A good decision

Every once in a while, I have to give my owner credit for making the right decision.

Wednesday was a case in point.

Initially the plan was to go for a hike up and around Scolty, a favourite hill which long time readers might remember from past posts. Our regular route is about four miles, give or take. 

But gosh it was such a lovely bright, fresh and sunny day that Gail decided to put in an extra loop, northwards down to the river, almost doubling the length of the walk. 

Excellent decision! 

On the way up the hill I posed nicely for a 'fox terrier with foxgloves' shot. 

Then as we approached the summit monument I waited patiently for Gail to catch up. 

I'll admit my patience wore thin at the top. Gail was spending far too long gawping at the fine panorama of Aberdeenshire hills, and so I went in search of new friends, human or canine.

On the way down the hill I yet again had to pause for Gail. 

By the time we'd reached the river, after covering nearly seven miles in the sweltering heat of a Scottish midsummer*, I was more than ready for a refreshing dip in the Dee. 

*Gail says: Nobby exaggerates (not for the first time). It was in fact about 17ºC, with a fresh breeze.

Once again I'm delighted to join  this blog hop, hosted by the LLB Gang. I hope all my Nature Friday friends have been out and about enjoying some splendid weather too! 

The cloud's the limit

So it's April and, and spring is well and truly established, and I was promised a big hill walk this weekend. The weather forecast had indicated light clouds and sunshine.

Imagine my disappointment then, to wake up on Sunday morning to smudgy grey skies, and to hear Gail announcing a revised plan.

"There's no point climbing too high up today, is there Nobby? Looking at the cloud base, I think Scolty Hill is about the highest we can manage without disappearing into the mist.

It crossed my mind that there could be fun had in a low visibility scenario - perfect conditions for some terrier mischief. But I kept my thoughts to myself, remembering that Scolty is a nice enough walk, with plenty of scope for off lead adventures. 

The hill is topped by a tall tower, a prominent local landmark constructed in memory of local landowner General William Burnett, who fought alongside Wellington in the Napoleonic Wars. 

For some reason I was not allowed to ascend the spiral staircase up the tower, so had to content myself with surveying the surrounding hills, which were indeed cloud covered, and contemplating the possibilities (sadly unrealised) for stealing food off fellow hikers.

The land around here is owned by the Forestry Commission. They like to put up signs telling you not to climb on the stacks of timber, but I believe these signs are aimed at humans not dogs.

After we had descended through the woods to the River Dee I was given the opportunity to practice what Gail says is my improving grasp of the 'pose nicely' concept.

It was quite a long walk, despite only reaching an elevation of 299 m above sea level. At the end we stopped in a café in nearby Banchory. 'The Chatterbox' welcomes "well-behaved dogs" and I was kindly provided with a bowl of water and some tasty biscuits. 

Despite my initial disappointment, it was a totally satisfactory outing. 

Faces of Spring in Scotland...

In the Nobby household we believe in natural beauty treatments. 

After a week of snow-based facials I'm now back to to the usual mud pack...

Happy Nature Friday to all my friends! 

P.S. I think you should know that Gail and I had a bit of a falling out this week. It was her fault (of course). After the heavy snow on Monday night she abandoned me on both Tuesday and Wednesday morning and met up with friends to go cross country skiing on a local golf course. The weather was glorious - blue skies, sunshine, no wind - but she claimed the snow would be too deep for my little legs to manage. So on Thursday morning, when the snow had melted a bit, I was invited to join her cycling group for a nice walk (the roads being too icy for the usual bike ride) and I took my revenge by stealing both the homemade muffins she'd brought along as a snack. I am pleased to report that courgette, halloumi and olive muffins are totally delicious and sustaining fare for a 7-8 mile romp around Scolty Hill and the adjacent Blackhall Forest. But gosh, Gail does get a bit grumpy when she's hungry...