On the Road Again - Adventures from an Empty Nest

1) Fog nestles in narrow valleys between the steep rounded hills above the sea as our camper maneuvers its seventh switchback on the single-lane road the GPS is directing us to take through Devon. We emerge onto on a narrow high ridge, still enveloped in fog, when dark, silent shapes materialize out of the formless mist ahead of us. A herd of horses stand on the pavement. As we slow to a crawl, they casually move aside, grazing on the brown grass that lines the road.  One lifts her head to watch us move past.   2) The road bored through a tunnel of overhanging trees, its single lane widening occasionally just enough to allow two cars to scrape the bushes on either side and pass in opposite directions. Then, as we came around a bend, there was a large white gate closed across the road, connecting two sides of a narrow stone arch.  “Worthy Combe Toll Road”, a sign said. “In the absence of the Toll Keeper kindly put money into the slot of the lodge door.  Please close the gat

We have been exploring the Highlands (hinterlands) of Scotland. Several things we’ve learned:  1)    Many people in Scotland speak Scotts, a beautiful, guttural language that sounds a little like Czech to my ears.  2)    Most of central Scotland – like much of northern England – doesn’t have LTE (access to the Internet), and campgrounds there don’t have wifi.  (We’ve missed you, too.)  3)    There are more sheep there than people.  By a lot. A whole lot.  4)    There are almost more castles than people. 5)    The people may give the appearance of being cross, but they are incredibly nice. 6)    Highland cattle are the most awesome farm animals in the world!  7)    If the Jacobites had won their rebellion against England in the early 1700s, we’d be speaking French in our country now, according to a gentleman we met hiking. 8)    You can easily stumble upon a fiddler’s convention and hear some of the world’s