Moving on into July the various jobs just kept mounting up, the cottages were quite busy I see. I also remember for a week on Rona in one of the new cottages at that time the cost was less than £400 per week, oh how things have changed. But seriously, looking back the charge for something very special like the Dry Harbour cottages, was way too cheap. Although the first pictures here make the cottages look decidedly spartan. They had only been finished and only the basics had been bought. But looking back maybe that was the attraction, getting back to basics, peace perfect peace.
I usually had a list of jobs from July going forward, weedkiller spraying, more rubbish to Portree, dosing the cows and blood tests, holidays, dealing with visitors, always fuel and gas, Vet visit, lots of visitors, RYA course and lots more. Throw in a Church Service, building a shed and the start of admin’. A busy schedule. In the middle of it all just after Dorte had left the pontoon was fitted by the fishfarm guys.
I am going to put together a separate page on the pontoon with a link here, so as to record the whole thing, the ;pictures are all over the place, so first, I need to gather them in.
Next day we had I believe the last man to be born on Rona that at that time was still alive. Alasdair MacLeod was born at Dry Harbour and now lived with his wife Chrissie at Kyle Rona Farm at Ardersier. Their son Donnie, an organic farmer, came with them to see his Father’s house and reminisce. Alasdair could not believe how small the house was, the windows were and the location. It was such a long time ago.
That week we had a big push with the pontoon then on the 24th on the busiest yacht visitor days of the year a couple of boat loads of folk came over with the retired Bishop of Argyll to hold an Episcopalian service in Church Cave. A good crowd attended. This was the Factor’s idea and I heard later it did not go down well locally as church Cave would have been a Free Presbyterian Church. As it happened I have to say it was a lovely service along traditional lines and Douglas Murray the Bishop was a lovely man.
Next day back to the Pontoon Mooring work and Yacht visitors whom I became good friends with. Sailing Yacht Bumble Bee, Mary and Richard Sheffield, they were from Connel and very good fun with plenty of advice on how to handle Yachties!!! No picture sadly or not one I can find.
August 2003
Moving onto August the highlight was the arrival of Princess Anne and her husband Tim Laurence, no photos. This was the first time I met them. At the time their blue yacht was called Doublet, at the time I had a water problem at the cottages and was trying to sort that. The start of problem solving due to there being no one else.
Alison, Tony, a cat, a Yorkshire terrier and a Rottweiler arrived on that Saturday, the departing guests had informed me on the Saturday morning that they had been without water since Thursday. Sadly this was not going to be the last time that something like this happened. There was nothing for it after 6 hours of finding out what the problem was and not fixing it, than to invite our new arrivals to stay in the Lodge. They were fine folk and with their menagerie they moved in. They were there until Tuesday.
Meanwhile I had passed HRH and Tim Laurence several times not actually recognising who they were.
Tony had met them and told me so when they arrived down at the Lodge I met them and found them very interested in Rona and good fun, relaxed and willing to chat away. I offered tea or a dram but they declined. A very strange day.
The water problem was a bat stuck in the outlet and one in the tap in the bathroom, I had tried to blow the blockage out so you can imagine how I felt when I found that he black thing was a dead bat.
I had to have a large brandy after that. Suffice to say I did clear it, empty the tank, sterilised it and after two days allowed my guests in. Sadly I heard Tony had passed and lost touch with Ali, as I did with many guests we had, although some still keep in touch and a few are now great friends.
I came down Sunday morning to find the Rottweiler in the kitchen, growling, that was a very nervous cup of tea!!!
I noticed in the pictures of Donnie and his parents that the roof was under construction on the ruin next door which is now a museum at Dry Harbour. So I had another workparty that year and during all of this excitement. I had not noted it in the diary but that is not hard to do. This was a bigger group and we did much more. With a builder coming along with his wife (Jess from the previous WP, who was chief cook) we set too and roofed the Cobblers ruin. Now I have found the pictures I remember it well, it was glorious weather.
Dorte with Arne arrived back in August, the weather turned and it was a poor few days. But fishing off the MV Brigadoon with the family was fun and that visit we hatched a plan for Rona Whisky. Finding that Dorte’s husband was a first class cook and loved a good dram, my kinda guy!
There was no shed or garage on Rona, the ATV lay outside and had a hard time in the winter, amazing it survived. I decided I needed a shed, everyone needs sheds. So I put together a plan and started work on the ruin by the bothy/pier. My nephew came over and resurrected the stonework being as he was a stone mason. I did the rest and by the end of the year I had somewhere to store vehicles and ‘stuff’. But to be honest it was too near the shore and over the years we had to be careful what we left there. Also it was too open and would you believe I suffered some pilfering which is very disappointing on a remote Island.
It was now September, August had come and gone, the yachts were getting less and less, I had some time. The new barn/shed was a good distraction. Remember I was living alone here at the time and with no one to look after there was plenty time for work. I pushed on and see I finished it in December.
I see my first boat in the picture above, I went to Raasay on more than one occasion with this wee green boat, often rowing out to the mouth of the harbour fishing (unsuccessfully). It was a good way to learn, especially rowing against the tide.
Around this time I started to have problems with my left knee, it was uncomfortable and it got stiffer and stiffer. Eventually when it was almost impossible to bend I went to the Doctor who immediately sent me to Broadford for an X Ray as I lived on Rona they processed it for me that day and I was told that I was so close to having a ‘fused’ knee joint. Ooops! Rest, no work and I would be lucky to walk the hills again.
So what do you do. I went to Ballachulish to Lochaber Water Sports and stayed in the hotel there with my ice packs and use opf the pool, Ibuprophen a little whisky and a week running about in a RIB did wonders, more of the same once home and by Christmas the swelling had gone down and I was mobile, but only just.
After that episode I took a week at Coylumbridge hotel, again making full use of the swimming pool. After that back to Rona, feet up.
Lorraine my wife now had come to Rona in October, her neighbour was Terry Williams who was writing an article on Rona, she was a photographer and I asked her to take pictures of Elephants painted by the renowned Elephant Hunter, Captain William Bell of Corriemoillie. You may wonder where I got them but that is a story for next year.
Lorraine fell in love with Rona and the rest is history, but it took a little time before she decided to try pot luck on a remote island.
Things I missed this year: Back in July we had a visit from the Scottish Executive looking at an application for a Fish Farm in Kyle Rona. I was non committal at that stage but the Owners were not in favour. However there was quite a bit of opposition and the application failed.
In October we had meetings in Portree with the LEC, Local Enterprise Company. The Factor had this bright ideas of turning Rona into a Trust, but the whole point of it was to try to get more grant aid which I could never understand. Factors spend a lot of their time looking for grant money to do projects on land they manage for wealthy clients, now I know the ins and outs of these moves and I do not want to say too much. So it was that the LEC rejected that idea and quite rightly so. Wealthy people should pay their way if they wish to own such places, they should not rely on the tax payer to get things done.
By December the weather was becoming a handful, my leg now better but not quite there, I was able to get on with most jobs.
There was a trip to Edinburgh to the Zoo in December, not to see the animals but to attend the St Kilda Club AGM, interesting and I guess I was canvassing for work party people.
There was a landing craft in December coming for calves, possibly with material. I had spent the day getting the calves into the fank, when the boys came they opened the gate and the calves took off, we got them back but it was a bit of a rodeo. Niall Stevenson the Vet used to come to test and other things with the cattle, he had no fear getting into a fank knee deep in mud with these big cattle. Scared me!!!
Niall my nephew was back for a few days doing more stonework, widening the pier access I believe.
I attended a First Day Course for my Advanced Motor Boat ticket with Doctor Adamson in Kyle. A lovely man.
The Vet arrived to do tests on the cows, Callie MacLean came to and I think they took calves away, information is sketchy.
I maximised the ferry ‘MV Brigadoon’ by getting more and more material over, Peter Urquhart our ferryman then must have been scunnered. The weather must have been better before Christmas when these trips took place.
With no one to look after apart from the cattle I set up feed stations to keep the cows away from the Lodge where they made mess and took off to Strathpeffer to spend Christmas with my Sister.
Seems the weather was tough on the 28th of December on my way home in fact I think I got held up with my New Year cottage guests.
Here is a random picture I just came across, not mine, I cannot remember it but it must have been just before I arrived on Rona, as the ‘Tin Can’ was operational then and the Outboard had not disappeared. Could even be Raasay in the background.
That is enough for tonight 22nd Sept’ 2026. This is not edited but I will post and hope to come back to it.
