A good sleep and a Scottish breakfast saw us ready for the road on day two at around 10 am, destination Eilean Donan castle…..that was the plan anyway.
First night's accom - Rudha-na-Craigie
The weather was once again pleasantly un Scottish, interesting cloud and blue sky patches that increased as the day went on, perfect for photos of which there were many!
October is obviously a tricky time to visit weather wise but for those who take the risk ( or don't have any choice), the autumnal colours are a real reward.
Not quite following our host's original instructions, we nonetheless found ourselves at the very interesting Crinan canal.
The canal takes its name from the village of Crinan at its western end. Approximately 14 km long, the canal connects the village of Ardrishaig on Loch Gilp with the Sound of Jura, providing a navigable route between the Clyde and the Inner Hebrides, without the need for a long diversion around the Kintyre peninsula.
Queen Victoria traversed the canal in 1847 in a horse drawn vessel which made it a tourist attraction and gave the canal an added purpose.
It consists of numerous locks and today is still used by up to 2,000 leisure vessels per year with a well maintained flat tow path adjacent, popular with cyclists and walkers.
After randomly stopping for a photo we found ourselves wandering the last few kilometres of the canal path, ending up at the village of Crinan where we rewarded ourselves with tea and scones.
Back in the car again we consulted the map and continued on to Kilmartin Glen.
Kilmartin Glen has one of the most important concentrations of Neolithic and Bronze Age remains in Scotland. The glen is located between Oban and Lochgilphead, surrounding the village of Kilmartin.
There are more than 350 ancient monuments within a six-mile radius of the village, with 150 of them being prehistoric. Monuments include standing stones, a henge monument, numerous cists, and a “linear cemetery” comprising five burial cairns. Several of these, as well as many natural rocks, are decorated with 'cup and ring marks' the significance of which is apparently still being debated.
We started with a visit to the church or 'kirk' as they're known in Scotland, where there were some fine examples of the elaborate decorated slabs used to adorn medieval graves of the wealthy and clergy.
The cemetery itself was beautiful and very atmospheric with dark clouds building on the horizon which fortunately came to nothing.
After checking out the church and cemetery we decided to drive down to 'Templewood' where there are the remains of two stone circles.It was surreal to be wandering through fields (dodging cow pats) and viewing such ancient sites at the same time.
We even met one of the locals out for a ride, unfortunately no time in our packed two and a half days for horse riding.Taking our leave from historic sites we continued northwards toward the highlands and our proposed destination of Eilean Donan Castle….
Oban was the next major point of interest on the map and we arrived just in time to see a couple of the huge ferries that service the islands from Oban.
As Russell had been complaining that his shoes were uncomfortable, I very kindly pointed out an outdoor clothing shop across the road and we headed off to check out the “50% off everything!” claim….
At least an hour later ( necessitating a top up to the parking ticket) we were both kitted out in ski (!) gear for our Canadian Christmas, had new shoes for Russell and lost all hope of reaching Eilean Donan tonight. The good news was that the total outlay was ridiculously cheap so we happily piled our purchases into MI 6 and headed north.
It seemed though that once Oban was behind us, lodging was a tad sparse with numerous B&B's closed for the season and we began to get a little anxious as the sun got lower in the sky.
At Appin, we took a narrow road in less than ideal condition toward Port Appin ( it must have sea views right?) as several faded signs promised “lodging and seafood restaurant…”
We absolutely struck gold at the Pier House Hotel, snagging the last room in this gorgeous spot overlooking the pier where the tiny 'ferry' was due any minute to transport the locals (and their groceries) over to Lismore Island a short trip away.
Our room was gorgeous ( and discounted) and we finished the day with a sumptuous dinner in the restaurant – the seafood platter for me with locally caught scallops, oyster, salmon, mussels, and langoustines..
And did I mention the French rosé? ….. a perfect ending to a perfect day.
Tomorrow… we DO get to Eilean Donan.
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