Lost Boys & Co.

Lost Boys & Co... W e don't know how it happened, but we let Ed talk us into going out this morning.  It started out glassy (#1), but by the time we hit it, it was onshore by 5 to 6kts and pretty roughed up.  Kinda hazy, almost foggy in the a.m. sunnying up as the day progresses.  The air temp was 65.5 º  and the water is close to 70.0 º .  High tide was at 6:13am +2.8' and low tide followed at 10:34am +2.0'.  It's a SSW swell out of 194 º  at 3.6' and it was 3' with some bigger slammers guaranteed to send you to the bottom quickly... I t's not that we don't care about where George Washington slept, but dammit the Beatles played here!  It's changed names three times and is now a coffee shop, but the BEATLES! L ola is famous for getting digs in the middle of the most quaint towns, but she outdid herself with Whiskey, Gin, Beer and Gifts next door!  That's our do...

Lost Boys & Co... W e had to check out the Kelpies (#1) after seeing the exhibit at the VEFA Gallery in Torrance.  Every bit as monumental as you can imagine you see them for miles looming up from the horizon.  They light them from the inside at night and they glow a warm magenta.  Right off the M9 motorway thousands of people pass by them daily… A beautiful morning in the South Bay with sunny skies and 20 miles visibility.  Winds were calm this morning and the sea surface was smooth.  The air was 63 º and the water is 69.1 º at the buoy.  Low tide was at 8:51am +1.2’ and high tide will be at 3:53pm +4.7’.  It’s a SSW swell out of 201 º at 4.3’.  It’s an oblique 2’to 3’ and looking like an excellent beach day… H ere we are at Balmoral Castle (#2) vacation home of the royals.  Turns out they have a smaller, cozier place at Ballater and only do state affairs at Balmoral.  Still, we ...

Lost Boys & Co... W e met this guy who claimed that up until his university days he was sure there was something about Scotland in the Bible…  Easy to understand, lots of churches, castles and pubs… Here’s (#1) a good example at Inverness…  I n the South Bay, low tide this morning was at 8:11am +0.8’ and high tide will be at 3:07pm +4.4’.  Winds are out of the south by 3 to 8kts and the sea surface is a little tacked.  It’s a 3.9’ SSW swell out of 209 degrees.  The air was 65.5 and the water is 68.2.  Mostly sunny skies for your beach going pleasure! W hat we didn’t expect was to find ski resorts as we crossed the Scottish Highlands.  This one (#2) was up at the Lecht near the peak of Beinn a’ Chruinnich which is a lofty 2,536’.  Not very high, but the latitude here is like Sweden or upper Canada.  Here at Balmoral the high today is 63, but feels like 51.  Not exactly balmy! ...

Lost Boys & Co... Here we have a very satisfied Teresita Rankin (#1) at the Talisker Distillery.  This would be dram #2 which sported notes of chocolate and gunpowder.  They admonished the Professor for suggesting he got a whiff of beans on toast… 11 miles visibility under cloudy skies.  Winds are out of the south at 1 to 3kts.  The sea surface is lightly rippled.  The air is 64.5 and the water is 67.8.Low tide was at 6:31am -0.2’ and high tide follows at 1:17pm 3.7’.  It’s a SSW swell out of 192 deg at 3.3’ and it’s 1’ to 2’ and a bit cranky… In #2 we have an excellent example of an Highland Cattle or as they say, “a wee hairy coo.”  This woman was scratching the coo behind the ear when it whipped around and stuck her in the shoulder.  Not technically a “gore” but she got the message!  We described it as sloppy cape work.  Both will fight another day! ...

Lost Boys & Co... When spoken properly Scottish is unintelligible to the American English ear.  A good example would be the Robert Buns quote, “Facts are chiels that winna ding, And daurna be disputed.”  So we liked this quote because it mentioned “dings”, but other than that we have no good idea what it means.  But we’ll let you parse out, “That snod’s faith gone, but the steeple aye thirsts frae the hairt o the toon.” We’re looking at 14 miles visibility under hazy skies.  It was 63.0 at checkout and the high is going t be right around 71.5.  The water is 69.6 degrees at the buoy.  Low tide was at 6:00am -0.4’ and high tide follows at 12:45pm +3.6’.  Winds are light out of the west and the sea surface is smooth.  It’s a south swell out of 187 degrees at 2.6’ and it’s almost that on the beach.  The local harbor in Portree is a colorful collection of shops and ...

Lost Boys & Co... One of the things we’ve been following since we hit the road has been the World Cup.  To say people here take it seriously would be an understatement of epic proportions.  We’ve managed to see games in a number of pubs and no matter who is playing everyone has their favorite team.  Unfortunately Scotland got eliminated and Ireland didn’t make it in, so everyone is picking their next fave.  We, of course, are rooting for Portugal, so we’re holding on! As we crossed over to the Isle of Skye, the wind stopped and the firth got mirror smooth (#1).  It only lasted a few minutes and then the wind came up along with the rain.  On the changing tide there are supposed to be rapids and a standing wave near this spot under a bridge.  In Hermosa this morning the tide is low at 5:28am -0.6’ and high tide will be at 12:15pm +3.5’.  Winds are light out of the west and the sea surfac...