Linn Falls

I'm trying to make the most of the weekends to practice different types of photography, and, lets be honest, get content for my instagram. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not the best landscape photographer in the world. It's not something I've ever focused on, but living in such a beautiful country I think it's a shame not to take advantage of the environment around me, so I'm trying to get better. If nothing else it gets me out the house for a while! 

This weekend I decided to drag my boyfriend on a 'hike' to Linn Falls in Aberlour. I love waterfalls and he loves outdoor walks. It's not really a 'hike', it's a really easy 15 minute walk (although it was a bit muddy), past the Aberlour Distillery and fields of sheep. Initially we struggled to find it because I just followed Google maps. Walk Highlands gives a much more accurate idea of how to get there. But in getting lost we stopped by a shop to get picnic supplies, so I'm not complaining. 

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Exploring Bergen

At the end of October, me and my colleagues at Northport took a group trip to Bergen, Norway. The rural landscape and weather was not too different from Scotland, so it wasn't a huge shock to the system. One thing that did grab my attention was the colorful houses, they were everywhere, and I loved them! It was so lovely and uplifting to look around and see a blue house, red house, yellow house, black house, white house, all different, standing next to each other in a beautiful colourful row. We had planned to travel around more of Norway, to get to see a fjord or two, but weather and time constraints meant we ended up sticking pretty close to where we were staying near Lindås.

I loved the days we went into the city though, Bergen was beautiful, even in the rain. I felt so safe and comfortable and welcome, so I was more than happy to wander off on my own. We went up the Fløibanen, the Bergen funicular railway. I highly reccommend it. We went very early in the day so we missed most of the other tourists, thankfully. We went on a short hike and found the goats that hang out at the top of the mountain - I loved them!  The only downside to the trip, and I'm sure everyone who has ever been on holiday to Norway has said the same - It's very expensive. Everything is. We just stocked up at the supermarket so we didn't have to eat out too often so it was fine.  Overall I loved it. If I had the money I'd live there, in a lovely colourful house, and hang out with goats all day. A girl can dream.

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Seal spotting at Portgordon Beach, Scotland

I saw them for the first time last summer but didn't have my camera on me, so I knew I had to go back this year and see them again.

There's a colony of Common and Grey seals who frequent the Moray coast of Portgordon Beach. I'd lived in Moray for over 20 years without knowing they were there, even though they're a huge tourist attraction and very easy to spot.

They're fairly unfazed by human presence, as the locals continue to visit the beach and walk their dogs, however, they are obviously wary and keep an eye on you, so they can go back into the sea if you get too close. 

They're amazing to watch, we stayed for a good few hours just observing them as well as getting photos. When we first arrived there was quite a crowd gathered to watch, so we ended up walking slightly further down the beach to get privacy. There were obviously a few groups of tourists who'd stopped to see them, and who seemed a lot braver than the locals about getting close to the seals on the rocks and edge of the sea. 

I'm so grateful that I got to see them again this year, and I plan to go back again next summer. They're so cute and funny to watch, and we're so lucky that we have such a big colony so close to us. I highly recommend trying to spot them if you're in the area, but be careful not to get too close and cause them distress, and try to go as early as possible to avoid big tourist crowds.

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Danni