I'm going to Scotland

July 7th 2014 

I first went to Scotland as a young teenager and stayed at Troon in Ayrshire then a few years later at a hotel in Pitlochry. At 19 and 20 I went to Glasgow twice on summer geology college trips but little did I realise at that point that I was saying goodbye to Scotland for forty years. Forty Years, my God, where does your life go. Very scary thought.

So as the pending referendum for Scottish independence approaches, fortune has presented an opportunity to return. We are meeting some friends from Canada and plan a tour of Loch Lomond, Loch Ness, Inverness and Edinburgh. I am setting up this blog now so that I can update it daily as the trip progresses. A sort of live interaction for anyone interested. 

Day one is Sunday July 27th 2014

Galloway Arms Hotel

We crossed the border just before 4pm, passing the large Saltaire poster by the roadside. We immediately turned off left for a 25 mile trip to Dumfries. We had the usual nightmare of finding the Glenaldor Hotel not through any misdirection, simply that not every road has a name board and you have make a few guesses. Evening was spent driving to the Galloway Arms Hotel in Crocketford for supper then a pilgrimage to the Robbie Burns mausoleum and Burns house. 

Day two is Monday July 28th

Well we made it up the M74 to Glasgow past all the signs for the Commonwealth

Cairndow Coaching Inn

Games and despite forebodings of traffic jams, survived to the Glasgow Airport unscathed. We parked and went into the arrivals area, checked that the flight was on time and settled in a coffee shop to wait. Checking emails the news came through that our friends flight was delayed from Toronto by severe weather and missed their connection in Iceland. So we travelled up to Cairndow alone, stopping at Luss by the side of Loch Lomond. Luss is portrayed as the prettiest village in this area but sadly overrun with tourists all wanting to see the prettiest village! Arriving at the Cairndow Coaching Inn around 3pm we had lunch and then spent a pleasant hour walking around the Arkinglas tree reservation. It lays claim to containing the tallest tree in Britain and there certainly was a mighty silver fir. But my favourite was the redwood grown from seeds brought from California over a century ago. We were only vaguely hungry in the evening so we shared Scampi and chips in the garden at the front of the lnn overlooking the loch. 

Day three is Tuesday July 29th 2014

Green Welly Shop

Today was the big drive day because we had to track back to the airport, pick up our friends and drive up into the highlands. Our first stop was a brief moment by Loch Lomond to take a photo then a bite to eat at The Green Welly Stop in Tindrum. From there we took the highland road through a dramatic mountain landscape and then down into the Loch Ness faultline. We arrived in Fort Augustus at 5pm and walked around the locks followed by supper at The Lock Pub. Finally settled at the Netherwood B&B with house martins nesting at the front door and red deer grazing in the field across the way. I am now drinking my friends Peter Lehmann Shiraz as I rest in our bedroom suite.

Day four is Wednesday July 30th 2014

Skye Bridge

Today was the first real day of exploration as we headed along a mountain road to Kyle of Lochalsh stopping at several mountain vistas on the way. The weather has deteriorated but not enough to stop activities. At Kyle we went over the new bridge to Skye and stopped at the tourist office in Kyleakin where a knowledgeable gentleman recommended Portree (literally the Port of the king or rex) so we headed off into central Skye. We stopped for a short mountain hike but only got about a kilometer as we were beaten back by midges. I saw a new butterfly, scotch argus, beautiful brown and orange spots but sadly hid in the grass and my camera was confused by the focal point. Note to self, I need a manual focus. On to Sligachan where we stopped in a bar that had 400 different whiskeys, Jeff was in his element but refrained until the return trip. We spent some time outside with a load of tourists all taking photos in the brief sunshine. We then moved on to Portree, a pretty town where we had supper at the Rosedale Hotel. Picked up wine, milk and haggis flavoured crisps at the Co-operative the headed back to Sligachan where Jeff got his fine rare scotch, Talisker Dark Storm and I had whiskey flavoured ice cream, delicious. The rest of the day was uneventful as we drove back to the Netherwood.

Day five is Thursday July 31st 2014

Scotch Argus

Deciding to take a break from the car we travelled just twenty miles to Fort William and the foot of Ben Nevis. We visited the information centre and got instructions for climbing Glen Nevis, a route that leads up a steep gorge to an open flat valley known as a hanging valley gentle in its upper course but steep in the lower here a passing glacier had truncated the river course. I found the Scotch Argus again and spent a happy time chasing several individuals whilst the others admired the scenery which was spectacular. We returned to Fort William and drove over to the ruin of Inverlochy castle, but just before we arrived, I noticed that the steam engine that pulls the Jacobite train was puling into shed for the night. To my delight, photos and videos were obtained. The castle itself was in pretty good shape and provided good photo opportunities. Finally a visit to the Newton Locks, that control the water supply into Loch Lochy, and a place to view Ben Nevis. Sadly the mountain weather did not cooperate so we headed home and went to supper at Fort Augustus.

Day six is Friday August 1st 2014

Urquhart Castle

After saying goodbye to the hosts of Netherwood we headed off for Inverness. The first stop was a field of highland cattle where we took photos and I actually fed one, its muzzle was so gentle as it lifted the feed. Then on to Urquhart Castle by Loch Ness and the spectacular Divach Falls near Drumnadrochit. Finally arriving at Inverness where we parked in a multistory and roamed the town including visits to the whiskey shop, Marks and Spencers and Boots. We then drove to Nairn where we had rented an apartment and went for a walk on the beach.

Day seven is Saturday August 2nd

Ivatt Mogul on Strathspey

Drove to the Bloomhill station on the Speyside Railway where we bought tickets to Aviemore on the steam train. We had an hour to kill so we went to the Heather Restaurant about a mile away and had clootie dumpling and coffee. Then back to the station and a great ride to Aviemore including a band playing on the station. Next stop was Cawdor Castle made famous in Macbeth where we toured the castle and gardens, on leaving I passed the Lady Cawdor who greeted me with a "Good Afternoon" and I replied hello. We smiled and went on our way. This brief encounter caused much excitement with my friends who had learned a lot about her yet, .because I had walked ahead, it was me who had the encounter! We then had a drink at the Cawdor Tavern before a whirlwind shop at Sainsbury's. 

Day eight is Sunday August 3rd

Whiskey Galore

For some reason today I am exceedingly tired. I put this down to seven days of continuous sightseeing and touring, normally days like these are once a week but my soles are just tingling. Anyway the day started off with a visit to the Benromach   Distillery where we took a tour with Jim Lowther, an employee of the distillery and an ex RAF electrician from Kinloss. It was very interesting although, fine single malt whiskey it be, it still was not the drink for me. On to Elgin to see the ruined cathedral and a pint at the droughty pub. On the way back we stopped at Forres to see the Celtic stone and the award winning gardens.

Day nine is Monday August 4th

Forth Rail Bridge

Happy Simcoe Day in Ontario Canada. The day was spent travelling 180 miles from Nairn to Edinburgh with one stop at The House of Bruar near Pitlochry and a second at the Forth Bridges at North Queensferry.   But another crisis approached when we arrived at Edinburgh Airport to discover Heather and Mathieu's plane was held up in Birmingham for four hours. We left the airport and spent an hour in a field watching trains go by and planes take off. At 8pm the plane arrived and we went to the Gurkha Indian restaurant in Musselburgh. Quite tiring but all worked out in the end.

Day ten is Tuesday August 5th

Fringe Festival

Took Scotrail from Musselburgh to Edinburgh and walked towards the Royal Mile where there was a throng of people enjoying the Fringe Festival. What it is, is a load of people acting or singing to promote either a show or a performance or a CD or simply for you to give them money. Some of the stuff was bizarre but some was really good. For me the best was a boy girl team playing violins whilst standing on a bollard. This can be seen on my Flickr and youtube accounts. After we walked through the city, visited Barclays and had tea in Marks and Spencers. Finally a second walk up the Royal Mile and supper at the Broad Street Bistro. My feet were absolutely dead at the end of the day.

Day eleven is the penultimate day August 6th

Feed the Birds

Tomorrow will be the last blog entry since the day after is simply the journey home. However I will add an addendum if anything of import happens. I am very much against updating blogs except for spelling or grammar. The thoughts should stand as they are written. So today was a journey through the lovely Southern Uplands of Scotland stopping at a delightful café called the Red Barn. The waitress had a very English accent yet had grown up locally. Being a Scot with an English accent made her uncertain where she belonged but put it down to an English mother and growing up close to the border. She is a medical student and will no doubt make a worthy contribution to society. On to the border and go in search of Hadrian's wall stopping at Brampton for directions and food in the co-op. Now all who know me know that I am not a pleb, but lets face it Hadrian's wall is ....a wall and while it is a great engineering feat from the days of antiquity, it still remains a wall and I just can't get excited about it. So the others went off and I looked after the car since we fortuitously had no change to pay the parking meter. On to Windermere and finished the day with supper at the Hylton restaurant and a walk by the lake to watch the birds being fed.

Helvelyn and Red Tarn

Day twelve is the last day August 7th

OK the last day and lets wind down and take it easy. NOT! No let's completely knacker ourselves and climb Helvellyn, the third highest peak in England. To be fair it was beautiful, with hillsides of fern, green slopes, panoramic views and lakes especially the Red Tarn. I did fine on the way up, just got very tired but the views were worth it. But the walk down, I fell twice when I went on to the grass off the rocks. I hurt my knee both times so it was just plain dumb. I hobbled to the car and we went to the Travellers Rest and had a great meal including sticky toffee pudding with custard.

Addendum

Brief Encounter

The journey home through England is not really part of the Scottish trip but we did stop briefly at the Carnforth Station, interesting because it is where David Lean filmed 'Brief Encounter'. We have a scone and tea in the actual cafe in the movie and the proprietor was very knowledgeable and forthcoming about all things related to the movie. After that, it was a beeline for home