I got breakfast where I stayed the night and then went down to Lybster Harbour and watched two fishing boats set out to sea for the day. The weather was lovely and the sea was calm for the fishermen. Throughout the day I saw quite a few boats fishing along the coast. I went as far along the coastal edge as I could before being diverted up onto the road where I passed an oil pipe gas flare. Then along the A9 towards Helmsdale. I had recently put new insoles in my walking boots which effectively change the position and walking action of my feet. Although they were exactly the same brand and model as the previous version, because they were new and unflattened by walking, they were causing my feet to rub in new areas. I had strapped and padded up the areas which were vulnerable, but they still hurt. I got to Berriedale and decided to stop for the day, and whilst waiting for a lift to take me up Helmsdale, I enjoyed a cup of tea from my flask and leant over the bridge to gaze into the pool below in the ‘Langwell Water’ river. About 40 metres downstream of where I was standing was a small, natural weir, and as I gazed down I noticed a hump of water being forced up over it and my immediate reaction was that I might be witnessing a run of salmon coming into the pool. Moments later and trout of various shapes and sizes starting leaping around the pool… hotly pursued by an otter! I got a glimpse of him as he stuck his head out of the water and looked at me, before vanishing in a stream of bubbles. I scanned the river upstream and down steam bit that was the last I saw of him. I could barely contain my excitement. What a thing to see. This was my first sighting of an otter in a river as all my previous encounters had been along the shores of sea lochs and coastline. After I had calmed down, I got a lift to the ‘Navidale House Hotel’ on the outskirts of Helmsdale.
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