All part of the story

By Treshnish

Hammock life

It had been a lovely relaxed evening, so good to be sitting by the fire together as darkness fell, listening to the Curlew on the hill, the Oystercatchers on the shore and becoming aware of the quietness as the woodland birds fell silent. Occasionally Common gulls flew overhead in the dark.  

I was comfortable in my tent though Coco wasn’t impressed and curled up in a tight ball beside me.  S tested out a bivvy bag he bought for a cycling trip which he hasn’t been able to go on yet.  

By 4.30am we had reignited the embers in the firepit and were making tea which we drank while eating the (breakfast) cake I had made with roasted rhubarb from the garden.  (The clue is in the name, Tree + Cake, every gathering around a tree has cake, regardless of the time of day.)  We listened to the rising volume of song as the dawn chorus began, with the wind slowly gathering speed through the trees. 

By 7 it was light and we were getting warmer. By 8 the sun had broken through the cloud and we were hungry again. We cooked Treshnish eggs and island sausages on the fire, boiling water with the Kelly kettle and making coffee in relays in tiny cafetières.  It was lovely sitting by the fire, soaking in the sounds and the light, just being outside.

AE saw an Otter, AS saw a Hare. A Cuckoo perched on the top of one of three tall spruce trees that incongruously stand in a row above the woodland canopy, alerting us to its presence with its repeated call.  A Collared dove kept returning to nearby trees and it was exciting to see a female Hen harrier fly past us - low and slow, dropping out of sight close to the edge of the raised beach.

We eventually packed up and after everyone else had gone we took the youngest camper aged 2 up to meet the lambs.

I made it to the Dervaig Community Orchard Plant Sale just as it was ending. Not surprisingly they’d sold out of bedding plants I had been hoping to get for the cottage gardens so I had a cup of tea instead.

I had to go to bed for a couple of hours this afternoon, not surprisingly, so so tired!

Now I’ve got to finish sorting out the photographs to take to the framer tomorrow.

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