Lomond Hills Landmark

Standing among trees on the edge of a hillside on the North side of the Lomond Hills in Fife is a landmark which can be seen for many miles. Yesterday we walked through the Fallkland Estate and then through the forest up to this monument. It is a 60 foot high stone-built tower, erected in memory of Onesiphorus Tyndall-Bruce of Falkland who died 19th March 1855. He was the instigator of the tree planting on the Lomonds and the surrounding area. The view from the statue over the Howe of Fife is magnificent.

A mile and a half East of the monument, in the village of Falkland and near the entrance door to the Church of Scotland is a statue to the same Onesiphorus Tyndall-Bruce. The statue was paid for by public subscription. He built the Church in 1849. He was an Englishman who married a Miss Bruce of Falkland. His Christian name is unusual, but it can be found in the Bible at 2 Timothy, chapter 1 verse 16.

An Abundance of Daffodils

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

William Wordsworth.

I took the photos for the above collage above on a walk today from Lundin Links down to Lower Largo and then along the disused railway track. None of the daffodils pictured were growing in gardens, but in various spots in rough ground adjacent to the footpaths above the shore of Largo Bay. In the last week or so they all seem to have bloomed and there are so many different varieties. They seem to manage to grow through brambles and bracken. Wordsworth's poem may be a trifle sentimental for our 21st Century taste, but I still found them an uplifting sight.

Warkworth Castle and the River Coquet

Warkworth Castle viewed from the path beside the river

On the way back from our trip to Cambridgeshire, we broke our journey and stayed overnight in the excellent Warkworth House Hotel. Warkworth is a small town between Alnwick and Morpeth in Northumberland. It is dominated by a 12th Century Castle which was built overlooking a bend in the River Coquet. There is a very pleasant riverside walk and I think the best view of the castle is from this walk.

Heron on a branch overhanging the river

Two Swans on the Coquet.

A Walk Round Lower Largo

Yesterday (Sunday) was the first really sunny morning that we had had since Christmas, so armed with my new camera, I walked down to the harbour at Lower Largo. The tide was coming in, so I then walked through the village, and then along the old railway path towards Ely and then back along the beach, until I had to once more go up to the path because of the rising tide.

This photo shows the pier at Lower Largo, the bridge across the Keil burn and the old railway viaduct in the background. (The railway line was closed in the 1960s)

This bronze statue of Robinson Crusoe is in the Main Street in the village. Alexander Selkirk was born in Lower Largo. It was his real life adventures that inpired Daniel Defoe to write his famous book.

View looking back along the beach towards the Temple area of Lower Largo, so called because it was thought to be linked to the Knight's Templars.

Another view looking back to the village.

View looking down on to the harbour and the Crusoe hotel

Lower Largo has a thriving sailing club, and there are often small yachts in the bay. The faint outline of Berwick Law can be seen through the mist on the opposite side of the Forth.

Not a great photo, but the scarlet legs of the redshank can be clearly seen. It tends to be the first bird to react as one approaches, with it's warning cry, it's said to be the sentinel of the beach.

Turnstones along the shoreline, searching for food.

Oystercatchers can be seen not only on the beach, but in the fields above.

Not many flowers in bloom in January, but the gorse adds a bit of brightness.

Ivy covers some of the fences along the old railway track. Its yellow-green flowers bloom late and are a good source of nectar for wildlife, and its dense foliage provides shelter.

Again along the old railway track, teasel heads blow in the breeze. Birds particularly goldfinches feed on the seeds.