Wildlife & Steam Tea

28 Sep:

We woke after a good quiet night's sleep in the forest campsite. Had a good shower in the nearby warm & clean facilities. We had porridge breakfast made in microwave, and a filter coffee, just like we used to have on Sirena IV. We are slowly getting used to the rigmarole of putting away the double bed. 

We left the campsite at ten, ready to attack the Wildlife Park, which was pretty deserted when we arrived. First stop was the snow leopard, the rarest animal of all. Unbelievably the cat was there before us in all her glory, with her thick tail as long as her body. She came up close to the edge of the enclosure and stared full faced at Lesley for a minute before going about her business. Wow and thrice wow. 

We went on to see polar bears being fed apples, giant owls, a distant tiger, a sleepy wildcat, bison, exotic goats, a red squirrel, a family of wolves, and as Saturday wore on, large numbers of Scottish infants. For both of us, the highlight was the snow leopard. 

Having had lunch in the van, we set off for the station at Aviemore, to pick up tickets for our first class steam tea experience, Nic's birthday present to Lesley The steam train engine was huge and our private compartment a symphony of wood and squishy tartan. We opened a small bottle of prosecco and toasted the birthday. Later came pots of tea, sandwiches, scones and cake, as we chuffed from Aviemore to Broomhill and back again, seeing the snow topped Cairngorms in the distance and the river Spey closer by. It was a true treat, for both of us. 

Nic drove us to the small lake we had heard about from Felix, where we walked for a while and watched a woodpecker high up in a tree, rapping slowly on the bark. He was too far away to be identified and of course we didn't have binoculars with us. 

Back to the campsite, and our old slot had been taken. Must get one of those 'pitch in use' signs. In fact there was only one pitch left, so we parked up, closed up and Nic made beans on sourdough bread for supper - all we needed after our very high(land) tea. A little reading, a game of cards and then time for bed, another cosy night in the forest despite the outside temperature of 4°. We leave our Webasto heater on overnight and set to 8° it keeps the van at a pleasant 18° - don't ask!