Christine's walking & birds blog

Thursday was a washout so we went to the pool and swam 1000 metres. We'd paid for a sauna but found it hadn't been switched on, so we did another 10 lengths (250 metres) while it warmed up. This is probably the most either of us has ever swum in one session, and it resulted in a rest day yesterday; so this morning we were raring to go. And we went east.

After several misunderstandings about the actual destination, we ended up at Chanonry Point. A sign advised that there was no vehicular access to the point but we drove down a narrow lane and found a small car park, and then walked out along the edge of a golf course. The golfers we encountered were all very cheerful, and when Greger asked one if it wasn't too cold for golf, the reply (in a rich Scottish accent) was: "It's never too cold for golf - too dark, yes, but too cold - never!" It must have been nice for them not to have to struggle against the wind on this very still day.

There were a few other people about, watching dolphins. Several long-tailed ducks went flying swiftly down the Moray Firth and there were guillemots dotted about on the silvery water. A razorbill paddled by close in.

Three mergansers were preening a little way out, and beyond them a grebe was diving. It came closer to the shore until we could see that it was a red-necked grebe.



The grebe checks out a noisy plane leaving nearby Inverness Airport.


The work being done at Chanonry Point is an upgrade of the car park. This is a very popular place in summer, as it's probably the closest you can get to dolphins without going on a boat trip. The last things we saw before driving away were a black-throated diver, a great northern diver, and a wren.