The Cryptid Files Read Online Free

get her. He tried to dissuade her from buying four maps. But Vanessa was adamant. She needed a general road-map of the Highland area, a detailed map of the Isle of Skye for her father, a map showing the different lochs along the Great Glen, including Loch Ness, and the best one of all – a detailed map of Loch Ness itself. It showed the gradients of the loch sides, the water depth and also lots of detail about the canal locks at the north and south ends.
    The rental car was a Ford Ka, with an engine that sounded like a small tractor.
    â€˜Whoever wants to navigate sits in the front. I’ll have to put my seat right back, so the back seat is going to be pretty tight, sorry.’
    Their father fiddled with his seat position. His long legs would sometimes go into cramp if he sat too close. They should have rented something bigger, Vanessa thought. Her father looked ridiculous in the front seat, oversized and awkward.
    â€˜I’ll navigate,’ Ronan said eagerly.
    â€˜I’ll sit behind you, Dad,’ Vanessa offered helpfully.
    In truth, Vanessa just wanted time to study the Loch Ness map quietly. Normally, Vanessa or her mother would have done the map reading. Vanessa had a great sense of direction and had the distinct advantage of being the only person in the family able to refold maps properly. Ronan, on the other hand, was a disaster. He would open the map out fully so that it covered the gear stick and he almost always ended up tearing the map.
    Luke had his iPod headphones firmly fixed in his ears, lost to all the negotiations. Without a word, he opened the back door and slid in beside Vanessa. Vanessa considered her older brother. He had got tall recently. He was sprawled across the back seat, his gangly legs and bony elbows taking up most of the space.
    â€˜Move over, freak.’
    â€˜Keep it nice, Vanessa,’ her father said mildly, watching them in the rear-view mirror.
    Immediately outside the airport, they found the road south to Inverness. It was a beautiful afternoon. Sunlight filtered through the tall silver birch forests and the sky was a true blue. It was pure magic for Vanessa and her eyes kept wandering from the map to the scenery.
    â€˜Look. Just up ahead, you see that funny turret and the roof of the castle? That’s Castle Stuart,’ Ronan said proudly. ‘It’s on my map.’
    They slowed as they passed the gates and read the plaque: ‘Accommodation only by prior arrangement’.
    â€˜Imagine staying there. Maybe sometime we could do that, Dad?’
    â€˜Perhaps on another trip,’ Alan replied non-committally.
    â€˜Where are we staying in Fort Augustus? Is it a guest house?’ Vanessa asked.
    â€˜No, a cottage. It’s right on the banks of Loch Ness. Ronan, is there a right-hand turn coming up shortly?’
    Vanessa went back to her maps.
    It wasn’t long before she got her first glimpse of Loch Ness. It was grander and more impressive than any picture she had seen. Backed by huge pine-covered mountains and lined at the water’s edge by ancient silver birches, everything glistened in the sunlight.
    â€˜Turn left, turn left,’ she shouted suddenly from the back seat. She had spotted a sign half covered with a shrub for the Dochgarrach Locks.
    â€˜What is it Vanessa?’
    â€˜Lock Dochgarrach, can we see it please? It’s the first of the lock-gates on the northern end of Loch Ness.’
    â€˜You mean L-O-C-H,’ Ronan corrected her.
    â€˜No, I mean L-O-C-K,’ said Vanessa. ‘A loch is a lake. But this is a lock, like we have on the canal at home. Lock-gates, you can call them. Lock Dochgarrach is a lock, Loch Ness is a loch.’
    â€˜Boring, boring,’ droned Ronan, ‘I want to get to the cottage. I’m starving.’
    â€˜There will be lots of time to explore the locks, I promise. We have three days here.’ Her father sounded firm, his ‘no room for argument’ sort of