Scotland - we're still here, but making ourselves useful

Happy Christmas! Photoshopped by Brian Snr (Tony's dad)

Having been about to cut the A frames in the last blog, it was all terribly unexciting, nothing dramatic happened at all, which obviously is good. The columns were raised by two more quoins and my work of finding granite blocks was done. There are still various blocks of bricks in the wall that need replacing with good stone, but this is purely aesthetic so not high on the priority list.

The next step was the lintel, hauling this up was what the block and tackle was bought for, but actually it wasn’t necessary, it has come in very useful at other times though. Once it was in place, it was surrounded by wood and left to set. The new roof then had to be built, joists and noggins, sarking and paper. All done in a day. A long day it has to be said, we didn’t finish till 19.30, so three hours in darkness by headtorch, but what a good job! The weather was great, clear and sunny, though very cold, but just what was needed. 

Yes, I am on the roof with a vacuum cleaner. That's the lintel, covered now in timber, sealed on to prevent water ingress and sanded flat. There's a gap in the middle where the steel lintel protrudes up that needs filling with expanding foam to seal the top, so sawdust has to be removed. Few other builders would go to these lengths, its just an example of how Tony wants things done properly

We had a deadline, Mark the slater was due. I thought it was all over, but fitting the sides, and gutter brackets took longer than I expected. Cutting the board for the sides was interesting, various measurements were taken as carefully as possible by tape measure. Tony then came in and drew it on the computer rounding up or down the measurements to make it all fit. By careful extrapolation of the lines it was possible to measure and mark the outline to cut without having to measure any tricky angles. It had to be cut in two as the board wasn’t big enough to do it in one, but they fitted together beautifully with minimal wastage. The slating has now started, but sadly the weather has changed so progress is slow, and jolly miserable for Brian the slater. It won’t be long till it’s watertight though and the flooring is stacked up, ready to be laid when it’s all dried off a bit.....

So here, we've cut holes in the roof and attached the first couple of joists to the existing roof A frames to the extend out to the new lintel to form the new raised roof section (apparently called a 'cat slide' as its at an angle that cats won't slide off! I don't know, its what I was told!)

There has been some rain over the last few days, with ridiculous amounts forecast for last night. Brian went out in the drizzle to fit gutter ends on the standard roofline. He and I added an extra layer of polythenes to the window in the gable end and buckets were placed under all the chicken pots to catch drips. The farmer who owns the field next door had obviously also heard the forecast as he had someone out clearing the burn. We assumed he’d finished when it went dark, but apparently not as we were plunged into darkness about 17.30 as he went through the power cable! Fortunately the fire was lit and Nicky had candles to hand. It was a peaceful couple of hours till it all came back on! After all that, yes, it rained, but possibly not the amount that was forecast, though the hens are in danger of getting webbed feet.

This is one of the new roof joists cut and ready to install. Its got that shape so it will rest on top of the lintel with a bit to stick over the back to hold it in place. Jackie thinks it looks like a shark! You can just see the white geese in the orchard beyond

Brian and I have made a start building walls down the other end while Tony has continued with the evil work of fitting insulation. It’s all really coming on.

Sometimes you have to do things by balancing! A little bit of chiseling was needed but the scaffolding wasn't quite high enough, so balancing on the very top of the scaffold poles was necessary - a position that couldn't be held for long, so quick work was necessary. An H&S example of how not to do things really

In other news (there isn’t much other news) today we had a custard delivery. We’d had the trauma the other day of finding the cupboard bare. 72 packets should keep us going a while! While I write Brian is doing his homework, going through the assessment Tony has prepared for his students. Mechanical engineering isn’t what Tony studied, but it is what he is teaching, and it is what Brian studied many years ago, fortunately, as some of it isn’t coming easily for Tony.

That wooden construction is one of the wooden side coverings for the raised roof cut out (in two pieces) and ready to install. Carefully measured and drawn out on CAD by Tony to make it easy to mark out. Will it fit? Lets find out....

It’s now Wednesday, homework took too long to make sorting photos possible, and we’ve been out, again. Last week we both went to the local brewery to buy beer, then I took myself to a barbers in Fochabers for a haircut. Today we’ve taken Ted to have his solar controller looked at, again. The lights were flashing as you’d expect, but the engine battery volts were getting lower and lower. A second controller has been added so we’ll see how he gets on now. We had a pleasant drift round the shops and a yummy lunchtime curry while we were out, the day has been fine and Brian the slater has been going like a rocket, but will he finish tonight?

Screwed in position it fits perfectly

A couple of days later the slaters arrived. Their first job was to cover those sides with lead.

So we then went inside. This is the opening and, above is the existing roof A frames. The new raised roof is built on the outside, so we've got to cut the legs of those A frames right up to the horizontal part at the top. The five you can see above the opening all have to be cut. First job, remove the wooden sarking on the outside...

Wooden sarking removed. Brian is not now holding the roof up, just removing the horizontal bar ready to cut the beams

Beams cut and the full extent of the opening can be seen. What a view they'll have from their new balcony when its built

Talking of views, how about this for a sunrise?

Here's a skein of geese, loads of them on one of their regular flights past us, morning and night. They are not quiet either

Sunshine through the rain and that crock of gold at the end of the rainbow is almost within reach

In other news, some of the last veg needs collecting. Carrots anyone? Tufty cat is helping of course

For some reason cats seem to like to lie on pillows. Here's Genghis cat on Brian's pillow...

And Gummy cat on Jackies

Gummy does like your full attention when in residence - and reading is definitely not you full attention

So the only solution for him is to lie just here. Now try reading!

Normally Cookie cat has the bed to herself during the day, except where Jackie torments her with teddy

We don't know why, but Genghis cat seemed quite happy here in our shower

Look at all that insulation in what will be T&N's bedroom, their ensuite and office

I know not many will be interested, but here's how thick the insulation is. There's two thicknesses of board you can see between the A frames there. There's a 50mm gap under the roof to allow of flow of air, then a 70mm thick board and then a 100mm thick board. It should be pretty warm!

So while Tony fits the insulation and B&J the noggins in between, we also start forming the outside internal walls in the top end. There's going to be two bedrooms, an ensuite and a corridor access along the left in here. The wood is there on the floor, we've fitted some of the floorplate on each side, now to start building 

Here's a photo from the other end showing the walls built so far, with some insulation started here too

And just so we know its Christmas, Jackies built a wooden tree for us!

End of our NC500 road trip and back to work

Enjoying the view over Culloden moor before heading back

Fine weather for our last morning so a pleasant walk up onto some moorland, well Tony won’t be finished lecturing till 15.00.

So that was our aim, and what we did. All well until reversing onto the drive only to meet a tractor coming towards us. The pressure was all too much and sadly Ted had a gentle coming together with the egg sales box. Despite being gentle it has damaged the fibreglass so a repair is needed. No people or cats were damaged in the process, and at least it’s the same side as the damage from very early on in our ownership so hopefully we can get it all done at once!

Poor Ted! Two little spots of white on the back left corner is where the outer skin has been broken to show the white fibreglass underneath

See the raised bit of roof, now all slated and weatherproof

Rather than dwell on this we went straight back to work. As we left on our little trip the last thing I’d done was give Brian the slater a tube of silicon sealant, to run along the top of the last row of slates of the far end. Mark has then come so ridge tiles and chicken pots were on which meant that the far end of the building is now watertight. Hurrah. T&N had started putting the flooring down so we continued with that, finishing on Saturday. It’s not exciting in itself, but it is very exciting that so much of the building is usable and can be worked on. 

The only bit left is the bit above the big opening as the roof actually has to be raised here, as has been done on the other doorway while we were away in August.

So now we're on the 'Big Opening'. The bit at the bottom with the polythene over is the bit we helped Tony with before we went on our trip. You can see the sandstone quoins fitted, which in this photo extend just into the upstairs. Tony lays the quoins, the stones alongside to fill in and the concrete blocks behind, after Brian has selected each quoin and cut it with the stone saw, Jackie has selected each stone to fit like a jigsaw and make it match the existing stone wall, as well as mixing all the mortar in the mixer and Brian has cut each concrete block to fit and some of the stones that have bits sticking out in the wrong place. The wall is 600mm thick and as its got to tie in to the existing stone wall, very few blocks are whole, each one needs cutting - an angled corner cut off here, the length or width chopped off either square or at an angle and sometimes some very odd shapes to miss a bit of stone sticking out. I might hear something like 'I need 310 long, 130 to 170 angled along the side and take the corner off on the 130 side about 75mm at 45 degrees'. On with the stone saw, dust everywhere, a lot of it settling on me

Brian working on the frame

The big opening has therefore been our focus, and it has really been full on, we’ve been getting up earlier and while Brian is preparing the fruit for breakfast I’ve been mixing the first load of cement. The downstairs lintel went in while we were away, there’s just no stopping Tony sometimes, so we’ve been putting in the quoins and granite for the upper level. Obviously the higher we get the slower the process as everything has to be lifted, either up the ladders onto the scaffolding, which also has had to go higher, or into the building and up the stairs, easier but longer. We have now got just one more quoin, per side, to go in to come up to the wall head, and then the roof has to be cut out! Fortunately Tony has done the other doorway as this seems really scary to me, chopping off one of the legs of an A frame (up to the cross member) seems really odd. Planning obviously went into this right at the beginning, so as well as 4 A frames being bolted together and lifted into place together at either end of the opening. (This was really scary 2 years ago when we put all the A frames into position, one was manageable by two people, 4 together was only manageable by the telehandler! ) Across the cross piece of the A frames to be cut is a huge, solid piece of wood to spread the load of the slates and in theory provide the necessity support for roof and tiles, but even so, cutting off one of the legs of an A and expecting it to stay where it is just seems weird! I guess, if the weather is kind, we might be ready for this by the end of the weekend, and Mark the slater has been booked to finish the roof in December.....

Here's where it's up to. It's now at row 11 of the quoins, you can just see the small quoins at the top. One more row of big ones to the existing wall head, then two more rows above to reach up to the top of the wooden frame, then it's modifying the roof like the other raised section. Then the slaters can finish off, they're booked for December!

The flooring is now laid in the newly slated and waterproof bit and the wood has been delivered and stacked in the centre ready to start building the internal walls. Firstly round the outside to cover, but not touch, the stone walls and then the internal walls to create two bedrooms, a bathroom and a corridor in this bit

This photo is to show just how far north we are (57.6 degrees north - just 9 degrees short of the arctic circle, where the sun doesn't rise at all on the shortest day). The sun in the centre of the glare is not that far above the horizon, but its not approaching sunset or sunrise. In fact, its just about midday and the sun is at its highest in the sky - and its not even the shortest day yet, not for more than 4 weeks. It does make the days here very short and the nights very long in winter

Scotlands NC500 road trip - part 2

Isn't that the cutest photo? Seen at Duncansby Head

The crab claws were lovely, but I can still only blame them for being a bit poorly in the night, fortunately the toilets at Dunbeath Harbour are left open all night....

After the disturbed night we were a little quiet on Sunday, but having decided I felt ok we moved on. Two stops were planned, the first on the junction in Latheron to take pictures of a property that Tony had been interested in. Good looking building but no work had been done on it for a long time. The second stop was Whaligoe Steps, the second viewpoint on the NC500 ‘Magnificent viewpoints’. 360 steps, down 250 ft cliffs to a harbour that has been in use since 1793. Fortunately we didn’t have to carry up baskets of fish, but we did say hello to our first grey seals, baby on the beach, mum on the shoreline and dad? In the inlet.

At the bottom of Whaligoe Steps. 360 odd steps down into a narrow cleft between cliffs to a tiny harbour that you would have to be very brave to sail into

Looking down from the top. Fancy sailing into there?

Another pub stop was our plan, with electric and water, and we made it in good time, only to find it a bit depressing. We’ve easily got time to get to the north coast so we headed to what we planned for the next night, a little campsite for 5 vans. They didn’t answer our call, but we went anyway only to find closed notices. Shame, the views were stunning and it was one of the places we both wanted to stay when doing a quick look before we even left T&N. OK, there’s another small place about 10 minutes back, reviews say he can be a bit grumpy, but we are polite. He was grumpy, and declared that he’d been told to close from Thursday, was it because we had English accents? Next? Another pub, but no facilities, we rang, the girl was lovely and told us

Right at the very bottom of the steps

to park by the camping pods, which we did, but it felt like being in a housing estate. We had passed the signs for a ‘proper’ campsite (Ferry View Night Stop), gave them a call and decided to pay the whole £20.... They were lovely, most Covid aware - they took our temperatures and we had to book slots for showers so they could clean between us and, well, nobody else.... They had been booked up for the whole of November, but with lockdown had decided to cancel all the English bookings. We stayed two nights! Monday was John o Groats and Duncansby Head. 

The weather wasn’t brilliant, we could see the sea stacks, but only just. It wasn’t raining though, and wasn’t too windy so it could have been far worse! Lots of seals to spot, including what I think must have been a very newly born pup. Took Ted back to the site and headed off, on foot, to the camp owners secluded bay. It was certainly secluded, the only paths to it were sheep paths, and they don’t necessarily go the most direct route! It was however beautiful, despite there not being any seals.

There's little baby seal pup on the rocks with mum and dad keeping watch

Well, you have to take a photo don't you

After much discussion, studying of weather forecasts and trying to second guess ‘queen’ Nicola Sturgeon, we decided that perhaps we should aim to be back at T&N for a good weekends work, so only one more day out before beginning to return. A little carpark by Strathy Bay, with a little hut with a toilet and washing up facilities. Originally installed for those visiting the graveyard, but for donations extended to campers.

The classic view of the sea stacks at Duncansby Head. Sadly a bit misty of the day we went, but we did decide to take the coastal path walk up to them

And got better views up close. There's three stacks here...

We left John o Groats in mist, and in fact had called Helmsdale to see if 36 hours was enough notice for ordering the seafood platter, “‘fraid not, not with this fog, the boats can’t get out.” As we’d travelled west however the mist had cleared and the sun come out. Strathy Bay was beautiful, and apart from the two vehicles from Dounreay Nuclear Plant, surveying every inch of sand, all our own!

We’d picked this as our final destination as there is an A Road cross country back to Helmsdale. This is Scotland though, and A road can mean single track with passing places.... “it’s a very long 40 miles” declared the care

...and another two looking back. That's five at least

worker who had brought his charge up from Dunbeath, around the coast! Plus if we wanted fuel Thurso it should be. Brian was game for the hour cross country, but I persuaded him that an easy drive for an hour and twenty would be much better! The harbour at Helmsdale was just as we left it, except for the other three vans, and the fish and chips also just as we remembered it (from Friday) one fish supper having two pieces of fish and more chips than we could eat between us!

And this is where we saw all the seals. This one looked like it hadn't been born long

Today an hour and a half to Culloden, for the battlefield, Museum, and .... field! Interesting though, the site of the last pitch battle on British soil (see this link for more details: The Battle of Culloden), and the defeat of Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites in 1746. Despite it being in the news this morning that the National Trust for Scotland will be opening up some of their carparks to campers overnight it hasn’t happened yet, so we couldn’t stay. Just round the corner though, at Clava Cairns is a lovely little carpark, our last little stop on our mini break.

This is the other walk we went on from the Ferry View campsite, recommended by them. It's called Scotlands Haven and we would never have found it without their directions, trudging along sheep paths through heather and prickly bushes

A nice wild place that only locals know about

On to Strathy Bay and what a gem of a find this was. A picture perfect bay, beautiful golden sand and a motorhome friendly parking area with toilets and a washing area

There's |Big Ted parked up there next to the log cabin toilets. We couldn't quite see the bay from there but had good views of the hills inland. Others drove up a slight slope and had uninterrupted views, but knowing the trouble we recently had with poor traction and the need of the snow chains to get us out of a muddy field, we decided a short walk to the view was better. The cemetery is described as a Commonwealth War Cemetery, but we couldn't find any graves from fallen soldiers, it seems more of a locals cemetery to us

Fabulous walks down on the beach, but I couldn't quite get the 'arty' photo I wanted

This might just look like a field, but this is Culloden Moor and the site of a major battle between England and the Scottish Jacobites, resulting in the defeat of the Jacobite rebellion, led by Bonnie Prince Charlie (The Young Pretender). It happened on 16th April 1746 and, within an hour between 1500 and 2000 Jacobites, mainly from the Highland Clans lay dead, with the loss of about 300 Government troops. Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped, eventually 'over the seas to Skye' and then to exile in France. It was the end of the Jacobite rebellion and led to terrible suppression of the Highland Clans and eventually to the Highland Clearances, where crofters were evicted from their lands to make way for sheep farming and altering the way of life in the Highlands forever.

Along the path behind Jackie you can see a row of red flags which marks the government (English) front line and, on this spot the worst of the fighting and death occurred. Here the Highlanders met the English troops head on after making one of their Highland Charges. There's were fearsome runs by hardened clan members equipped with a shield and sword directly at their enemy shouting and making lots of noise. It had previously been enough to make an enemy turn and run in fear, but the English troops, led by the Duke of Cumberland, son of King George II, stood their ground and fired volley after volley of grapeshot straight at them causing terrible casualties

The troops broke through this wall (reconstructed) to outflank the Jacobite line, you can just see a blue flag indicating the extreme right of their line. They turned and ran back towards Inverness (10 miles or so behind), but got cut down and were shown no mercy (killed on the spot)

Tonights - and our last stop, Clara Cains, a 4000 year old burial site. No written records exist so its not known exactly who was buried there or the exact nature of it.

Here's a placard at the entrance about it. Click on it and enlarge if you want to read about it.

That's it for now, back to Tony and Nickys tomorrow to carry on helping them with their building