Holy Loch

This is the Holy Loch at low tide this afternoon, as the clouds from the rain-bearing front began to clear and break - though this evening actually remained grey after all. The glens were all hung about with wisps and banks of cloud, and the overnight rain had sunk where it fell, leaving only a darkening of the dusty ground. The evening is still and warm, and it doesn't really feel like Scotland at all.

It's a very peaceful scene; I never look at it without (tediously no doubt) recalling the years when it was desecrated (I use the word advisedly) by the presence of a US Navy ship, a floating dock, and up to three nuclear submarines at a time. The air was filled, day and night, with the hum of machinery and the crackling of commands over the tannoy. I couldn't look at it without feeling alienated. 

World doesn't really feel much better these days, does it? But at least we've got our loch back ...