The Hermitage

For Fun Friday we took ourselves to the Hermitage in Perthshire to walk beneath the trees beside the River Braan as far as Ossian's cave and the  bridge.

This proved quite interesting as the water level was low, such that the 'race' below the bridge was relatively calm, allowing two men to swim up and cavort beneath the waterfall (all in the best possible taste, of course). It was also clear that the rocks were bone dry and safe to climb closer than usual for taking photos, and we watched one girl climb onto the rock in the foreground with her camera. I took the extra from the bridge, looking downstream, as a mallard had swum through the surface swirling  foamy deposits, leaving a clear trail and ripples among the reflections. More extras to follow when the collages have been made.

Returning to the car for our picnic we then sought access to a feature on the map, named Niel Gow's Oak, which appeared to be situated between the A9 and the River Tay but no indication of a route. Declining to walk across that busy road we drove to Dunkeld, hoping for more information. although we did find a possible way, through a community orchard and onto a riverside path. After walking some way we realised it was much further than anticipated so turned back, returned to the Telford bridge and continued downstream to see the Birnam Oak and its young companion, the larger sycamore.

By then our car park expiry time was fast approaching so we dashed (as far as my wobbly leg could manage) back with two minutes to spare. Total distance was a mere 3 miles, but it felt much longer.