In the moonlight with an owl.

We had a BBQ last night. Farmer cooked up some Treshnish fare, and we sat outside eating in the dark with the moon rising from the east and the spectral colours of the dying light falling over the horizon.  It was a wonderful end to our working day.  You have to take the chances while you can. As we sat outside I could see through the silhouettes of the trees an owl flying round looking as if it were about to settle to roost.  Clearly we were putting it off, sitting round the BBQ with candles burning and dogs rushing about.

At bedtime the moon was still so strong and the air so clear, I went a wander with my camera.

The air was so still, and silent. Not a breath of wind. I could hear the waves gently caressing the shoreline below. I could hear stags roaring on the hills behind Ensay, and up here at Treshnish. Apart from that it is so very quiet.

One of the things I really enjoy about the moonlight is the way it intensifies the colours of objects and I wanted to see if I could capture some of the autumn colours so I stood in the veg garden thinking about what I could do, I was in the shadow of the lamb shelter which borders the garden.  Not moving, just listening and feeling that quietness.   The moon was so bright I did not need a torch.  And all the lights in the cottages were off. It was just me out there.  Apart from the heron which shrieked down near the sea, it was just so quiet.  

And then hovering over my head, literally only a few feet away, was an owl.  Hovering.  Looking at me. Silently.  I could not hear the air pass its wings, it was totally silent, but it was also so close.  Looking at me.  I was frozen to the spot.  Part of me longed to grab the camera and catch it on 'film', but the rest of me knew I would frighten it away.  So I stood still and inwardly said hello.  It stayed with me for what felt like a few minutes, and then it slowly and silently flew away.   A totally magical encounter, which moved me almost to tears.

We think it is probably a barn owl that we hear screeching in the night. This owl was very white as it hovered so close.  The screeching we have been hearing recently and the close encounter last night makes me inclined to think it was a barn owl.  It was too light for a tawny owl and didn't fly like a short eared owl.

The Oban Cattle Sale.

The Oban Cattle Sale today. I decided to leave the mountain of paperwork in the office and go with Farmer to market as we haven't taken calves to this sale for quite a long time.

The drive to the 10.55 ferry was beautiful.  As we were in good time, we stopped a few times along the way.

We were quite surprised to see cyclists appearing through the mist!

In Craignure we had time for coffee and bacon rolls for breakfast from the Award Winning Arlene's Coffee Shop.  We sat on the sea wall in the sun as the ferry came in.  There were quite a few farmers with livestock trailers in the queue.  The crossing was perfect.

We arrived at the mart and queued up with the rest of them to unload the calves.  We were selling 7 in total.  There were about 900 calves put through the market today, so the car park was overflowing and the pens were all full!  Some calves were allotted passageways as the pens were all taken.

I did wonder if I should try and explain exactly what happens when you sell calves through  the market.  It is a huge amount of work from the market staff to make sure each animal is legally recorded correctly and goes to the right place at the end of the day, with the right paperwork.

Legally the calf needs 2 ear tags.  The ear tags need to match their passport.  Legally they must travel with their passport.

When you arrive at the mart, you are allotted your pens.  Then someone comes along with a pile of stickers, each with a different number and one is glued on each calf's back.  This is easier to read than the ear tags and will identify the animal in the ring, and when it gets to where it is going.  

A record is taken off the ear tag/passport/item numbers so that they all match the identity of the one single animal.  (If the cattle sale has 900 beasts for sale this will be repeated 900 times by the market staff).

From the pen, a note is made of the label number as the animal goes into the ring.  The passports are taken to the office.

The 'lot' whether it is one single animal or several will be weighed before it goes into the pen.  The numbers are written down and given to the auctioneer's assistant.

The calf/calves go in to the ring.  The auctioneer does his bit, and the sale is agreed.

The amount is recorded.  The weight of the animals is recorded.  The buyer is recorded and when the animal leaves the ring it is taken to the buyers pens.  The seller is handed a ticket which records the type of animal sold (i.e. bullocks or heifers), the number of animals in each lot, the buyer, the weight, the price and the pen number it is moved to after the sale.

During each item/lot sale, the auctioneer is not only calling the bids and looking round the ring to see if there are further offers, but he is watching how the animals in the ring are behaving, whether they are acting distressed or being aggressive, and mid bidding he will suddenly say 'Open Up' - open up the gate out of the ring and let that animal go, before anything happens.

There were one or two animals that I watched being sold, were that happened - usually when they were being sold singly.

With green paper ticket in hand, the seller can go to the office and collect their cheque.  This was a little complicated for us today as the printer wasn't working when we went in, so ours is being posted to us!  They ask whether you want some cash from the sale, and the amount you get is recorded in a wee book on the desk, and deducted from your cheque.

We were very pleased with our prices today, and with the weights of the calves we sold.  We cannot weigh them at home so it is only when they go through the ring that you can see how well they have grown.  The heifer Farmer was most pleased with, in the photograph above, weighed 406kg, and she was only born in February.  That is quite a size.   And she fetched a really good price!

What with the Mull Rally traffic and the market traffic we were unable to get onto the 4pm ferry, so had to wait until the 6pm ferry.  This gave us a chance to have a wander in the sun. There were lots of fishing boats tied up, several from Barra (CB - Castlebay) and one registered RX, which I had to look up when we got home - RX is Rye in Sussex. (a long way from home then).

As we were waiting for the ferry back to Mull, the Lismore ferry was loading up and on board were the 3 bullocks we sold  on their way to a new home on the Isle of Lismore.

Driving from Craignure to Salen, the sunset was beautiful but it must have been spectacular at Treshnish!

The Mull Cattle Sale

The Mull Cattle Sale.  The last time we went to this sale we were really disappointed, gutted in fact, by the poor price we got for our calves. We vowed we wouldn't go again.  But then you forget don't you? It was a few years ago now - 2010 in fact, and yes we did forget.  

So this morning we went again.  A little apprehensively, but knowing it was going to save us a half trailer load to Oban, and a lot of time.

There were not as many calves as we have seen at this sale before, and that made us worry a bit.  Before it all started though, I overheard someone say there were a few buyers present so that was good.  In previous years the auctioneers and buyers used to go round different farms across the island where  larger numbers of calves were sold straight off the farm.   

Ours didn't come in a lorry but everyone mucked in to help unload those which did.  

And the sale only started once everyone had arrived and had been penned. 

The last loads are unloaded so the sale can begin.

In the old days, the island sales might have gone on for 2 days, farm to farm and at Craignure.  This year, the calves were all sold here at Craignure. Today the bidding lasted about an hour.  

The first lot in the sale. Note the paint pots and sticks.

Farmer in the ring. 

The 'painter' marks each beast with a dob of professional gloss to indicate which dealer it is going to. 

In the absence of the gavel, the hand on notebook seals the bid. And the sale concludes.  

Quite a few of these parked up by the ferry.

Thankfully, Farmer was pleased with the sale this time. He sold 2 bullocks and 2 heifers.  He will sell another 8 calves on Tuesday at the cattle sale in Oban.  The ferries are all booked up so it promises to be a busier one. 

Occasionally inclement weather has resulted in the cattle buyers having to overnight on Mull because the ferries were cancelled, but the sea was millpond calm on this side this morning, so no chance of cancelled ferries today. 

Busy days

We had our Visit Scotland inspection today, and it was nice to walk round with the inspector and see all the improvements to the cottages through their eyes.  Taking stock. 

Walking the dogs. Barely a breath of wind. Down on the shore looking out on to Caliach Point. 

Selecting ewe lambs for a private sale. Walter is hiding behind the gate watching every move.  The lambs huddle up into that corner. When they realise he is there, they scatter very quickly.

Farmer takes stock. The great thing about the private sale is that the lambs do not have to go through a market, so less travel and less stress for them, and we know what price we are getting before they leave the farm. 

The starlings last night were enjoying the still night airs on the transformer pole near the Studio.  I managed to sneak a photograph or two from between Studio and Shieling.  There were hundreds of them.  More than we have ever seen here.

The autumn colours are looking lovely, from Calgary looking at Treshnish Point, and as the oystercatchers take flight at the water's edge this morning.

The sun is now not quite over the hill behind Calgary as I start to walk the dog on the beach, but by the time we have finished it has fully risen.

Back home and the sun is casting wonderful light on the garden.

Another sale tomorrow, this time Oban.  The last load of lambs and one or two older ewes to go. Sorting and tagging and getting ready.

The livestock trailer is all ready to load lambs first thing in the morning tomorrow. 

 Jan. In the place she is happiest to be. At his side.

Having seen that huge flock of starlings last night, I went to see if I could get more photographs of them tonight, but they weren't as settled and flew off as soon as I got near.

We have some spaces in the cottages in October, with special offers on!