Monday 3 September 2018

Tour Of The Westside Part 2

My sincere apologies for not visiting your blogs, time has been evading me.  Gerard was taken into hospital on Saturday so I have been backwards and forwards across the moor to see him.  Victoria, Mike and the children left on the first ferry out on Saturday unaware that he was ill.  They wanted to turn around and come back but I insisted they carry on home.  It is a long road trip for them but they had plenty of stops and arrived home safely the early hours of Sunday morning.

So here we are back to the trip of the West side of the Island.  This time stopping at the Blackhouse Village at Garenin, Carloway.






The village consists of 9 restored traditional blackhouse cottages.  Some were lived in until as recently as 1974.  The first one you walk through is the shop/cafe which leads onto one set up from previous times.



This is the entrance, which consists of all the necessary working tools for the croft.  There are a further two doors one leading to the main house and the other to the loom and where the animals would have been kept.






It was a magical experience of a bygone era.  Can you imagine the hardship a time of no tarmac roads, cars planes or Ferry travel.   Most people walked everywhere or went by horse transport.





It was a great joy to share this wonderful experience with Wilbur particularly who took a great interest in the hardship and was very thankful for everything he had these days.





We also had a walk up some of the paths over the rocky hills and witnessed some stunning views.







The sheep on the beach made us all smile.




Back to the car and finally the sun shined and  off we went to the beach by Loch Dalbeg, another spectacular feast for the eyes.  The beauty of this amazing Island ever present.







They even dipped their toes, they are certainly a lot braver than me.



Gerard had more sense and watched on from a distance, enjoying the beauty of this ever changing landscape.



Some treasured memories, stored until we need something to make us smile. 

See you soon.

34 comments:

  1. Such a beautiful island. Sending love and strenth, hoping Gerard will soon be home again. X

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  2. Great pictures !!! With the sun shinning everything is more beautiful !
    I hope Gerard is alright !
    Have a lovely and more relaxing week !
    Anna

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  3. I have been catching up on some of your recent blog posts, you live in such a beautiful part of the British Isles. The trip to the Blackhouse Village is just the kind of the thing I enjoy.
    I am sorry to hear that Gerald is not well, hope he is soon well enough to be back home soon.

    Take care

    Angela

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  4. Looks a fantastic day out, just the sort of thing that appeals to me.

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  5. I'm sorry to read that Gerald is back in hospital, I hope it won't be for too long.

    What a lovely place to visit, fascinating. I must put that on my list of places to visit one day! To be able to go right into the houses as well must have been amazing. What wonderful history.

    So glad your family had a lovely visit and made it home safely, that is always a relief.

    Take care.

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  6. I'll be remembering you and Gerard in my prayers. Hope he's soon back home.

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  7. Hope Gerard is now on the road to recovery... and what beautiful photos of you and the family.. take care. Blessings and prayers

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  8. So sorry to hear about Gerard having to go
    to hospital x

    Thank you for sharing I love the History of how people lived in the past.

    Keeping you both in my Thoughts and Prayers x

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  9. Very best wishes to your husband for a speedy recovery and for you to have energy in your supporting role.

    It looks like you all had a marvellous time, saw some wonderful parts of the island, made happy memories which they will always treasure.

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  10. Hoping Gerard is better now. Will have him in my prayers.

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  11. Beautiful place. Hope Gerard is on the up.x

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  12. What a worry for you both, hope he is up and about again soon. Loved the photos. XXXXX

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  13. I love to see how people lived and worked in the past so thank you for sharing the Blackhouse Village with us.
    I do hope that Gerard is on the mend and will soon be back at home with you.
    Hugs-x-

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  14. What a wonderful place to show the children of what it was like to live long ago and the hardships they survived. I imagine it will make an impact on them for a long time. I do hope Gerard is okay. So sorry he is ailing. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  15. I think people forget quite how hard life was, more so for some than others, we are so lucky today. Hope Gerard is doing better and will back in your lovely cottage with you soon xx

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  16. Glad you had a nice visit with Victoria and family. Hope Gerald will be feeling better soon.

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  17. What a lovely adventure to visit the Black house village.Your ocean views are so pretty. I'm sure the grands will remember fondly their times on your island. Praying that Gerard will be back home soon. ♥

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  18. Blackhouse Village looks like a very interesting place to visit. Wilbur will no doubt remember this part of their holidays for a long time.

    Thoughts and prayers for Gerard's health.

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  19. I'm sure life was hard, but it does look like every attempt was made to keep these houses as cozy as possible. They must have been quite snug during the cold weather. Hope all better there now. Phil

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  20. The houses seem to have been sturdy and well-built. They are quite charming, I think. Of course, those times were hard, but that was the life the people were accustomed to. I do hope Gerard is doing well, and is back home soon.

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  21. Oh Lorraine, I am praying for Gerard, (and you too.) I hope he is home very soon. But...I am glad that you had such a wonderful visit with your family. The Blackhouse tour was so interesting. The life seems a bit romantic but I imagine it would be exhausting to have to live that way.
    Much love and blessings to you both,
    Betsy

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  22. Glad you had a great time with your family. Such a lovely place to visit and sorry to hear Gerard wound up in the hospital. Prayers he is getting better and home soon and safe travels whilst going to visit him. Hugs!

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  23. It all looks for beautiful but I'm sorry to hear Gerard is back in hospital. Let's hope he's home again soon.

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  24. Hope Gerard is well and home again. Such a beautiful place. I simply cannot imagine actually standing there and seeing it all in person. It must be breathtaking. You have such a sweet family. Glad you enjoyed their visit and glad they made it back home safely.

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  25. So sorry to hear Gerard is back in hospital, I hope he will be home again soon. Your family visit looks wonderful with so much of interest to see and do:)

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  26. Those old cottages look solidly built although life must have been hard. I expect folk got on with it as people often do when there is hardship. I hope Gerard is now back home from hospital and that all is well with you both.

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  27. Beautiful photos. The houses look very sturdy. The round ones look interesting. I like the idea of the sheep going down for a dip in the sea! Best wishes to Gerard, I hope he will soon be back home.

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  28. The view is beautiful and the place you visited is interesting. Speedy recovery for Gerard and that he can return home soon. Peace and renewed strength be upon you.

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  29. I'm catching up myself with blog reading. So sorry to hear that Gerard had another bout of illness. I read in your most recent post that he is now home, being cared for by you. Your cottage sounds very cozy. I hope his recovery continues well.

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  30. So sorry to learn that Gerard was back in hospital, Lorraine,... not knowing that, but I think the Lord brought you both to mind and I wrote your names down on my people to pray for list a few days ago!
    Thanks for posting about your interesting touring, too. xx

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  31. Such a lovely visit to a beautiful place. I love to learn about days gone by...not just about hardship, but just a different way of doing things. Love the beach time...I would be one to put my feet in to! :)

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  32. Hoping he has a swift recovery. I am amazed at the scenery of your beautiful island.

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  33. Hi Lorraine, I am back pedaling this week to catch up on past blogs of fellow bloggers and was sorry to hear about Gerard's hospitalization, but then read in a later post that he's home and on the mend under your great care - soup and scones sounded great as did sitting by the stove and watching movies :-) The photo tour was lovely and your grandsons were indeed adventurous to dip their toes into chilly water.

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