So after walking around the coast, through the fields and pastures, in the forests and along the river, the only left was to hike up into the mountains. Cairngorm is a ski resort near where we were staying. It has an option to ride a train to the top, but it you ride up you have to ride down. If you walk up, you can ride the train down (thank god!). So we decided to do that.
Amazing experience really. The views were lovely, and we went through about 4 different climate zones on the way up. Darkstar and Elijah thoughts it was great, and Elijah must have climbed the whole thing 3 times :)
There were 2 paths to the top. Our original plan was to take the easy one, but we met a ranger at the bottom who recommended the steeper one. He said it's only steep for a bit, then levels right off. LIAR! It didn't level off until we got the the house on the top.
We started off in T shorts, then gradually added fleeces shorts, rain jackets, gloves and hoods as it got colder and wetter. We packed a lunch to eat at the top. Fortunately, the place at the top had refreshments and we were able to get a pint and a wee tipple to warm us.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Walking the River Spey
For those of you with a taste, and some knowledge, of single malt whiskeys, you know that there's primarily 2 areas in Scotland where it's made, the islands and the River Spey. The Spey winds through some lovely countryside and Diana found a country walk along it.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Carrbridge
We were staying in the little village of CarrBridge in the central highlands. this village is about 4 blocks long, has a lovely stream running through it, and a central wooded park.
We were actually staying about 2 miles outside of town, at The Pines guesthouse, a B&B. Lynn was our hostess and she was wonderful. One night, she made a very special dinner for us. Lynn has a beautiful place, with lots of room to walk up the hills behind there. We took some amazing photos from behind her house. Diana loved her yard as it was full of gnomes, bird and squirrel feeders. She has the fattest squirrels and bunnies you've ever seen.
The rest of the evenings there, we ate at the one pub in CarrBridge. This place was dog friendly, sometimes having more dogs than people almost. The food was hearty and good, especially the grilled pork chops. We discovered there was so much we could actually split the dish. We met a young man there named Liam who tried to teach James how to play Snooker.
This was our base for several days adventures. Those will come in other postings.
We were actually staying about 2 miles outside of town, at The Pines guesthouse, a B&B. Lynn was our hostess and she was wonderful. One night, she made a very special dinner for us. Lynn has a beautiful place, with lots of room to walk up the hills behind there. We took some amazing photos from behind her house. Diana loved her yard as it was full of gnomes, bird and squirrel feeders. She has the fattest squirrels and bunnies you've ever seen.
The rest of the evenings there, we ate at the one pub in CarrBridge. This place was dog friendly, sometimes having more dogs than people almost. The food was hearty and good, especially the grilled pork chops. We discovered there was so much we could actually split the dish. We met a young man there named Liam who tried to teach James how to play Snooker.
This was our base for several days adventures. Those will come in other postings.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Oban and the West Coast
Wow, this is where Scotland becomes really amazing. Get out of the cities and it's such a lovely country, the people are wonderful and it's great.
But to tell the story chronologically, we picked up a rental car in Glasgow and left for the west coast. This was by far the worst weather day we had on the trip, rainy, cold and windy. I had bought a Sat Nav system to find our way around, and it worked fine about 99% of the time, which is as good as any of them. I'll do a separate entry on the car and driving.
We stopped on the way at this lovely church, St Conan's. To look at it, you think it's 1000 years old like so much of this part of the world. We picked up the book on it and it was actually started in the very late 1800s, and not finished until after WWI. A bit disappointing. Still beautiful and on an awesome piece of real estate. Location, location, location.
After leaving there we had another hour + to drive. We were actually staying about 20 miles south of Oban, in a place called Loch Melfort. We finally get there, Diana goes and checks us in, then opens the room. I'm opening the rear of the car to get the bags out, and she says "well, it's a bit dated", then I walk in and see the view
Suddenly it was OK. Also, this place was bed, breakfast and dinner. Dinner every night was a great 2 course meal, all you had to pay for was your drinks. The meals were awesome, and the creme brule' was irresistible for desert!
We spent a day in Oban, a port town where the ferries leave for the western islands. It was a very neat town, lots of woolen shops and items, gorgeous scenery. If we'd had the time, we would have taken one of the wildlife excursions out to see the Puffins and other rare species. There was also a ferry to Ilona, the island bed of Christianity in the British Isles and still a working monastery and religious shrine. Would have loved to see that, but just didn't have the time.
Anyway, we found a walk that went through a lot of farmers fields and livestock areas, but had some beautiful views along the way. I had eaten Steak-and-black sheep pie for lunch, and felt the livestock were after revenge the whole time. Especially at the end when we were headed for a hill and the cows seemed to have scouts on the ridgeline. Then a group of 4 moved in and cut us off, so we had to leave. I was thinking of all those westerns I'd watched growing up :)
But to tell the story chronologically, we picked up a rental car in Glasgow and left for the west coast. This was by far the worst weather day we had on the trip, rainy, cold and windy. I had bought a Sat Nav system to find our way around, and it worked fine about 99% of the time, which is as good as any of them. I'll do a separate entry on the car and driving.
We stopped on the way at this lovely church, St Conan's. To look at it, you think it's 1000 years old like so much of this part of the world. We picked up the book on it and it was actually started in the very late 1800s, and not finished until after WWI. A bit disappointing. Still beautiful and on an awesome piece of real estate. Location, location, location.
After leaving there we had another hour + to drive. We were actually staying about 20 miles south of Oban, in a place called Loch Melfort. We finally get there, Diana goes and checks us in, then opens the room. I'm opening the rear of the car to get the bags out, and she says "well, it's a bit dated", then I walk in and see the view
Suddenly it was OK. Also, this place was bed, breakfast and dinner. Dinner every night was a great 2 course meal, all you had to pay for was your drinks. The meals were awesome, and the creme brule' was irresistible for desert!
We spent a day in Oban, a port town where the ferries leave for the western islands. It was a very neat town, lots of woolen shops and items, gorgeous scenery. If we'd had the time, we would have taken one of the wildlife excursions out to see the Puffins and other rare species. There was also a ferry to Ilona, the island bed of Christianity in the British Isles and still a working monastery and religious shrine. Would have loved to see that, but just didn't have the time.
Anyway, we found a walk that went through a lot of farmers fields and livestock areas, but had some beautiful views along the way. I had eaten Steak-and-black sheep pie for lunch, and felt the livestock were after revenge the whole time. Especially at the end when we were headed for a hill and the cows seemed to have scouts on the ridgeline. Then a group of 4 moved in and cut us off, so we had to leave. I was thinking of all those westerns I'd watched growing up :)
Wildflowers in Scotland
Hello everyone, We tried to take a few(haha) pictures of the wild flowers we ran across in Scotland. The vegetation was lush and every shade of green. The forests were lush and amazing to walk throw. The forests you could not see throw it was so thick and dark. The story of little red riding hood came to mind. The wild foxgloves were the most prominent flower, also orchids and ferns and some flowers that looked like forget-me nots. Fungus plants (Moss Campion a tundra plant) that grow on the rocks with beautiful blooms and daisies like flowers.
James was so patient when I pointed out different flowers to get a picture of. He even started to take pictures on his own. The heather plants were amazing the deep purple blooms made the landscape look like a sea of purple.
The trees were also amazing to see the birch and scot's pine and juniper bushes.
The thorny thistles and it's bloom is the national symbol of Scotland, you find it everywhere. In the states it would be a weed.
James was so patient when I pointed out different flowers to get a picture of. He even started to take pictures on his own. The heather plants were amazing the deep purple blooms made the landscape look like a sea of purple.
The trees were also amazing to see the birch and scot's pine and juniper bushes.
The thorny thistles and it's bloom is the national symbol of Scotland, you find it everywhere. In the states it would be a weed.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Glasgow
We stayed at the Kelvin Hotel. This is a converted Victorian house, and these types of B&Bs are all over the UK. We've stayed in several. They are pretty basic but functional. The real difference is the people who run then. We've stayed in a couple where the owners didn't give a damn, and we've stayed in some that the people running it were great, like the Avalon Hotel in Brighton. In this case, we lucked out. Linda was gracious and took great care of us. We arrived about 8:30 am, in the middle of breakfast. She let us in, gave us a place to store our bags, and even offered us breakfast! When we returned in the afternoon she has set us up with a room with a private entrance for the doggies and put our bags in there. Now that's service!
Anyway, as everywhere, the doggies attract a lot of attention, and we met and talked to a lot of nice people. Only found 1 real dog friendly place, but others where we could sit outside and eat or drink with the dogs.
We couldn't wait to get out of there and into the highlands, so bright and early Tuesday morning we were off!
Anyway, as everywhere, the doggies attract a lot of attention, and we met and talked to a lot of nice people. Only found 1 real dog friendly place, but others where we could sit outside and eat or drink with the dogs.
We couldn't wait to get out of there and into the highlands, so bright and early Tuesday morning we were off!
Prepping to Leave
We had an entire weekend at home before leaving on the sleeper train late Sunday night. Of course, we packed and repacked several times. It's impossible for us to travel light, but having to carry stuff for the dogs added to it.
We spent much of Saturday outdoors as it was a lovely day, starting with a walk through Richmond Park to see the deer. They are all growing their antlers in for the fall rut, and they are still covered in velvet.
On Sunday, our friends Farah and Jools invited us to a party, and they didn't want the doggies to leave.
Finally the time came and we took the tube through London to Euston Station, where the sleeper train leaves from. We had a private berth, just the 4 of us. The Caledonian Sleeper is MUCH better than the French sleeper we took a few years ago. It's not like sleeping in your own bed, but it's ok, and better than sitting in a seat for 8 hours. It leaves Euston in the north of London at 23:00 and arrives in Glasgow at 7:00. About 30 mins before it arrives, the conductor comes through with coffee and a small snack.
We spent much of Saturday outdoors as it was a lovely day, starting with a walk through Richmond Park to see the deer. They are all growing their antlers in for the fall rut, and they are still covered in velvet.
On Sunday, our friends Farah and Jools invited us to a party, and they didn't want the doggies to leave.
Finally the time came and we took the tube through London to Euston Station, where the sleeper train leaves from. We had a private berth, just the 4 of us. The Caledonian Sleeper is MUCH better than the French sleeper we took a few years ago. It's not like sleeping in your own bed, but it's ok, and better than sitting in a seat for 8 hours. It leaves Euston in the north of London at 23:00 and arrives in Glasgow at 7:00. About 30 mins before it arrives, the conductor comes through with coffee and a small snack.
Scotland Holiday Report
It was great. Diana did all of the planning and did a bang up job. She found some incredible places to stay, all dog friendly, and very reasonably priced. They were all bed and breakfast places except 1, which was bed, breakfast and dinner. And when I say breakfast, I'm talking a full English cooked breakfast, not doughnuts and watery coffee.
As an overview, we left London on Sunday night, June 30 on the sleeper train to Glasgow. We picked up a car in Glasgow and drove to the west coast, near Oban. We spent a few days there. From the west coast, we drove into the central highlands for several days. from here we did several days trips, including a Highlands Games.
As we left, we stopped by the Glenfiddich Distillery and a working Cooperage nearby where they make and refurbish barrels for the whiskey. We dropped the car in Aberdeen and immediately caught a train to Edinburgh for the last few days. On Wednesday night, we rode the sleeper car back to London. I return to work on Monday.
The weather overall was awesome for Scotland. Only 1 day was truly bad weather, rainy and cold with a lot of wind. Most of the rest of the time was warm and sunny. We had a couple of days with some showers, but we were prepared for everything except the hottest and coldest temps.
There's so much to share in this trip, we're going to do it over multiple entries. I'll use this one as the master and link to the others.
We spent the weekend prepping to leave, that entry is here with a slideshow
First stop was Glasgow, the report is here with slideshow
Diana has an entry about the Wildflowers we saw here
Oban and the West Coast is here
Our walk along the River Spey is here
And our climb up Cairngorm Mountain is here
Carrbridge is here
An entry on Edinburgh and our last day is here
In the other entries, I'll share some photos, but not all. The master photo album is linked here. Also, we mapped where the pics were taken on Google Maps here, and you can look at it in Google Earth (Warning: Google Earth must be installed on your computer and you'll need a high speed internet link, this won't work on dial up. It downloads a small configuration file to your PC that's safe)
As an overview, we left London on Sunday night, June 30 on the sleeper train to Glasgow. We picked up a car in Glasgow and drove to the west coast, near Oban. We spent a few days there. From the west coast, we drove into the central highlands for several days. from here we did several days trips, including a Highlands Games.
As we left, we stopped by the Glenfiddich Distillery and a working Cooperage nearby where they make and refurbish barrels for the whiskey. We dropped the car in Aberdeen and immediately caught a train to Edinburgh for the last few days. On Wednesday night, we rode the sleeper car back to London. I return to work on Monday.
The weather overall was awesome for Scotland. Only 1 day was truly bad weather, rainy and cold with a lot of wind. Most of the rest of the time was warm and sunny. We had a couple of days with some showers, but we were prepared for everything except the hottest and coldest temps.
There's so much to share in this trip, we're going to do it over multiple entries. I'll use this one as the master and link to the others.
We spent the weekend prepping to leave, that entry is here with a slideshow
First stop was Glasgow, the report is here with slideshow
Diana has an entry about the Wildflowers we saw here
Oban and the West Coast is here
Our walk along the River Spey is here
And our climb up Cairngorm Mountain is here
Carrbridge is here
An entry on Edinburgh and our last day is here
In the other entries, I'll share some photos, but not all. The master photo album is linked here. Also, we mapped where the pics were taken on Google Maps here, and you can look at it in Google Earth (Warning: Google Earth must be installed on your computer and you'll need a high speed internet link, this won't work on dial up. It downloads a small configuration file to your PC that's safe)
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Battle to Bexhill Walk
In June, after I'd been traveling for so long, we wanted to get away from the city for a bit. Trying to take advantage of some of the history in the area, we went down near Hastings, where William the Conqueror invaded in 1066. The actual site of the battle now has a village on site, called Battle. This is all in the rolling hills of Kent, and was about an hour train ride from home.
The walk that was planned to be 5.3 miles that ended to be 8 + miles. But what a great walk. It started at the Battle abbey. James the history buff did not get chance to see the battle fields, I was a weenie and wanted to start the walk. James was very disappointed. We hope to get back with out the boys to see everything.
The 1066 walk went through several nature reserves and by a 1,000 year old yew tree and through several farm grain fields. Darkstar even found a country pub. We got off track when we got to the marsh area in the walk. The sting weeds were as high as our necks well some of our necks (mine) the boys just ran thru them. The boys were great even when we finally got out of the marsh and found out that we were 3 miles off track and had to walk back thru town to the train station. Again the beach was not sandy but had large stones pebbles . We found a pub in Bexhill to rest before the train trip home again.
Sunday Update: Cassidy sent us an email that she gets a log in prompt when we publish pictures, but not when we put in the slideshow mode. The main point of putting a link in to the picture album is that you get much larger pix than the slideshow mode, and in some of these landscape shots, we thought you might want to see that.
So, you'll find the slide show below, and here's a link in case you want to see the larger pictures. If anyone has problems with seeing the pictures or anythi8ng else on the blog, please let us know. I'm constantly trying new things with the application and I can't tell very well if they work or not.
And the map location where they were taken. It's also pretty cool to look at these things in Google Earth
The walk that was planned to be 5.3 miles that ended to be 8 + miles. But what a great walk. It started at the Battle abbey. James the history buff did not get chance to see the battle fields, I was a weenie and wanted to start the walk. James was very disappointed. We hope to get back with out the boys to see everything.
The 1066 walk went through several nature reserves and by a 1,000 year old yew tree and through several farm grain fields. Darkstar even found a country pub. We got off track when we got to the marsh area in the walk. The sting weeds were as high as our necks well some of our necks (mine) the boys just ran thru them. The boys were great even when we finally got out of the marsh and found out that we were 3 miles off track and had to walk back thru town to the train station. Again the beach was not sandy but had large stones pebbles . We found a pub in Bexhill to rest before the train trip home again.
Sunday Update: Cassidy sent us an email that she gets a log in prompt when we publish pictures, but not when we put in the slideshow mode. The main point of putting a link in to the picture album is that you get much larger pix than the slideshow mode, and in some of these landscape shots, we thought you might want to see that.
So, you'll find the slide show below, and here's a link in case you want to see the larger pictures. If anyone has problems with seeing the pictures or anythi8ng else on the blog, please let us know. I'm constantly trying new things with the application and I can't tell very well if they work or not.
And the map location where they were taken. It's also pretty cool to look at these things in Google Earth
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