A waxing gibbus moon over two leafless trees

A waxing gibbus moon over two leafless trees in the sunset on the hill above Ballagan Farm.

Great wee wander up the hills.

Nice to bump into Stevi who was also on a photography wander up the hills.

Happy New Year!

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!

Doon the water

We decided to take a trip ‘doon the water’ after lunch on a sunny Sunday afternoon. After a nice drive along the Clyde and down the coast, with wonderful views across the water, we arrived at our old stomping ground, Skelmorlie and Largs.

After a brief walk to inspect the newly built flats on the shore at Skelmorlie, we continued our drive along the coast to Largs. The walk along the promenade and Largs Beach was brazing, but well worth it for the fresh air and stunning sunset.

Late evening sun on our trees

COVID19 has firmly taught us that we don’t have to go far from home to admire nature and stunning views. Tonight was another prime example, with the late evening sun lighting up the trees in our garden followed by a absolute stunning sunset.

Snow storms and a winter sunsets

Just after starting our walk along the shores of Loch Lomond from Milarrochy Bay, we could see an ominous snow cloud coming our way across the loch. Less than ten minutes into our walk we decided not to take a gamble and swiftly head back for the car. It was a good choice to have our tea/coffee with shortbread from the comfort of our warm car while the snow and wind whirled around.

About forty minutes later, the snow had cleared and we were back out for our walk and to enjoy the never tiring views.

I couldn’t resit taking yet another picture of the famous oak tree against the backdrop of the passing storm clouds and the slowly re-emerging winter sun.

At the end of our refreshing walk we even got to see yet another memorable sunset at Milarrochy Bay.

Sunset from Drumbeck

Magnificant views to Glasgow, Slackdhu and Strathblane on the way down from a late afternoon walk up Dumbreck on New Year’s Day.

Evening sun on Slackdhu

We hardly go for a walk at Loch Ardinning these days as it is virtually impossible to park and extremely overcrowded due to the reserve being a top hotspot for walkers that is within Covid lockdown restrictions from the city.

On a late afternoon we decided to take a punt and headed up for a walk late afternoon after most people had left or were on their way back.

The walk up onto Muirhouse Muir was well worth it with the stunning views of the Slackdhu Craggs above Strathblane bedded in the warm evening sun.

Sunset at Milarrochy Bay

A walk along the shores of Loch Lomond from Balmaha or Milarrochy Bay has fast become a regular afternoon outing for us during Covid lockdown. It is surprisingly quiet at Loch Lomond, especially in contrast to the extremely over crowded walking hot spots closer to home that are within about 5 miles of the city.

This is one of the big benefits of living in a remote corner of Stirlingshire that is more akin to the city, meaning we can head up to Loch Lomond and even as far as Crianlarich and Killin without breaking the lockdown rules.

After a refreshing walk along the East shore of Loch Lomond from Milarrochy Bay, we enjoyed the start of the sunset from the warmth of our car with a cup of tea/coffee. Just before the sun disappeared behind the horizon, we went out to admire a fabulous sunset and the amazing red glow on the bare trees along the shore.

The photo of the sunset with the silhouette of the famous oak tree is perhaps my best photo of the year.

Castle Campbell sunset

A browse through some of our 19th century books made us decide to take a drive to Airth to explore Airth Old Parish Church that stands in the grounds of Airth Castle. Disappointingly, our trip was in vain as the ruined church is entirely cordoned off with Heras fencing.

With no plan B, we decided on the spot to drive on, crossing the River Forth over the Clackmannanshire Bridge heading for Dollar with the intention to have another wander around Dollar Glen and one of our favourite castles, Castle Campbell.

The castle, also known as Castle Gloom, is managed by the National Trust for Scotland and stands imposingly at the top of Dollar Glen where the Burn of Sorrow and the Burn of Care join to form the Dollar Burn. Simply a stunning medieval castle in a stunning location.

After exploring the waterfalls on the Burn of Sorrow and admiring the views from above the castle, we headed back down when the sun started to set. A slight detour onto the hillside above the Born of Care rewarded us with a stunning sunset.

Camus nan Gael Sunset

Sunset from the view point at Camus nan Gael taken when driving back from a day trip to the Ardnamurchan Lighthouse while staying at Kylesbeg in October 2002.