Wednesday, 30 May 2012

Royal Deeside & Falls of Feugh

Royal Deeside & Falls of Feugh

This morning was cold & a bit wet as we left our motel to tour the area. A good morning as we were not checking out & so were able to have a little sleep in. We love two night stays they have let us catch up with washing & sleep.

We drove along Royal Deeside an area that came into favor with Queen Victoria during the 19th century. The Scottish highland games are held there each year & the Queen attends. We drove past Balmoral Castle but it is pretty well hidden by the trees. We were also on the wrong side of the bus so no photo of a castle peeking out of the trees today.

Where the Highland Games are played.

Another beautiful Celtic Cross


I cannot remember the name of this castle that the local town have adopted

Crathie Church
The first stop was the lovely Crathie Church near the village of Banchory the church that the royal family attend when staying at Balmoral Castle. No photo's in this church only of the outside.

The little local town restored railway shops

My new friends

We stopped for lunch in the light rain & found a lovely cafe but best of all on return to the bus I found the above Springer Spaniels sitting on the park bench with not a sole in site. I am missing Gemma-Rose & Lily a lot so have taken to accosting any dog or cat that stands still long enough & could not resist these cute little angels. Well despite the fact that they were in training & not supposed to talk to anyone it seems they could not resist my attention either. They were wet & a bit sad looking in the rain but loved a pat & chat. The owner quickly appeared behind me & told me they were not meant to respond to anything & had been told to sit & stay as they were in training. One of them the mum was a fully fledged search & rescue dog & had worked in the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquake & the pups were being trained for the same kind if work. They use them in disasters & more often however in the highlands to find hikers.

Tea shop at Falls of Feugh

After lunch we stoped at the Falls of Feugh tea shop to sample afternoon tea of delicious freshly baked scones & to listen to a local storytellers tale about local fishing for salmon & the salmons mating habits in the river outside the cafe. We are both amazed to find that these fishermen pay Pounds-2,000 to fish for salmon for one day.If they catch a salmon they do not get to keep it or eat it but only fish for the sport. I am still dumbfounded at the money they pay for this sport especially when it involves such personal discomfort in the freezing water. 


Falls of Feugh River

Lovely garden at the tea shop Falls of Feugh

The Falls of Feugh

Ardoe House in the rain
We returned in the rain to our Hotel Ardoe House & were happy to see the nice warm rooms & welcoming atmosphere.
A lovely warm foyer at Ardoe House

SCOTLAND - Culloden Battlefield & Glenfiddich Distillery

SCOTLAND - Culloden Battlefield & Glenfiddich Distillery

On the 16th April 1746 British government forces defeated the army of Prince Charles Edward Stuart in just one hour & ended hopes of restoring the Jacobite Stuarts to the British throne.

9th of May – MEMORIES OF CULLODEN
Sometimes things affect you in a way you did not expect.  Although I have never been a history buff I have always had an interest in historical things of an applicable nature, i.e. generally things that I can personally relate to.  Our tour guide Pauline had mentioned some interesting things on our approach to the Culloden moor battlefield i.e. that some Scots refuse to visit this area even to this day due to the horrible things that happened here as even though it was centuries ago (1746) it was the turning point in the Scottish Jacobite rebellion.  Such is the pride, beliefs and long memory of the Celtic people which is evident in both the Scottish and Irish culture even up to the present day.

I had never been to a battlefield before and was unsure what to expect.  There is a modern visitor centre which gives you all the history of this period and is quite explicit in the detail of the battle which occurred there.  In the foyer I talked to the tour guides and managed to get to hold one of the long muskets used by the British at the battle.  It was an old black powder weapon which was over a meter long and was surprisingly much lighter than it looked.  The shields used by the opposing side were very primitive in comparison made up of leather which would not stop even a lead shot. 

I hired an audio guide and proceeded out into the battlefield which was laid out much as it would have been on the actual day.  Upon reaching the main area where the focus of the battle had been played out, It was evident the Jacobite charge was doomed in the early stages. The land was boggy and wet underfoot and when the main charge was made between 700 to 800 people were slaughtered in a hail of gunfire within an estimated period of between the first 10 to 15 minutes of battle. 

It was quite a moving experience to see the little stone monuments which noted the different clans that were wiped out here.  Some had fresh flowers placed here (a lot of overseas visitors tracing their relatives visit here every day which was notable even on our coach). 

I circumnavigated the entire battlefield and arrived back at the reception area.  It was a very cold day and I was fully rugged up with heavy overcoat, scarf and gloves which added to the gloom of the place. 

I (Sharon) left Johnny to the battlefield as when I stepped onto it the feeling of sadness was overwhelming so after visiting the outside of the field hospital I decided that the long haired highland cattle where more appealing.I wandered over through the car park & stood a reasonable distance from the farmer loading the mother cow into his trailer & tried to compose myself after the dread that had come over me on the battlefield. Fortunately, not what I thought at the time as I was closer to tears than conversation, the farmer came to talk to me in his thick Scottish accent. We chatted about his plans for the mother, his breeding program & the two lovely calves Nancy & Alice.

Unusual to feel so affected by this moment in history which had absolutely no relation to us in any way, we both felt a little depressed here and were glad to get away from this place.  As our coach pulled out of the carpark we did not look back.  

Strangely all our photos of this place (and there were over a hundred) mistakenly got deleted off our camera as both Sharon and I believed them to be downloaded when in fact they were not.  So we have no memory of this visit other than what we can remember and put into print here.

Our coach continued to the Speyside Cooperage to see how the scotch barrels were made then onto the Glenfiddich distillery to sample some scotch. We both felt like we needed one but had to wait until we had finished the tour. The tour was informative & entertaining as we learned how our much loved scotch was made. At the end we were rewarded with taste testing of 8, 12 & 18 year old scotch. Three wee drams - very nice indeed!

The coach was full of dozer’s that afternoon as we headed to our accommodation. 




SCOTLAND - Ballachulish to Nairn visiting Isle of Skye & Clan Donald centre


SCOTLAND - Ballachulish to Nairn via Isle of Skye & Clan Donald Centre


Reflections of Scotland
"What an amazing view' this was the words I uttered first thing on opening the window. We Had spent the night in Isles of Glencoe hotel & our room looked out over this lovely water.

Mist on the highlands

Get to work you are way behind
Internet has been rather sketchy or I have been plain just "too tired"' I am trying to catch up here but I have to say the pillows called after dinner notice that view it really is the best one we have had & made up for all the rooms short comings. Johnny ran me a bath there was no cold water so I had to wait 2 hours to get in & then I emerged red as a lobster. In the morning he was unable to shower as it was scalding hot, way too hot for an irishman.

Scenic drive along the Loch

Harry Potter bridge
Look hard - I took this photo at the monument for all the Harry Potter fans but it did not turn out too well. This is the bridge that you see the hog-wart's train travel over in the harry Potter movie.

Glenfinnan  Monument
Heading north via Fort William we took the ‘Road to the Isles “through some of Scotland’s loveliest scenery, stopping for photos at the Glenfinnan monument.  



The Misty Isle with it's narrow road
At Mallaig we crossed by ferry to the Isle of Skye sometimes called the misty isle. The ferry ride was uneventful, the scenery was beautiful, as usual the photo's do not do it justice. This ferry was huge much bigger than any I have ever been on & it was entertainment watching the cars & buses getting on & off. The mouth of the boat when it opened to take the cars reminded me of a giant baleen whale.

Ferry

Whale mouth opening

It is cold outside

I am frozen 

Look at that view

Dodgem cars

We visited the Clan Donald centre (Lord of the isles) and the most powerful clan of the Isle of Skye. Another beautiful garden much to my excitement but I think Johnny is getting sick of them & me naming all the plants. I am beginning to realise how much I miss my Sydney garden & my gardening girlfriend (hello Helen).  


Clan Donald castle ruins

Gorgeous garden ivy on the ruins

A man's car even if it's bright yellow

Johnny feeling left out in the garden insisted on a photo with this land rover anyone would think it was a rare car. Just a touch of masculinity amongst the flowers probably.

Stone walls everywhere look how big that pink Rhododendron is

Muscats a man size gun

Driving on through part of the island we returned to the mainland by bridge stopping for photos at the picturesque Eilean Donan Castle. Apparently one of the most photographed castles in all of Scotland.

Eilean Donan Castle


Snow on the mountain tops left from the week before


Nessie likes being hand fed

We then drove along the beautiful shores of Loch Ness famous for the monster. Johnny found Nessie & she was happy to be hand fed. I kept my distance as professional photographer. Isn't she lovely & so tame needless to say she disappeared soon after this photo.


Can I go & search for Nessie again she has disappeared


We paused to view the huge ruins of Urquahart Castle before continuing on to the Newton hotel in the centre of Inverness.

Urquahart castle ruins

Tonight we had Scottish entertainment with bag pipes, piano accordion & highland dancers after dinner. Highland dancing is different to Irish dancing but just as entertaining especially when they dance at great speed around swords.


Highland dancers 


Isn't he lovely

Friday, 25 May 2012

SCOTLAND - Glasgow to Ballachulish via Loch Lomond

SCOTLAND - Glasgow to Ballachulish via Loch Lomond

Departing Glasgow we head north through green green scenery following the banks of Loch Lomond for miles & miles. There are glimpses of Ben Lomond through the mist & many other high mountain peaks. 

Tarbet waiting for the boat

We huddled in the little tug like boat as it chugged along Loch Lomond.  A few brave people ventured out onto the roof to view the loch in all its glory however Sharon and I stayed below to bask in the available warmth of the internal area.  A scratchy Scottish voice boomed over the microphone, too badly broken up to understand


The little boats that tour you around the Loch

All aboard

Arriving at Tarbet we take a boat trip to enjoy the Loch. The views are amazing, the water is quiet & the only ripple is from our boat & the birds.

Beautiful high mountain peaks. Is that Ben Lomond?

Honeymoon Island - get married they put you out here for a week & if you do not swim off the marriage will last
The boat trip was a treat but the microphone was in need of repair.

We could see a hydro power plant far across the freezing cold waters in the distance.  This would be a fantastic cruise in better weather however the cold conditions just added to the feeling of adventure


One of the many mountain vistas showing an old road from "Rest & Be Thankful" lookout
The mist hanging low across the valley gives an eiree landscape backdrop - you can almost imagine the relief of a warm overnight stop somewhere in all this wild country in days gone past

Inveraray castle of the Campbell family.

Glass house entry over dry moat
No chance of drowning in this moat it's a dry one but them there walls are high.
My favourite place the garden

Checking on the gardeners work
We walked around this beautiful garden setting just in front of this magnificent castle

King of the Castle
Johnny being a jackass
Do I really have to stand in front of this Rhododendron
another bloody garden
More steps

Positively ? In the gift shop.
Lunch was at the tiny hamlet Oban right on the coast planned by the Campbell Family. It rained just as we sat ourselves on the shore seats to eat lunch. The locals must have wondered how poor these two were, snuggled under the one umbrella eating a sandwich & drinking coffee? Could they not afford the extra to eat in the warm beside the fireplace or where they just plain nuts.
Mmmm scotch - now that will warm me up!

Aargh kiss me now!

Last stop before the motel in the pouring rain for a lovely waterfall