Week 3: Alltnacriche

It was another journey up north for the 3rd week of the holidays. This time working on the SU Camp at their outdoors adventure place Alltnacriche, just down the road from Aviemore. I had the responsible job of being travel leader. This involved counting them on and off and having a list of names and emergency numbers should we drive into a ravine off the A9 and die! No such action but there was a close shave both going and returning to Aviemore. We'd pulled into a service station for a 'comfort break', and by chance an identical bus, also going to an SU camp rolled up. There was a moment of madness as kids returned to the wrong bus. On the journey back the same happened again...except it was a bus full of blokes on their way to an 80's weekend stag party. Not a pretty sight and I managed to prevent our 14 year olds being chatted up by a bloke dressed as Limahl.

Anyway I can't really say too much about the camp itself other than it was maybe a little bit to rigid/tame given that we were in the highlands where adrenaline junkies thrive. That said the lads I took from Dunbar loved it and found the mix of physical challenges combined with the spiritual dimension of the camp a welcome change. Great location and I did a bit of exploring when I could. I went out for a couple of runs up a hill on an old track called the Burma Road. It was used as a key route for the Jacobites. On the last full day I did the same route but took a detour into the bracken and rocky outcrops. Careful navigation of the floor required total concentration. I like that kind of challenge, but it does have risks. For a split second I lost focus as I saw the road was close. In that time I managed to wedge my left ankle and right shin under a boulder as I travelled forwards at great pace. I found myself lying in a ditch with both legs and ankles in agony. I really thought one was going to be facing the wrong way, but it was just severe bruising and a gash. It stopped me running for 3 weeks though. One unexpected highlight for me was going to church at Inch Parish Church. Located high up overlooking the loch, this was a special place. Chatting to people there I discovered that there had been a church on the site for 700 years. They knew this because they have a bell that had come with the first missionaries and has stayed there as long as there has been Christian worship on the site. I couldn't help wonder what it was like for them and what their hopes and dreams were for their church back then. I love that sense of history to a place and that it involved people with pioneering spirits. The church stood on the footprint of the saints

All in all it was a good week, although the midges were appalling and at times I looked like an acne infested teenager. There were lots of them too and some even more annoying!

Summer 2012 Weeks 1-2

Okay so I am about 10 months behind with things so no time like the present to catch up with a review of the summer. The school holidays are notably different now my kids can fend for themselves a lot more. They still need feeding from time to time but mostly they do their own thing. Stuart needs reeling in from time to time as he would play out for ever. Al 3 of them think I am a human wallet and fleece me daily. Week 1: Not on holiday as Isabelle managed to wangle a placement at the hospital with a heart and lung surgeon. Not brewing up for him or licking envelopes as many work experience rookies do, but actually watching him work. Day 1 involved seeing a lung being removed and as the week passed by she rounded it off with 4 hours of open heart surgery...on a patient not herself. Quite a cool way to spend your holidays.

Meanwhile I spent some time in the office sorting out a years worth of clutter and preparing for the holiday clubs that awaited after my own holiday. Week 2: The Highlands We were gifted a break in a colleagues house near Plockton up north, whilst he went to Peru! We set off on the wettest day ever and the Edinburgh bypass was closed, forcing traffic on to narrow B roads where they soon became as clogged as a Glaswegians artery's. It took 3 hours to travel 32 miles but despite the set back we plodded on to Plockton via Glencoe. Glad we did as this is a stunner of a route. What really lifted me was that the kids actually noticed that too and were keen to have a look around at the next break. On arrival at the house, which was quite secluded we had been told to let ourselves in as the door wouldn't be locked. I edged my way through the front door calling out in case this was the wrong house. After looking at a few family photo's I realised I was in the right place. Inside we were all amused to see how alike our houses and possessions were. They even had the same slippers! Outside were some chickens that we were to look after. We did that and the kids enjoyed the routine of nicking their eggs and wombling around in there. They also had a trampoline which added to the fun.Down the road/glen were some donkeys that also entertained us in our chilled out week.

There was a lot to do but we opted for doing a bit of this and that. On the Sunday I went for a run and discovered all the marked paths were fiercely overrun by bracken and nettles. To complete my run I needed to get along the Loch and the only option was the single track railway line. I wrongly thought it would be quiet on a Sunday so chanced it. I'd not planned for the 11.01am from Kyle of Lochalsh and got quite a shock when it blew its horn at me. Worse still as I wandered down the track I realised I was 50 meters away from the station, where the train had now stopped and where 'rail official looking' people were stood. It was a case of hiding in the bushes until the coast was clear. We went to Plockton to do a bit of sea kayaking. The local health visitor multi tasked hiring them out from her cottage. Lovely little coves and islands to visit by boat and stuff like that We did a fishing trip which was good fun and caught loads of stuff. Gutting them was equally entertaining. The highlight of the week had to be the Misty Isles Boat trip to Loch Coruisk from Elgol on Skye. Just mind blowing scenery and a sense of escape. After the boat trip to the loch, which sits at the foot of the Cuillin's, there's time for a walk...or a swim! Yes we decided to go for it and glad i did. There's photo of Stuart on this link that made it to the BBC website. I can't recall all the things we did, but I must return, especially to Skye's west coast.