On our annual visit
to Scotland, we decided to visit two local Rotary Clubs. Well, when I say
local, that is of course relative. East Sutherland Rotary club was 40 miles
away from our base in Portmahomack, whilst Tain is a mere 10 miles. We
had to be at both these meetings at 6.00 for 6.30 p.m. (I think they go to bed
early in these parts). Had we been at home in Surrey, it would have taken up to
an hour, perhaps more, to drive 10 miles, and we would have left home at 3.00
p.m. to be sure of travelling 40 miles and arriving on time. But up here in the beautiful, and relatively
empty North East of Scotland it took less than an hour to drive 40 miles,
despite driving through Tain and Golspie at the height of the so-called rush
hour.
Portmahomack
This was just as
well, because we arrived at the wrong venue for the East Sutherland
meeting. It is typical of what happens
when I leave directions to the DGE, who can navigate her way around the Rotary
Council of Legislation like the back of her hand, but would have severe
difficulty locating a tower block in a street full of bungalows. The problem was in the name of the venue –
The Sutherland Inn. Now, when we have
visited East Sutherland Rotary Club in the past they met at the Sutherland Inn
in Brora, and we know exactly where that is. What the DGE failed to spot was
that this time we were supposed to go to the Sutherland Inn in Golspie, which
to make things even more interesting had recently changed its name to the
Golspie Inn.
Sutherland Inn - or is it the Golspie Inn?
Eventually we made it
to the correct venue, had fun with some steps up to the room (another venue with no provision for disabled access), and
arrived with a couple of minutes to spare, only to find the club secretary had
forgotten we were coming, and no place had been laid for us. What a way to
treat the Consort to the DGE, and I wasted no time in telling them. After a bit
of shuffling around, all was resolved, the members were as friendly as usual,
and we listened to the evening’s speaker, who told us the rather surprising
story of the Brora coal mine. I had never heard of this mine, and there is no
trace of it today, but it was quite a major employer in the area in the 19th
and 20th Centuries. Two major
problems led to its demise: firstly it was Jurassic coal, rather than
Carboniferous, which meant it was younger and apparently less efficient as a
fuel, and secondly the rise of the oil industry in the second half of the 20th
century, attracted workers to places like Nigg and Invergordon, where pay and
working conditions were much better.
Brora coal mine
Thanks to the lighter
evenings in mid May (particularly in the North of Scotland where it is much more pronounced) we
drove home at 9 p.m. in daylight. It would not be dark until after 10 p.m. By
midsummers day, it will stay light until midnight. In fact in Thurso, which is on
the Northern coast of Scotland, they have an annual golf tournament on midsummers day that starts at midnight. I would love to play
in that tournament one day.
Thurso Golf Course
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