The Future of our Medical Services

West Ardnamurchan Community Councillors are appealing for all residents of West Ardnamurchan to attend this evening's Community Council meeting at 8,00pm in the Community Centre, at which the main items on the agenda are

- Nicola Sturgeon's visit on Monday 10th September

- GP provision: proposals from NHS Highland

Please, if you possibly can, come to the meeting.

Autumn Walk

Autumn seems to be coming upon us very quickly, with a marked change in the weather since Thursday's sunshine.  In the gap between last night's rain and the drizzle forecast for late this afternoon, we walked up into the hills at the back of the house. At 200m we were in low cloud blown in from the sea by a steady southwesterly - that's Beinn na Seilg lost in the mist at top right.

At least the burns are now back to their normal level.  Now, wherever you walk on these hills, there's the chuckle of small waterfalls where water is making its way down the steep hillsides, zig-zagging to get round the rock outcrops.

This is the time of year when toadstools come into their own - and what a wealth of them there are!  This one, about 15cm (6") across, was the largest of today's....

 ....but they came in every size and shape, from the umbrella to....

 ....the phallic, but....

....by far the brightest was this one, which was growing in a damp patch on the steep bank of a burn.

Even the best site on the internet doesn't enable accurate identification, but if any reader can tell us what these species are, it would be much appreciated.

Catamaran Heads North

Chris Brooks in the catamaran featured in yesterday's post left Kilchoan shortly after 11.00am this morning, heading for Mallaig.  With a fresh southwester blowing, he's seen in the picture tacking out across the Sound of Mull on his way to rounding Ardnamurchan Point.

Read all about Chris' voyage here, and follow his progress on a map here.

Greetings from Holland

From Louise and Jan Pieper, Breezand, NL:

Years ago with OUR Land-Rover we visited Ardnamurchan during one of our holidays in Scotland, and we were surprised by the stunning nature and of course the lighthouse and its surroundings. We had a splendid time over there, also staying at Loch Shiel at a campsite.

Last week, we visited Dunkeld near Pitlochry for a Highland Games, and next to us was this Landy with a sticker in the back window. Reading it we were a little bit back at Ardnamurchan, especially because we, my wife and I, like Land-Rovers also!

That's why I took the pictures, and reading the text of the sticker we thought THAT'S THE REAL SPIRIT!!!

Many thanks to Louise and Jan for writing to The Diary.

The stickers are only available from The Ferry Stores in Kilchoan.

On the Waterfront

The weather on Thursday was the sort of thing we've become used to in Kilchoan this summer, an almost perfect day with enough of a northerly blowing to keep us pleasantly cool.  This yacht anchored in Kilchoan Bay overnight.  To the left of her are the West Ardnamurchan Jetty Committee moorings and, beyond them, the new perch.  The view looks across the Sound of Mull to the Ardmore Point beacon (just behind the perch) and the Glengorm telecommunication masts.

By yesterday the weather had deteriorated, with a strong southeasterly wind and 5mm of rain through the day.  For an otter on the lookout for lunch, the weather doesn't matter too much.  He was swimming around just off the slipway below The Ferry Stores.  Main course, taken on a convenient rock, was a flat fish,....

....followed by several small crabs for afters.  With summer waning and the human activity in the bay falling off, the otters take possession of it for the winter.

Curlews can be seen in large flocks during the summer, but by this time of year they've reverted to their solitary state.  This one was stalking the margins of Kilchoan Bay, looking pretty fed up with the weather.

The Saga Sapphire slipped slowly down the Sound at breakfast time this morning - she's seen here passing Tobermory, with Calve Island to her starboard.  The mist was much thicker yesterday afternoon when the big bulk carrier the Yeoman Bontrup came up the Sound having loaded at Glensanda - we couldn't see her, but we heard her foghorn.

This rather smart catamaran is parked on the grass just by the slipway but no-one seems to know to whom she belongs.  The website address printed on the mast is a for a company in Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex called Hydro Sailing, which offers "Individual and Corporate Performance Sailing for All" - whatever that is.