Yellow warning came good.

So with us stopping virtually on the doorstep of Loch Garten Osprey Center, it was logical that this would be the first port of call. Such an exorbitant price to get in....all of.....£3.00 each! Now that is what I call reasonable. The loos are a bit on the primitive side. Reminded me of New Zealand's 'long drops' toilets. No running water, didn't need to flush because of 'the long drop' and only hand gel to clean the hands. But this was to be expected seeing it's right in the middle of the forest. Anyway, the place was taken over by Spring Watch this year and Autumn watch is also to be aired from there in October. This is only a tiny, tiny part of the forest here in the ancient Caledonian pine forests, The public can only walk to the viewing area and no further but a vast amount of birds and other wildlife can be seen. From tomorrow the Osprey center will be closed as all the Ospreys have now flown back to Africa. Of course, this meant that the one bird I would have liked to see had gone but as far as my second on the wish list was concerned, Red Squirrels were in abundance and I even got to tick a Crested tit off my list as well.

The now-abandoned Osprey nest.

Osprey Egg. We had been shown a film of the Ospreys breeding and raising chicks by Alex, a very knowledgable guide.

We joined the RSPB. Such good work that we felt that paying £5 per month was for a worthy cause. During the stay of nearly two hours, the heavens opened and a deluge ensued. From that moment on it rained until we finally stopped for the night at 6 pm. The yellow warning of heavy rain and localised flooding had arrived.

So the train trip in the Strathspey railway was also a bit of a dismal affair. All the carriage windows steamed up and my idea of taking photos when it was moving went out the window. I did manage some pics though, mainly in the station and some when it uncoupled to start the journey back.

They did like venting steam

Leaving the station another 3/4 hour drive took us toward Huntly Falconry centre. We found another park4night in a car park very near to the river. Gosh, it was flowing fast and the depth gauge showed three feet. Now whether that is normal for this river is only a guess but I feel sure it has risen by a considerable amount.

River Spey

Victoria Bridge

And the only other wildlife seen today....Red Deer! Another off the list.