On the strand

Day 35 was another gorgeous sunny day. As we set out with Kate along the shore of the Solway Firth, the curlews and lapwings were crying, and the vast space of the firth opened up in front of us, with Skiddaw and the other fells in the background. The tide was out, and we were able to do most of the walk to Annan either along the strand or among rich grass and wildflowers close to it. We then did a few extra miles up the River Annan to give ourselves a head start on our next walking day (Wednesday).

What history this place has. King Edward I didn’t make it across the Solway, but an English force was defeated at a battle here in 1448; Peter Scott the naturalist and artist stayed in the house that’s now Kate’s in 1929, and in 1792 the poet Robert Burns, who had a day (or possibly night) job as an exciseman, foiled a party of smugglers close to this very spot. For Track of the Day, I’m indebted to Kate for the suggestion of “Am Strande” (on the strand) by Clara Schumann; the words are a translation of a poem by Burns. Kate has performed the fearsome piano part many times, but she’s never recorded the song so I have to settle for a wonderful performance by Anne Sofie von Otter and Hélène Grimaud.