Did it,Done that,Been there.

Well after my disappointment at X-mas I was determined that as soon as a weather window opened up I would have another go, and last week the opportunity arose.  So on Sunday XOX, Ash and I headed off again to see if we could get to Ardnamurchan this time. A straight shot with no over night stop, just a steady run up there leaving home at 8ish and we arrived at Kilchoan at 3ish after a nice uneventful run with a good audio book to keep me amused.





 The weather was not great, overcast and rain but I had to stop for a few shots on the way there.







Great little site, lovely warm welcome and I got settled in for the rest of the day. I think this was the only night I was in my bunk as the wind was not too bad, but the other nights, it was sleeping plan "B" on the floor, as it was just too windy to have the lid up and the condensation inside meant that it was raining on me every time the wind snapped at the canvas.



I had forgotten how much "fun" driving on single track roads is and with the light dusting of snow I got to practice my off road steep descent driving techniques in some parts but being in XOX this was not a problem, the ride height gave me a distinct advantage seeing over high points and through corners.




Although talking to one of the locals he was saying that on a ordinary car the shock absorbers only last half the normal time using this type of road daily.

A happy 3 days later after going all over the peninsular seeing what there was to see,


This lighthouse is the most westerly point on the UK mainland

 Ash having a great time on the lovely white sand  beaches running all over the place, but alas no otters although I did find some tracks on one of the beaches.



I got out of the wind for this slow water shot by hiding behind a big rock and giving it a 25sec,exposure.

 All the photos are clickable if you hadn't noticed by the way. If you would like prints I have them for sale just get in touch. To email me just put .co.uk after richard@artbycamera

It was a treat to see the red deer down beside the road and in easy range for the 400mm lens.



As you know if you have been following along with our adventures this was the first proper trip and living in the car for a few days has shown me a lot of improvements that I need to make. A new design for the side lockers being the most important. I need to insulate behind the locker and leave an air gap to help with the condensation that has caused such a lot of distortion to the existing ones

So what is next? Well I want to sort out the lockers before I do anything other than day trips and by then the weather should have improved, but it will be somewhere on the west coast of Scotland. I like the isolation and the space. I would not like it all the time but for a short break it is wonderful.

Until next time, Thank you for looking

Richard

Day tripping

After the disappointment at Christmas I have been having to make do with "day trips" while I watch for a weather window to get away for a few days, but as I live in the Lake District it is not all bad.

Boxing day Ash and I went for a walk to Hayswater and found this old barn about half way there and the bad weather help to set me on a different track with my photos.
I have always liked black and white photos and after reading a book on HDR Mono photography that was me hooked.




So we have been doing day trips, not many photos worth posting to show for it but a combination of B&W and colour can work well

It was lovely today to be out and about in the cold knowing that the night heater was on in XOX and the kettle was just about to boil for tea when the shafts of light came through the clouds sending me out to get this shot and then back into the warm to enjoy my tea.
This weather has to change soon (I hope) it has been wet and windy for so long now we need a break,.



Not many changes to XOX lately. A new starter battery has been fitted (ouch! they are not cheap) and next week heavy duty back springs will be put in place as I am running around almost fully loaded most of the time and XOX is nose up at the moment. The lockers that I made have been a big disappointment with the damp weather making the wood swell. I should have known better but I was hoping for the best. The back of a car is the worst place ever for real wood to be, with the huge swings in temperature and humidity the wood acts like a sponge and changes size to the point where the drawers will not fit nicely. So I will be replacing the lockers with faced MDF boards when I find some material that matches the galley.

I have been very pleased with the fuel consumption getting 25 MPG knocking around town and 30 MPG on a long run, considering I am running with a fair load on board I think that is quite good.

DVLA have not seen fit to reclassify XOX as a camper so my fight with the insurance company goes on, but there may be a way round it by going about it a different route, we will see.

If you haven't notice yet all the photos are click-able to give you a larger view.

Until next time dear reader have fun and enjoy yourself we only have one life, live it.

Richard