Scotland—December 2020A West Highland Quarantine
On the last day of November I arrived in Glasgow and immediately boarded the Scotrail to continue on to the tiny hamlet of Lochailort in the West Highlands. The Burton family welcomed me to Mo-Dhachaidh (Gaelic for “my house”) where I stay in a wee cottage and help take care of their animals and property in exchange for room & board. For the first fourteen days my weekend adventures consisted of walks from Mo-Dhachaidh which did not feel like a restriction. And now we have been informed that starting December 26 Scotland will be at Level 4, its strictest covid rules, for 3 weeks due to a new fast spreading variant of Covid-19 in the UK.
(image below: Lochailort hills and its sealoch (sea bay), Loch Dubh, and the inner seas.
“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe.”
— John Muir
I felt very safe on the Scotrail train ride from Glasgow to Fort William.
A warm welcome to Lochailort, population 40.
View from the wee cabin at Mo-Dhachaidh.
Mo-Dhachaidh is home to 13 chickens, 9 ducks, 3 dogs, and 5 humans.
Hill walking opportunities completely surround the property.
This is why waterproof footwear is recommended in Scotland. Luckily, I already had these boots from Alaska.
My enthusiastic hill walking partners: Pixie, Galaxy and Trixen.
An Stac, one of the hills visible from Mo-Dhachaidh.
Highland cattle are the iconic gentle giants of Scotland.
Everyone is interested in sorting stones, especially three year olds and pups.