Midsummer gold

The recent warm weather in the northeast of Scotland has been a delight.  Sitting outside until late in the evenings has been the norm,  in warm, still air which at times has been almost Mediterranean - and with no midges, which is why west isn't always best! The evening of Friday 26th June was just such a perfect evening, at 2215 the air was just starting to lose the heat of the day and waves of scent were floating down from the Honeysuckle at the top of the garden.  The light reflected in a window was beautiful.....

....but it was just a reflection of the real thing - a midsummer "sunset".  In truth the sun doesn't completely set at this time of year here in Aberdeenshire, it merely dips below the horizon and the glow travels from northwest to northeast until sunrise a few hours later.  But it was gorgeous......

Climbing over the wall and walking a little way up the field behind the house gave a clearer view of midsummer's gold - just perfect.  The early morning brought another special sight, a spectacular thunderstorm seen through thick mist, the whole scene lit with diffuse purple flashes of lightning amid crashing thunderclaps - a magnificent start to the day!

A golden path

After a couple of days of really very poor weather, a bright and breezy early summer day.  The colours absolutely "zinged" in sharp air - and warm sunshine returned.

Broom (Cytisus scoparius) is in full,  glorious flower.  Seen against the green of conifers and a blue sky, the effect is dazzling.

To walk along a track lined with gorse and Broom is to walk a golden path - and in the warm sunshine the coconut scent of the Gorse arrives in waves - just a superb early summer day.

One good thing - 29th May 2020

On Friday 29th May Scotland moved to Phase 1 of the route map through and out of the Coronavirus crisis. Initially, cautious steps have been taken - and rightly so.  The initial changes allow people to meet with one other household at a time in the outdoors, to resume activities where distancing can be maintained like golf, fishing, walking and paddle sports - but with the guidance that this should remain locally based.

These are welcome steps, a sign that there will be a return if not to normal, then to a new normal beyond the lockdown.  And they come as Spring has, in the space of a few days, turned to summer.

Fields of Rape are dazzlingly bright against early summer skies, the heavy scent carrying on a warm breeze.

Along the riverbank and roadsides early summer flowers are emerging everywhere - this is Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) - white stars studding the greenery; when their seeds are ready they explode like miniature fireworks at the slightest touch.

In our garden Azaleas are in full vivid bloom, at twilight they absolutely glow with colour.

When lockdown started the Snowdrops were still in flower; now, as we begin to carefully move beyond lockdown the summer flowers are out.  This seems an appropriate point to conclude this series of 45 posts across 67 days which have been the most extraordinary period of most people's lives.  Looking out for that "one good thing" to balance the tragedy and relentless bad news cycle has helped me to stay positive - and in truth this has been a much more positive time personally than I could have imagined.  In due course I'll be able to reflect on how this period has changed my outlook. I hope, too, that you have found something of interest here.

We have started to move beyond lockdown, to gain control of the CV-19 pandemic - and that, of all the "good things", is the best one.

One good thing - 25th May 2020

A beautiful, warm and sunny evening tempted me to sleep out under a tarp again - and while lockdown continues in Scotland the only available option remains the most micro of "micro-adventures" in the garden.  The tarp is an Alpkit Rig 7 which offers almost limitless pitching options as it has so many guying and lifter points.  This set-up is a simple one but was very effective on a night which was forecast to be warm but breezy.

Pitched with the foot end into the breeze it offered good airflow and was quite low to the ground whilst giving adequate headroom at the top end.   It's a bit different to the open fronted pitch I've used recently, but is one I'll use again.  all that was left to do at this point was to put my sleeping bag in.

I slept really well until the dawn chorus began at 0312 with our resident Robin,  Blackbird and two Cuckoos first to get going.  By 0400 the birdsong was terrific, a real treat if a little early in the morning for humans!

One good thing - 23rd and 24th May 2020

The weekend once again gave opportunity for longer walks - two routes of just over 20km each and both starting and finishing at my front door.

The first route was on Coiliochbhar Hill, a 533m/1749ft wooded hill to the south of the river Don near Alford.  I've climbed this hill several times, but each time from the south.  I took a different route, and found it a very tough day for such a small hill.  This image is the view to Lord Arthur's Hill from Coiliochbhar Hill.  The Correen Hills, and particularly Lord Arthur's Hill have been the mainstay of my long hillwalks during the lockdown period.

Descending Coiliochbhar Hill there's a nice view over the valley of the River Don, with Bennachie in the dstance.

Next day I did a circuit of the Correen Hills and looked over to Coiliochbhar from Lord Arthur's Hill.  My route had taken me from left to right in this picture with a descent down a natural woodland slope on the right.  Getting back to the start along the riverbank was surprisingly hard going.

In the two months of lockdown, with walking confined to the local area, I've managed over 700km of walking; almost all this has been setting out from and returning to the house.  I've discovered a lot more about my local area, which is one good thing, and lost over  half a stone (4kg) in the process, which is another good thing!

One good thing - 22nd May 2020

In a bank shaded by a large Copper Beech tree at the edge of the garden, a clump of English Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) have flowered - the second year they've done so after we transplanted a few bulbs some years ago.

These lovely flowers, when seen in large numbers, give a violet glow to woodlands which is actually quite difficult to depict accurately on camera.  they are associated with ancient woodland and can be a good indication of where a woodland once was - good examples are found at Eilean Fhianan in Loch Shiel and Ailsa Craig in the middle of the Firth of Clyde.  In late spring and early summer Ailsa Craig's slopes are carpeted in violet blue - as shown on the visit Douglas made in 2012

One good thing - 18th and 19th May 2020

The sunset on the evening of 18th May was nothing short of majestic.  What began as a faint pink blush in the sky suddenly developed into stunning shades of amber and molten gold.  The sunset is now in the northwest here in Aberdeenshire, the bearing approximately 310 degrees or 40 degrees north of west.  In a month, at the solstice the sun will hardly dip below the horizon before it skims up again in the northeast.

The development of colour in this sunset was really quick; presumably an effect of underlighting as the sun dropped below the higher ground. Whatever the cause, the effect was marvellous!

This image was taken at 21.32 - just five minutes later the light show was all over and the colour had drained from the sky.  On a beach facing west with a horizon view on the west coast, the colours would have lingered for hours; here it had been fleeting, but very special.

One good thing - 17th May 2020

The weekends give opportunity for longer walks, and once again routes on the Correen Hills have been the logical choice, walking directly to and from home on long circuits.  Both days had similar weather with early rain clearing to give bright and breezy conditions, flotillas of clouds racing overhead and clear air.  The freedom and space these hills have offered through the lockdown will be long remembered, great striding routes where other people are seldom seen.

One of my routes over the weekend was this 21 kilometre circular walk which could be started and finished from quite a few different points, there's around 500 metres of ascent involved and it covers a nice variety of moorland, wood and farm tracks - there's a good track the whole way around.  One of the features of these hills is that distance just seems to reel away.

Alternating cloud and bright sunshine made for some dramatic lighting effects as in this view from the summit of Lord Arthur's Hill over to Bennachie, the hill dark in shadow and lower ground covered in gorse making for a brilliant contrast - it was all good.