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I'll tak' the high road...

With high pressure building over Scotland last week, I made a snap decision to down-tools and head north to Argyll in Scotland for a few days kayaking, birding and fishing. My first night was spent camping in my X-trail on the shore of the eponymous Loch Lomond. At first light the next morning I was out on the loch paddling among the islands in near mirror-calm conditions.

First light at Loch Lomond, looking north

Sunrise behind the mountain range, the clouds catch the first rays of the new day

Gradually the mountain tops gather the sunlight

At last, Ben Lomond, one of Scotland's iconic landmarks, welcomes the day

And here you can listen to the famous song of Loch Lomond:

Kayak fishing

Fishing from kayaks for food is an ancient skill developed by the Inuit and other indigenous people living in the Arctic regions, who used the boats to hunt on inland lakes, rivers and the coastal waters of the Arctic Ocean (indeed 'kayak' is an Inuit word). In recent times the manufacture of recreational kayaks from strong, light-weight materials has resulted in a gain in popularity of fishing from kayaks for sport. There are a number of web-sites devoted to this activity.

Recently my friend 'Drinking Ken' brought his kayak to Cumbria to join me for some sessions of kayak fishing on Coniston Water.

Ken's kayak is the sleek, classical "sit inside" type and although not designed for fishing,
he was able to adapt with some ingenious modifications

My own kayak is of the "sit on top" style and, although not as elegant as Ken's,
is more suitable for fishing

If Ken looks the more stylish, guess who caught the fish!
A small pike of about 3 pounds weight

But that was a mere tiddler compared to the monster I had caught a few days before,
weighing in at eleven and a quarter pounds. Use the net as a scale to compare the two fish.

Maalie in kayak-fishing battle-dress with his pike!

So what next?
Well, take a look at this - we can but dream!

Up in smoke

Recently my friend Ken and I were on our way to a kayaking session when our route was blocked by a horse box that had pulled over to the side of the road ahead off us. There was some black smoke issuing from under the bonnet. The driver had already jumped down from the cab.

Frighteningly quickly (within a minute or two) the whole cab was in flames...

...and moments after that the whole vehicle was on fire with black smoke billowing into the sky

Scary though it was, it could have been a lot worse. Thankfully the driver was out in good time (though coughing and spluttering); there were no horses on board at the time; and the country road was quiet at that time of day - it might have been in a crowded city centre.