Scotland Tour 2013 - iPhone clips and photos - Living in a Hiace Camper Van

I've got stranded on Scoraig and can get over due to wind and waves on the loch, so I've taken a bit of time to look through my iPhone photo album and piece together a couple of short videos, from the video clips and photos there from the past few months. Its all the random shots I pulled out the phone to take, as most of my photography was done on another camera, but as I'm sure you've found out for yourself, looking through your mobile phone photos tells a story, and takes you on a journey through the weeks and months, reliving your memories...

Part I -
Ferry crossing, entering the highlands, Glencoe, Loch Carron, Isle of Lewis, Skye, John Muir Trust, Lindisfarne (England), Scarborough Fair, North Yorkshire Dales..

Making Irish Soda Bread in a Camper Van - Recipe included

I've been asked recently (hello Rob) to share a bit more about the Irish soda bread I've been making while travelling in Scotland. Well, its all thanks to my friend mark from Belfast, who spent some time with me the day before I left for Scotland, and taught me how to make the Irish Soda Farls using only the ingredients, and what kitchen utensils I already had at hand in the camper van.

I've been sitting on this video footage for a good while, and I've also realised that when traveling, I'm having new experiences every day, and precious little time to sit back and go over the material I have collected, for editing. So for better or worse, I'm going to start sharing some unedited video footage from the trip. Basically if I don't - you'll probably never see it.

So here's one of a number of videos I shot of Mark talking about his bread, and preparing some in my van back in June...

SOLD 2/Oct/13 Sea Kayak for Sale

I've decided to put my sea kayak up for sale. I've had some great times in this boat, but now that I'm not around my other kayaking friends, and am into more serious travelling around, I'm not using it so much. Also it'll be less of a burden - not on the roof of the van.
I've listed it here on eBay: Valley Avocet Sea Kayak for sale
If you're interested you can get in touch with me through the contacts page.
I'm back staying with friends now for a few days, so I've been quite busy helping out with a few things in the garden, and working on some internet projects for them. Also I'm beginning to make arrangements for the next stage in my travels - I'll keep you posted once a few things are organised..
Thanks for visiting! 

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See you soon..

The 'Bone Caves' of Inchnadamph | Scotland Tour 2013 | Living in a Hiace Camper Van

"The 'Bone Caves' of Inchnadamph contain relics of Eurasian Lynx, Brown Bear, Arctic Fox, Reindeer (dated to as long ago as 47,000 BP), the only evidence of Polar Bears so far found in Scotland, and human skeletons dated to the 3rd millennium BC. The skeleton of a bear thought to be 11,000 years old or more was removed from the caves in 2008."

So I set of this morning in search of dinosaur bones, armed with a nylon rope ladder from B&Q, a smoky old paraffin lamp, a caged canary, and two of Lidl's imitation 'Snickers' bars (not bad in my opinion).



Waterfall and pool near the beginning of the walk

The Sika Trail, Rosehall | Scotland Tour 2013 | Living in a Hiace Camper Van

My first stop today was the beautifully peaceful and remote Raven's Rock Gorge on the A839 outside Lairg. I pulled in here to have some lunch, but soon decided to stay a while and explore the woods.






It turned out to be a reasonably short, but enchanting walk through ancient forest, by way of a gorge following a river, twisting and turning deep into the rock.

Dunbeath to Invershin | Scotland Tour 2013 | Living in a Hiace Camper Van

I set off from Dunbeath in the rain, after not exactly rushing to get ready. I was able to take a good shower, and top up all my water containers, have a good breakfast and get on the road again. I drove all the way to Brora; there were some great views out over the North Sea, and some great light on the water, in between showers.

It was still raining at Brora, so I stayed in and had lunch while listening to the radio – wet weather on the road means driving and mealtimes are the main focus of the day, so its good to have a well stocked larder. I'm now using my fridge more like a larder as the temperature at night is maintained in there during the day, and I don't need to run the gas all the time.

I soon hit the road inland, and was rewarded with a good change in the weather, more shelter, and some amazing scenery along the banks of Loch Brora..