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HIGH TIDE AT JOHN MUIR

29th August 2023

I don’t like saying that the nights are drawing in… but they are. I think having evening walks on the coast, and always timing them to enjoy the last light, means that you recognise this shift very clearly. Rather than walks ending at 10pm, as the light is fading, now we’re seeing that light fade by half 8. Now, we’re having a flask of tea in the car in the gloaming, and driving home in darkness. August is the month where you can feel the light slipping more quickly. Still summer, but with that first hint of the darker evenings ahead.

Take One

FAMILIAR

9th August 2023

I am needing to find the time to write at the moment. Weeks ago, when we were resting Harris after his shoulder/back flare-up (which may or may not have been linked to the mass – I suspect there’s a connection but there’s no way of knowing), I’d got into the habit of writing blog posts in the car while Richard and I took turns to have solo walks with Bracken. As I said at the time, I discovered that I liked writing in the car. We’d park at Gullane or John Muir Country Park, and I’d enjoy the fresh air with the window down, a mug of tea, and Harris curled up on the seat beside me. Car park writing turned out to be much more enjoyable (and better, for me) than doing what I am now: sitting at my desk at home.

Local

RETURNING TO YELLOWCRAIG

31st July 2023

Tuesday 18 July | I’ve started this post in my head so many times, but never quite figured out how to put the words down. And before you think, what’s happened?? Don’t worry, we’re okay. We’re okay now.

But June was awful, and I don’t want to write it all here. If you follow the lads on Instagram you’ll already know that Harris was very ill indeed, and I wrote about this in such detail there that I don’t want to go into this journey again here. But those days, between Wednesday 7 June, when the large mass was first discovered in Harris’s chest, and Sunday 11 June, when he had major surgery, and Friday 16 June, when he came home from the Dick Vet hospital, were the most traumatic days of our lives. I don’t say that lightly. They were.

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FISHERROW

25th May 2023

As I’m writing this, it’s the most glorious evening at John Muir Country Park, the kind of evening you dream about all winter. Sunny and warm with sparkling light; an evening where you want to be outdoors. I’m observing this from the car, in the car park, as Richard and I are taking turns for our solo walks. Rather than being out for a few hours, enjoying this weather, we’ll probably have an hour’s walking at most, as there’s only so long that anyone (including the lads) wants to sit in the car – especially when it’s warm. So, clearly not an ideal set up, but, as I mentioned in a previous post, this has turned into my writing time. I’m sitting with the door open, listening to the birds, and there are worse ways to spend an hour on a sunny evening.

Local

BIG SKIES AT GULLANE POINT

24th May 2023

Our walks have felt so strange over the past month. I’ve missed Harris (as he’s been in recovery from an injury), and I’ve missed walking with Richard (as we’ve been taking turns to sit in the car with Harris while the other has a walk). And solo walks with Bracken are hard work. Harris wants to be out on an adventure. He lives for adventures. He trots on ahead, totally engaged with the experience, and always in sync with me, keeping an eye on where I am and what I’m doing. We’re a team.

Local

GLOWING LIGHT OVER FIDRA

19th May 2023

There are evenings when the light just catches your breath. This was one of those evenings. We’d timed this walk at Yellowcraig for low tide – something I’d always advise if you’re visiting for the first time as this beach is so wide and expansive at low tide, while the tide line is high at a very high tide. They’re two entirely different beach walks.

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