Wildly windy

The wind increased tremendously overnight, and our next outing presented quite a challenge not only standing up and walking, but even getting out of the car.  Nonetheless, the beauty of the weather here is that, wait a moment and things will change. 
Our next trip was to drive over to Elgol to look at the Cuillin mountains.  (Note the sunshine and calm waters in the photographs on the Elgol link!)  One of the many fascinating things about the landscape around Skye is that it changes so much from one peninsula to another, and even from one side of a peninsula to another.  The colours also alter and modulate in the changing light, even as you drive past.
Also, talking of driving past: several roads involve single carriageway with passing places, which on a curving route with blind hillocks can be a mildly stressful experience.
 
Yesterday our first stop was at the McKinnon family graveyard which is in a magnificent setting with many elaborate graves.  This link tells more about the family, and 8. shows a map of the graveyard.

We have been particularly impressed not only with the variety of rock on the island, but also with the range of lichens to be found.  This graveyard had quite a few of the latter.  I was most taken with the cream and white ones here, and with the strange 'millefeuille' rocks around (draped with wisps of wool).

We were by now so wind-battered and exhausted just from standing up that we were delighted to see at the parking space that the Blue Shed Cafe was only 3.5 miles up the road.

Relief came in the shape of coffee and lemon polenta cake (scummilicious!)  And I was entranced by the friendly pig out back - which makes a change from the ubiquitous sheep and cattle.

Then, fortified, we were back on the road over mountain and down to loch until we reached the coast.  Overcast and wildly windy, there was still a great deal to see and to wonder at. (And trying to prevent the car door from crashing into a neighbouring parked car or from alternatively breaking a leg as we got out was a challenge all of its own!)

From up on the mountain we could see the 'pleasure' boats.  (Remember those lovely calm sunny scenes on the Elgol link?)  From up here it was almost impossible to see the mountains opposite because of the low cloud, but once we had plunged down to the harbour of course the visibility had changed a little.

Of course on our way back the sun came out, but even the sheep and lambs were choosing to forage amongst the birches rather than face the wind

which remained wild and forcefully blustery - until this morning, when once more we had calm sunshine with huge fluffy clouds.  But, as I type this and look out of the window at the loch the specks of white are increasing.  Never a dull moment, weatherwise.  A week is too short a time really.  Tomorrow morning we set off on the beginning of the long drive back home.