All about the castle

So, Eilean Donan castle… I had seen a picture on the internet years ago and ever since then it had been on my bucket list.

It was a bit of an outlier this trip, still a couple of hours away from last night's lovely hotel but the scenery en route should more than compensate.

First though, the Lismore ferry already had its first customer queuing up when we were leaving at around 0945 and once again we wished we had longer than two days to partake of the Scottish experience. Still, two days better than no days.

Once again the weather gods were smiling and patches of blue broke the cloud periodically as we tracked north through Fort William and then on toward the Isle of Skye. We would not be crossing the bridge to Skye itself today, the castle is about 10 miles east of the bridge and due to time constraints that would have to wait for a future trip.

The long drive saw us skirt numerous lochs and afforded stunning scenery at every turn but when the Castle finally came into view it was breathtaking.

Eilean Donan Castle

Could it get any better? Yes – when a young lad started playing the bagpipes in the foreground my day was complete ( and it was only lunchtime.)

We paid the £7 each for admittance to the Castle interior which had never really been my priority but actually turned out to be very well done. The furnishings and re-created scenes were very authentic but unfortunately no photography was allowed inside.

The Castle sits on a small tidal island where three lochs meet, Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh and has a long and interesting history. Several structures have been built on the island over time, the earliest Castle being from the thirteenth century.

Partially destroyed in a Jacobite uprising in 1719, Eilean Donan lay in ruins for the best part of 200 years until Lieutenant Colonel John MacRae-Gilstrap bought the island in 1911 and proceeded to restore the castle to its former glory. There are many personal photos of the current owners family throughout the Castle.

After a quick lunch in the coffee shop ( not as breathtaking as the Castle) we were on the road again retracing our route in order to spend our last night somewhere within an hour or so from Glasgow, the conference starting at 1200 tomorrow.

It was hard not to stop every few minutes and grab the camera again….

 

 

Glen Coe

Unfortunately, time and light were against us and we had to rush through spectacular Glen Coe in order to reach some sort of civilisation and lodging before dark. This ended up being in the fairly nondescript village of Crianlarich where we snagged the last room in a serviceable B&B owned by a gentleman somewhat reminiscent of Basil Fawlty.

We were informed that the “Rod and Reel” two minutes down the road did a meal that wasn't “too pricey” so we set off to check it out.

The Rod and Reel could do with some marketing advice – there was not a rod or reel in sight and even worse, not even fish on the menu!

Suffice to say it served the purpose of feeding us but was probably at the opposite end of the spectrum to the Pier Hotel the night before!

Pulling the curtains back next morning revealed misty rain which ultimately cleared as we traversed the upper reaches of Loch Lomond and stopped for a quick coffee and stroll in the gorgeous village of Luss.

The village consists of quaint sandstone and slate cottages adorned with roses and I think you must have to have a keen interest in gardening to live here as all the gardens we saw were immaculate!

Luss was apparently the setting for a soap called Take the High Road now no longer in production.

The church hosts over 100 weddings per year and it is easy to see why.

After a little retail therapy we reluctantly gave the GPS our hotel's address and uneventfully made our way into Glasgow to start the 'real' (?) purpose of the trip, both agreeing that a Scottish holiday was likely to feature in future plans.

 

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