Contrast. That's the control on your TV that makes the very so made up presenters look like something out of a 1970's sit com if you turn it up too much, alternatively it's the difference between Loch Aline, where we started, Tobermory, where we stopped and Loch Na Droma Budha, or more easily remembered, Loch Drambuie, where we finished proceedings and stopped for a couple of days.

In our time in Loch Aline we managed to see all of 2 people, the chef in the White House Restaurant, and the shopkeeper. Heaving it was not, idyllic and ideal for our needs it was. This was an unreal contrast to what we found in Tobermory, of Balamory (kiddies TV program apparently) fame. Tobermory had its annual music festival on and had 1000's of people on every street and in every pub. The music sounded great but unfortunately the festival seems to have been renamed by the locals to 'Lets get bladdered on the street and shout and fight with people." Surprisingly we decided not to join in with the shouting and fighting and made haste around the corner to Loch Drambuie.

In Loch Drambuie we found a huge anchorage with only one other boat in, high hills to every side and an entrance that happened to line up with the setting sun. The company of the yacht was a nice addition, not because of the socialising, but because they had unsecured mobile wireless internet that we unwittingly managed to 'use' to download weather and surf the web on. The hills provided good walking and the setting sun every evening gave a nice backdrop for the sundowners that we have been craving for the past 2 months and 1000 miles at sea.

It's not all sun sun sun up here in Scotland. We have now actually seen a whole day of rain since we arrived, ½ a day in Puilladobhrain, and now ½ a day in Loch Drambuie. Instead of our usual activities of hill walking and dinghy safaris, which would come later, we opted for a duvet morning which has been marineified (if there is such a word), to a musto middle layer snug day. We have heard that it is so wet 'down south' that people are going brown not through the sun but because they are going rusty (thanks Chris/Dad), we know how you feel with our ½ day. Once the rain passed we were greeted with empty blue skies and views from ahigh all the way over to Coll and Tiree in the west and Skye in the north.

We have tentative plans, assuming that the weather is good, to walk down memory lane for Fiona by visiting her old holiday home 30 miles around the peninsula at Ard Nan Buth. The only issue with getting a detailed weather forecast, is that we'll be spending the evening walking for an hour to the top of the nearest hill where we should be able to have some phone reception to download it. This isn't too much of a chore however as the sun is still shining and we should find another amazing sunset over the Scottish Isles. Now where's that bottle of wine to take with us?

A supersonically soft sail from Loch Aline to Tobermory.


Tobermory. Pretty from afar.


Can you spot ruffian down there somewhere.


Images of Barbuda.


Larry decides it just too hot and sunny up here and thinks it's a good idea to go for a swim.


Iain then has to carry the damp llama home. BAD larry.


Another sunset.


The office furniture is somewhat lacking but the view is amazing.


Ruffian quietly falling asleep.