Xmas Eve walk on Dave's 68th

Just four us managed to tear ourselves away from family commitments yesterday for a lovely snowy walk from Banchory to Potarch. It's a major reduction in numbers for the traditional celebration of Dave's birthday, but hardly unexpected in this crazy year. Our walk took us through the gate and along the riverside where we posed for the first team photo:

Taking the traditional cycle route, we arrived at the familiar viewpoint where hundreds of photos have been taken over the years:

It didn't take us long to get to Dave's where we were greeted with this cosy sight in their carport:

What a greeting - and what an effort put in by the Williamsons. The firepit was particularly welcoming, but so was the barbecue, the minikegs of beer and the drams, not to mention the Xmas decorations on the back wall. We settled down to bowls of hot soup and bread whilst son Alex fired up the BBQ and soon we were devouring venison burgers and sausages - with an obligatory piece of salad, of course. By now, Ian, who had his "French" family staying with him, had managed to escape for a short while and help us celebrate Dave's birthday Balvenie:

We finished off Dave's minikeg of Burnside's Hop Scotch and made a decent dent in the other Thirst Aid one and the bottle of Balvenie, but, having eaten, it was time to gather round the firepit:

Here's the stats for the walk to Dave's:

A magnificent, never to be forgotten afternoon - more than ample compensation for the absence this year of football/walking football.