MAY WE WALK ALONG THE CANAL

 May, frankly, was a disappointing month, weather wise. However, the sun decided to shine on us all as we walked along the Caledonian Canal. It was a joy to see the sun and to feel some warmth for a change. May really was not the way it was supposed to be. All to do with the jet stream, they say. Maybe, says I. Whatever the cause, a bit of sun was good for us all.

We started at Dochgarroch, which means the davoch of rough ground. What's a davoch, I hear you all cry? Well, a davoch is an ancient land measurement, possibly going back to Pictish times. The land round here is a deal more cultivated than it obviously was at the time of the Picts. It really is quite green and pleasant. Another thing the Picts would not have recognised would be the Caledonian Canal, it being built in 1822, about 900 years after the Picts had gone. That's a long time for the name of a place to still be in use.

We all arrived on time ready for a walk in the sun, observing physical distancing, of course. Some of us were even tall enough to be seen over the car roofs.

The canal was looking quite serene under the blue skies.

If only we had been able to read Viking runes, we would have known that this was a runic clock, which also incorporates a Viking compass. Who knew the Vikings used Suzuki 4x4 cars? I'm a little doubtful myself.

Interestingly, there are no absolutely sure fire Viking place names in the immediate area around Inverness, most of the place names are Gaelic or Scots.

There were still daffodils about, so it really was spring rather than summer, even though a few days before or after the walk would suggest it was still winter!

What's this? Interlopers. Two wee dinosaurs. Yes our grandchildren Liam and Cameron were sleeping over while their parents were gallivanting away, so the children had no choice but to join us.

The thing about canals is - there are always boats to see. Not to sea, but to see. Well, some of them might have been to sea, but you could not just look at them and see which ones had been to sea.

It is also easy to walk alongside the canal as it is, essentially, flat. Of course, this canal is not entirely flat, otherwise there would not be so many locks on it. The highest point is Loch Oich at 106 feet above sea level. It appears that the water flows through the canal in both directions from this high point. Who knew water in canals flowed anywhere?

Not only was the sky blue, but there were bluebells about, it being Spring. These are the real deal - Scottish Bluebells. You can tell them apart from the more invasive Spanish Bluebell, by the way the flowers droop to one side of the stem. In the Spanish variety, the flowers are found all around the stem rather than to one side.

Spring also means nesting birds. This Mute Swan is sitting on  the nest, which would usually have between 4 and 10 eggs. Mute swans are not dumb, but they just make less noise than other types of swan. Mute swans are known to be very attached to their partners and they mate for life. They are also known to grieve if one should die!

It is thought that they were saved from extinction by being a popular food source in the past. They would often be marked on the foot to indicate ownership and those that were not owned belonged to the Crown and so were not so likely to be killed and eaten, for fear of offending the King.

Onwards along the canal and away from the boats and the bulk of other people, although there were a good number of walkers and cyclists about.

There were even rowers.

Maureen asked me what the light reflected off the surface water was called. I had to admit I did not know. She said that Robin knew, had told her, but she had forgotten. He told me later. Unfortunately, I immediately forgot. Does this say more about our memories or Robin's means of imparting the information? 

Anyway, I looked it up. There are a few answers, but the most popular one in the scientific circles seems to simply be a glitter pattern. I'm pretty sure that is not what Robin said and I am sure he will point me in the right direction. However, Glitter Patterns sounds quite the thing. The suggestion is that there are two types of reflection of light - specular or diffuse. The specular kind is like a mirror or the reflection of mountains in a still body of water. Diffuse is where the surface is rough - like the canal in the photo. The light bounces in all sorts of directions from a rough surface, rather than in a single direction when the surface is smooth. Apparently, these glitter patterns off rough surfaces can be used for all sorts of things, like predicting weather patterns and measuring the roughness of the sea. There is a whole body of science related to this. 

I think it is just nice to look at the glittering water.

A rose between two thorns.

It was getting quite warm by now. Charlie did as he was told and took his clothes off, or at least some of them.

A nice traditional one and a half storey Victorian era highland cottage. You can appreciate the proportions of roof to wall, the dispositions of windows as well as the door and the skylight, which help to resolve the architectural dilemma of an unresolved duality of the two windows and dormers. The original fenestration just adds to the charm. If I had kept the camera level, it would have been even better.

The area around the cottage to the west is known as Racecourse Wood. Horse racing was held in Inverness at least since 1662, starting around Tomnahurich Cemetery. It moved to this location in the early 19th Century, before moving again to the Longman some time later. Racing stopped about 1830.

Long before all of that, Saint Bean, who was a human bean before he was a saint, came to Inverness. He is said to have been a cousin of Saint Columba. He is thought to have built a monastic cell at Torvean, which is the hill you can see in the background below. Torr Bheathan means the hill of St Bean.

Two birds on the wires. They look very similar, but I think they are different. They do belong to the same group of birds - Hirundinidae - swallows and martins. The first is a juvenile Sand Martin and the next is a House Martin. Both of them winter in Africa. 

Not a totem pole, but a marker for an underwater cable across the canal.

Meanwhile, Christmas is still being celebrated here.

While Christmas might not have gone away, the Jolly Roger was flying nearby. This usually means the pirates are about to attack. 

When do they learn to tie their laces?

A drift of saxifrage in. Generally these are rockery plants, which is a bit of an irony, given that the name derives from the Latin meaning stone breaker. That is also their name in Gaelic. 

Cameron helped his old grandad out by carrying his backpack for all of 7 minutes!

Meanwhile everybody else was racing ahead.

Loch Ness Country House nestled in the trees, site of one of our Christmas outings.

There are three photos like this in my collection, but this is the only one where everybody is looking at the lens, not mentioning any names - Sandra and Jacque

I'm not entirely sure why I took a photo of this letter/parcel box, but I did. Apparently, you need never miss a delivery again as the wee delivery driver can just pop your long awaited box from Amazon straight into this fine receptacle. As long as you have £250 to spare, that is. iloveparcels.com if you're interested.

Keep going, Cameron. There will be an ice cream at the end of all this.

Altocumulus castellanus clouds. Generally, Altocumulus will not result in rain, but when they start to form lumps and bumps, like castle ramparts, on the top, then you are likely to get some rain later in the day.

Lots of bluebells. As well as being native to Scotland and the UK, they are a sure indicator that there is, or was, woodland here. They are often associated with ancient woodlands. So, if you see swathes of bluebells out in the open, then there were once trees above them, although in some areas further west, they are known to colonise open areas. 

Here is some felled woodland, but not the ancient type.

Poor wee Cameron is lagging behind, or was it Sharon?

Luckily Dangling Dave was a willing sherpa. He may not have been quite as willing if it had been Sharon and not Cameron who was lagging behind!

Cameron even held Dave's hand. He might move in with Dave and Sandra given half a chance.

Our route brought us back down to the canal side. I did not notice as we did so, that we were passing through the old township of Milton of Dunain, which was already ruined by 1876, so perhaps it was not too surprising that it did not register.

Cameron and Liam showed a marked preference for the company of other people on this walk. Any volunteers to look after them during the summer holidays would be warmly welcomed.

This boat name caught my eye. A bit of digging about would suggest that it was originally from Texas, but the owners are now on another boat in the Caribbean. I don't know if they sold this boat or what, but I can see the attractions of the Caribbean, especially in winter. The owners gave up their home and live aboard their new/other boat and sail wherever they want - proper nomads, it would seem.

Back at Dochgarroch and we were lucky to find some picnic seats for our, well, our picnics.

Actually, some people were a bit slow off the mark and didn't get a seat. 

Sue was worn out by the boys.

While everybody else went for a walk to the end of the towpath, we were forced to take the boys for a cup of tea, some cake and ice creams.

Coo, were we lucky.

Huge thanks to Sue and Charlie for organising the walk and for letting the boys tag along - they really enjoyed it and they were tired enough by the end of it all. Great weather too, well done. I just hope we get nice weather for Susan and Robin's walk in June - I'm sure we will!