On Monday morning we set off for Pitlochry—the boats sailing in the Sound of Mull looked to be having some marvellous sailing in a pleasant force 3 wind and full sun with a forecast of more to come for most of the week!

We caught the train to Crianlarich passing through some lovely countryside. Graham and Ann Brown met us at the station and drove us back to their lovely home on the edge of Loch Fiscally on the north side of Pitlochry

the view from our bedroom

We had a wonderful three days with them and were treated ‘royally’ and soon the exhaustions of the previous four weeks were soon forgotten after thawing and drying out and a good nights sleep.

On Tuesday we went too see Ann’s brother who has installed a hydro scheme and we went right up the hill to the water source. From there the water is piped down to the turbines, a distance of about 5,500 metres. He had a converted shepherd’s hut on the hill where we had lunch 

 and Helen caught a fish in his trout pond

 

In the evening their son David and his son Andrew came to supper. It  is 40 years since Helen looked after David as a six year old. He looked somewhat different!!

On Wednesday we had a walk and pub lunch

followed by a visit to the House of Bruar—an enormous shopping complex outside Blair Atholl which is known as the Harrods of the north. This was followed by a walk round the restored walled garden at Blair Atholl Castle

Despite our protestations that fish and guests smell after two days we were assured that we were welcome to stay until Thursday so we arranged to be picked up on Thursday afternoon by friends who were travelling north up the A9 to the same gathering as us at Kyllachy House near Inverness. After a walk around the loch, coffee at Pitlochry Festival Theatre, a visit to the fish ladder by the dam (there were three salmon in the viewing tank), a salad lunch and much discussion about the timing of grass cutting we departed north leaving Graham to cut the grass under Ann’s supervision. A wonderful few days and great to have seen Graham and Ann again, last seen at Henry and Livie’s wedding in 2009.