UK ROAD TRIP…Scotland…Part 1

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We crossed the England/Scotland border on the east coastheading for a overnighter in Edinburghwith a couple of delightful coastal fishing villages to explore on the way there,

and St. Abbs

then onto Edinburghwith it’s castle (in the background)We walked the Royal Mile up to the castle gatesThe queues are non-existent at this time of the year but one has to be conscious of the very slippery iced puddlesthe castle was as per the guide books

A friend of Lisa’s had recommend that we go to a cocktail bar called Panda & Sons. It was mega trendy, hidden behind a façade of a barber shopthen down a set a stairs to a doorway disguised as a bookcase to a delightfully cavernous cocktail loungeWe left Edinburgh the next morning, in conditions that were what I had previously though typifies British weather, wet, cold and miserablefirst stop was Loch Lomondtime for a cuppa with a snowy mountain backdropAs we continued our journey into the Scottish Highlands we drove into a winter wonderland stopping to enjoy the splendor of Kilchurn Castle then more snowy mountain driving to our accommodation at Glencoenestled in amongst the snowed mountainsLisa had asked for a room with a view, which we gottime to celebrate actually getting here

That night there was decent dump of snow  definitely time for an early morning walk in the virginal snow

the temperature was -7C, which had the road from the hotel to the main road, very icy.

Lisa drove it like someone who had done it numerous times, despite it being her first.the main road had been gritted and salted, so there were no ice issue on it, despite the temperature been below zero, all day

The plan for today’s day trip was  drive to Mallaig, with numerous stops for the photo opportunities

despite this rail bridge being used in the Harry Potter movies, the Hogwarts’s Express did not travel by while we were there

but we did get in an enjoyable walk in the snow

then back on the road for more stunning scenery

and photo stopsat Mallaig, we fired up the cooker for a hot soup and picnic lunch, looking across the water to tomorrow’s accommodation stop, the Isle of Skye

on the drive back to Glencoe we found a sandy beach covered in snowa view out to Isle of Mull and more stunning scenery

My body was telling me, it was time for an AFD (Alcohol free day) after all the drinking we had been doing. When I woke the next morning I had a definite detox headache, so I had another AFD, to remind my body who was in charge. 

Here is a rare photo of me drinking water in a pub, a evidence that I am not a total pisshead on a pub crawl around the UKThe drive to The Isle of Skye the next morning was challenging in a heavy snow fallwith a stunning snow filled trees vista between the snow stormsstopping at Eileen Donan CastleThe Isle of Skye was totally covered in snowFirst stop the whisky distillery at Talsiker for a tour of the distillery, which bottles 5 million litres of Scotch Whisky per annumthe drive back to our accommodation on the other side of the island, had perfect late afternoon sun

While Brisbane was having their usual hot February days, we had water freezing in the streams

to stretch our travel kitty, Lisa and I have been staying in twin rooms, rather than 2 single rooms. This savings let us splurge on 4 star accommodation at times. The accommodation at the Druisdale Hotel was one of our 4 star splurges. We had a complimentary glass of champagne while filling out the registration card

a snow covered view down over the Locha conservatory to have breakfast in and a stunning sunrise at 8.30amwith a walking path down to the lochthe weather could not have been more perfect for a driving tour of the island, sunny with no wind. Plus plenty of snow and icewe drove past a Highland Cattle bullwhich I insisted we needed to go back to for a close up photo one of the recommended highlights was the rock formation called The Old Man of Storrwhich there was a one hour walk up through the snow toowith stunning view to be had from

and a stop for a pint at the West Highland Bar in Portree on our way back to the accommodationI appear to have stopped falling more than 8 days behind with my blogging, only 6 days behind now

Next up is Northern Scotland