Little Dell, Nethy Bridge
A few weeks ago we stayed at Little Dell, a cosy cottage nestled within Abernethy Forest. Three days whisked by, but each night in the cottage had a timeless quality, even as autumn ripened around us. Little Dell used to be the ballroom of an old lodge, a fact that adds to the romance of this hideaway for two.
We arrived to a softly lit living room, filled with charming vintage details. Brownies, kindly left by our host on a china platter in the dining room, added to the homely feeling.
On our first day we visited Loch an Eilean, an old haunt. September was slipping into October. The larches rippled pale gold and the forest paths were studded with leathery, star-shaped leaves. Afterwards we strolled around Aviemore and found ourselves in a shadowy, pine-clad bar, eating fish and chips.
With only three days we hadn’t planned to do anything more than walk the hills and enjoy a change of scene. However, I can never resist a chance to visit the Cairngorm Reindeer herd. On a drizzly, Octoberish morning we met the herd under cover of the trees. Reindeer are gentle souls who let you get as close as you like providing there’s some food in it for them. We couldn’t pat them, due to corona virus restrictions and I’d deliberately left my camera behind to live in the moment. When everyone whipped their phones and cameras out to record the experience, I started to feel foolish. The old saying, “pics or it didn’t happen” flashed through my mind. Documenting our life has become easy and habitual. In fact, taking a photograph isn’t just for special occasions. We can and do record every detail of our lives, from weddings to our afternoon coffee. After years of this I’ve started to wonder if my ceaseless documentation contributes to mental clutter.
In the anxiety to record everything, life’s special moments pass me by. Maybe I should’ve taken my camera to capture the damp reindeer calf with the crooked antler and sloe-dark eyes, but the writer in me at least wants to try painting a mental picture with words, instead of relying on an image to do the talking. Of course, I see there’s worth, beauty and power in images. I love poring over old photo albums, revisiting old memories and bad haircuts. But experiencing life in the moment and expressing thoughts and feelings through language is part of being human. Or at least, a big part of the human writing this blog post.
Correction: there is one picture of me, looking like a wet plum about to hold up a bank. So, I did visit the reindeer and I do have a picture to prove it, even though you can’t tell it’s me ;)
After visiting the reindeer, we’d planned a walk to Loch Uaine, but decided to retreat from the dreich weather to Little Dell instead. We treated ourselves to fist-sized cherry scones from The Rothiemurchas Centre and ate them as rain slid down the window. A nap on the sofa, reading my book - I could’ve been home. That night we walked into Nethy Bridge in search of an old phone box and ended up meandering by the rushing river, which slowly turned invisible in the twilight. I love that slow, slip into October, when the dusk gives you a head start to get home.
I’m grateful for those three nights away. Luckily, I don’t live in an area affected by another lockdown, but it seems unlikely that travel will return to normal anytime soon. Meantime I’ll cherish my memories of Little Dell; cooking venison stew while listening to a folk playlist; watching birds hop around the garden at breakfast; receiving good news about a short story competition I entered and stargazing from the sweet, secluded garden.
