A small plug might be in order for a $50 bit of software called ThumbsPlus.   If like us you are getting buried in digital pictures you need some help.   A great feature is batch processing that lets you select a load of pics then reorientate them if they are sideways and resize them so you don't have to send megabytes of data all over the place.    We decided to put it up still unfinished on Christmas Eve or it might never see the light of day.

As in previous years we seem to have done not so much at the start.   We had a little snow in February as this picture shows.   In March we visited Wales again.     As we write this, snow is back in the news but thankfully not in the Midlands yet.

Having put off the paving project for as long as possible, we made a start at the front in April.   For years we'd had a little nondescript piece of grass in front of side door, which everyone walked over and into the house.   The paving had moved over the years and weeds were growing through the gaps.    Here we see the first few new slabs being laid.   This part of the project was completed when a few plants were added on 23 May, before our visitors arrived in June.

Old friends Ron and Ana invited us to dine with them and their daughter Indrani at Lincoln's Inn.   This was part of the training that Indrani was undertaking on the way to becoming a barrister.    We could not resist having a picture taken under such an important figure as Thomas Moore.

In June, Kate's sister Janet arrived with her friend Norma to stay with us and do a bit of touring.    We left the glorious weather of the midlands for less certain conditions north.    Our arrival at Windermere saw the weather holding and our first two days were very pleasant.      We lunched at the restaurant on the shore of the lake and walked through Fell Foot Park.  We drove north along the side of the lake round to Hawkshead, before returning over the vehicle ferry across the lake.   Finally, we headed through Kendal for our first night stop.

We stayed at the motel at the Killington Lake Services on the M6, which is much more agreeable than its location suggests.   Being on a slope facing the lake, the motorway is unseen and unheard from the rooms and the grounds.   Having done most of Windermere the previous day, we decided to head east, which is something we had not done before, and found the unspoilt village of Dent and its old railway station, from where we made the journey by train to Settle for lunch.  

At Settle we inspected the signal box at the old station, and were treated to a demonstration of the levers in the box and Janet had a go at operating the signal outside the box.   Before leaving Dent, we had bought some bread, cheese and cakes and we ate these in the square at Settle, which seemed to be what most tourists did.   We had a brief wander around and walked only as far as the sign for Giggleswick, before returning to the square for a cup of tea at the Naked Man Restaurant.  After our return to Dent, we continued through the frighteningly narrow lanes past Garsdale Head before getting back onto a sensible road to visit Hawes, before heading back to Killington.  On the way, we stopped at Sedbergh, where we dined at the Bull Hotel.

We left early for what we expected to be a hard drive to Edinburgh.  As forecast, the weather turned against us and our visit to Hadrian's Wall en route was a wet and miserable affair.    It was still wet and miserable when we stopped briefly at The Old Blacksmith's Shop at Gretna Green for lunch.   Anxious to press on, David ushered the visitors back to the car too soon.   Gretna has one of the biggest tourist shopping opportunities (he says 'tat arcades') to be found in these islands.    A longer stop was promised for the return journey.

We had a brief period of dry weather on arriving in Edinburgh and were able to look down on the city from the Observatory.   To our great disappointment, Edinburgh has gone the way of all tourist towns and made a drive-through visit all but impossible, with Princes Street closed to traffic, nowhere sensible to park, endless one-way systems and plenty of roadworks.   For a town we once thought we knew, we made an incredible mess of getting out and onto the road to Stirling, where we stayed the night.  The next day we took a bus tour of Stirling, taking in the Wallace Monument and the Castle.    Later, we drove to the Pineapple overlooking the Forth River, then back through Stirling and to Drummond Castle and Gardens.

We left Stirling early and drove to our next and final overnight stop at Fort William detouring to take in Glen Coe.   In the afternoon in mixed weather we followed the Caledonian Canal to Fort Augustus and Loch Ness.   We then planned to go just a little way up east side of the lake, but finished up in the outskirts of Inverness and then had the long tedious journey back down the west side  to our hotel.

Once again, we set off early and took the road from Fort William to Mallaig, where we loaded the car onto the ferry to Skye.   Once there, we made the leisurely drive to Dunvegan Castle.  This time we bought a guidebook and explored the castle and its gardens.   The picture here does not convey the extent of the beautiful gardens and historic interior - 'the home of the Chiefs of Clan MacLeod for nearly 800 years'.   We returned to the mainland by way of the bridge at the Kyle of Lochalsh and drove the scenic route back to Fort William in a misty twilight, stopping on the way to admire Loch Garry from the top of a hill.   Our return home on 16 June was memorable only for the continuous rain and low cloud that accompanied us all the way.

With the return of some fine weather, we fulfilled a promise to visit the MG Club Shop to buy accessories for Janet's son (an MG enthusiast).   A visit to Cambridge was also planned, so we parked the car and took a bus tour of the city.  A tour guide pointed out the places of interest and explained some of the history of the university.  The punts on the river looked very inviting, but we continued our tour on foot.

In the sunshine, King's College Chapel stands apart from the crowded streets of the city.