It's silly making plans that involve Orkney and travel at this time of year. We all know that and yet somehow, we keep on doing it. Thing is, it's Christmas and families want to be together and so, in a startling example of hope over experience, you plan for it.
Weeks ago we had made arrangements for Son No 2's return to Orkney from where he is studying near Edinburgh. College didn't finish until Friday so on Saturday he would make his way up to Inverness by coach, OH would go down to Inverness in the car and bring him back the same day.
Which was all fine and dandy until the winds started. It must have been about a week ago. They were high. They were cold and full of rain. They lasted. And they drastically reduced the number of ferries that could ply their brave way between Scotland's north coast and the islands.
In fact so bad was it that Shetland's ferries stopped running completely. ( Because they all run out of Aberdeen, and Aberdeen harbour appears to shut down whenever the peolpe in charge can hear the wind as well as feel it. Which is quite often. ) And Tesco had to charter a Hercules to re-stock their store in Lerwick.
In Orkney both our lifeline ferry servce and the private Pentland Ferries were both managing one crossing each way per day, which saved Tesco a charter flight fee for here if nothing else. But yesterday both ferry lines bowed to the inevitable and cancelled all their ferries. So there was Son No 2 making his way northwards and there was OH not travelling in the opposite direction. And all of us haunted by the spectre of not getting together for Christmas after all.
We were so fortunate. We had booked a hotel room for Saturday in Inverness just in case of delays, so at least the lad had somewhere to lay his weary head. And we caught the Flybe website just right and managed to book the last seat on this afternoon's flight from Inverness to Kirkwall. That just left the possibility of the Barriers being closed when we needed to go and pick him up from the airport. But by this afternoon the wind had dropped and we managed a trip to town, during which we picked up both son and last of the Christmas food shopping and got home to a roaring fire and three very contented cats.
We plan a very gentle day tomorrow, some tidying and last minute wrapping and stacking of presents under the tree. A few friends are expected to drop in, so perhaps we should look out some sherry and mince pies. (Not sure we actually have any sherry, although we definitley have the mince pies. Whether OH is prepared to share them is another thing).
Peace, warmth, cats and family. Days don't get much better than that.
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