Findhorn is one of my “Special Places”. I’m always drawn back.
Findhorn Sunset
It looked like I was going to draw a blank in 2015, however. It was a combination of factors. The poor and unpredictable summer weather. My cousin renting out his cottage for all of July. A busy travel schedule for me over the summer months… Bavaria 4 times, Prague, Vilnius, Tiree…
Then someone called a meeting in Portsoy for early September. Portsoy is more than an hour north-east of Aberdeen and well over 3 hours driving for me – no train service as an alternative. I was looking at the choice between a day made up of 6-7 hours of driving plus a 3 hour meeting, or breaking the journey with an overnight stay.
Portsoy Harbour
On the other hand, Findhorn is just a 1 hour drive from Portsoy. A quick call to cousin Mike, and it was all arranged. Two or three nights in his cottage wouldn’t be a problem.
Boy was I lucky. Summer arrived. Almost non stop sunshine from when I left before breakfast on the Sunday until I got home on Wednesday evening. I even had lunch on the terrace of the Piers Cafe one day.
Al Fresco in September
Portsoy turned out to be lovely. Well off the beaten track for tourists, although very close to Speyside. The harbour dates from the 1600s and is often used as a location for historical films.
Portsoy Again
It was an action packed trip. I caught up with Mike – quite a liquid evening. I caught up with my other cousin there – Linda. I even caught up with my cousin Liz‘s ex – an achievement since Bryan spends 7 months in the year elsewhere.
As well as Portsoy, I visited Hopeman,
Sleepy Hopeman
Lossiemouth
East Beach Bridge, Lossiemouth
and Inverness.
© iain taylor 2015