Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Dobbies

It was way back in January that we got a tip-off about the scones at Dobbies Garden Centre just outside Stirling.

January, afternoon tea with two Dobbies scones

Our ever diligent Trossachs correspondents had bought some to take home only to find that they had been given some extra ones free. This was more than they could handle on their own, so they passed on a couple to us. We ate them as part of an afternoon tea we were having with some neighbours. At the time we thought they were rather good, if a little bit oversized. We had to split them up to make them more manageable for our guests. Since then, we have been promising ourselves that we would visit Dobbies and do a proper review. Seven months later, today is the day.

Internal view of the restaurant at Dobbies Garden Centre, Stirling
Just part of Dobbies’ restaurant
Automation

The garden centre is big and they have a restaurant to match. It is a little bit surprising to come in and find so many people out shopping and then to find a large restaurant which is equally busy. The servery area is also big. Rather than wait in a long queue we opted to go to the automated self service part. There is normally some sort of problem with these vending machines … and so it was. However the problem was not so much with the machine as with the operators.

Automatic coffee vending equipment at Dobbies Garden Centre, Stirling
Coffee machine about half way through delivering and it cannot be stopped

Basically, from the large array of cups, all of which looked identical to us, we selected what turned out to be a tea cup. Of course it was far too small for the quantity of coffee being delivered. A kind of Niagara situation ensued. We were a bit bemused by this until we noticed that there were similar but slightly larger ‘coffee’ cups … trauma over.

We had opted to share a cherry and coconut scone because they were all so large. Also we hadn’t actually tasted that particular combination before. Perhaps we should have stuck to what we know because we found this combo somewhat insipid. The tiny pieces of cherry were relatively few and far between and the coconut, although there, did not feature strongly enough. The scone itself was fine though, still too big for our taste. No topscone here but maybe the prize for the biggest.

Dressing like Ruth Davidson

The problem with Westminster and Holyrood being on holiday is that there is nothing much to report. Witness the BBC’s interminable coverage of athletics. But wait a minute, apparently the end of the world has just got a whole lot nigher. We should report that in case any sconeys get caught unaware. With the great big ‘Goliath’ madman in Washington threatening unimaginable fire and brimstone against the wee ‘David’ madman in Pyongyang who likes dressing up like Ruth Davidson, there may not be much time left. The big question. Will Scotland manage to become an ordinary self respecting  country before armageddon? The man in the know, Alex Salmond is predicting 4 years for independence but that may be too late.

Civilizing scones

HMRC has admitted that Scotland’s economy is actually £15b bigger than they had reported … oops. The latest figures showing that England ran a massive trade deficit in 2014 and 2015 whereas Scotland had an even greater surplus in those years. Perhaps we can just squeeze in a wee bit of self respect before we are all blown to smithereens. How to avoid complete annihilation? We think that Trump and Kim Jong should sit down together over afternoon tea. The civilising influence of a good scone cannot be overestimated and the size of the Dobbies’ scones should almost match their egos!

FK9 4UF     tel: 01786 458860     Dobbies Garden Centre

BREAKING NEWS: Our Tyrolean correspondents have lodged a report on what could possibly be the first ever scones to be baked in Austria. You heard it here first! They were in Scotland for a few days and became so obsessed with scones that when they returned home they baked some of their own ‘Austrian scones’. First scones to be baked in AustriaThey look good and by all accounts were good. No information on whether Austrians go jam or cream first. But together, dear readers, we are taking scones to the world. And the world will be a better place! Many thanks C and M.

Scones, Top

200 scones

It was in March 2016 that we posted “A Ton of Scones” to commemorate that extraordinary feat of human endeavour. Not quite on the same level as Ernest Shackleton and David Livingstone perhaps, but hey! We analysed how many scones had been categorised and offered some profound observations on the future of sconology. Well that was then and this is now. Just over a year later and yet another ton of scones have bitten the dust. All in the name of research and enlightenment.

Qui Transtulit Sustinet

To celebrate, we thought we would bring you a slightly different scone. One that you can’t simply go out and buy or sample for yourself but rather one (or two) that were specially baked for us. No one else, just us! Who would do such a thing we hear you ask?  A thirteen year old lass and fellow scone enthusiast from Connecticut is the answer, over here on a visit with her family. Apricot and Pear scones baked by Leah Sepples She baked us a single apricot scone and a single pear scone, and presented them both beautifully. Any slight apprehensions we might have had were quickly banished as we began to eat. They were truly excellent, wonderfully soft and absolutely delicious. Definitely worthy of a topscone award.

It seems only fitting that we dedicate this 200th scone to her and all the other youngsters who bake. We hope it is they, rather than the meek, who inherit the earth. There may be hope for the US after all if they can produce more Connecticutters like this! The motto of Connecticut is “Qui Transtulit Sustinet” which translates as “He Who Transplanted Still Sustains”. A bit odd but curiously appropriate for someone who has come all the way over here to do some special baking. Many thanks LS, a very much appreciated treat.

Distillery scones

As always, we owe much to our global correspondents for keeping us abreast of scone activity, or lack of it. They do so in parts of the world that we cannot reach. We try our best but we simply can’t be everywhere! Postcard of a K6 telephone box on IslayLately, readers may also have noticed a slight tangential drift from purist scone reports into a dalliance with red telephone boxes. One of our correspondents, sometimes simply referred to as ‘The Laird’, has a wandering brief and recently he took time out to send us a card from Islay. The card featured a pictorial K6 and a scone report from the coffee shop in Ardbeg distillery. Apparently the scone was decidedly below par. It would have been totally dismal had it not been for some of Arbeg’s other products. Apparently they went a long way towards alleviating the deep disappointment.

Thanks to all, here’s to the next 100!

Scones, Top

Café du Jardin

Visiting an artist friend is interesting. Not only for the range of beautiful pottery and calligraphy items she produces and sells at home and online, but for the fact that her house is on the site of the Battle of Drumclog. “The battle of what” we hear you say! This battle, on June 1st 1679, is one of the few victories the Covenanters were to have over the government forces of Charles I. Like almost every battle since the beginning of time it was fought between two forces. Both of which had God on their side. And it was fought on a Sunday for goodness sake!!

Saving skin

During this contratemps, the government commander, John Graham of Claverhouse‘s horse was killed and he fled the field on foot. Eventually, however, he took his trumpeter’s horse to make good his escape. The now defenceless trumpeter, a fourteen year old boy, was caught by the Covenanters, killed, and his body thrown down a well which is still known as Trumpeters Well. We tell you all of this simply to illustrate a point. The behaviour of our ruling classes has not changed very much in the intervening centuries. The Mays , Goves, Johnstons and Trumps of this world would not think twice about dislodging a young lad from his mount if it meant saving their own skins. Or are we being unfair?

When we left Drumclog we decided to stop off at the Garrion Bridges Garden & Antique Centre in the Clyde valley. It used to be good for antiques. We found, however, that a recent revamp of its facilities has not done it any favours. Now, it is much more into gardens and gaudy knickknacks. Café du Jardin however is tucked away in a corner and specialises almost exclusively in afternoon teas. An oasis of calm. There is another much bigger café which caters to ordinary people.

More is more

Not being particularly hungry we asked if they could just do a couple of scones … no problem! Cream tea at Café du Jardin at the Garrion Bridges Garden & Antique CentreWhen they arrived, however, they obviously could not break the afternoon tea habit because “just a scone” turned out to be more akin to a mini afternoon tea. And all for the price of a couple of scones! Scones at Café du Jardin at the Garrion Bridges Garden & Antique CentreThe problem with this sort of thing is, of course, when people as weak willed as ourselves are presented with all these extras, whatever self discipline we might have had goes completely out the window. There was a plain and a fruit scone each, plus meringues, muffins, eclairs and macaroons … aaarggghh! Interior of Café du Jardin at the Garrion Bridges Garden & Antique Centre
One of the noticeable things about this place is a wall which acted like an interference pattern. It played havoc with your eyes and inducing a state of confusion which meant we ended up eating almost everything. That’s our excuse and we are sticking to it! The tearoom is decorated to a high standard. However,in our opinion, it would be much nicer with more subtle lighting. It would relieve the ‘fluorescent’ effect that is never particularly appealing. Interior of Café du Jardin at the Garrion Bridges Garden & Antique CentreBesides all that, this was a nice quiet place with very attentive staff that provided welcome respite from the shopping frenzy going on just outside the door … topscone!

The breath of their nostrils

The Covenanters were dedicated to preserving God’s rights on earth and were described at the time thus. “They were terribly in earnest. The passion that was in them , like all great passions, refused to be divided. Their idea possessed them with a force and a fulness to which we find few parallels in history. It haunted their sleep , it awoke with them in the morning – it walked , like their shadow, with them to business or to pleasure – it became the breath of their nostrils and the soul of their soul.” Today, when you read of a terrorist plot foiled in Australia it is perhaps worth remembering that religious extremism is far from a new phenomenon. Just ask any young trumpeter.

ML2 0RR             tel: 01698 372288             Café du Jardin

Ordinary, Scones

National Shooting Centre for Scotland

You’ve heard of shooting stars, but have you heard of shooting scones? No, let us enlighten you. As you are aware, we leave no stone unturned in our bid to bring you the latest scone news. However, the situation described in this post even surprised us. We knew that friends were involved in shooting but when they visited us, we had no idea they were competing at the European down-the-line Clay Pigeon Shooting Championships … eh?? Turns out that the venue was a shooting school half way between Falkirk and Slamannan and recently, having had a load of money spent on it, had been designated the National Shooting Centre for Scotland. Flags flying at the National Shooting Centre, Scotland

Hundreds of gunmen

Although it is only a few miles from our house (sometimes we can hear the guns if the wind is in the right direction) we were totally unaware of its new elevated status. In fact, we were pretty much unaware of anything to do with it. Out of sheer curiosity we decided to go along and see what it was all about. Imagine our surprise when we came to the end of a dirt track on the high and pretty desolate Slamannan plateau and emerged through some scrubby trees to find what must have been about seven or eight hundred folk milling around. Most of them carrying shotguns. Surreal or what? Strange for mere sconeys like us, who lead very sheltered lives and are not used to seeing guns. To see sooo many!Competitors at the National Shooting Centre, Scotland

The site is huge and the competition was in full swing with shooters shooting on numerous specially designed crescent shaped stands. Five competitors per stand each taking it in turn to shoot the ‘birds’ as they call them. The orange coloured clay pigeons.

Clay pigeon cassette at the National Shooting Centre, Scotland
Some ‘birds’ waiting to be shot
Eardrum fatigue

Although we are now conversant with all aspects of the sport,  suffice to say, at this point we didn’t have a scooby.

Scottish ladies team shooting at the National Shooting Centre, Scotland
Scottish ladies team … the ‘bird’ highlighted has only nanoseconds to live

We did know, however, with guns going off everywhere, that it was noisy … very noisy! Everyone had ear defenders on. Not so those who were simply here to eat the scones they had spied earlier in the clubhouse. Eardrum fatigue eventually drove us back in that direction.

Internal view of the National Shooting Centre, Scotland
Team strategy meeting for the Welsh in the clubhouse

 

The scones looked good but the lady who was serving was slightly wide-eyed and more than a tad frazzled. She was valiantly coping with multitudes of hungry gunmen on her own. Against all the  odds her sense of humour was still evident. Though when I asked if she had personally baked the scones. Oh, if looks could kill! To make matters worse she had to pre-load the scones using large catering packs of butter and jam. This slowed things down considerably. Perhaps it was just as well that we had decided to share a scone between us. A scone at the National Shooting Centre, ScotlandAt last we had two halves of a scone but, because our lady had been rushing, one half just had a dollop of jam in the centre. It needed spreading. But there was nothing around that bore any resemblance to a knife. Presumably, in a place with hundreds of guns, a knife might be deemed dangerous! I had to use my finger. There’s a first time for everything!

Are they mad?

The scone itself was quite good, almost finger lickin’ good. But you know our criterion for a topscone, so this one was never going to make the grade. Enjoyable enough though, especially on an wet windy day like this. What sort of people compete in a sport that involves shooting brightly coloured bits of clay in the rain? Do they have to be totally mad or just half mad? We asked a chap from the South African team. He replied curtly “you don’t have a life unless you shoot“! Are they mad? Well no more than a bunch of people trying to get a small ball into a tiny distant hole in the ground by hitting it with a stick.  Seriously though, these folks are completely dedicated and, because the level of competition is so high, extremely skilled. cartridges at the National Shooting Centre, Scotland

Berettas and Brexit

With our new found knowledge we could regale you with the differences between down-the-line, traps, skeets, over & unders, the handling properties of Brownings and Perazzis versus Berettas, and all sorts of other things you can’t even begin to imagine … however it is probably easier if we just explain the UK’s strategy for Brexit … yes, that would be much much easier because they still don’t have one! Huge thanks to A&C for letting us share this experience.

FK1 3AL     tel: 01324 851672     National Shooting Centre Scotland

UPDATES: Plastic K6 telephone boxes in Aberfoylethe couple we met on the Isle of Rùm who were making a holiday nettle cord eventually completed it and sent an update. It eventually included nettle from Camusdarach, Rùm, Arisaig and Mellon Udrigle and finished with bramble from the shores of Loch Maree … because they couldn’t find any nettles?? Our Trossachs correspondents are back in their natural habitat after their sojourn to St Kitts and Nevis and sent a picture of a K6 they spotted in Aberfoyle. Made in China we think. Many thanks to all for keeping us up to date.

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Legends Coffee House

Our island hopping adventures have sadly come to an end and we are now back in the real world. At Legends Coffee House in Stirling to be precise. The legend referred to in the name is, of course, William Wallace, Scottish hero, general all round good guy and star of the movie Braveheart. This facility serves visitors to the Wallace Monument … it is where you start and finish your visit. Internal view of Legends Coffee House at the Wallace Monument, Stirling

Tartan stuff

You should drop in … especially if you have just completed the climb to the top of the monument. We had friends from Arizona with us. We forced them up the Abbey Craig, the hill on which the monument stands. Then the 246 steps to the top of the monument, all with the bribe of a scone. We were having to pay up. Memorabilia at the Legends Coffee House at the Wallace Monument, StirlingMost of this place is  new since we were last here and thankfully takes up the site previously occupied by a diabolical statue of Wallace. The shop is full of the usual stuff that we suspect tourists must get really fed up with after they have been round some of Scotland’s main attractions. It always seems much the same  tartan or saltire emblazoned memorabilia everywhere you go.

That said, Legends Coffee House, in spite of being quite busy, was clean, tidy and appeared well run. But, dear oh dear, our scones felt really heavy! So heavy, in fact, we thought we might have to brandish Wallace’s mighty double handed claymore to cut them in half … hopes of impressing our American friends with a good Scottish scone were fading fast. A scone at the Legends Coffee House at the Wallace Monument, StirlingAs it turned out, however, they tasted quite good and our friends were fascinated by the butter, jam and cream rituals which we don’t even think about. And at least it was all Scottish produce. All in all, it evolved into quite a good experience for everyone … but not good enough for a topscone unfortunately.

Just a blur

This monument to William Wallace is here because of his famous victory over the much larger English army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297 which helped establish Scotland as a free and independent nation. Goodness knows what he would have thought of the ‘parcel of rogues’ that, almost 400 years after his death, forced Scotland into a union with England. Even worse, that Scotland is still in it. He was hung, drawn and quartered in London. His head and body parts distributed throughout the land as a warning to any other uppity Scots. So no grave to spin in. If he had one, he would would just be a blur.

His statue looks down from its stance high on the monument at Scotland’s present day subordination and it must be thinking “what a right feckless bunch I gave my life for”!  Our friends are back on the other side of the pond now, having survived Scotland … and the scones.

Evening view of the Wallace Monument, Stirling
The Wallace Monument stands on the Abbey Craig in the evening light.

FK9 5LF    tel: 01786 472140     Legends

BREAKING NEWS. Our Middle East correspondent has just filed a report on a post box he came across in Jaffa, Tel Aviv. Readers may know Jaffa from the biblical stories about Jonah, Solomon and St Peter but more probably through cakes. The post box in question was manufactured by McDowall Steven & Co who, in 1912 took over the Laurieston Ironworks in Falkirk and made post boxes until 1958 when it closed. Jaffa was occupied in 1947 so presumably these post boxes date from then. There’s nothing quite like scones to broaden the mind.Letter box in Jaffa, made in Falkirk

 

Scones, Top

The Bothy

We sailed into Port Mòr, the capital of the Isle of Muck, in great anticipation. For some reason this was the culmination of a long held ambition to actually visit Muck rather than just viewing it from a distance. Maybe it has something to do with the name? We were not to be disappointed … it is a great island. Not in size, only 2 by 0.75 miles, but it just has a lovely feel to it. It’s fertile and the land seems well tended giving it a softer look than its neighbours Rùm and Eigg.

On the Isle of Muck looking towards Skye
Looking towards Skye in the distance with Rùm to the left

We walked the only road on the island, about 1.6 miles long, and the same Land Rover passed us five times. It was the only thing that passed.

On the main road on the Isle of Muck
Looking the other way towards Port Mòr … waiting for a corncrake to appear
Muck meat

We stopped at one point because a corncrake was calling in one of the fields. In spite of a lengthy wait, as usual, this shyest of birds, did not reveal itself. Muck has been owned since 1896 by the family of Lawrence and Ewen McEwen. It currently has a population of about 38.

Internal view of the Bothy tearoom on the Isle of Muck
Everyone is outside

The island is famous for its succulent ‘Muck Meat’ derived from lambs that thrive on the rich grassland in this stress-free environment. They also breed Highland ponies using a stallion that goes by the rather impressive name of ‘Strathmashie Seumas Mhor’. You can probably tell by now that we really like Muck. And to top it all off, they had scones in Port Mòr’s, Bothy tearoom. Sometimes you can just tell as soon as you walk into a place that there is a high probability of the scones being good … so it was with the Bothy.

We were served by Jenny McEwen who had made the scones earlier in the day. They were delicious and accompanied by a generous portion of homemade apricot jam and a knob of butter. Great coffee and sitting outside in the sunshine with chickens under the table waiting for crumbs didn’t do anything to lessen our enjoyment. Easy topscone. Well done Jenny and all the ladies who were providing great service in this tearoom. We only had three hours so before long it was time to make our way back to the ferry. Guess what we came across?

K6 telephone box on the Isle of Muck
Another Lion foundry, Kirkintilloch K6

You got it … a K6 standing high above the village. They really are everywhere, though this one was looking a wee bit sorry for itself. Unusually for such items in these parts, it did not seem to have acquired an alternative use.

Port Mòr on the Isle of Muck looking towards the mainland
Port Mòr on the Isle of Muck
A quieter more peaceful world

When you are on places like this, you definitely get the feeling that no matter how disastrous things get in the outside world, life on Muck will just go on regardless. The same could be said for all the islands we visited. They are indeed another world … a quieter more peaceful world. What possible interest could Putin or Trump have here? Not a lot, and we think that the islanders themselves are very happy for it to stay that way.  On the other hand, EU investment has been good for this part of the world. Let’s hope that the same level of interest is maintained, in a year or so,  when such decisions are left entirely to Westminster. Don’t hold your breath though.

Pier House in Port Mòr on the Isle of Muck
Pier House in Port Mòr

All too soon the hooter sounds on the ferry signalling that we must return to some semblance of reality … boo!

PH41 2RP         tel: 01687 460057/462990         The Bothy

ps: For those interested in Pat’s bird count from Arisaig, Eigg, Rùm and Muck here, it is in rough order of observation. Robin, starling, swallow, blackbird, dunnock, house sparrow, hooded crow, oystercatcher, greenfinch, song thrush, grey heron, black guillemot, cormorant, eider duck, guillemot, Manx shearwater, chaffinch, great black-backed gull, herring gull, collared dove, golden eagle, feral pigeon, sea eagle, buzzard, whitethroat, rock pipit, arctic tern, wood pigeon, pied wagtail, lesser black-backed gull, raven, kittiwake, pintail duck, gannet, skylark, rook, kestrel, wheatear, lapwing, greylag goose, goldfinch, pheasant, corn bunting, mistle thrush, corncrake (heard). That’s 44 in total.

I would give her 45 for that corncrake but I know our very strict birding mentor, RD, would not allow it. Oddly we didn’t see any swans or mallards and we just missed a storm petrel and some puffins. There were also quite a few warblers and such like that we could not positively identify. Pat was pleased with her total so that’s all that matters.

Scones, Uncategorized

Kinloch Castle

Another beautiful day and this time we are on the Isle of Rùm. From where we are staying on Eigg, Rùm dominates the view from almost everywhere. Before we go further, perhaps a little background info on Rùm is called for. Many moons ago the island had a population of around 450 but in 1826, the owner loaded 300 on to the ships, Highland Lad and the Dove of Harmony, and sent them to Canada. The following year the rest of the population were sent on their way on the St Lawrence along with 150 from the Isle of Muck which he owned as well.

A local shepherd related “The people of the island were carried off in one mass, for ever, from the sea-girt spot where they were born and bred... The wild outcries of the men and heart-breaking wails of the women and children filled all the air between the mountainous shore of the bay”.

Just deserts

The people were replaced with what was seen to be more profitable sheep but the whole enterprise failed when the owner declared bankruptcy about twenty years later and ended up in a worse state than his previous tenants … just deserts, maybe?

Approaching the Isle of Rum
Approaching Rum on the Sheerwater ferry
Alligator ponds

More recently the island was owned by the Bullough family who made their fortune in Accrington from manufacturing machinery for the cotton industry. They wanted to turn the island into their own private playground and sporting estate. George Bullough built Kinloch Castle in 1900 using stone brought from the Isle of Arran. He didn’t scrimp. Fourteen under-gardeners, who were paid extra to wear kilts, worked on the extensive grounds that included a nine-hole golf course, tennis and squash courts, heated turtle and alligator ponds and an aviary including birds of paradise and humming birds. 230,000 tons of soil for the grounds was imported from Ayrshire and figs, peaches, grapes and nectarines were grown in greenhouses.

Party central

The interior boasted an orchestrion that could simulate the sounds of brass, drum and woodwind, an air-conditioned billiards room, and a jacuzzi. It even had electricity and flushing toilets when these things were almost unheard of on the mainland. Kin

Internal view of Kinloch Castle on the Isle of Rum
the entrance hall to the castle

loch became party central for the aristocracy and the shenanigans that occurred there became the stuff of legend and drove a massive rumour mill into a state of near hysteria. They renamed the island “Rhum” because Bullough did not like being called the “Laird of Rum”. The island was eventualy bought by Scottish Natural Heritage and currently has a population of around 30. In the last couple of years SNH have arranged for land and assets around the village of Kinloch to be transferred to the community giving individuals control over their own destinies. Lets hope it is as successful as the similar venture on Eigg.

Crisps?

The tearoom on Rùm is in the village hall just next to the castle. We asked for a scone but they said they only had cherry cake. Faced with Hobson’s Choice we agreed to have a piece of cake with our coffee. When we made our way outside to sit in the sunshine we were regaled with the news that they didn’t actually have any cherry cake … would we like a packet of crisps?? The lady, seeing our disappointment, said that she could have given us a piece of chocolate cake but she hadn’t had time to put the icing on it. Eventually she agreed to let us have a piece of plain chocolate cake. It was very nice.
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Apologies, we would have loved to have brought you a Rum scone. They do know when the ferries come in (there must have been at least 60 people on ours) so it is not as if a sudden influx  comes as a surprise … difficult to explain such a situation. Hey ho, chocolate cake it had to be!

Plain chocolate cake

Just to ease your disappointment, however, we can provide some pictures of a lovely K6 telephone box we came across. It was made in the Lion Foundry, Kirkintilloch and used for growing geraniums. It is in a stunning location and has a lifebelt and an anchor decorating its exterior. Could be in line for the prettiest K6 award … unless you know better, of course?

While we were having our plain piece of chocolate cake we met a lovely couple from Yorkshire. We met them again on the ferry going back to Eigg. When we asked them why they had nettles sticking out of their bag they said they were making a ‘holiday cord’. They did it with nettles from all the places they had visited. And you thought we were mad! In another attempt to make up for the derth of scones we offer you a pictorial guide to nettle chordage.

Demonstration of nettle cording
A demonstration of nettle cording on the ferry back to Eigg
Chordage instructions

First you remove the leaves (unless you are some sort of masochist, use gloves). Then split the stem with your nail or other similar implement. Throw away the internal woody bit then let the outer fibrous sheathes dry for a wee while before twisting as pictured. Your cord can end up as long as you like by carefully pleating all the stems together. It ends up very strong. By the way, Pat got a Sea Eagle and some kittiwakes to add to her bird list. Very happy girl again.

Skye from the Isle of Rum
Skye across the Sea of the Hebrides,  black Cuillin in the middle, red Cuillin to the right
Seventh scone

Theresa May is still hanging on! This is our seventh scone post since the election and she is still there. Almost admiring her tenacity … or is it just sheer stupidity? Don’t let the dire scone situation put you off visiting Rùm. It is quite simply spectacular. Maybe by the time you get there they will have got themselves sorted out with scones! Don’t forget your nettles. Hopefully we will have better luck on the romantically named Isle of Muck.

PH43 4RR      tel: 01687 462037      Kinloch Castle – Rum

Ordinary, Scones

Galmisdale Bay Café

Galmisdale Bay Café is, of course on the Isle of Eigg, an island we know well through having looked at it from all sorts of places on the mainland. View of the Isle of Eigg from ferry arriving at GalmisdaleOften you look out and can be confused by the jumble of small islands off the west coast but because of the unique volcanic Sgurr of Eigg this island is unmistakable. Until today though we had never set foot on it. The little ferry from Arisaig, however, changed all that … exciting. What would it be like, would they have scones?

Well, in 1858, Hugh Miller described the locals as “an active, middle-sized race, with well-developed heads, acute intellects, and singularly warm feelings” … no mention of scones but had anything else changed since then? Quite a lot actually! Having gone from a population of around 500 in the 19th century to around 50 in 1997, it has since been  rejuvenated by a community buy-out from the previous private landlord. The population now stands at 105 … split 50/50 Scottish /English with a smattering of French and Spanish.

Old tractor on the Isle of Eigg with Rum in the distance
From Cleadale looking towards Rum

We’re here for a few days and can happily report that nothing has changed in the “singularly warm feelings” department. We were greeted with open arms everywhere we went. You will have to forgive us if we post more pictures than usual. The scenery, the island, the weather, the people were all fantastic. We may even be able to persuade you to go there yourselves. Though sometimes it is not as straight forward as you might think.

Washing drying at Cleadale on the Isle of Eigg
Our washing drying in Cleadale
Rigors endured

The biggest problem is getting accomodation because everything is fully booked. Transport can also be a problem because you are not allowed to take a car. Hopefully, the extra pictures will also give you a sense of the rigors we have to endure in order to bring you scone news from such remote places. War correspondents like Orla Guerin don’t know the half of it! To get a small taste of the difficulties we have to overcome, click here. Sometimes we even had to sit staring out the window, glass in hand.

Sunset on the Isle of Eigg looking towards Rum
View from our window at 11pm

Did they have scones, we hear you cry! Yes, of course they did and they were so fresh that the cook had to make us wait until they had cooled down a bit. Don’t get fresher than that! Even when we eventually got them he said it was pointless giving us cream because it would just melt. Yet more rigors – creamless scones. We didn’t get a picture of the café interior (nothing special) because we sat out the back all the time in the sunshine watching the shipping go by. Everything from massive cruise liners to kayaks. External view of Galmisdale Café & Bar on the Isle of Eigg with a scone

The scones themselves, although undeniably fresh, just didn’t quite do it for us …  good, but not good enough for a topscone. Who cares when you can sit in such splendid surroundings. We were staying at Cleadale, about five miles from this café, at the other end of the island. There, just off Laig beach, there is a little remote church of St Donnan’s. Inside the church there is a wishing tree. You can write your wish on a paper dove and hang it from a branch.With Trump currently at the G20 Hamburg summit that wish has been slightly overtaken by events but don’t lose heart. If you ever visit you should still make a wish. In fact with Trump now running the world, the more wishes the better!

The singing sands on the Isle of Eigg
Singing Sands at Cleadale – quartz sand makes a peculiar noise when you walk on it
More of everything

Pat was making a bird list for our days away and by day two she had collected over twenty different species, including Manx Shearwaters and a Golden Eagle … happy girl! I had also managed to get a few Eigg sheds for my forthcoming coffee table companion “Sheds of Scotland”. Happy boy! Next stop the Isle of Rum, hopefully more birds, more sheds … and more scones!

PH42 4RL        tel: 01687 482487        Galmisdale Bay Café Bar

Ordinary, Scones

Onich Tearoom

We were heading north for a few days but were caught up in some sort of cycling event. For the first one hundred miles of our journey there was a cyclist every two hundred yards. With a queue of traffic waiting to overtake each one, it made for a very slow journey indeed. Having finally shaken them off at Ballachulish we thought a congratulatory scone was called for.

Onich Hotel at the Corran Ferry was our destination of choice since neither of us had ever been there in spite of having passed it many many times in days gone by. It was sconeless! The girl we spoke to, in her broken English,  only seemed to have the vaguest idea of what a scone actually was … aarrgghh! In high dudgeon we set off for Fort William but no sooner had we started than we came on this place, Onich Tearoom … just the ticket!

K4s and K6s

The eagle eyed amongst you will have immediately spotted a K6 red telephone box. It is currently used to store baby seats for the tearoom. We couldn’t get access to the manufacturer’s label but it would almost certainly have been made in Kirkintilloch.

K6 telephone box in Buenes Aires
K6 in Buenos Aires

We say “almost certainly” because our indomitable Trossachs correspondents, on return from their K6 experience in St Kitts & Nevis,  remembered a similar experience in Buenos Aires a couple of years back. What are they like? When they looked out the photos, however, they were surprised to see that it was made by the Carron Company in Falkirk and thought it might be a fake. Definitely not a fake. A few K6s were indeed made in Falkirk but the vast majority were made in Kirkintilloch. On the other hand all K4s (the ones incorporating a post box) were made in Falkirk. First to send a picture of one of these wins a prize!

Internal view of Onich tearoom with K2 souvenir telephone box
Onich tearoom with K2 souvenir telephone box
Definitive guide

To confuse things even further they had K2s for sale inside the tearoom … almost certainly all made in China. Sconey purists are probably thinking that we are getting carried away with telephone boxes rather than concentrating on the day job. Apologies but we do keep coming across them and they do raise a lot of comment. For the allaboutthescones definitive guide to telephone boxes click here. A scone at Onich Tearoom

Anyway, enough of that for the moment, back to the job in hand! We ordered two fruit scones to go with our tea. Our friendly helpful host brought them with a generous portion of jam and a pat of Irish butter. Although freshly baked that morning by his wife, we felt that there was just something missing in the taste department. Couldn’t quite put our finger on it. Enjoyable enough but no topscone!

Onich, lies on the shores of Loch Linnhe just short of Fort William and its name in Gaelic means ‘frothy bay’. At one time it was considered to be one of the prettiest villages in Scotland. On our visit however it was a wee bit dreich (raining) so we didn’t see it at its best. Old postcard of Onich village ... prettiest village in Scotland

Whose fault?

Nothing dreich about Scotland’s economy according to the latest figures. It is both bewildering and amusing to see the media’s treatment of the news that Scotland’s economy is doing four times better than the rest of the UK. And that’s after ten years of SNP government. After years of delightedly reporting that Scotland’s economy was on its knees they are still trying to spin this into a bad news story. The government’s spokesman, Rupert Murdoch, eventually resorted to saying in The Times, that it was all down to the influence of London. We hope they remember that when Scotland’s economy is not doing so well. Then, of course, it is all the Scottish government’s fault.

View from Onich Tearoom
View from Onich tearoom towards Ardgour and Ardnamurchan

PH33 6RY         tel: 01855 821230              Onich Tearoom TA

Scones, Top

Inchture Hotel

If you ever find yourself running the mile or so from the Inchture Hotel to the train station, don’t bother! The railway is still there but the station closed in 1956.

The railway bus, Inchture
The Inchture Railway Bus – from a picture in the hotel

In a bygone age however you would not have had to run at all. You could have been transported in some style on the Inchture Railway Bus. A horse drawn tramway which ran for over 60 years up to 1917 between the village and the station. Inchture is on the north side of the Firth of Tay. It is now bypassed by the A90 which means it is relatively quiet and peaceful. We are normally in this area looking for marsh harriers and bearded tits in the reed beds on the Tay estuary. In spite of relative success, however, with the harriers, to date, we have never seen a bearded tit. They are there though … annoying! Interior view of Inchture Hotel

This is our first visit to the family run Inchture Hotel … it’s nice, in a calm unpretentious kind of way! Weddings seem to be a speciality. Since we have done all that, however, scones were the only things in our thoughts. Presentation was good and service was  very attentive. Profuse apologies were offered for the late arrival of our coffee even though it wasn’t that late. A scone at Inchture HotelThe scones themselves were delicious, not crunchy at all but the fruit turned out to be a lovely mix of currants, raisins, cherries and peel … different! It was kind of borderline but eventually we decided they were worthy of a topscone award … well done Inchture Hotel.

Magic money trees

No awards for Theresa May however. She condescendingly explained to a nurse that she could not get a pay rise because there was “no magic money tree”. She then suddenly found one so that she could give a bribe of one billion pounds to N. Ireland’s DUP for their support. That’s £100m per MP. The “magic money tree” of course grows in Scotland. However, Scotland, as usual, is to get zilch! If this is indicative of her negotiating tactics for Brexit, the UK had better have deep pockets. Or rather Scotland had better be prepared to fund even more of her ludicrous decisions.

PH14 9RN        Tel: 01828 686298        Inchture Hotel

ps: As we mentioned in our last post, our Trossachs correspondents have been conducting a scone search on St Kitts & Nevis! Unfortunately, is spite of their considerable efforts, we have to report that the Caribbean, to all intents and purposes is a scone free zone. Bermuda triangle and all that! Unless someone knows differently, of course!The Berkeley Memorial in Basseterre, St Kitts

Fountains in the Gorbals

Happily though they had their handy allaboutthescones telephone box identification guide with them when they visited the Ballahoo restaurant in Basseterre, the capital of St Kitts. With it they managed to identify a K6 … they even sent a photograph of the manufacturers badge … well done them! Lion Foundry, Kirkintilloch, K6 telephone box in Basseterre, St KittsInterestingly the large green clock/drinking fountain in the foreground was also made in Scotland – in the Sun Foundry in Glasgow to be precise. It commemorates one Thomas Berkeley Hardtman-Berkley a local estate owner who died in 1881. Even more interestingly it is an exact copy of an identical fountain which stood in the Gorbals area of Glasgow until it was dismantled in 1932.

Today the plan is to reinstate the fountain and a team from Glasgow Caledonian University has been sent to Basseterre charged with producing an exact 3D image of the fountain using lasers and digital photography. The new fountain will then be produced using their imagery … you see how mind expanding scones can be! Once again, many thanks to our correspondents for their unstinting dedication.

by Bill and Pat Paterson and is about finding good scones throughout the world, with a little bit of politics