On Binscarth Woods, oddly placed Coo's and mud in your undercarriage.

So yesterday the hoonds and I decided it was time for a blast of free exercise, so we went a scamping in the local woods. Woods I hear you say. Woods I say - there is one. It's called Binscarth and is a peedie patch of lovely crunchy leaves. Not currently bright and autumny but its a woodland never the less. (Excuse the blotch in the bottom right hand side, I have compost fleck in my lens.) So its accessed through a field often filled with cows. The hounds looked curious, I just looked dubious. Cows with calves are not to be messed with. So we skirted the edges. Thankfully the coo's were more interested in eating the ever growing Orkney grass. Clever coo's.

And so, we got safely to the gate and into the alien lands of a woodland. Being under canopy in Orkney is a bit strange. Its sort of like having a time machine or a worm hole of your own into a different land. Away from the big skies, very odd. Almost a bit claustrophobic, a sure sign you've been on Orkney a long time when you get a closed in feeling from trees and find them a nuisance when you can't see by them.......although I do love them!

Haggis hasn't been here much - he's just not sure exactly what's happening. His forest experience is minimal. Forests to him are also very curious.

Peedie (the older hound) is sulking, happy until we got through the gate and he spied the trees. He does not agree with forests of any description - they always get caught up in his undercarriage. He was relieved to see the woodland stop and open up into more open countryside. Muddy paths are much more this thing.

So off they scamped foraging ahead in search of 'stuff'. I waddled on grumping at myself and my choice of 'walking trainers' rather than wellyboots. You see its a hard call. My old faithfuls leak so whilst they're well worn in, the water pours in. My new (wedding) wellyboots are still in the box and the other pairs are either too heavy (steeltoecaps), too large (what was I thinking) or missing (hiding). So given it was a long long walk we wanted (this jaunt was 5 miles) so I picked trainers. Silly silly wet footed soggy girl.

Once out of the woodland (in less than 10 minutes end to end), the dykes fields and landscape opens up nicely. Hoy in the distance.

We walked on doon the track further and further and happened across the funniest of sights. A whole herd of coo's, 15 or more, standing on a wee islet hummock in the middle of a loch. What on earth were they thinking?

Perplexed by this curious sight we wandered further around the track, doon to the welcome unmuddy road and walked the rest of the way home on the main road until we got, very muddy, to the local shop.

Given the boys were SO muddy - and a bath was eschewing, Bonio's were called for as a treat. Nothing like a bit of bribery to help bath time go a bit smoother. Peedie had no objection - his undercarriage resembled a compost bin fully stocked for the winter with leaves, cones and a good helping of mud.