating place for Arctic Terns. One of the local GP's is sent in to clean up the mess. No, not in a professional capacity. At 7.30, we set off into Glumag harbour, round the Arnish Lighthouse (inside the beacon, thank you) towards the Tob [Leireabhat]. As we turn east towards Holm Point, the ferry crosses our bow. She is a big ship, travelling at a rate of knots. So, we get the wake, with waves of 3 to 4 feet (1 metre) high. I am warned of this, so I can hold on. Which I blinking well have to! Willie very kindly takes me to the Beasts of Holm, on which the Iolaire foundered in 1919. The coastal cliffs are relatively low and do not seem too difficult to climb up to from the sea. But I can imagine (and have seen) that in a force 9, it would be will-nigh impossible. I spare a second for the men of the Iolaire as we pass the marker of the Beasts of Holm and the monument for the disaster. We return to Stornoway past Stoneyfield Farm, Sandwick and Battery Point. Willie drops me off on the Goat Island pier, from where I make my way back to Newton past boats that stand 'slipped'. I have to be careful not to trip over the oily slipway, or not to knock any struts over. The Alexander von Humboldt sails at 8.30. Willie and his friend stay on the Orinda  to sort the engine out. I make my way back to mrs B. She has taken in two workmen, who have been working down in the powerstation, a very messy job. I find a very interesting article in BBC Online, which tells of GPS-related devices (IPAQ's) which are activated in certain positions on Uig Beach. Once activated, they reproduce songs and stories. They work on Uig Beach, 37 miles west of Stornoway. This is the place where the Lewis Chessmen were found in 1831. They were made by 12th century Norsemen. The sun sets at 22.10. We're only 25 minutes short of the longest day, in terms of sunset times.

Wednesday 24/05/06

Little change in terms of weather. Hailshowers in the distance (is this late May??) and a cold wind. Temperatures a little better than yesterday's miserable 8C; we're up to 11 C by lunchtime. The Canadian couple are at breakfast at 8.30. They head for Inverness on the 1.45 ferry, with an onward journey to the Clyde in the next few days. I am told interesting stories about life in Nunavik, the northernmost settlement in Canada. He helped to build the road to Alaska (the Mackenzie Highway). Nunavik is a fair-sized town of about 3,500. Temperatures in winter go down to minus 60C. The road had to be built on permafrost. They head into Stornoway for an hour or so before going on the ferry. A dredger moves about the Glumag after lunchtime.When I get my (useless) lottery tickets and the papers, it chucks it down. Mrs B's brother-in-law calls in to invite me for a trip in his wee boat tomorrow, after he puts it in the water for the summer. The boat is 36 ft long, provided with all mod cons. A lady comes to stay who talks to community trusts (like the Erisort Trust and the North Harris Trust) about forestry projects. She is not a forester, but mrs B's son-in-law is one, and he's happy to see the prospect of some work. Aline Forest in Kinloch is a mangy bunch of trees, as is the plantation near Gearraidh na h-Aibhne. The evening is punctuated by scattered showers and nice sunshine. A few yachts call into port.

Tuesday 23/05/06 - evening

At 1.30, the cruiseliner Polar Star leaves port. She is a small ship, only 4,000 tonnes, which plies routes round both poles. She can carry 96 passengers, and cruises cost between £2,500 and £7,000. At least. In the afternoon, mrs B's nephew turns up. He is not too well today. He takes us into town to do a bit of shopping. I find out that the MacKenzie River in Arctic Canada is named after Sir Alexander MacKenzie, who was born in Stornoway in the 1760s. A memorial plaque is mounted on the Francis Street wall of Martin's Memorial Church. Between 2 and 3pm, it pours with rain. After 4pm, some very beefy showers turn up, leaving some fantastic cloudscapes. Mrs B's son reappears at 4.30, at the same time as I do, to work on his boat. Find several websites with live weather data, much like the Eoropie webcam. Mrs B cooks the lamb dish that is in my Recipe Book (see Journals links), but replaces the lamb with chicken. The showers relent during the evening. Find out that I have taken 2,000 pictures between April 2005 and May 2006. Sounds a lot, but I read in someone else's journal (sorry, it's a private one) that they had 11,000 pics on-line.

Smoking

I had occasion to find out that Canada puts some pretty graphic warnings on tobacco products. Have a look on http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/tobac-tabac/legislation/label-etiquette/graph/index_e.html

Tuesday 23/05/06 - morning

Brilliant start to another cold day. The German couple leave for Skye this morning, on the 11.05 ferry from Tarbert. They had a great day in Harris yesterday, including a run down the infamous Huisinis road. On their return to Stornoway, temperatures went down to -1.5C on the open moor. Have a chat with the Canadians over breakfast at 8.45. They hail from Vancouver Island, from where the Mod choristers also came who stayed here last October. Today's visitors will be going round the West Side by bus, to see Callanish and Gearrannan. The gentleman, aged around 70, used to work in the Arctic north of Canada, in the MacKenzie delta. One of his colleagues went round a building one evening and was dragged away and killed by a polar bear. I tell the story of the Norwegians from Kirkenes whose dustbins were forever raided by bears, who came across the border from the Kola peninsula in Russia. Everybody goes their respective ways at 9.30. Mrs B's son has put his new boat in the backyard - there are now 5 boats sitting there, including a canoe. An osprey at Boat of Garten is reported to have hatched 3 chicks. Regarding the NHS here in the Western Isles, 6 out of 7 consultants now say that patient care is definitely suffering as a result of the financial and management crisis. Consultant 7, the Board's Medical Director, denies that this is the case. Write an acerbic post on the Lighthouse blog, which will be published later today. The Gress Councillor is now calling for the resignation of the Scottish Executive's Health Minister, Andy Kerr. He has allowed this situation to spiral out of control by saying it's a local matter. It cannot be locally resolved because of the culture of bullying and intimidation from the highest levels of the NHS Board. I've used the Lighthouse blog before to demand the resignation of Mr Kerr.

Monday 22/05/06

Breakfast at 8.40, with the German couple. They went to Great Bernera and Uig yesterday, all the way to Mealista (45 miles from SY). On Isles FM, the question was asked where all the sound effects came from that Kenny-there-you-go uses on his show. What sound effects? Birds singing, planes going overhead, cars driving past. Sound effects? He does his show with the backdoor open, so you hear the birds tweeting in the trees outside, binlorries going past and planes flying by. It's bitterly cold this morning. Mrs B has to go to Somerfields at 9 am and gets pelted with hail. Yep, it's May 22nd. Maximum temperature today 7 C / 45 F. It feels more like February. The two workmen return to Glasgow. Mrs B has a flood of booking requests. Two Canadians arrive from Tarbert at 5pm. They're here for 2 nights. A four-fold increase is reported in rates of MRSA colonisation at the Western Isles Hospital. The Health Board's Medical Director puts it down to increased numbers of patients passing through the hospital. The Coastguard tug is busy this afternoon. The grass is cut this evening. At 11.30 pm, it's still light.

Sunday 21/05/06

Sunny morning with the odd shower. The Germans are going to Harris today. Yesterday, they did not return until 11pm. The two workmen are staying over for the weekend. On BBC 1 Landward they discuss the South Uist community buy-out, as well as off-road biking on SSSI [Sites of Special Scientific Interest], which can land you with a £40,000 fine. It's not warm, barely above 10C. I walk out to Goat Island with no coat on, brr. There is this cold northwesterly wind. Mrs B's grandson and one of his mates go out in a dinghy, which requires continual bailing. Mrs B herself wants her grass cut, but that may have to wait. Good hay harvest though from there LOL. One of the workmen comes back from an afternoon on the town, just a  wee bit the worst for wear. Mrs B has to switch his telly off, it's on at full blast.

Pages

As I hinted in my entry Refresher Course, I keep a written diary, which I partly transcribe into this journal. I have now reached page

1100

OK, big deal LOL

Saturday 20/05/06

Bright morning with shower clouds, which do not give much rain. Breakfast at 8.40, in the company of the two Germans who want fish for their breakfast - so they get fish every morning of their 4 night stay. The two workmen are also still around, so mrs B has got a lot of dishes to wash - five people's. Muirneag comes in at 10, the Coastguard tug Anglian Prince at 11.45, just as the sun comes out. The afternoon has some nice weather. I go to Somerfields for papers and food. The Lottery draw, later that evening, gets interrupted by protestors on the studio floor. The main concern for the presenters was to get everything over before the Eurovision Song Contest. Big deal. It stays light until 1 am - i.e., it does not get dark.

Refresher course

In recent times, quite a few new readers have picked up on my blog. A note of warning: it has been going for a year and a half, so you have more than 600 entries to go through if you want to read it all. Not to mention the hundred or so in the preceding blog Northern Trip - The Start. Link in linklist.

I commenced Northern Trip in October 2004, two months after starting my travels around Northern and Western Scotland. A month later, I settled in the Isle of Lewis. Things have been on the change since then.

At first, I did a lot of walking in the islands, in all sorts of weather. Later on, I began to get more involved in the local scene, although I am afraid that this has now deteriorated more into an observer's role. That is actually the premise under which I operate my other main blog, Arnish Lighthouse. Again, link in list.

I observe the weather, watch shipping coming and going and go walkabout around Stornoway. This is the capital of the Western Isles, pop 8,000; the islands themselves have 25,000 people. Occasionally, I'll go further afield within Lewis.

I rely heavily on Internet websites for my information, although local and national radio and TV play their part as well. My rant against errant sailors a few days ago links to the MCGA (Maritime & Coast Guard Agency) website, which lists press issues, of everything they have had to deal with. The drunken captains, dangerous chemicals and wrecks at sea are all part and parcel of it.

Characters: Mrs B and her family and friends; I don't name names. I sometimes give a name of a guest, staying in her B&B.

Isles FM is the local radio station. Manned by volunteers, they mean well but their rate of trip-ups is high. To quote one presenter: "I need electrocution lessons".

Ferries: The Isle of Lewis is the main passenger ferry. She sails daily (except Sundays) for Ullapool at 7.15 and 13.45, arriving back from there at 13.15 and 20.00. The weather tends to wreak havoc with those schedules. The Muirneag is the freight ferry. She carries lorries and trailers in on aseparate schedule, departing for the mainland at midnight and returning at 8.30 a.m.. I am staying on the waterfront, so I see everything that comes and goes.

I have been involved in two historical projects, both relating to World War One. At that time, about 6,000 islanders went out to fight for King and country. 1,000 did not return, having fallen on the field of battle or perished at sea. An additional two hundred drowned on their return from the war. They were on board HMY Iolaire, which was wrecked 2 miles south of Stornoway. Only 75 others survived.
About 100 islanders were interned at Groningen, Holland, for the duration of World War One, after retreating into Holland following battle at Antwerp in October 1914. They were allowed home for the harvest each year, provided they returned to Holland afterwards. Which they did, to a man. That was at a time when a man's word still stood.

Do I work? No.
Am I going to find a job here? Maybe.
Do I have a family? No. My relatives live outwith the island.
How long am I going to be here? Dunno.

Any questions? Send me mail, and I'll try to answer.

Friday 19/05/06

Drizzle, mist and generally very dreich. Muirneag comes in at lunchtime. After yesterday's delays, the crew will have had to go for a lie-down before setting out again at sort of 4 am. I venture out for some shopping at 4 pm, but it's quite wet. Not windy though. Get the Gazette in, which is full of the usual, and also up to the usual standard of inaccuracy. Browse through the Coastguard website, with its litany of disasters at sea, wrecks under detention and boozy captains at the helm. And the chappy who thought he could smuggle 300 litres of sulphuric acid through customs at Dover. Slap slap. A German couple comes on the ferry for a 4 day stay. Receive a wee plastic duck through the post (you know who you are, quack, quack).

Call for support

As you may know, I read a few journals on AOL. One of them is written by Krissy (fisherkristina), who I have never met, IM'd or spoken to. I have exchanged emails once over her journal "Sometimes I Think". At the moment her husband John is suffering from a bone marrow cancer called MDS. For this, he has recently needed a bone marrow transplant, which is basically the only treatment. The transplant happened a few months ago, but it appears to be failing. Krissy is having a hard time with it, judging by reading the latest entry in her journal. Please call by and leave a comment in support. Thanks.

 

One note: the journal is a little technical in places, but don't let that faze you.

 

http://journals.aol.com/fisherkristina/SometimesIThink/entries/1086

Thursday 18/05/06

Raining hard and blowing a gale this morning. One of our guests was going to a meeting up the road in the Council Offices. He had noticed the rain, so he put on a light coat and brought out a foldable umbrella. He stepped out of the door and brolly and himself nearly took off. It's a full, force 8 gale today, which is tearing the new leaves off the trees. A taxi was duly ordered to take our guest to his meeting. A fishing boat left port, but found itself battling huge seas. Later that morning, mrs B's nephew made two appearances, on the second occasion with his wife in tow. At 2.30, the tanker turns up outside the port, but the southerly wind makes it impossible for her to come in. The sun starts to come out after lunchtime. When I go to the shops, I hear that the Stornoway Gazette did not arrive, because poor old Muirneag had to divert in the face of the gale today. She was last heard of sheltering off Benbecula. There is a row on about the local hospice. In order for it to operate legally, it needs a doctor. The last one resigned from her position, as the practice she normally works for is no longer funding the post. NHS Western Isles put out a statement saying that it was not justified to fund a hospice doctor for a population of 25,000. That went down like a lead balloon. Now the MSP has called for the entire management team to quit, something that I have been shouting about in the Lighthouse blog for months. Muirneag finally came in at 4.10. I go out to no 1 pier to watch her dock. So did half the town. Eight trailer units (colloquially referred to as horses) were waiting to take the cargo away. The tanker calls for a pilot to come in at 8.45. Dinner was chilli con carne. Eorpa on BBC 2 Scotland had an item on the North Harris Estate. Only 800 people live on it. The evening closed cloudy but very quiet. It would appear that the causative low pressure system is now overhead. Western England and Wales are battered by force 10 gusts. Even Heathrow Airport has force 8 gusts.

Wednesday 17/05/06

Bright morning, which sees the departure of all 3 guests - Karen from Australia as well as the two workmen. The latter are due to be replaced by two colleagues who are travelling up from Barra today. That is an 8 hour journey by road. Mrs B's brother-in-law calls in for coffee. Have not seen him for a while. As he is leaving, I spot a group of canoeists rowing up the harbour towards the town. Apparently, some start from the pier at Crosbost to row the 8 miles to Stornoway. One of the French fishingboats comes in for a crew change. Within 90 minutes it is leaving port again. At 1pm, the sun is out. It's set to be a nice afternoon, although tomorrow's forecast is pretty dismal. Yesterday, Eoropie had 26 mm (1 inch) of rainfall. That is a lot - it equates to 26 litres (6 gallons) of water on every square metre (11 sq feet). Go out for a walk and some shopping at 2.30. Walk up Island Road and Smith Avenue, where the sun makes it quite warm. It is just 13C / 55 F on the thermometer. Blossoms and leaves are out all over the place. Carry on down Goathill Avenue and Church Street right down to Cromwell Street. Pop into the Hebridean Jewellery Shop at the corner of Church Street for a book about a walk all the way down the Western isles, from the Butt of Lewis to Vatersay - 230 miles. Somerfields have abandoned their Saver card scheme, which will speed things up enormously at the tills. Back in Newton, mrs B is inundated with requests for accommodation. After 4pm, cloudcover increases and odd spots of rain begin to fall. The major fall commences at 6.35, when a wall of rain quickly moves across from Arnish.

Just for fun

I'm a Mazda RX-8!

You're sporty, yet practical, and you have a style of your own. You like to have fun, and you like to bring friends along for the ride, but when it comes time for everyday chores, you're willing to do your part.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

I'm a Mandarin!

You're an intellectual, and you've worked hard to get where you are now. You're a strong believer in education, and you think many of the world's problems could be solved if people were more informed and more rational. You have no tolerance for sloppy or lazy thinking. It frustrates you when people who are ignorant or dishonest rise to positions of power. You believe that people can make a difference in the world, and you're determined to try.

Talent: 36%
Lifer: 44%
Mandarin: 67%
Take the

Tuesday 16/05/06

Pouring with rain today, low mist obscures the Arnish hills. Dreich in other words. Since last night, two workmen are staying with us. I discover a reference to mrs B's accommodation in a Swedish report from a holiday company. It is basically someone's travel diary in Swedish. Out of sheer curiosity I drag it through an on-line translator. I find it contains an oblique reference to myself, but the details are mercifully incorrect. The rain continues through the afternoon. It's cold outside, with a northeasterly wind. This causes a groundswell out in the Minch, and when a wee boat goes out, it encounters some rough conditions. Sun peeps through the clouds once or twice. On the whole though, it remains wet and miserable. Late in the evening, news comes through that foxes have been sighted on the island. They are not a native species, and if really present, will cause slaughter amongst sheep and lambs - it does not bear thinking about. Who would want to bring a fox here, for god's sake?! Mrs B gives me a recipe for cranachan, see pics in gallery.

Monday 15/05/06

Cloudy but dry today. Muirneag comes into port at 8.30. My breakfast is rather later. Karen heads out for the day, for a walk round the Castle Grounds and a drive to Ness. She has now taken about 800 pics on her trip. At 4.30, a gastanker comes into port. It's called the Gas Pioneer this time round. At 7pm, I take mrs B out to An Lanntair to view "14 days in Great Britain". This is a condensation into 92 minutes, of 139 hours of footage shot by David W. Gibbons. This chappie toured the UK in August 2005, visiting 14 towns in 14 days. His format was simple: talk to ordinary people in the street, take their picture and an interview if they are agreeable. The subject: life in general. Questions like "What do you want from life, what advice would you give the next generation". It is followed by a Q&A session, finishing at 9.45. It was half an hour late in starting. The start was billed for 7.00 pm, but for an obscure reason, they played the same song 6 times over and started the show at 7.30.

Sunday 14/05/06

Breakfast at the unbelievably early time of 9 a.m.. I have a chat with our Australian guest, who is interested in the Arnish Lighthouse. She leaves at 12.30 for a look round. It's bright and sunny if cold day. The blackbirds and sparrows all have nests with young and are frantically looking for food. One sparrow is in and out of the bushes at the front, looking for spiders. The blackbirds are raiding the worms. For the second time this spring, a bird is pictured in the paper, nesting in the amber light of a traffic light in Glasgow. Nice underfloor heating, the green light having a nice long phase. This picture shows the bird incubating, a later pic clearly shows 3 chicks. A little rain falls after 8pm and a rainbow ends at one of the gun emplacements at Arnish Point. Not staying up late tonight.

Saturday 13/05/06

A very late and lazy start to the day at 11.30. A helicopter flies low over the basin, just as we sit down to breakfast. I try to wash an upstairs window, but not very successfully. Part of the glass has deteriorated. I head down to a busy supermarket. The wind is very cold today. We receive a new guest today, a lady from Australia who is going to be here for 4 nights. Mrs B has an addition to her kitchen equipment in the shape of a coffee machine which can also make espresso and cappuccino. We try it out, but it all boils down to proportions. Espresso cups, for instance, are only ¼ the size of an ordinary coffee cup. Machine makes eye-watering strong espresso. Go out for an amble at 9 pm to picture the town against the setting sun. At 1 a.m., we head out to picture the lingering light at the deepest point of the night. And yes, once at the end of Seaforth Road, there is still some light over Broadbay. On the way back, we encounter two friendly moggies.

Friday 12/05/06

Early morning rain leaves off before breakfast, and the day becomes nice if cold. Mrs B's nephew and his wife take her and me for lunch at the Woodlands Centre. I have a very nice vegetarian pasta-bake. After finishing this at 2.50, we run a few errands around the Anderson Road area before closing proceedings outside Somerfields. I walk back to mrs B's without a coat; my woollen jumper keeps me warm enough. I find in the news that a girl of 11 is due to give birth, having fallen pregnant whilst drunk. Her mother is very proud of her (WHAT??) and the boy that did it to her (aged 15) is due in court for rape. On E4, I watch Wife Swap, but switch off after 20 minutes. I'm totally disgusted. First of all, the two women concerned were dramatically opposed. One was a non-socialite who had set up home in Shawbost (here in Lewis) and had no friends. The other was - well, beyond description. I began to feel sympathetic towards the Lewis resident, but her attitude and falsehoods about Lewis destroyed that. Nearest take away is not 40 miles away; Stornoway is 18 miles from Shawbost. And you don't come here for the take-away. Next week: Big Brother 7 is due to pollute our screens. No thanks. Anyway, spectacular sunset and moonrise around the 10pm mark, see gallery. It remains light until AFTER midnight.

Thursday 11/05/06

Fog persists through the night, to lift by morning. The sun comes through hesitantly, after a few drops of drizzle around the 11 a.m. mark. Yesterday's gardening waste is shifted by mrs B's son. Her nephew and niece call in sequentially. Her niece returned to live in Lewis after a 9 year absence. Mrs B's son puts in a second appearance later in the afternoon, so it's a lively time. Three new guests from America turn up; they originate from Montreal (Canada) but currently live in Arizona. They have 'done' Lewis and Harris today and will be off to Skye, whence they came, tomorrow afternoon. The warm weather is over for now, and it will get a lot colder. Snow is forecast for the mountain tops. The captain of MV Muirneag is reprimanded by the Coastguard over his decision to sail on November 11th last year in the face of an imminent gale. He was forced to divert 60 miles off course, trailers and goods on board were damaged and one passenger injured.

Wednesday 10/05/06

Another bright and sunny day. Two of our 3 guests leave today, to be replaced later on by a chap who is here for a job. I assist Mrs B in the removal of windblown rubbish from her backyard and weeds from the front garden. Backyard needs a makeover - as shown on pictures from the last few months. We close garden proceedings by having a drink in the sunshine out the back. Somerfields was not busy, neither were the lottery tickets busy. Evening meal was spaghetti bolognese. Our new guest is late coming in as his job has overrun. At 4.30, the Eoropie webcam (http://www.eoropaidh.co.uk) shows that the sea haar [fog] has blown in. This makes its way east, and by early evening is covering the tops of the Arnish hills. The fog descends on the Inner Harbour, but does not extend to the Outer Harbour, which I overlook.

Tuesday 09/05/06

Wall to wall sunshine this morning, not a cloud in the sky. Mrs B's youngest grandson comes in for an hour or so. After he goes away, I notice that the Cuma, which has been living on the Goat Island slipway for 3 months has finally left. At 2.15 I head for town with mrs B and her nephew to go on the bus to the West Side for a spot of walking. As I wait for the bus to leave, I notice two policemen approaching someone lying in the flowerbeds under An Lanntair. They have some difficulty rousing him from his slumbers, and take him away to sober up in the cells. The bus driver and other bystanders laugh their heads off. We head out towards Callanish and Breascleit. I alight at the southern road end of Tolsta Chaolais. I'm going to mark out a walking route. It's very warm. Many sheep with their young lambs about. The walk is very scenic, T.Ch. is a nice wee place. After about 40 minutes, I've passed through the village. A few people are about, but otherwise it's very quiet. A goose lands on the village loch. Turn left at the top and find an improved path leading to the Doune Braes Hotel, the local watering hole. After that, it's a 1 km jaunt along the main road to Dun Carloway, where the renowned Broch stands. The Broch has a visitor centre, which is worth a visit to see how life is thought to have been led about 2,100 years ago. An older couple is there as well. Nice view from there. You can see Old Hill, Aird Uig and the nearby Loch an Duin. As I go down the hill again, I notice the northbound bus passing along the main road. I therefore return to town on the 5pm bus, which goes back the way I came. Arrive in Stornoway at 5.45.

AOHell

I've taken the liberty of snagging this from one AOL journal I read (thanks). Couldn't resist it. I'm on AOL through a non-AOL broadband provider (i.e. few problems), although the arcane Hometown and website building setup makes me shake my head.

Monday 08/05/06

Brilliant day today, but still a bit hazy. The Russians disappear to the West Side; I declined their offer to join them. I am advised that the first cruiseliner of the season, the Black Prince, has docked. After snapping some pictures of flowers in the garden, I go into town, and decide I can go without a coat. Pity about that cool wind. Other residents in Newton are sitting out in the sun and out of the wind. The Black Prince is moored alongside pier no 1, where the Muirneag is normally docked through the day. Muirneag herself has relocated to the far side of the ferry terminal. I return to the town centre to buy papers, including a copy of “Back in the Day”, which is a look back at events earlier in the 20th century here. Back in Newton, Mrs B receives two lady guests. The Black Prince sails at 5.30, heading for Norway. A few local people joined her this afternoon. Another ship hovers off Arnish Point, but then disappears after half an hour. A glance through the binoculars shows it’s the Dutch fishing vessel SCH 302. One of the Russian guests briefly reappears to drop off the hire car. By 7pm, the third guest turns up. He is an elderly gentleman, whose wife is in hospital here. Prospects are not good unfortunately.  

Sunday 07/05/06

Grey start to the day, sun tries to poke through the clouds but doesn’t make it. Three young Russians come to stay. They want to go to a beach. Nearest one is at the Braighe, 6 miles away behind the airport. They’ll need a taxi to go there. It’s Sunday, so no buses. They are going to walk back from Melbost along the main road. How nice. Mrs B tries to organise a car for them, as they want to tour the West Side tomorrow, prior to travelling down to Tarbert. They regret stopping in Inverness for 3 days (a waste of time by anyone’s standards), as they now only have limited time before flying back to Moscow on Friday. The haze persists through the afternoon, and by 5pm mrs B starts to worry about her Russian guests. She sends her son and myself out to look for them along the Braighe road, but just as we pass the airport, she rings in to say the wanderers have returned. Yuri, Yakov and Anastasia ask me if I’ll join them on a spin up to Tolsta Beach. I say yes – something I’m going to regret. They first of all go to HS1 for a meal, but end up eating at the Balti House because HS1 was full. Jacov drives the 4 of us to Tolsta, but appears to be remarkably oblivious to the rules of the road. He doesn’t pull up at the stop stripes at traffic lights and commits a frightening mistake on the roundabout by the Coop. He has to turn right there, which in the UK means you go ¾ round the roundabout. Not our driver. He cut straight through against the flow of traffic, ending up facing a jeep head-on which stops well short of the roundabout, to allow us to disentangle us from this mess. I tell him in no uncertain terms never to do that again. He is extremely lucky that there is hardly anybody on the road, let alone police. No further mishaps as we crawl up the road to Tong at 30 mph, in an area where the limit is 60. OK, on to Garry beach, which is very quiet. Just one camper and a field of rams. They are very placid. I’ve heard stories of a car being attacked by a ram, leaving the bodywork well dented. The mist lifts as we walk onto Traigh Mhor. Return to Stornoway at 10pm, with another hairy moment on Sandwick Road, as our driver forgets to turn right.

Saturday 06/05/06

Today, we're off to the races - a duck race to be precise, at Borve, 17 miles north of Stornoway. Head into town just before 11, where mrs B attends a craft fair in the Town Hall. The bus for Borve leaves at 11.45, but mrs B can't find her buspass. The driver lets her on. The bus, heading for Ness and the Butt of Lewis, carries a few tourists who want to visit the Butt. Alight at Borve at 12.22, outside the minimart, which supplies us with a drink. We then amble down to the bridge, where the fun is due to start at 1pm. It's fairly bright with a lot of high-level cloud. This puts a halo round the sun, which persists for quite some time. Towards 1pm, a lady comes down to the bridge where we're sitting, to sell us some ducks. It would appear that out of the 260 ducks only 9 are available for sale. Or their numbers are. I take up position on the riverbank, where a barrier has been erected to catch the ducks as they come downstream. Kids are playing in and around the water while a sizeable group of adults assemble on the two bridges. Then the sack of ducks is emptied into the river, about 150 yards upstream. A number of volunteers shove the things downriver freeing them from rocks and shallows. They are only 5 - 7 cm big. After the first one reaches the barrier, the rest is scooped up with nets &c. There is a second race, but a straggler comes downstream. Once the second race is over, the barrier is dismantled and all and sundry troop into the home next to the Borve Pottery place. Bottles have been incorporated into a fence. Tea and cakes, quiches and a lot more are available for £3 pp. hear that the race went well, but last year it was nearly impossible because the river was too low. The proceeds go towards the cost of a new community centre, the Clan MacQuarrie centre, to be built on the southern side of Borve. The name is taken from a ship which foundered on the rocks here during the hurricane of 31st January 1953. This same storm sank a ferry in the Irish Sea, caused widespread flooding in East Anglia and drowned 1,850 people in southwestern Holland when the sea defences were swamped by a tide, 5 m above normal. After lunch, watched over by an old pussycat and an old dog, we head off for an amble down the river towards the sea. The path is muddy, and mrs B, not very nimble at the best of times, nearly ends up in the river. We pass the remains of a few watermills, and see sheep with their lambs on some verystoney crofts. The wind is cool, but otherwise it's a very nice day. After a lazy hour or so, we return to the Pottery. It's been there for quite a while, but is professionally laid out. The bus back is a few minutes late, but manages to return to Stornoway 5 minutes early. The driver puts his foot down, and races from Barvas to Newmarket in 9 minutes. Very summery in Stornoway, lots of folks out and about. We have the lunchtime rolls for dinner, as they were not required at lunchtime.

Friday 05/05/06

Nice sunny start to the day after the overnight downpour. In Arisaig, south of Mallaig, lightning hit a telephone pole. This fried computers and any electronic equipment linked to the phoneline. After lunch, I accompany mrs B to Sandwick Cemetery, where she wants to visit the grave of her husband, who died 13 years to the day. He suffered a heart attack at the age of 60. She planted some ivy shoots round the headstone. It's a brilliantly sunny afternoon, with great views over the Minch. The houses in Lower Sandwick are basking in the afternoon sunshine, and the sea rolls over the pebbles on the nearby beach. Mrs B tells me of some of the families whose ancestors lie buried here. It shows that in the early 20th century, merchants ruled the roost in Stornoway. Nowadays, it's hauliers. We leave at 3.30. As on the way in, we are greeted by friendly cats along the way. Return to Newton on time to show a video of Wednesday's gale on the webcam - with nobody watching. Go to Somerfields to do the weekend shop. No guests expected in the days to come. Sunset at 9.25, preceded by some very strange cloud formations. It's still light in the north at 11.15, and even at midnight the light still lingers. Maximum temperatures today at 15C.

Thursday 04/05/06

Our American friends depart on the 10 a.m. bus for Tarbert. It's a brilliantly sunny and fairly mild morning. Temperatures rise to about 15C by early afternoon. Medium level cloud increases rapidly after lunch. I head into town for a haircut. The first shop says the gents' hairdresser has just gone home for the afternoon, so I proceed to the next shop. The meaning of the word 'smile' should be looked up there. Nonetheless, the haircut is good, so no real complaints there. When I go back out into the street, the sky has grown quite dark and it comes on to rain. Mrs B's nephew pays us another visit, as he waits for a repair on his car. It gets muggy and misty, and also quite dark. We need the lights on by 5 pm. At 9.30 a thunderstorm passes, and at 10.05 the electricity trips out for a minute. Glasgow is having a hellish night with a ferocious thunderstorm. One man was apparently left waistdeep in floodwater at a busstop. The rain continues into the night. Although the drains were supposed to have been fixed, there is a sizeable puddle at the corner of the street.

Cats

I am very fond of cats, and these two came running at me this afternoon.

Light nights

Picture above was taken at 11.16 this evening (as reported to some readers by email individually). Sunset is at 9.25 pm at the moment. 45 minutes later, at midnight, the camera was no longer able to pick up the light, but my eyes (being the more sensitive) could distinctly make out the midnight glim. In the 6 weeks until June 21st, the summer solstice, the nights will lighten considerably, until it will be light at 01.20 a.m., the darkest point of the night. More pics to be expected...

Thunder

Tonight (May 4th), Scotland was rocked by thunderstorms. As I'll write in today's entry, even Stornoway had 3 lightning discharges, one power dip and one powercut. I'm told that Glasgow had a huge electrical storm.

Thunder in the Hebrides is rare. It can only occur if the difference in temperature between the bottom and the top of a cloud is more than -40 degrees C. As I speak, there is very warm air over England (temps reached 29C there). Stornoway reached 15C, but the air 'upstairs' must be extremely cold to spark off a thunderstorm. The last time I had thunder was in January 2005, in the middle of a snow, sleet, hailstorm. It left 2 inches of ice on the spinal route of the island, reducing traffic to a crawl.

J-land

I have written before that I keep an eye on various other journals on AOL. Back in the autumn of 2005 I obtained a list of journals that were nominated for the VIVI awards. I'm trying to latch on to some of them, but boy, am I having trouble. Since 15 November 2005, AOL in the USA has banner ads over the top of journals. This has led to a huge outcry, and a large number of people have left AOL. They are now blogging on other providers. AOL UK does not have banner-ads over their journals, and some American bloggers have therefore defected across the Atlantic.

To American readers: Pamela Hilger, (his1desire) who died at Easter, kept a directory of journals and blogging tips. Is anyone going to take over?