Travelling and Working with Horses: Post 5, Scotland

I love travelling in the Scottish borders, it's really nice countryside and the people are very friendly. I stopped in Kirk Yetholm, (which was a Gypsy village, in the old days), then I headed for Jedburgh and then Hawick. I busked with my bagpipes in both these towns and got a good reception.

This is typical countryside in this area, nice and wild and remote. The midges are very aggressive and torment the horses. Midges cannot fly in wind of more than 5 miles an hour so I headed down to the coast, where the sea breeze keeps the midges away. At this time of year the Cleggs, (horse-flies) are bad too.

Stopped on the river Nith a few miles south of Dumfries.

A lovely romantic stop at New Abbey.

Followed the coast round to Auchencairn and then Kirkudbright where I stopped on Doon Bay. This area was a traditional stopping place for Scottish travellers in the past.

Stopped on the shore at Carrick. This is a beautiful stop. I have a childs fishing net that I bought for 99p and I used it to catch prawns as the tide came in. They were delicious. I also had a good swim in the sea. While I have been travelling around the coast I've been swimming as much as I can. I have also swum the horses in the sea, which they love.

On the shore near Port William.

I went and stayed with my friends Jim and Julie near Port Patrick. They travel to Appleby horse fair each year. During the holiday season they work a horse on the sea front giving rides to holiday makers.

I enjoyed seeing Stranraer pipe band marching through Port Patrick.

I got my cob reshod at Jim's by Jimmy Stewart the farrier. Another of Jimmy's clients had given him a bottle of whiskey, and we sat around the fire that evening drinking and chatting and I played the pipes. I felt a bit dehydrated the next morning but I like to join in with the customs of the people I'm with if I can and had no regrets.