Bamse - Norwegian Sea Dog

Beautiful cold clear and sunny winter's day, so we drove to the Montrose Basin to view the seabirds.  En route, we stopped at the harbour in Montrose and I spotted this statue of a dog, so got out to investigate.

It's a tribute to a St Bernard called Bamse (Norwegian for teddy bear), who was owned by a Norwegian Naval captain whose minesweeper was stationed at Montrose during WWII.  Bamse was a legend in his own lifetime and a huge morale-booster for everyone who knew him and if you Google his name, there are some lovely stories about him:-)

There were lots of birds to spot at the Wildlife Centre, including a kingfisher, who posed prettily on a branch for us, but was rather far away to get a clear shot (see Extras).

Returning home by a different route, we stopped off at Arbroath Harbour for fish and chips, where we were watched hopefully but in vain by several huge seagulls (see Extras).  

The sun was setting by the time we left and I took a final shot of the Signal Tower against the darkening sky (see Extras) and we drove home with a beautiful sunset in front of us for much of the way.  A lovely day out:-)