The final week of our European Christmas holiday break was spent in in a beautiful private resort in the Algarve, on the southern coast of Portugal. (see previous two posts for Lisbon and Amsterdam) We rented a car in Lisbon and made the two and a half hour drive south at our leisure. Empty roads, beautiful surroundings and being together made the journey really enjoyable, and before we knew it we were arriving at our resort. It was a spectacular cliff top location with sea views from both balconies, an elevator down the cliffs to the beach, and beach towels provided fresh on every visit and dropped in a laundry basket as you left the beach. Best of all was a wonderful fish restaurant right on the sand with the ocean crashing just feet away from the open air balcony dining area. We picked the central location close to Albufeira, and during the week travelled both east and west exploring the spectacular coast. The main image below shows us doing our thing on the Farol da Albufeira and the captioned gallery gives some indication of our roaming to the west. Heading east we visited the small town of Tavira. After enjoying lunch in the beautiful town, we hiked the short 1.5 km sand path and bridge out to an island where an unusual art piece covers a large area of beach. The Praia do Barril is about 5 km from Tavira and has a spectacular array of anchors named the Cemiterio das Ancoras (Anchor Cemetery) as a memorial to the abandoned fishing community that was based there historically. The anchors are placed throughout the sandbanks where the fishing vessels were once hauled and moored. There are two nice restaurents and clean public toilets here and a small train to take you to and from the mainland if you don't fancy the walk. We walked out there and then took the train back for the experience. TaviraThe town of Tavira lies close to the border with Spain but is worth the 45 minute journey east from Albufeira. The Gilao River cuts through the centre of the town and has wonderful riverside spaces on each side. We walked for a good distance on the north bank heading east, before crossing the river by bridge and returning along the south bank heading west. We made our way through the cobbled shopping streets to a beautiful town square with restaurants aplenty, and stopped for lunch overlooking the square and the hundreds of people passing through it. The main shot below shows a typical colourful boat on the Gilao River in the town, the gallery has captions showing more of Tavira. We ended this wonderful 3 week holiday by driving back to Lisbon and meeting up with Cec, Arlene and Devon again. We went to their apartment overlooking the beach and watched the surfers from the window while enjoying a nice cuppa and a good long chat.
We followed that with a walk along the beachfront to a restaurant where we all sat talking, eating and laughing before we said our goodbyes once again as Sarah and I made our way to the airport hotel at Lisbon and returned the rental car. We flew home via Amsterdam and arrived back in Humberside in no time at all drawing a close on a wonderful Christmas break.
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After a week in Amsterdam in December 2023 (see post below) we moved on to Lisbon, Portugal where my best buddy Cec and his family were taking a break from the misery of a Canadian winter.
It was great to meet up with Cec, Arlene and Devon on the streets of Lisbon and spend the day exploring and dining alfresco in the warm near Mediterranean climate. We stayed in a stunning hotel in the heart of the old town and walked the myriad of tiny twisting streets daily. It was a wonderful week capped off by spending the day with Cec and co before we departed for our final stop, the Algarve. I hope to write a little more on Lisbon and link it back here, but for now there is a captioned gallery below to get a flavour of this wonderful old city. The main shot shows an average street with patterned sidewalks and the ubiquitous tram clattering its way through the ancient city. For over a year now, I have been working on our retirement property in North Lincolnshire, without respite of any kind. It has been a 'full on' experience taking all of my time and energy since July 2021. This has meant Sarah flying up and down from our home in Scotland every other weekend making her life just as hectic over the same period.
So, its pleasing to close the page on that particular event and start living our life again. The house still has some small finishing touches to be done (lets not mention the garden). But we are in a good place now and we're well ready for a holiday. So we decided to meet up with Canadian friends in Portugal over Christmas, and before that to spend some time in Amsterdam rather than just changing planes there. We really enjoyed this beautiful city, and just 45 minutes from Humberside Airport it's one we will likely return to before too long. The main image below shows an area directly in front of the Central Railway Station where tour boats whisk you off around the city on its maze of canals. In future I'll write more about the city and link it to this post, but for now, there's just the gallery below with captions to provide some insight into life in the city. Last week I managed to return to our home in Scotland with Sarah, for the first time since my brief visit back in September. The timing was perfect as autumn colours burst from every corner of Aberdeenshire.
On the first day I hiked to a local hill, something I have missed very much, and really did enjoy, best of all, I was still home in time to make dinner. The next day I spent at home, in the company of Charles Dickens as the rain gently tapped on the windows all day. It was lovely to relax with a book, transported to Victorian times, just far enough away from the seemingly constant drain on every moment of my time back on the farm in England. Then, on my last full day in Scotland I took a wonderful leisurely drive around the area with my camera gear in tow. I had no direction at all, I just drove aimlessly around stopping to photograph some of the beautiful colours on display. I also managed to get a shot of a Red Kite as it circled overhead, it was one of three I saw riding the thermals in the Cairngorms Mountains Range. All too soon the short visit was over and we both headed back to the farm to continue work there for the week ahead. Hopefully it won't be so long before we can escape to Scotland again. The images below are not captioned as they are all random shots from around Aberdeenshire. With Cecil visiting from Canada we decided to take a random roam around the area, just the way we used to do so often in Kananaskis. Ultimately we ended up on the Moray Firth visiting Bow Fiddle Rock as you can see in the post below this one, but we stopped off along the way to capture a little more of 'Bonnie Scotland'.
The main image comes from an art installation on the Lecht Road called 'The Watchers'. The stone is inscribed with the words "Take a moment to behold, as still skies or storms unfold". The hole in the rock aligns perfectly with Corgarff Castle as you will see in the image gallery below. It's just a snapshot of a journey that two friends enjoyed, taking a day out chasing images as we have done for over a decade. The small gallery has captioned images from the day including Rattray Head lighthouse, Corgarff Castle and more. This wonderful natural sea arch sits in the cool waters of the Moray Firth, just one hour north of our home in Scotland. With my friend Cecil on a short visit from Canada, I had to take him here to capture a little of the natural beauty of this area, and I'm pleased to report, he was not at all disappointed.
We took a long steady drive around the coastal route, stopping as we wished, rather than the more direct cross country route which we later used to travel home. We had such a wonderful day and saw a number of photo worthy things for a visitor to these shores; it was abundantly clear that Cecil left the area wanting to return for more, which is always a good sign. You can find Bow Fiddle Rock close to the small village of Portknockie on the Moray Firth. It is very easy to find and is close to the much larger village of Cullen where food and drink is available in great quantities from numerous hotels,restaurants, cafes and bars. There are some wonderful coastal hikes in the area including a lovely walk to Findlater Castle from the centre of Cullen. Portnockie was founded in 1677 and became a significant herring port, although today only a few commercial inshore boats remain, the village thrives in a beautiful part of Scotland often missed by the tourist crowds. Glen Taner sits on the eastern edge of the Cairngorms National Park, close to our home in Aberdeenshire. We have walked here many times and love to explore the myriad of trails reaching out in all directions from the well maintained car park beside the Water of Taner.
I made this hike 4 weeks ago when spring was just on the horizon. It was a wonderful, warm, dry, day but very few people joined me in the glen, just the way I like it. The hike begins by crossing a stone bridge immediately beside the car park. Once over the bridge you must explore around the area as there are images to be made. The path I chose, called the Firmounth Road, then leads across a wide open meadow past an old church and round to Knockie Viewpoint. From here there are so many options available it's easy to lose yourself. I opted for my usual circular route heading off the Frimonth Road through native Caledonian Forest and across the heather covered flanks of Baudy Meg, a steady little hill that you know you have ascended but allows you to catch your breath along the way. The path today was full of frogs and toads oblivious to my presence and determined to make the very most of the spring weather. The trail continues beyond this in a circuit through the Forest of Glen Taner down to the Tower of Ess at the entrance of the estate. From the tower a walk along the river back to the car park is a real pleasure, filled with wildlife and gently winding along beside the water the 13km overall hike passes quickly and before I know it I'm back at the car park. Below are the images from this hike in a captioned gallery, you can see a full breakdown of one of our previous hikes along this route by clicking here. Excuse the play on words in the title, but it had to be done. Morven is a perfect remote hike, or should I say remote feeling hike. As a mountain it's a little small at 871 metres and yet the name Morven translated to English from Scottish Gaelic is Big Mountain. Indeed, it was big enough to catch the eye of Lord Byron who spent time here as a child and captured the memory in his poem "When I roved a young highlander"
When I Rov'd A Young Highlander o'er the dark heath, And climb'd thy steep summit, oh Morven of snow! To gaze on the torrent that thunder'd beneath, Or the mist of the tempest that gather'd below..... There are two routes up this attractive bump, a very steep direct assault on the summit mound from the meadow below; or my preferred and far more enjoyable route that meanders along the hillside, around the back, and up a more gentle approach. This gives a much longer hike, which is always my preference, and allows a circuit to be made using the steep ascent route to descend. I last made this hike in March 2011 and little has changed from then to now, with the exception of the little cottage in the meadow at the start of the hike, which is unfortunately, far more dilapidated than it was 11 years ago. There are enough images in the gallery below to give you a feel for this 11km round trip, for those seeking more detail the link in the paragraph above will take you to a description of the full hike made in 2011. Clachnaben towers above Glen Dye, so much so that its prominent granite tor is visible for miles around. At the summit you can choose to walk up the back of the tor with just a little scramble to access the very top, or you can climb up the front using any one of the dozens of climbing routes available.
Whichever route you take to reach the top, it is worth the effort. The 360 degree views are spectacular. There's little wonder that Clachnaben is one of the best known of the lower hilltops in Aberdeenshire. I've made this hike many times now and I hope I will make it many times more, it's quite a steep pull up at the end, so it makes a nice workout for a short round trip. You can see an earlier hike in full on the site if you want to see the whole thing, or you can use the captioned gallery below for the abridged version. I took a drive up to the northeastern corner of Aberdeenshire today, to scout out Rattray Head Lighthouse for a potential future sunrise photo shoot. It is a stunning lighthouse with excellent prominence making it an obvious choice for photography. The usual buildings associated with the lighthouse are onshore but the structure itself is slightly offshore , its circular base thrashed by the sea with each tide.
Obviously this creates great opportunities for photography. Even today, in the unforgiving daylight, I was able to make some nice 'postcard' images as the waves broke against the base. Imagine this image at sunrise, with a high tide or storm adding to the ferocity of the sea, it would be an epic image and I have no doubt that I will be making the journey up here repeatedly in an effort to try and catch the perfect conditions. I think there is also real potential for some night sky photography here, so perhaps I could combine the two by arriving very early and shooting the night sky followed by sunrise. In the mean time here's a few shots taken today at this genuinely stunning location. |
AuthorWe arrived in Calgary, Canada on 29th December 2011 to continue our journey. This blog is intended to keep our family and friends informed whilst we explore Canada.You can use the RSS feed below to stay updated. Categories
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