John's Jottings.
Monday the 3rd of
November.
Hello again. What a difference a week
makes? After 10 days of wet and very windy weather, we've had a
week of sunshine. It's been cold, with a biting wind at times, but
you only have to put on a decent jacket and you're away. I went
off to Lochbuie the other day and had an excellent afternoon, paddling
in the sea and playing in the burns as I made my way to Glenbyre (an old
farmhouse and outbuildings on the NW side of the loch). I met only
half a dozen folk, mostly going the other way and mostly at the
beginning, so I had most of the time to myself, just taking pictures and
enjoying the sun. I disturbed a flock of about a hundred fieldfares
gorging on the berries - probably on holiday from Norway - and a great
spotted woodpecker, as well as numerous wrens, hoodies, and gulls.
What was really nice was when I was taking pictures of the tide coming
in - and trying not to get my feet too wet - that a cormorant surfaced
almost within touching distance and just looked at me, before sailing
off behind a nearby rock. No fear, no panic, just going about his
business.
The next day Ingrid and I went, just down
the road, to Grasspoint and were mooching about the old pier when we
spied a flotilla of cormorants. There must have been fifty and then a
whole lot more came to join them. The local otter also had his eye
on them and very soon appeared over the horizon. Then all the
birds flew off - more or less at the same time - while the otter
continued to paddle over towards us. I caught a good glimpse of
him at one point, but then he dived under the water and we didn't see
him again. Brilliant.
May the sun shine upon your heads.
Enjoy your space.
....... John

Thursday the 23rd of
October.
We're back! Had a fabulous time with
plenty of sunshine and good birdwatching with vultures and lammergeirs -
yes! - almost every day. I took a few hundred photos, so a few of
them might be worth showing, and Ingrid took a few hundred less.
What was the best? Either the gite (self catering) at 1200m -
higher than Ben More - or seeing a pair of lammergeirs at the same time.
These are the 'eagles' that eat bone marrow which they get by dropping
bones from a great height onto the rocks below. There are only 27
pairs in the French Pyrenees, so that's why we were so pleased to see
them. Also we saw lots of griffon vultures which seem to be getting a
problem there. European health and safety regulations have
'cleaned up' some food dumps that the Spanish used to leave out for
them. So some of the Spanish vultures have come over the hills to
look for alternative food. The locals take their sheep, horses and
cows up onto the mountain pastures in the summer, and they look just
like lunch to the birds.... As usual man interferes and upsets the
balance of nature.... The gite was excellent with some
truly terrific views from the 'garden'. Some of these will
certainly appear on my photo website.
www.elusive-light.co.uk
Have a look for yourself.
Being home again is a little confusing, not
least because of the foul weather we have been having. Last Sunday
was a - literal - washout and today is not much better. Friday
looks like being OK - especially the afternoon - but Saturday is
expected to be wet and windy once again. Buzzy is still around -
we heard him yesterday when there were some bright spells - while I was
on my hands and knees clearing out the drainage ditches. Just
about everything else is keeping its head down at the moment. Even
the little brown birdies are not at the feeders as the wind is too
blustery. The good thing about bad weather is that you get on with
your paperwork - and computer work - so you may see some pictures
earlier than I thought.
Until next time. Be sure to get
outside when you can. We all need the sun!

Saturday the 27th of
September.
Well, that's it! Our last guests for the
year are leaving tomorrow early, and we shall be closed until next
March! Many thanks to all our guests for the year, without whom we
wouldn't be here. After rushing around for most of July and August it
seems strange to be stopping, but the number of visitors staying on the
island has dropped considerably this week, and we are shortly going on
our own holiday - to the Pyrenees. I hope to bring back another set of
beautiful photographs like the last one - see
www.the-elusive-light.co.uk
Ingrid will bring back a case load of impressions that will help her
create her creatures for next year - see
www.birds-and-beasties.co.uk Both of us should arrive home
feeling rested and relaxed, although seeing our wish list makes me
wonder. By the time we return, Buzzy will be away, and Lizzy's
brothers and sisters will be hibernating, or whatever they do in the
winter. The swallows and martins have already gone, and the
blackberries are rotting on the plants. There have been so many this
year that no-one - including us humans - seems to have made much of an
impact on them. The evenings are getting darker, and we shall be spending
more time indoors. We've stored a whole load of logs in the shed as well
as around the fire place, so we shall be able to keep warm when we
return. I hope to be in touch from time to time but maybe not as
regularly as through the summer. Until then, all the best, and may the
sun shine upon you.

Saturday the 20th of
September.
So it's nearly the equinox and we haven't
had any storms yet. There was a fairly strong wind on Thursday
night but it didn't last long. In fact the winds have been very light
and we have been plagued a little with mist that took a long time to
clear. The very brief periods of sunshine have been very welcome - and
we're just having one now!
Some nights have been quite cool, but not
quite cold enough to start the deer rutting. Ingrid thought she heard a
single roar a couple of nights ago, but it seems it was a false start.
It has been cold enough, however, to make the mice come into the poly
tunnel - I found one which had managed to drown itself the other
morning. Buzzy seems to be getting about on his own now. We
hear him only occasionally, but still see him quite regularly.
There are a lot of fungi about - we had
omelette aux chanterelles the other night. It was excellent.
Most of them are little - sometimes large - brown, buff, fawn jobs, but
today I found one that was very deep red - almost black - growing on a
fallen birch bough. There was also a very nice looking pinky red
russula about four inches across nearby. I left them both there!
Richard has been with us this week.
He's been out and about, finding otter within ten minutes of landing, as
well as sea eagles galore and hen harriers a plenty. So there's
still plenty to see here on Mull. He and our other guests are
leaving tomorrow, and we are having an evening off. What a treat.
It won't be long now before we close for the winter, and go looking for
some sunshine to keep us going until next year. Maybe we'll see
you before then?

Saturday the 13th of
September.
OK! OK! I give in. It's raining, and
has been all day despite what Heather said on the TV. It seems
that two cold fronts are battling it out, and neither wants to give in!
So it is 'dreich' today, with no wind to speak of to get rid of it.
What a shame - our guests have come all the way from Kent to experience
Scotland.....
Yesterday, we went to Tobermory to collect
a cheque for Ingrid's Birds and Beasties, and stopped off at Aros park
for a walk. Apparently there is to be a fungal foray there
tomorrow, but we thought we would pre-empt it. Well in
circumnavigating the lochan there, we found at least a dozen types,
including 'The Panther' - a deadly amanita. We left it well alone,
but took photographs of each different one we found. Needless to say I
fell down, or should I say slid down, the bank after peering closely at
one or two smaller fungi. Nothing damaged - only a pair of
trousers to wash.
On the wildlife front young buzzy is doing
well - and quieting down. He has been 'hovering' in the fresh
winds this week, and nearly dropped on a vole or something in the garden
while we watched. His flying skills are excellent now. The
sparrowhawk narrowly missed colliding with our window yesterday after a
tight turn designed to catch some chaffinches unaware. Bad luck!
He didn't get any - this time. And this morning I had to deter a toad
from entering the kitchen. I didn't think that health and safety
would have liked that, as I was about cooking breakfast at the time.
The Mull local Mod should be finishing off
today, and another bunch of happy folk will be on their way home from
Tobermory. It was packed yesterday as we visited Kate Leney's
gallery. It's rather petite, but John Hodgson's wood turnings were
excellent. Back home via the Spar at Salen to get tonight's dinner - a
nice piece of steak to go with the bottle of Madiran that's waiting for
us.....
I'm off to take some photographs of some
wet leaves! See you soon we hope..

Monday the 8th
September.
Wow! It's September all ready. And the
weather changes for the good with some excellent sunshine this last
week. You should have been here. Where were you?
We've had a week of clearing up in the
garden, of cleaning and painting window frames, and of finishing off
pottery for the Dervaig producer's market yesterday. There was quite a
good turnout, and Ingrid sold a nice hare. I delivered some
puffins to Calgary Farmhouse Hotel, who now have an excellent gallery at
the entrance to their woodland walk. The views across to Rum were
amazing. You could almost touch it! And the hills of Harris
in the Outer Isles were easily visible.
Buzzy is still around and occasionally
shrieks, but he's getting really good at flying now and was showing off
by going really high and then shouting! We also had a view of one of our
'local' eagles who have been away for their holiday as usual. It's
good to see her back. And I had a close up of the male sparrowhawk as he
zoomed past and away to the oak trees next door. Unfortunately
'Lizzy', the resident lizard in the poly tunnel went exploring and fell
in a bucket of water. What a shame, and it's my fault too for
leaving the bucket in a silly place. I hope he has brothers and
sisters around to take his place.
Well it's a nice evening, and Ingrid has
just come in and suggested a little stroll before supper, so I'll sign
off now and hope to see you here this week - or soon anyway. All
the best,

Saturday the 30th
August.
Well, the highlight of the week was a young
sparrowhawk perched on a rock less than five metres from the dining room
window! He stayed there quite a time preening himself, and just
looking around. He was obviously after the finches on the feeder,
but they had all flown off by then. What a handsome bird, with an
eye to transfix you. Ingrid managed a couple of photos through the
window, but only one is sharp as he moves his head so quickly.
We still have lots of young birds at the
feeders - quite late in the year really - and Buzzy did a flypast just
as the man from Michelin was about to leave. There are plenty of
frogs around too - some quite small still so I guess it takes them more
than a year to reach adulthood up here.
I was also up at Duart castle again -taking
pictures of the tearoom ladies for a press release promoting a coffee
morning for Macmillan Cancer support on the 26th of September. It
is due to go on all day, and no doubt there will be scrummy cakes on
sale as well.... lets hope plenty of folk turn up as it is a very good
cause.
Guests have been from Australia, America,
Germany, Holland, Italy, Ireland and even England! Quite a
collection really, but numbers are dropping off now we are outside the
school holidays. It's always quieter just after the bank holiday.
Last year we put up the poly tunnel, so it must be its birthday.
Jolly good that means we can have wine tonight........

Saturday the 23rd
August.
Hey! This has been a good week. The
weather here has been pretty good - well dry anyway - while other parts
of Scotland and beyond have been very, very wet. Coming back on
the Isle of Mull ferry from Oban on Tuesday was terrific. It was
almost too hot! The (rather good looking!) Italian girls sitting
next to me agreed it was hot - but they did still have their fleeces
on!! There was fog/mist coming up from the sea, so that it gave
the island a rather eerie look. Very photogenic.
We seem to have had a continental week with
our guests this week - three lots of Germans, one of Dutch, one Italian
(who smoked in his room - aaarrgghh), three of English, and one Scots
couple. One couple had been to the Edinburgh tattoo which they said was
brilliant. Others had been to Edinburgh Festival, while a third
couple had been to the capital but not to the festival or the tattoo and
had found it quite 'easy'.
This week's wildlife includes several
frogs, and a lizard - hiding under a pot in the poly-tunnel, which went
to 30C today, and then dropped to half that very quickly. Young buzzy is
still shouting his head off. Ingrid heard him shouting at his
brother, and making a heck of a row. It's about time he went off on his
own I think.
I'm just off to organise our holiday in
October. Be good...........

Saturday the 16th of
August.
Oh dear! It's damp again today. We
advised our guests to leave Iona until tomorrow when it will be drier.
Thursday was wonderful. Lots of sunshine while the rest of the
known world got soaked! Many people went to the Salen show (one of
the two agricultural shows on the island) - while I went to Oban - and
sunbathed on the deck of the ferry. Brilliant. The rest of the
week was good too - much better than in Edinburgh where they had
flooding, poor things.
It seems to have been a hectic week here
for some reason. It's the time of year when our minds turn towards
holidays, and what we'll do in the winter. (Don't worry, we keep
busy enough in between catching up on our sleep.) We are hoping to
go to France in October, so I'm scouring the internet for somewhere to
go. Our usual place in Erce in the Pyrenees is so good it is
difficult to find a better one, so I think we'll go there. I would
not mind living out there, so if you fancy running a B and B on a
beautiful island, then make me an offer I can't refuse!
The birds have been getting through our
peanuts like mad this week. (I must go and top them up when I have
done this.) There seems to be a new hatch of greenfinches - the
third this season we reckon - and we've noticed a lot more coal tits
than we've seen for a while. Young Buzzy keeps eyeing up the slope
below the house for wee furry beasties. He's welcome to them.
Ah! The sun is coming out. Good.
Speak to you soon.

Saturday the 9th of August.
OK, so it's wet today - very wet - but then
so is half the country. In any case all the Caledonian MacBrayne
ferries are all full today coming from Oban. All of a sudden Mull
is the place to be, and accommodation is hard to get. If you want
to come to Mull book as far ahead as you can. And who doesn't want
to come to Mull?
On Tuesday, we had the Waratah and Thistle
Pipes and Drums, from New South Wales in Oz, to play at Duart castle.
Excellent display, and plenty of people to watch. Luckily it was
the best day of the week being dry but a little overcast. The
morning was bright and sunny, but it was actually probably better in the
afternoon - particularly for the photographs which I had to take for the
press. We sent stuff of the following day and we'll see what
happens.
It has also been West Highland Yachting
week this week. I'm not sure how they got on, but a lot of the
time here there was little or no wind! They were in Tobermory on
Wednesday and Thursday, and sailed back to Oban yesterday. No
doubt they had fun whatever the weather.
This morning I was down in the field below
the house to try to take pictures of the grasses with water drops on
them. I got very wet, but it was fun. I didn't see Buzzy,
but he does keep diving into the grass and coming away with one of the
many voles here. Young Buzzy caught one in our garden yesterday.
Very dramatic.
Anyway there's still some spaces for next
week, so we hope to see you here. All the best.

Sunday 3rd August
Gosh its August already!
Yesterday
we went to Tobermory to deliver some of Ingrid's animals to the Mull
pottery shop. We had hares – which are proving very popular this year –
eagles, puffins and gannets. They had also sold a large sheep and a
large puffin so we collected a cheque for them at the same time. Great!
It made the trip even better. We also had an excellent bowl of mushroom
soup before we left.
There were good views on the way up – and
down – but although we nearly melted out of our pants on Monday, the
last two nights have been very wet, and the days have been misty and/or
soggy – depending on where you were on the island. Two of our guests
took a trip to Staffa and found a waterfall in Fingal's cave. Apparently
this is very rare during the summer. And yesterday I was showing seven
American food, drink, and travel journalists around Duart castle (don't
ask – it's a long story) who were surprised at the waterfalls coming off
the cliffs at Morvern. These are, of course, the seven witches whose
'hair' blows back when the winds blow from the south west in the winter.
They enjoyed themselves. I was asked a trillion questions. How many
clans are there?
Business is quiet this week, but it's West
Highland yachting week and Tobermory is full, so maybe we'll get some
late arrivals down here. Polish last night; English tonight; Canadians
at the end of the week. It's never dull... Must away now to sort some
photos. See you soon I hope.

Saturday 26th July.
It's been a strange day! Everything
has been really quiet... Ok it's Saturday and there is a big
change around with the self catering trade, but it has been
exceptionally quiet. The young buzzard has been practicing his flying
and shouting to his parents for food all the time - I can hear him now.
A little wren got itself temporarily stuck in the shed, and the young
robin has been investigating every little nook and cranny. I did
see what I thought was an eagle veeerrry high up, but by the time I had
the binoculars, it had gone. Only young buzzy circling and crying out.
The weather has been very warm and muggy -
after being rather cool earlier in the week, with the wind coming from
the North East. I managed to do some strimming this afternoon.
I had waited until there were a few clouds and a bit of a breeze, but as
soon as I started the sun came out and the breeze dropped away, so it
was very hot! I'll have to do the rest tomorrow I guess.
Everything is growing like mad with the
toms and cukes pushing their way to the roof of the poly tunnel. I
have to push my way past them all now. I am often tying them up and
nipping out the extra shoots. We still have to get some toms red!
We could not get them germinating earlier - too big a difference between
day and night temps we think. Norman was here yesterday saying how he
had been eating his for three weeks now, and how he had a glut of
courgettes. Nasty man!!
Feta cheese salad with our new potatoes and
wild raspberries for afters tonight. Yummy!

Friday 18th July.
Here we are again, and another week gone.
The Hares have been glazed and fired, and they all have their ears on!
Our birthday supper for Margaret went well - steak and chips with fresh
peas, and rasps and/or strawbs to follow - all washed down with a glass
of wine or so - excellent!
It's damp today - sometimes a little more
damp than others, but not totally soaking damp. This morning I had
to go to Duart castle to show an Italian freelance journalist around.
Quite nice really. I don't work there on a regular basis any more,
but just do a few tours when asked. The article should appear in a
leading travel and culture magazine next spring, so we'll expect an
Italian invasion next year.
Yesterday, after the shopping I met with a
PR lady - Pauline from Pure Shores who gave me plenty to think about -
if I can afford it! We are working on a logo now - literally -
based on leaves from the birch trees we planted when we moved in.
It's amazing the detail you miss when you look at the whole tree rather
than an individual leaf. I was also 'told off' about the
navigation on this site, so I'll have to see to that when I have a
moment, and it is raining. (Otherwise its the garden every time)
Also yesterday I took several (more)
pictures from the ferry. On the way over it was raining to the
North, leaving the small islands as dark silhouettes against the
silver-grey background, and it was very misty/foggy/cloudy to the South,
while the sun shone with the ferry. Great! By the time we
were coming back, the rain had disappeared, it was mostly sunny, and
there were super cloud formations over the paps of Jura (about twenty
miles South). I tried some pics, but the images may be too small.
We'll see.
Anyway, it's time to start thinking of
laying the table for breakfast, and to start our supper, so I'll sign
off and see you again next week. All the best.

Friday 11th July.
Hello. We just said goodbye to some
very energetic folk from Germany - although at least two of them were
Russian. They 'did' Mackinnon's cave, and the Carsaig arches -
although not in the same day. The cave is a short walk in
but with a bit of scrambling, while the arches is a long slog.
They did see basking shark from the shore, and the odd seal of course.
They also wanted to gather fungi, but we did not let on where we found
chanterelles the other day! Mmm! very tasty.
We have been forecast rain almost every day
this week, but it has not materialised. Yesterday the borders up
to Glasgow got hit by torrential rain, and there was a big landslip on
the Edinburgh side. I put fertiliser/weedkiller/moss killer on parts of
the garden expecting this rain, but today I had to water it in as we are
now not forecast any for the next three days. Don't knock it.
Ingrid is making hares, and keeps saying
"I'm off to check my hare", or "I'll just see if my ears have dropped
off"! Very confusing. I am trying to keep up with the growth
in the garden, and to keep a succession of salads going in the poly
tunnel. We had our first cucumber - well its actually a gherkin -
yesterday with our salad, and the late planted toms are coming on well.
I also have plenty of parsley, basil, and coriander on the go.
I'm off now to do some strimming, but will
then have to pack up and prepare for a birthday supper for a friend.
Have a good week.

Saturday 5th July.
It's a busy weekend, what with Wimbledon (we hope Nadal beats Federer as it was
Nadal who knocked out Andy Murray!), the Grand Prix (maybe Lewis Hamilton will
make it this time), and the start of the Tour de France. We watch it every
year if possible - for the views as much as anything.
At home, we have over 80 orchids out in the wild part of the garden. Wow!
This is the most we have had since we lived here - probably due to the warm
weather early in the year. Yesterday was suddenly quite warm and all the
plants in the poly tunnel grew apace. There are only a few strawberries
left now, and we've eaten the redcurrants, as well as the gooseberries. It
will probably be blackcurrants for supper tonight. What a difference it
makes growing your own fruit and veg. (I fixed the leak in the hydroponics
last week without too much of a problem)
Not a lot to report on the garden bird front this week, but some friends who
were staying had excellent view of golden eagles hunting - catching and then
dropping a hare, as well as five hen harriers in one evening and the odd short
eared owl. The otters seem to have gone to ground - so to speak.
Fantastic cloud formations today - rather like a collage - but they do look like
they may drop something on us, so I had better get out to the garden and clear
up. Until next time .........

Friday the 27th June.
Well, we did it! We now have four
stars - or at least we will have in a couple of weeks. Watch this
space.... or at least the home page.
We have a bit of rain today, but it should
clear up for the wedding tomorrow at the rugby club at Garmony.
Our guests for the weekend are invited. There are also nice forest
walks near there, where you can see otters and eagles if you are lucky.
'Our' snipe seems to like it wet, as he was
sitting on the corner fence post calling when we had coffee this
morning. I can hear him now as I write, but he's moved out of
view. Yesterday we had our first young greater spotted woodpecker
of the year on the peanut feeder..... and today a different one.
They both have the red head of the juvenile, but the patches are
different for each bird. We know the parents of one who has taught
their young to catch the peanuts that might drop by pressing their chest
against the wire. Brilliant!
I'm just off to the poly tunnel where I
have a small leak in the hydroponics set up. And then there's more
to plant on and to tie up. Plenty to do... Have fun....

Monday the 23rd June.
Oh gosh it's Monday again! Not that
it makes much difference here. Once we are in season its a 7 day a
week job. But today the advisor from VisitScotland is coming to
talk with us about the possibility of upgrading to four stars. We
are so nearly there it is not true, so we are trying to find out what
little tweaks we have to do to qualify. She was supposed to be here at
11.00, but has changed it to 3 ish. We hope it goes OK. Keep
watching to find out.
It's sunny again today, after a dull but
largely dry day yesterday. No problem if you had your coat and hat
with you. Some of our guests went to Staffa on Friday and saw
basking sharks and minke whale!! Horrible people! We've been
trying to see basking sharks for a few years now, but without success.
We did manage a brief glimpse of a minke whale two years ago - thanks to
Davy Kirkpatrick of Staffa Trips - but no sharks. Kate Humble was
raving about them on the tele the other night, and Gordon Buchanan - a
real Muileach, unlike us - managed to film them for his last programme
about Mull - by putting his camera in a plastic bag. Brilliant!
Must go now to prepare for our visit.
Talk to you soon.

Saturday the 7th June.
Sunny again! We've had hardly any
rain since the beginning of April! The other night it poured - for a
hour or so.
Yesterday we went to the Natural History
Centre in Ardnamurchan. They took some of Ingrid's blob birds for
sale in their excellent shop, so that was good. We stayed for
lunch (very tasty), during which time it was almost dry, but for the
return journey around Loch Sunart, via Salen and Lochaline, we were
dribbled on for most of the trip. A bit disappointing, but super
scenery. We were hoping for a white tailed eagle at the Forestry
hide, but only managed a gaggle of herons. Stopped at the new plant
centre and bought a few, and then home on the ferry - just in time to
greet our new guests.
This morning dawned dry and sunny, and we
had our coffee on the deck, only to be joined by the resident snipe from
his perch on the corner fence post. Brilliant. The wagtail family
were about as well. Mum doing incredible aerobatics trying to
catch a butterfly - a fritillary I think. Luckily there is a good breeze
which is keeping us cool. The poly tunnel is registering 40C plus, even
with both fans going. The strawberries are fruiting well. We
should have more for supper tonight.... I can't wait.

Wednesday the 28th May.
Rain..... This is the first day of rain we
have had for well over a month. The odd light shower or two -
mostly at night - but nothing serious like this. My garden can do
with it, and I'm sure the farmers and their beasts will like it too.
The hill across the glen is shrouded in low cloud, but lower down the
visibility is great. This morning Ingrid saw a snipe landing in
the field below and he has been calling ever since. The
grasshopper warbler has been giving it wellie most of the morning, and
the woodpeckers are coming back to the feeders now - all of them in
really smart plumage. No sign of any eagles today, which is not
surprising as they have abandoned the nest, having sat for over three
weeks longer than they should have. Not sure what went wrong, but an
overeager photographer got too close just after she started sitting and
she was off the nest for too long we think. We should be dry again
tomorrow and sun again on Friday, so leave what you are doing and head
for Mull. It's the place to be at the moment......

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