Little did I know what was in store on Saturday morning when Gail and I set off into the woods near Finzean with our friends M and J.
This intrepid couple (and perfect team) might just have celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary, but their taste for adventure is undimmed.
I had assumed we would stick to the main forest tracks, but no, our friends were all for exploring uncharted territory.
With the path alternating between indistinct and non-existent, I heroically help scout a route through the dense undergrowth.
Crucial decisions were required on how best to navigate the many obstacles along the way.
As we penetrated deeper into the forest, hunger set in and I kept a lookout for wolves* while M and J foraged for energy-boosting sustenance..
There was a pause to 'regroup' before making the difficult decision to turn around and push back to the car park.
It was touch and go, but we made it just in time!
(Just in time, that is, to reach the nearby Finzean Farm Shop where the humans had reserved a table for lunch at 1:30 pm.....)
*Gail would like to point out that wolves have actually been extinct in the wild in Scotland for several hundred years.
