UK and Ireland - highlights

Too many highlights to detail, and I missed out on significant photo opps.  So sorry in advance to those ( Barbara and Ros for instance ) who did so much , and yet are not included here, to make the 2017 UK trip such a successful and memorable one .

Unless you suffer from insomnia, I suggest that my readers, if any , ignore the next para.  It's there for my diary note. Skip to the pics if those interest you.

7 weeks in total for me and 5 for Mary and everything went like clockwork. In brief ... met by Barbara at airport Edin , straight to Inverness. A weekend there with J, J & and Anna, to Aberdeenshire for 3 days ( Salvesens and Colemans ), back to Inverness , 3 days of Munro bagging, met up with Harry at Killin Hotel, to Edin to meet Mary off plane from USA and put her straight on train to Inverness , 3 days in and around Edinburgh incl day's golf at Muirfield, met Meghan off plane from Ireland and drove with her to Inverness, a day's climbing with her and back to Edin 2 days later, 5 days then with Mary in Martins' flat in Stockbridge, night with Woods in Dunbar, and the next week catching up with friends and family in England - ( Harry, Jessica, Bill Richards and others for golf in Rye, Martha, Dessons, Bromley Martins,  Harry and Diana in Norfolk, Latchmores in Yorkhsire, Nicola and family ), back to Edin/Glasgow ( flat and David & Heather ), Ireland with Meghan and family for 10 days, Asheville with Betty for a week and  HOME !

Jane and Anna at Overton Avenue

Took a stroll up Glen Quoich, Braemar  to see progress in restoration pf the Caledonian pine forest

Craigievar Castle - one of three NTS owned properties in Aberdeenshire which GSR did so much to bring in to public ownership

Castle Fraser

Fyvie

A day in the hills with Jane.  We had to ford this river on our way to Munro 244 ! Kintail on a very wet day

After a bit of dodgy navigation on my part we got down to this river which fortunately we didn't have to ford

Keith and Raymund accompanied me for numbers 245 and 246 ! South of Loch Laggan. Had hoped to do 3 but ran out of time. Return trip required.

Two tops comprising Buchaille Etive Mor I did on my own en route to meet Harry at Killin Hotel.  Remember it Barbara?

The coire dead centre was my route

Harry with me on No 249. Upper Glen Lyon

View of Edinburgh from the Braid Hills

The view indicator there which GSR and John Bartholomew designed and had constructed and erected by the Town.  I always like to check up on it when home.

Sandy, Spencer and David Anderson at Muirfield

Meghan came over from Ireland sans kids to accompany on numbers 251, 252 and 253.  North side of Loch Cluanie

She bravely went an additional half mile with me along this ridge to get to the far top  1 meter lower than this cairn.  Just in case ......

Back  in Inverness. Anna in good company

Striding out - Meghan seemingly none the worse for her exertions the day before

Sister Jean on " The bench ' at Hillend.  Happy memories.

With old friends Greg and Di Desson at their house in Bramley , Surrey

Ditto

Cousin Christine and Chris at Orford , Suffolk

With Diana and Harry in Norfolk and her two prized thoroughbreds

With Andrew and Clarissa Latchmore at the Craven Arms, Appletreewick in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales

Ditto

Niece Nicola and Paul whom we met on a beach just north of Newcastle

and with Hannah and Natalie

Iona , Cormac and Angus take on board sustenance before a choppy crossing to Innesheer

This the instrument of our hour's torture crossing over the to the island. The day after Hurricane Ophelia

But magic once we were there

Huge crofting history and changed v little in last 200 years

The cliffs of Moher at their best

Trip finished off fittingly with visit to Asheville,  NC and  Granny Eye.  Not bad for 95 !

Latest adventure - Marble to Crested Butte (and back) by bike

See the following

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/20076

Jink & Diddle in NC and finish of Aspen Music festival

For 2nd time we attended the annual Jink & Diddle Scottish fiddle music camp near Banner Elk.  Huge benefit to Mary who came on leaps and bounds (and got herself a new on-line teacher Joanna for the year ahead).  Less so for me as the only oboist , but fun nevertheless.

John Turner leading the evening session.  The famous classical violinist Rachel Barton Pine on his left

Mary holding her own in no uncertain manner

Ditto

...while I took a trip to grandfather Mtn and enjoyed a bit of scrambling.

Rachel BP's 3 year old daughter performing.

Sole piping representative.  This guy makes bagpipes for a living

Diligence personified.  Ronnie Hudson from Pitlochry in the background

Back in Asheville Ronnie and Betty get re-acquainted.

Outside the tent for the Wed evening concert with Mike and Joan on their way from Tucson to Glendo WY for the solar eclipse.

Mike and Joan - a bike trip down the Rio Grande trail to Basalt for lunch

a hungry and overgrown chick who is reluctant to fly the nest..

....but trying.

Heidi back in town.  Lunch at Spring cafe in Aspen.

Our "warm showers " guests and new cycling friends Trent and Veronica from Berkeley, CA

My 2017 oboe teacher Ryan Roberts from Juilliard and Tamara also Oboe student at Juilliard and  reed maker extraordinaire. My new supplier !

Base Village , Snowmass construction at last underway again - after an 8 year hiatus.

The Aspen Ski Co Limelight Hotel to be.

Looking north down Brush Creek Road.

Our 2017 tenant - student composer Scott and his fiancee Emily a professional cellist.

Off down to Basalt tomorrow for the eclipse .  92% occluded. Last time for 100 years that a total solar eclipse will travel the breadth of the US continent.  D & K in Corvallis Oregon are in that 30 mile band where it will be total.

This was at the minute of the maximum 92% occlusion at 11.23am.  Not at all dark. Got significantly colder, but without the special glasses enabling us to see the occlusion , we wouldn't have known there was an eclipse.  What a difference 8% makes. Having spoken to D & K in Corvallis OR where they had 100% occlusion, it became almost pitch dark. An extraordinarily emotional experience for them and viewed from 5 minutes from their house.

The scene at Basalt library where they set up telescopes and a live NASA feed on a big screen inside ( where we saw the total occlusion in Oregon, but frustratingly not how dark it grew there ).