View across the Outer Harbour of Stornoway

Wednesday 20 June 2012

Wednesday 20 June

I went out late last night to take pictures of the longest night (well, the night before the longest night) and one of my pics was shown on STV weathernews this evening.



Today was another bright and sunny day, but high cloud is slowly moving in from the south. As of Friday, we shall see a complete change of weather. Although we had another wildfire in the Castle Grounds this evening, that is likely to be the last one and hopefully for a long time.

I have researched the WW1 casualties from Lower Garrabost today, numbering 16. One of them turned up in the census returns for 1901, in a household with seven female visitors. I shall probably never find out what the occasion was - a wake, perhaps?

Today is also the first day of the summer sailings, which see three crossings on Wednesday and Friday. However, the ferry promptly broke down on the way from Ullapool this evening, so the 19.45 departure from Stornoway was cancelled as was the 23.00 sailing back. As it's solstice at 23.09 GMT this evening, there will be people celebrating the solstice at the Standing Bollards of Ullapool pier rather than at the Standing Stones of Callanish. They both have the same amount to do with the solstice. Nothing at all. Callanish is a lunar monument, not (like Stonehenge or Maeshowe) a solar one.