It's been almost a week since I've been gone to visit my sister in England and explore the Highlands of Scotland. There's not a day that it hasn't rained yet. It reminds me of my first trip to Alaska, where it rained the first 16 days of a 21 day trip.
The heather's still in bloom, as are some smaller wildflowers. The Highland mountains and their graceful valleys are beautiful, when the clouds rise high enough to catch a glimpse of their peaks. Waterfalls are everywhere, as the ground is beyond saturated. We hiked halfway up Ben Nevis today, (highest peak in Scotland) and we saw a little sun for about 1 hour. We decided to exit the rough trail before it became slick with rain and found ourselves in the parking lot just as the rain started. (On hikes, I'm known for brilliantly reading the weather and getting us out of harm's way, just in the nick of time.)
On the way down, Kathy and I met Daniel, who's put in 16 seasons maintaining the trails we'd been hiking on. Who could ignore his red beard flowing down to his green safety vest! I asked permission to photograph him and he readily agreed. We talked about older bodies and anti-inflammatory meds while his bandages completed the story. He told us of a short hike nearby with a cable bridge that we might like. He looked us up and down and pronounced that "yull be able to doo it." (Scottish accent
In a small valley with a wonderful meadow, was a cable bridge just waiting for me. One has to test oneself every once in a while, just to be sure you're really alive. After I tried my balance beam moves, a young Brittish man followed. Then his girlfriend had to give it a go. This image gives once a sense of the danger and the encouragement of her boyfriend on the other side.
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