How Long Before Spring?

Algy flew onwards to the shores of the quiet loch, which, owing to the bitter March wind, was a wee bit less calm than usual. He tucked himself down among the masses of dead bracken beside the shore, trying to ignore the spikes of the numerous bramble stems which wound their way mercilessly through the dry fronds. It was a fine morning, and the loch was unusually blue, but the colours surrounding it were still those of winter, with not a hint of green in sight. Algy wondered how long it would be before the landscape was transformed once again by the touch of spring…

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Sunshine and Shadow

Algy flew over to a spot on the hillside above the deep freshwater loch which lay across the centre of the peninsula, half way between the ocean and the Sound. He was surprised to see that much of the loch’s surface was frozen, despite the sunshine which was warming some of the landscape though not, unfortunately, the place in which he had stopped to rest. The world seemed divided between bleak, freezing shadow and bright, colourful light, and Algy hoped that the bitter wind that was whistling through his feathers would move the clouds along hastily, so that the sun could bring him a wee bit of comfort too.

photosworthseeing:

Dear friends,

A wee bird told Algy that you were interested in photos on the theme “Encounter”, so he would like to share with you this photographic record of a certain real-life encounter which he experienced in person this week.

With fluffy hugs from the wild west Highlands of Scotland, from Algy… and friends 🙂

http://adventuresofalgy.tumblr.com/

Thank you for this beautiful “Encounters” photos. We love it!

PWS – Photos Worth Seeing

Shortly after this photo was taken, the black coo cautiously approached Algy, one step at a time, evidently unsure what this strange creature might be. Eventually the coo came close enough to reach out and discover whether a fluffy bird was something a hielan’ coo could eat… Of course Algy knew that coos do not eat birds, but nevertheless he thought it prudent to consider the “encounter” at an end at that point, and fly away to a safer spot where he could not be munched by a large, hairy animal 🙂

An Ideal Perch by the Seaside :)

The ground was so damp and slimy, not to mention cold, that Algy looked around for another perch nearby, and soon found a splendid seat among a collection of nautical paraphernalia which the humans had left lying about the place. When the wind blew – as it did most of the time – it was almost as good as a swing, and although Algy found it a wee bit tricky to keep his balance and avoid tumbling off when the stronger gusts took him by surprise, he enjoyed himself immensely… until it started to rain again.

Algy hopes that you will all enjoy a colourful, entertaining, and very happy Sunday 🙂

As forecast, the sunshine lasted only one day and Sunday was dismally grey, with the clouds drifting low over the hills once again. But at the very last minute before dusk, the setting sun managed to break through a wee gap in the heavy bank of cloud, and illuminated some of the ridges with a faint magenta glow. Algy perched on a cold rock to watch for a moment or two, knowing that in just a few minutes more the light and the colour would be gone…

The gorse was altogether too prickly for his tail feathers, so Algy hopped down to a more comfortable perch on a clump of heather which overhung the burn, and gazed at all the water rushing away to the sea. The local landscape almost always had a plentiful supply of fresh water, as there were only a few days in the year in which it did not fall out of the sky. But it was a different matter for many of the local human residents, whose water supply systems were dependent upon very basic collection facilities which routinely became blocked by storm-swept vegetation, some unfortunate frog, or even, on one occasion, an eel… In fact, it was very often the case that the more water that fell – whether as rain, sleet, or snow – the more likely it was that the humans’ homes would be without a water supply!

Have a happy weekend, everyone, with a plentiful supply of fresh water 🙂

Although the view out across the deep blue sea was mesmerizing, Algy especially loved to watch the pattern of cloud shadows moving across the mountains of the mainland in the east. Even on a day as fine as this one, there always seemed to be a ribbon of low grey-and-white clouds hovering over those mountain tops, creating ever changing patterns as they moved lazily along.

It was a perfectly gorgeous October day, and both the sea and the sky were a deep, deep blue. Days like this were few indeed, so Algy decided to fly over to his favourite lookout point on the peninsula. In Algy’s opinion, the view from this particular place was the most beautiful as well as the most expansive in the area, and despite the fresh northerly wind – to which it was uncomfortably exposed – he just loved to perch in this spot and gaze out across the sea towards the many islands and the mountains of the mainland in the distance. There always seemed to be more space here than in any other place, not to mention an abundance of fresh air, and even when the bitter wind send a chill shivering through his feathers, Algy was reluctant to tear himself away…

Algy hopes that you will all have a truly beautiful day today 🙂

Although the weather in the West Highlands had been exceptionally grey and misty throughout the late spring and summer, with only occasional bursts of sunshine and blue sky, the landscape seemed intent on compensating for the general lack of colour. Even the scrawniest of the rowan trees were laden with bright orange berries this year, and as Algy contemplated the heavy crop of fruit, he was happy to think that there would be plenty left for his friends – like the redwings and fieldfares – who would be arriving for the winter before very long…

It was a beautiful afternoon for a change and Algy felt in need of some sunshine, so he left the lush green of the shady woodlands around the lochan, and flew a little way down the quiet loch to a pebble beach that he knew. Reclining on a rock beside the water, he watched the patterns of the ripples and the passage of the clouds, which were reflected beautifully in the calm surface of the sea loch, and created ever-changing shadows on the hillsides. It was a fine, peaceful, summer’s afternoon, and would have been quite perfect if it were not for that curse of the West Highland summer, the tiny creature known as a midge…

Ceci est dédié au génial couple français qu’Algy a rencontré dans ce bel endroit aujourd’hui. Il espère que vous pourrez voir cette photo, et vous vous souviendrez d’Algy et de vos vacances ici, et peut-être allez vous suivre ses aventures ici sur Tumblr ou sur Facebook à l’adresse suivante:

https://www.facebook.com/adventuresofalgy/

A bientôt 🙂

**Edited** Merci à @themazette for the corrections to Algy’s bad French 🙂