Wednesday 24/11/04

Wednesday dawned wet and windy. Nonetheless, I am not fuddled by the weather, so I jumped on the 10 o'clock bus and headed west for Balallan. The driver did not have change for my 20 pound note, so he said he'd bring some on the way back. Walked down the A859 towards Tarbert for just under a mile, where there is a large memorial for the Pairc raiders. This was a group of men who, in 1887, trespassed on the Pairc estate and feasted on venison. It was a protest against the then landowner, whose name eludes me. Pairc is a large area; on the map, it stretches from Loch Erisort all the way down, past Loch Sealg / Loch Shell. Nowadays it is virtually derilict south of Lemreway / Eishken. After reading the riot act to the trespassers, they decided that they had made their point and left. Seven were prosecuted in court, but were acquitted of all charges. I headed down the Eishken road at 10.20, in horizontal rain. There was a westerly wind, force 5-6, and although there were breaks in the higher clouds, the rain never stopped. It is 7½ miles (12km) to Eishken, and they were long miles. The first 4½ were familiar from last Friday, although the track across the mountains at Seaforth Head was not visible. Visibility is very poor at any rate, and I'm not going off-road today. Past the large loch, then headed south for 3 miles until I reached Eishken Lodge. Had a wander round, then turned back. Sat munching soggy sandwiches (eugh) in the rain, then set off despondently at 1.30. Fortunately, a local fisherman pulled up and offered me a lift. Thank you; I am absolutely dripping wet. We chatted a bit about local history and life in this part of the world. It's hard. I cannot remember the man's name, but he fishes for prawns and langoustines off Loch Sealg. It's either that or going out on the rigs. Not much else to do round here. At 1.50, he dropped me off at the South Lochs turn, where I trod the road to the Claithair Hotel. Having waited for 10 minutes at the bar, I was finally supplied with a bowl of soup, which gave me time to warm up and wait for the bus. This turned up at 2.50, and I could finally pay the driver his £1.60 fare. Noticed that there is going to be a vote on the community buy-out in Pairc on Monday 29th November.