After checking all the horses and ponies, OH and I went for a walk on Sandness beach.

We had it all to ourselves.  Not a soul to be seen.

Except, of course, there were the seals watching us and following our every move from the safety of the sea.

OH and I wandered from one end of the beach to the other collecting small pebbles for my mother’s bonsai tree collection.

I had been tasked with this job when I went south to stay with my mother.  She said the pebbles keep the roots down and in place so, on her behalf, we trudged about looking for suitable stones.

If there is one thing we have an abundance of here in Shetland it is pretty beach pebbles.

Of course, I had my camera with me but this time we did not have BeAnne who refused, when asked, to come on our walk.

Her loss.  The beach was, as usual, lovely.

So we enjoyed our dogless walk.

We picked up, discarded and collected a good selection of shingle.

There weren’t many birds about.  The odd sandpiper ran about.

It was a good walk, even without Her Maj.  Of course when we got home she was hysterical with happiness at our return as we had obviously heartlessly abandoned her.