It’s always a good idea to have an ‘easy’ stage after a hard one, so a modest 50 k from our over-night stop in Turriff, north to the coast at Banff and then west towards the Moray Firth, was ideal. A late start was inevitable as Neil attempted to re-book rail tickets from Forres, to beat the strike, Bry and I deciding to play it long and continue as planned – with a buffer of a few days at the end of the trip – when hopefully the trains can get back to normal. Lunch was at the delightful fishing village of Port Soy – well-known to birders for the wintering flock of White-billed Diver. The NCN 1 then heads inland, in a large loop, to rejoin the coast at Cullen Bay. The ride was demanding – more rolling Aberdeenshire hills to contend with and we did get caught in our first heavy downpour – but we arrived in late afternoon sunshine to enjoy a beer in the hotel garden before supper and bed. Only new bird for the trip was a much anticipated Stonechat. Today is a different story…