The Good, the Bad, and the Growly
We took our time waking up that morning, and Mr Sun was already smiling high in the sky. After my morning patrol, we said goodbye to camp and trundled off in Betsy. Our first stop was Blackwaterfoot, which is usually very important because we always go there for three things: bread from the bakers, milk from the shop, and, most important of all, sausages from the butchers. But oh dear—no bakers, no butchers, only milk. I was most disappointed. Poppys loves sausage. Then back into Betsy we went, rolling down the road until she found a nice place to rest at Lagg. And do you know what Lagg has? A great beach. I was so excited to get there Mum and Dad gave me a row for the noise I was making.
To reach it, we had to plod through a forest and clamber over rocks. But it was worth every step. At last, my wee paws touched the sand—soft, smooth, and just perfect. Best of all, it was lovely firm sand, not the sort that blows into the eyes of a wee doggy like me.
This is the very bestis beach on the whole of Arran. Maybe even the biggest. It felt wide and peaceful and wonderfully quiet. For a little while, it seemed as if I had the whole beach to myself. Imagine that—an entire beach and not another doggy insight.
Halfway along, I found some bags sitting all by themselves on the beach. Very suspicious. I looked up at Dad, and he pointed out to sea. There were the bag owners, splashing about in the cold water! I could hardly believe my eyes. Swimming in that freezing sea? Couple of dafties, eh Dad?
Then I spotted something bobbing about in the sea. I froze. What was that? It looked mysterious. It looked suspicious. It looked, if you ask me, exactly like the Loch Lagg Monster. I gave a low growl to let it know I was watching. “Don’t worry, Dad, I’ll protect you.”
Soon the day grew warmer, and the cool water felt lovely on my paws. After all that patrolling and monster-watching, I began to feel quite hungry. It seemed to me that lunch would be an excellent idea.
We wandered back and settled in the garden at The Lagg Hotel. It was a very nice spot for lunch, and while we waited, I had a wee lie-down and kept one eye open, just in case anything interesting happened.
Then my nose started to twitch. Sniff, sniff sniff. I jumped down from my bench and up onto the other one. I spotted something marvellous on the table—a dentistick. I watched it very carefully indeed. Hope the food hurries up.
After lunch, with bits of cheese, ham, burger from Dad, and chicken from Mum, I felt stuffed. Then I noticed another dog in the garden and trotted over to say hello. But this dog was not friendly at all. In a flash, it snapped at me and gave me a fright. I yelped and hurried back to Dad as fast as I could. Dad chased the dog away, and Mum scooped me up for a cuddle. I was shaky and upset, and my poor wee nose was sore. It took me a while to feel settled again, though a little ice cream did help. After that, I knew exactly what I wanted. “Can we please go back to Betsy now?”
So Betsy carried us all the way to Seal Shore in Kildonan, and it felt very good to arrive somewhere peaceful and safe. After camp was set up, Mum and Dad took me down to the beach and, as a special treat, let me sniff to my heart’s content. That was much better. The world felt friendly again. I even made a new spaniel friend next door. And as for that growly place at Lagg—well, I do not think I shall be hurrying back there.
