Up Day

So I did a roughly 12-mile hike today up to the Blackwater Resevoir, roughly 1000 feet ascent. Near the dam (seen on the right) is a graveyard for some of the navvies who died building it. At first I thought it sadly ironic that they are facing the thing that resulted in their deaths. But then I thought of Sula by Toni Morrison and the pride of the man who said "I built that road."

Here's my lunchtime view next to the reservoir.

Possibly the Mamore mountains, a view from above the reservoir.

Below is the cemetery in the distance. I sang Amazing Grace a few times during my visit. I thought about the elegant monument to the MacDonalds in Glen Coe and this simple burial plot. I heard that most of the navvies were Irish; one gravestone read Patrick. Derry. I thought that meant Patrick was from Derry but there was also a headstone that read George. Dow. So a period after each name seemed the style of the day. Most men died in 1907 and 1908.

The whole day was lovely. And so hot that I got a sunburn. I stepped off the trail a few times and here found the perfect camping spot.

I try to include a photo of me, mainly for mom's benefit. I certainly don't have the hang of selfies.

As you can see, the track was an easy one. No boulders or bogs. But very hard, my feet hurt by the end of the day. The purpose of the dam was to supply electricity to an aluminum smelter. Eight miles of pipes connected the dam to the aluminum plant, seen below. It operated from 1909 to 2000 when it was outcompeted by larger plants, mostly in America.

This view is next to what was the aluminum plant.

I crossed the bridge over the above river to my destination, the pub. What a welcome sight after maybe 6  hours of hiking and exploring.

I didn't stop long for lunch at the reservoir because I had a few cleggs bothering me (smaller version of a horsefly). So I hadn't stopped all day and really really enjoyed my pint of cider.

The drive back to Alltshellach along Loch Leven was gorgeous. I brightened the photo below using a slider--probably should have left it alone as you lose detail when you mess around with the exposure.

So here's a photo from Alltshellach House looking back from the loch.

After dinner I went down to the loch to get a photo of a few boats. The light is magic this time of day in this magic place.

I listened to a Blindboy podcast during the hike today and part of it was about JMW Turner's paintings. I don't think Turner could compete with this.

July 23