Heading south, with an interlude for social interaction...

It was still pretty miserable in Thurso, but I had seen as much as I was ever likely to, and so I was out on the lunchtime train. The Flow Country was still pretty majestic, even if it wasn't the sort of place you'd fancy being caught out in. And so, as I headed south, I passed the time glancing out of the window, as you do, drinking tea as supplied by the actually not bad trolley service.

I had just passed through Dingwall though, when I checked my Twitter feed to discover that one Caron Lindsay was leafleting in Munlochy. "Where on Earth is Munlochy?", I wondered, so I looked at the map function, only to discover that it really wasn't that far away.

And so, I called her, if only to see how she was getting on, and found myself invited to have dinner with the Lindsay family, at their rented holiday cottage on the Black Isle. Naturally, two arch political observers had much to talk about, as we put the world to rights or, at least, the Party, and it was nice to meet Bob, who I've heard a lot about but had never met.

I should also note that I got to meet Hazel, who has become quasi-legendary in dog owning Liberal Democrat circles. Offering her the gravy from my plate appeared to go down well, so I guess that I'd be a welcome visitor in future.

All in all, a very pleasant evening. But tomorrow would see the most complex part of my journey...