31 May – 5 June
Any road will take you there
Due to the pain in my foot and some rapid swelling I had decided to call the surgery at Tarbert, which we would pass, to see if there was a nurse or doctor I could consult. There was not, but the receptionist suggested calling the Leverburgh practice, as they had a surgery next morning, Saturday. There was an answerphone message giving a number to call if a doctor was needed urgently. Before we had had time to consider if this was necessary, the doctor had called me back, even though I had not left a message. He offered an appointment next day so we drove the 18 slow miles south. He was concerned I might have fractured the metatarsal bone so suggested we went to Stornoway Hospital (56 miles north) for an x-ray, which gave no definitive diagnosis but I was issued with a boot and crutches as a precautionary measure, pending a telephone call from the orthopaedic consultant early next week. At last, we could head off to Horgabost campsite (46 miles south) and on the way the GP called to see how I got on! He also said he would WhatsApp the x-ray to me. So not an ideal way to spend the day, (120 miles round trip) but thank you NHS Scotland for your excellent service.
Sunday was misty (or was it low cloud?) with rain and wind later. We drove to Temple Cafe, the only place we have found open on a Sunday but didn't undertake the walk from there we had planned due to my limited mobility and the weather. Then on to St Clement's Church in Rodel aka Eaglais Roghadail or Rodal Church. It dates from the late 15th or early 16th century, was built for the Chiefs of the MacLeods of Harris and is dedicated to Pope Clement I.
We parked overlooking a beach for lunch and watched black headed gulls battling against the wind and oystercatchers wading in the receding tide, before heading back to the site for a relaxing remainder of the afternoon.
The weather is so changeable here; as they say, you can have four seasons in one day. So not surprising then that we woke up to a brilliant blue sky next morning and we made the most of it by driving to beautiful Luskentyre Beach.
The last few days of our visit to the Outer Hebrides had definitely gone a bit to pot and the weather was not playing ball either. We woke to wind and rain, progressing to hail, on Tuesday and drove to the Seillam! exhibition about Harris and the island of St Kilda which was very interesting. Then on to the Harris Brewery near Leverburgh Ferry Terminal which made a pleasant coffee and lunch stop. Sadly, they had sold out of their own brand of beer. After that we drove along the Golden Road, so called because of the exorbitant cost of construction through the very rocky terrain and you really had to ask why on earth anyone would want to live in such a remote area.
View along the Golden Road |
Fortunately, there were more sunny intervals than showers which enhanced the journey and had given us the opportunity to rephotograph Rodal Church with a bit of blue sky.