Winter's First Storm

At the moment we're hosting Storm Babet, the first real blow of the season and one which is obviously enjoying itself so much here that it's in no hurry to move on. My memory of storms on Ardnamurchan - and in our 21 years there we saw some rather spectacular ones - is that they didn't last more than a day while Babet is with us for three.  This seems to be part of a trend, that weather systems are slow-moving and often sit on us for far longer than they used to.

We lost the internet last night but not, mercifully, the power, but any problems we have pale against what the good people of places like Angus, to the south of us, are enduring. The wind speeds here, while gusting well over gale force in exposed places, weren't so extreme that they prevented me from taking....

....a gentle wander through Dunrobin Woods. Little damage was evident - the worst was this tree which had fallen to block a path, and there were plenty of small, rotten branches scattered around - but it was a little concerning to note that....

....so many of the leaves which had been ripped from the trees were still green, meaning the trees would not be benefitting from reabsorbing the goodness they hold.

As I ended my walk along the path that clings to the top of Golspie glen the sun made an appearance, as if peeping quickly from behind the clouds to make sure we were all right. We are, but I feel for those whom Babet has really hammered.