Work Winds Down for the Year

Ardnamurchan enjoyed a fine day last Sunday, which took us into the hills at the back of Mingary Castle. This picture looks down from the summit of Glas Bheinn, the grey hill, and shows the land blanketed by a frost - not a common occurrence in an area washed by the warm waters of the North Atlantic Drift. In the background are the hills of Morvern.

While we were enjoying ourselves, the builders, who are working a seven-day week, were using the opportunity to pour the next batch of concrete into the shuttering around the bottom of the cliff below the castle. This picture was taken this morning, and shows one of the problems with which they are contending - the sea comes right up to the bottom of the cliff.

They managed to get a fair amount of the job done on Sunday, but continuing problems with the tyres of the front loader that carries the concrete down the ramp to the beach brought work to a halt, and it doesn't look as if any more can be done before January.

Work elsewhere continues at a brisk pace. Damien, who is usually building stone walls all over the site, has been diverted to building steps down the path from the car park to the beach. At present the path is intimidatingly slippery but Damien, as always, is doing a superb job using Caithness flagstones. The picture also shows two of the very smart iron gates installed by TSB Ironcraft last week.

The electricians from R&B Electrical and Renewables, Brett on the left and Tigger on the right, are back again. They're installing security lights along the battlements behind the attic level but also doing some alterations to the lighting set into the battlement walkways.

Dominic Taylor (left) from decorators Mark Galley Decorators along with Mark (foreground) and Stacy (right) are seen giving the west range a final coat of paint. Work in this range is almost complete, and very good it looks. They, along with the electricians, will be here for a couple more days but....

....the lads from Ashley Thompson, the main contractors for Mingary Castle, will be finishing tomorrow and returning on Monday January 4th, so they wanted their annual photograph taken. From left to right, the lads are Richard, company director John-Paul, Damien, Sophie the dog, Martin and the other director, Mark. It's been a tough few weeks for these men, with the very trying weather and delays in deliveries, so they richly deserve a very relaxing and enjoyable break.