First, a big decision. The eyelets on my existing boots were made of fabric - one had snapped and another was fraying badly. I concluded that I couldn’t risk that one going as well, and reluctantly decided to wear my old leather boots which were in the supply box as backup. I was lucky this had happened when Martin was with me. I set out from Brora Harbour at 10:30, a little anxious as the boots felt a bit stiff. Within 15 minutes, they had warmed and softened up, like old faithful slippers- no problem there then! Walking along the lower raised beach, the sea was flat calm and the birds were quiet. I spoke to an elderly gentleman who was walking back to his family in Brora. An electrical engineer by training, he’d gone into the police force and become a chief inspector. He loved it here - “you can hear yourself think” was his comment. I continued on to find another gentleman resting with his elderly dog on a bench. Asking me where I was headed, he urged me to go to the brilliant River ...