Well, I'm stranded. This morning, despite the fact that it was still raining, I headed north to visit another couple from the church who live an hour away in Aberfeldy. It's right along the River Tay. I went up the highway, knowing the trouble that back roads were having with all the rain. (Have I mentioned that my little Peugeot can go from zero to sixty in about six weeks? Slowest bugger, I've ever seen.) There was one place on the highway even where the water was quite deep and a less fortunate car was turned on its roof and off in a ditch.

I had about ten miles of back road to get here, even so...and it was quite an adventure. There were five or six places where I had to drive through water that was quite deep. I was pretty much a wreck by the time I arrived. And then it started to really rain.

I'll have some pictures to post when I can (I have my camera with me, but not the thing to connect to the computer), but suffice it to say that when we were finished with lunch, I could not leave the town. All roads out are closed for one reason or another...bridges closed, mud slides. People around town are saying they have never seen the rivers and "burns" (creeks) so high in their entire lifetimes. The field where they are supposed to have the Highland Games on the weekend is underwater. The Tay has overflown its banks. The local campground (caravan park) is underwater...many did not get out in time. I have pictures of the tents pitched in a lake.

The good thing is that the home where I happen to be stranded is also a B&B. They are very close to town, so a quick trip to the drugstore and clothing shop for some basic necessities has worked out, and I will spend the night. I hope they like me. They are stuck with me for a bit.

Anyway, that's where I am. The rain is a little lighter now...they say this is the remnant of Hurricane Alex. We'll keep an anxious eye on the river...but if the dam up the river goes, I'll be testing my white water rafting skills. That's the latest!
- posted by Anne Robertson @ 3:30 PM