A Day's Shopping

We drive in to Fort William about once a month to do a large shop, fill up the car with petrol, and buy those things which aren't readily available on the internet.  The frequency of the visits is decreasing, particularly since we've had the new Hyundai i10, whose wheels are smaller than some Ardnamurchan potholes.

Today's visit started in grey but fine weather, and was notable for the two ships which passed through the Corran narrows while we were on the ferry.  This one, the Burhou 1, we've seen before.  She's British-registered, and was heading in to Corpach with a load of timber.  The Burhou 1 and the Isis are Stork line's only two ships.  The company has an interesting history - it's here.

By the time we left the Fort the sun had come out and, because we weren't in a hurry, we were treated to a thoroughly enjoyable run along the forty-five miles of road that lead along the peninsula to Kilchoan.  Picture shows the view across the Corran narrows, with the Corran Inn at left, the peak of Sgurr na h-Eanchainne at right, and the beautifully formed corrie of Coire Dubh between.

We stopped several times, for example at Ardslignish to enjoy the view back up Loch Sunart....

....and again almost immediately to eat lunch looking across Camas nan Geall.  Lochaber Geopark has placed one of its interpretative boards here, and very good it is, making the geology of this beautiful view very clear.  The board is remarkable also because one of the photographs not only shows a volcanic agglomerate but, flying a cross it, a young golden eagle.

Lochaber Geopark has had a hard time despite its efforts, losing its UK and European funding so its members now work voluntarily, yet these boards, the geological leaflets they print, the trails they've developed, and their geology room at the Ardnamurchan Point lighthouse, have all been great successes, and have done much to highlight Lochaber's international geological status.  The group's website is here.

We arrived home to find the Banff-registered BF70 Krossfjord steaming up and down off Kilchoan.  According to he's a deep-water purse-seine trawler, so we were surprised to see that she appeared to have been fishing in the northern Sound.  The two Maclean creel boats from Tobermory passed close to her several times but the action was too far away to tell whether they were being friendly or otherwise - which they would have been if the Krossfjord was catching prawns.

And only two days ago The Diary was commenting on the lack of big Scottish trawlers in the Sound - though we didn't expect them to be fishing (post here).