November Morning

So November has confounded us by moved in with a glorious start, the temperature down to a chill 5C first thing this morning under a sky clear except for one long bank of cloud running from the telecommunications masts on Glengorm on Mull across to Ben Hiant. The clear patches were criss-crossed by contrails - one is just visible appearing from the underside of the cloud - but....

....this 'plane was contrail-less, remarkably low, and almost overhead. Thanks to the wonders of modern communications, FlightRadar24 tells me it's an Antonov An-124-100 of Volga-Dnepr Airlines, a huge transport built in Russia. If you want to see one of these beasts landing and taking off, there's a YouTube clip here.

The morning took me for a wander through Kilchoan, past the still peace of the bay around the slipway, where....

....the only movement was an irritable grey heron and, a little further out, an otter diving for his breakfast.

However, another beast could be seen moving up the Sound, the 97,000dwt Yeoman Bridge steaming slowly up the Sound with a cargo of aggregate from Glensanda bound for Amsterdam.

The longer I walked, the more the sky cleared and the sun warmed the land. This is a view from the war memorial in Kilchoan across Kilchoan Bay to the houses along Ormsaigbeg.

Winter may be knocking on the door but, given a little sun, this place is beautiful at this time of year - and there are still a few fortunate visitors around to enjoy it.