South Uist – magnificent and moody…

After another windy night, we awoke to another windy day and a pretty bleak one at that.  We were hoping to take another look at Eriskay today but, after seeing it yesterday in sunshine, it would spoil it I think.

Instead we spent a leisurely morning in Bessie and drove out in the afternoon.  We headed northwards towards Lochboisdale, the main port at which our ferry had stopped on the way to Barra last week.  Donald, our campsite host, had told us that there was an internet café there so we thought we would give it a try.  On the way saw two varieties of swan – the Mute and Whooper as well as some Shelducks, Oystercatchers and Tufted Ducks.

And a very individual house.

Lochboisdale proved not to be particularly exciting but the internet café was wonderful!  What was once a Post Office has been given a grant to get some computers – it’s a tight fit with about ten tables but the café has home-made cakes and serves a good range of toasted sandwiches, paninis etc.  We were there for about two and a quarter hours and it was full the whole time.  It’s good to see enterprise rewarded.  I managed to upload four days of blog and updated our podcasts too so we won’t have to listen to really old episodes of the The Archers any more.  🙂  Lovely home-made bakewell tart and tasty toasties too!  Oh, and a woolly hat for me with ‘South Uist’ in Gaelic around the band – something tells me it might get some wear before this holiday is done.

We decided to take a look at Loch Eynort and we were so glad we did.  Even the sun made an appearance although there was still a heavy mist over the mountains.  South Uist is made up of mountains and lochs in about equal number and there are very few roads in proportion to land mass.

As we reached the end of the road along the south side of Loch Eynort, Peter spotted this Buzzard and I managed to get some reasonable photos of it, even though it was some distance away.  We had hoped it might be a White-Tailed Eagle but no such luck.

On our way back along the loch, Peter had a struggle to keep Bessie on the road as the wind tried very hard to tip us over sideways – no fun when the roads are so narrow and often with a drop each side!  Along the north side we had the mountains to protect us so it was a slightly easier ride.  The scenery was just as dramatic though.

We took another detour from the main road – this time towards the west coast.  Although apparently the coast is mostly lined with sand dunes, the roads don’t tend to go near it so you have to walk – not much chance of that in this wind!

We have seen so many Oystercatchers today – I love this one trying to keep upright in the cross-wind…

Our old friends, the Ringed Plover and Lapwing made an appearance:

plus a Grey Heron standing in the shallows:

Can I resist this sheep?  No.

On our way back we saw this ruined old farmhouse complete with rusty farm implements.

How strange that they have just been left to rot.  These two rabbits were having fun playing hide and seek around the plough,

and back at the campsite, the lambs were getting excited!

Tonight the wind is so strong and Bessie is heaving around so much I feel quite seasick!  Donald tells us that the weather is set to improve tomorrow…