Home sweet home

Day 18: York to Paris
Km driven:748

Roadtrip total: 4,962 km... not quite 5,000, after all!

Time to go home! 

We left York early, making sure to check that the car was ready after its heavy summer work. We were lucky with the traffic and arrived early at Dover and its ferry.

After a quiet crossing in the sunshine, we disembarked and were confronted by tourists arriving in France... driving on the wrong side of the road! 

But we arrived safely in Paris. 

So now... time to sort through the pictures, and to publish them!

Goodbye Scotland...

Day 17: Stirling to York
Km driven: 398
Explorer Pass: Dunfermline Abbey and Palace

Our last day in Scotland!

We started off with the visit of the abbey,  cathedral and palace of Dunfermline. Part of the cathedral is still in use and contains the tomb of Robert the Bruce. Both the abbey and the palace are in ruins, and only the signs allow the visitor to know in what part of the building he is standing. It is still quite beautiful though.

We then started South towards York, driving (finally!) over the Forth Bridge towards Edinburgh. The trip down to York was uneventful,  with only a mixed-up over the rooms (8 beds but 9 women... musical beds tonight?) but it is finally solved.

We slightly changed our plans for tomorrow and decided to cancel our day in York in favour of coming back one day earlier. We leave early tomorrow straight for France!

The last castles...?

Day 16: Glenprosen to Stirling
Km driven: 139 

Having bought a "treasure ticket" combining the entrances to Blair Castle, Glamis Castle and Scone Palace, we went for the next visit at Glamis. Glamis Castle has turrets, winding stairs, ghosts (finally!), a walled garden, Highland cows, and could only be visited on a guided tour.

Scone Palace was less interesting, with a shorter visit: we escaped a guided tour in badly-accented French to fall into badly-translated guiding notes. An intriguing painting with two ladies, both named Elizabeth, cousins, but one a Mulatto, is at the center of an exhibition explaining who is Dido Elizabeth Lansay and what became of the natural daughter of a high-born sea captain and a slave. A movie, Belle, retracing her life was just launched in the UK.

The grounds are known for their free-ranging peacocks, and the star-shaped maze (which we successfully negotiated).

After arriving to our hostel in Stirling, we went out and had some delicious fish and chips, with Scottish beer and cider.

Scottish horror story

How does a horror movie start?

Two women in a deserted hostel in the middle of nowhere. The lights are out, no cell signal, no electricity, no water and there is a corpse on the lawn...

The warden is the only person who knows they are here...

The reality was not so different : the earlier storm had knocked the grid out, and the hostel was code-locked, manned by a "warden", living in the village. What we didn't say was that there was stillplenty of daylight when we arrived, and the corpse was an old rabbit. Being resourceful girls, we had food that didn't need cooling, large resources of water and dynamo torches. The warden also lent us a battery-operated lantern and got the water flowing again. The room was still warm from being heated earlier in the day.

So we enjoyed a cold dinner, played 3D tic-tac-toe, read by the lantern (only we used mine from the car that only needs winding), and woke up to electricity and its promise of hot water.

Away from the castle trail

Day 15: Tomintoul to Glenprosen
Km driven since Drumnadrochit: 467

Our intent this day was to follow the Castle Trail, in the Aberdeenshire. It all changed when we met the other residents of the Youth Hostel : two Danish guys, who had been hiking in the country and didn't find the predicted destination. Instead, they had arrived in Tomintoul,  a village where the bus comes twice a week (and the police once,  on Wednesday). Touched by their plight, tender-hearted Lilly offered to take them to Aviemore,  a forty minutes drive.

Having cleared the back seats (a feat in itself), we then fitted them both and their huge backpacks in the car. Once in the town,  we decided on another course for the day, and drove to Blair Castle. It's a magnificent castle,  with the original furniture on display, and a huge collection of family paintings and weapons on the walls. We waltzed in the ballroom. We also enjoyed the grounds,  which include a red deer pasture, a grove containing some of the country's tallest trees, and also an "adventure playground", where we had a fun time on the adult-size swings.

Our next stop was Birnam, where we visited the Beatrix Potter exhibition. It was altogether not so interesting, as we had already seen the garden, in which we had read about Peter Rabbit's author. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the shop. We also made a quick stop at Dunkeld, the adjoining town, to see its cathedral (part ruin, part in activity).

Our arrival at the Youth Hostel this night is the subject of another article.

A taste of Scotland

Day 14 : Drumnadrochit to Tomintoul
Km driven : Lilly forgot to write it down

Explorer Pass : Elgin's cathedral

We began or day by driving around Loch Ness.  Unfortunately we couldn't see much of the Loch from the road, and there was still no sign of Nessie. We went on to Elgin, to see its cathedral (another beautiful ruin).

This day was the highlight of our journey.  The day we had been expecting from the start.  We went to Walker's factory outlet,  where we bought tons of shortbread (at least, Lilly did). This is when I (Solene) matters the delicate art of driving with a chocolate biscuit in one hand.  It was also very hot,  which added a little bit of challenge to the achievement.

Continuing our Scottish gourmet route, we went to visit the Glenlivet Distillery.  There,  in the midst of alcohol fumes, with a tropical temperature,  we were explained the basics of whisky production. One would think that the fumes would greatly help our understanding, but the heat and the thick Scottish accent of our guide confounded our minds. We still enjoyed the dégustation (especially me) and spent a substantial time at the shop.

Of salmon, birds of prey and loch monsters

Day 13: Rogart to Drumnadrochit
Km driven: 208

We left Jessica at the train station (where you have to flag down the train for it to stop) and started our morning at the falls of Shin, where when lucky you can see salmon jumping. We saw one!!

Our next destination was Dunrobin Castle in Golspie, the castle of the Dukes of Sutherland. The castle is full of historical furniture and paintings of the family. The nursery has a service of plates and dishes painted with the adventures of a mischievous cat. So cute! The library's and the study's floor are strewn with lion, leopard and other big feline pelts. We could imagine the ladies in the drawing room and the gentlemen in the billard room.

But what we really came for,  apart for the fabulous view over the sea hidden in the mist, was the falconry show. A hawk, an owl and a falcon. We learned everything about the difference between the gliding, silent hunters (the sailor) and the flapping, equally silent hunters (the rower). The first sits in a tree and waits for a bunny to walk by before stooping on it. The second flaps his wings to take height before looking for and stooping on a prey.

The falconer would get right behind a spectator before offering a piece of bait on his glove to the bird, making it glide right over our heads to the ooohs and aaahs of the audience. When rewarding a special trick (or teaching a new bird new tricks), he would offer a "chicken mcnugget": ...a dead chick, gotten from a farm interested only on keeping female chicks for egg laying.

To open our appetite after those emotions, we went on the Big Burn Walk, a nice stroll down a burn to see its falls. We were out of the mist then and the water and the most stones offered us a spectacular time.

We yielded then to the call of the fish and chips. The nice bellyfull made us sleepy (a dangerous combination on the road), and a coffee later we arrived safely to the Groam House museum. There we learned what little is known about Pictish stones. A quick stop to what little was left of Fortrose' cathedral and we were on our way to Inverness and its Loch.

Mid-way along the Loch Ness, we found our hostel (sporting a rendition of Nessie). We left our bags and went to Urquhart Castle for a view of the Loch at sunset. Nessie didn't show up so we went back to a night with a snoring roommate. (The hazards of youth hostels.)

Dolphins ahead !

Day 12 : Stornoway to Rogart
Km drivem : 293 (we have reached the 3000 km milestone)

And so, today, we arose before 5 am, and creeped out of the bedroom as quietly as we could. Little did we know that the other woman in it took the same ferry. Getting in it was a little bit tricky,  with Lilly taking the car in with only our name, and me queuing until the last moment to get our tickets (we had a reservation). But everything turned out well.

On the ferry, we had the pleasure of seeing dolphins (it might have been porpoises) next to us, and finally got to see some Scottish wildlife ! We also met our roommate of the night,  a dynamic Canadian who asked if she could spend the day with us (she wanted to see the places where we were going). We took her in.

And so we left for a day of travelling through the country,  first along the West Coast and then to the north.  We stopped at a lighthouse for lunch and had a walk on the cliffs. The whole day was spent driving (from Ullapool to Lochinver,  Kylesku, Durness, Tongue, then back to Lairg), stopping to take pictures.

As we were still tired from our short night, we were happy to arrive at our hostel. Tonight,  we are sleeping in a train carriage in a garden (our new friend is sleeping there too, and we had to negotiate with the other guests to make it work).

Les pieds dans l'eau, le retour

Day 11 : Kershader to Stornoway
Km driven : 172

Every five day or so, farniente calls to us.  Today was that day.  We woke up late (8:15) and left an hour and a half later.

Firat, we went to see the Callanish Standing Stones. On the way there, we passed our fellow guest of the night before,  who had risen early and must have been on his bike for some time (we had risen when hearing him leave and we saw him after a twenty minute drive).

By the time we parked,  we spotted a tourist coach maneuvering behind us. We used what little time we had to enjoy the site and take lots of pictures before being submerged by a wave of awe-struck tourists.

We then strategically retreated to the car and drove to Garenin, a village of reconstructed blackhouses, where we learnt everything about peat and tweed through an explanatory video. Sadly, there was not much more to see.

This was enough action for the day.  We found ourselves a nice white sand beach,  with turquoise water and a wonderful panorama,  had a short walk feet in the sea, and dedicated our afternoon to roasting in the sun. Both of us are noticeably tanned tonight,  and even a little sunburnt.

We still had opportunities to enjoy the islands, as we passed many picturesques valleys on our way,  and also quite a lot of sheep (it's hard to say which delights us the most).

Tonight,  we stay in a very cosy hostel again,  and we make ready for an early start tomorrow (ferry is at 6, we must arrive at 5:15). Good thing we lodge next to the pier.

Lunch in northern Scotland

Breakfast on Lewis Island

Les pieds dans l'eau

Note: we republished the posts in their correct order and updated the post Highland Games with a few more lines about Glencoe.

Day 10: Isle of Skye to Lewis and Harris.
Km driven: 180

The morning was spent driving around the northen peninsula of the Isle of Skye. We dutifully stopped to take a picture of the Old Man of Storr, a jagged bunch of pointy stones jutting out of a mountainside, then stopped for a waterfall where diatonite (?) used to be mined, and again for the Kilt Rock and finally at Duntulm Castle.

The road going around the peninsula is a well-maintained single track road, with a few of our favourite cattle grid: an horizontal grid spanning the road that cattle obviously wouldn't want to walk on and which advantageously replace a gate (which would have to be opened and especially closer by all the vehicle driving by).

We arrived early at the ferry at Uig, then boarded and took advantage of the crossing to catch up on writing this blog (the android app allows me to write my posts off line). We are officially up to date!

Did I think that the Isle of Skye was rugged? Compared to Harris, it is soft and green. Harris is green, but the rock is nearer the surface and the land is a patchwork of stones and grass. (What's the difference between a rock and a sheep? Both are the same size and colour, both can have a black face; but only the sheep will try to cross the road in front of your car. And that's debatable.)

After leaving the ferry in Tarbert, we drove south and west to Luskentyre beach. Very wide, the sand is fine and white, the water a clear blue, and the beached jellyfish added a the last tropical touch to the scenery. The weather is holding up for us, with enough sun today to work on a tan (the pale eggshell white is so much nicer than snow white).

On the way to the Youth Hostel, we passed a cyclist who arrived later on. We three are the hostel's only guests. Since the hostel is so small and out of the way, there isn't a permanent staff: the lady manning the adjoining shop is in charge of thing... and can only take our paiement when her till is on tomorrow morning.

It's funny how this hostel, that we had so much trouble finding (it's hidden behind a fuel station in the middle of nowhere) offers us simple but very enjoyable confort : a room for ourselves,  with plain single beds (instead of bunk beds), free wifi and a very cosy kitchen. To us it feels like luxury.

Isles as far as the eye can see

Day 9: Glencoe to Skye
Km driven: 232

We left on a foggy morning. Once again we drove along stunning views,  first the sea then lochs, a few forests...

We arrived to Eilan Donan Castle at midday: very touristic, the castle is privately owned and has been restored from a ruin to a traditional early 20th Century look. The family still resides in it from times to times. There has been a castle on the tiny isle since the 13th century at least, and it was used in the 007 movie The World is not enough.

From there we drove to the Isle of Skye, where upon finding the Youth Hostel closed for the afternoon, we went for a short hike to the southernerest point of the island. We stopped short of our goal at a sandy beach, with white sand and a blue sea.

We passed the Honesty Cafe a few minutes before the beach: a table with a coffee urn,  milk and juices with a jar for money. A local resident obviously has a tidy business going on!

We met many other hikers, from several nationalities (and a cute German-speaking couple).

For diner we tried my Indian tikka sauce that we had brought along... alas, it wasn't very good and too spicy. We had to improvise a second meal...

Highland Games

Day 8: Oban to Glencoe
Km driven: I forgot to note it this morning, so it will be from Edinburgh: 322

Our day began quietly with a bit of shopping. The lady at the counter called me "darling", but I was hoping to get "sweetheart" like the previous customer.

We drove to Tanhuilt for the Highland Games, where though the sky was overcast and heavy rains were forecast, we avoided the worst.

We got Scotland at its best: cute children in kilt dancing Scottish reels, a bagpipe band, several races and cabber tossing.

On the arrival to Glencoe, we went the wrong way and couldn't find the Youth Hostel... so we stopped by a police car while its driver was getting back in it and asked the nice officer our way... we ended up following him on narrow roads to our destination. *sigh* Such a handsome man, too!

As usual, we met French tourists in the Youth Hostel. It seems to be in a region renowned for its trekking, as many guests were here for walking.

For those of you who read Dick Francis, you will recognise Glencoe and its massacre as the inspiration for an Alexander painting in To the Hilt. I walked down to the memorial and enjoyed the view of clouds trapped by the mountaintops.

Driving up the road, we were taken by the mystical atmosphere of the forest. Merlin and Arthur could have ridden past and wouldn't have been out of place.

At nightfall, the only sound is of water cascading on mossy stones. What seems to be hundred of tiny rivers flow downhill to join the river at the bottom, all tinkling gaily... and fostering the development of midges.

It was also time to write a few postcards, and we reached a total of 33 between us. Not bad.

Red squirrels ahead !

Pendant que Lilly prépare un récit détaillé de nos dernières aventures, une petite note sur notre voyage en general. 

Les Ecossais chouchoutent leurs touristes. Non seulement ils sont accueillants et toujours prêts à nous informer, mais ils ont jalonne leur pays de panneaux indiquant les "points d'intérêt". La route vers ceux-ci est toujours bien entretenue, la pelouse impeccable... 

Sur les routes, nous nous habituons a la conduite à gauche (avec quelques épisodes cocasses). Tout est bien indiqué, sauf les limites de vitesse ! Notre panneau préféré reste "Caution ! Red squirrels ahead". 

Depuis notre arrivée, il fait plutôt beau. Nous avons eu un jour de véritable pluie (pour impressionner les touristes en notre genre) et un grain à Edinburgh... Finalement, les Ecossais sont avares en pluie ! 

Pour ce qui est du voyage, nous avons commencé par la côte sud, assez semblable à la Bretagne (falaises escarpées, temps changeant et douce odeur d'algues en décomposition). Nous l'avons ensuite quittée pour s'enfoncer dans les terres, dans une région de lande et de bruyère. Aujourd'hui, nous avons traversé la région des Lochs, qui rappelle beaucoup le Canada à Lilly, et ce soir nous sommes à nouveau en bord de mer. Au final, l'Ecosse offre de nombreux paysages différents, qui nous ravissent tous ! Mais nous sommes décidément plus sensibles au charme des régions côtières un peu "tourmentées". 

En conclusion, nous sommes un peu crevées mais toujours ravies.

Stirling and the Trossachs

Day 7: Edinburgh to Oban
Km driven: I forgot to note
Explorer Pass: Stirling Castle

We valiantly left Edinburgh, its ferret and our gracious host to visit Stirling Castle. The castle is situated on a hilltop with a stunning view of the valley. The castle is geared towards a family experience,  with reconstructions and staff in historical costumes, ready with explanations... but sadly lacking in authenticity for adults.

Our next destination was Aberfoyle and its walking path between lochs; we took the Three Lochs Drive, a cousin to the Raider's Road but without the Otter's Pool. We stopped on a first viewpoint in grove of firs for lunch then drove to the next stop for a short walk along Loch Drunchie. We decided to forgo Loch Lomond in favor of an earlier arrival in Oban.

The road went through the Trossachs, a fabulous region of lochs and glens, with greenness everywhere, rivers and waterfalls, a rugged scenery that took our breath away.

Our Youth Hostel in Oban was on the waterfront. (If you followed, we left the eastern coast of Scotland with Edinburgh, crossed the country in an almost horizontal direction to arrive slightly more to the North in Oban on the western coast.)

An overview from Edinburgh

Day 5 and 6: Edinburgh
Km driven: 91
Explorer Pass: Edinburgh Castle, Linlithgow Palace, Blackness Castle

We spent three nights in Edinburgh.  Our host very nicely let us live in her flat under the close supervision of her pet ferret. This enabled us to enjoy the city at every time of the day.

The first morning,  we gathered our courage and walked to Holyroodhouse Palace, the royal family's residence when they are in town. We visited the dining room (with a menu and list of the toasts), the rooms of Mary Stuart and other royal apartments. I (Solene is writing) could very well picture myself living there... I also learnt about the existence of the Commonwealth Games.

We then walked through the city, stopping at every souvenir shop (where I incidentally found a kilt), had lunch at the Elephant House (the café where Harry Potter was written) and went to the Museum of Scotland, expecting an insight on the lives of Scottish people through time. Even though the pieces we saw were very interesting, we were disappointed by the museum, which didn't offer visitors a thread to follow.

As we had some time left, we  climbed up the hill to Edinburgh castle, where our Explorer Pass allowed us to avoid the queue. Notably, the Honors of Scotland were displayed, and so we learnt about the crown, the sword and the scepter used in the coronation of the kings and queens of Scotland.

That evening, we had diner at a Malaysian restaurant with our host and her boyfriend, then stayed at the pub until it closed, at 1 am. We had a wonderful time but the morning after that found us eager to sleep in. We cooked an english breakfast, with eggs and bacon, a scone, some local cheese... Comfort food after several days of intense visiting.

Finally, we detached ourselves from our books, and drove to Linlithgow Palace, an impressive ruin full of  side corridors, alcoves, and stairs. We tried climbing up one tower before discovering the only one with an access to the top was the opposite one. We had fun playing hide and seek, and had breathtaking views on the country around.

Next stop was Blackness Castle, where there wasn't much to see (compared to what we are getting used to), except for a viewpoint over the Forth Rail Bridge. On the other side of Edinburgh,  we went to Rosslyn Chapel, expensive but definitely worth it. The whole building is exquisitely decorated, with precise and intricate sculptures all over the walls, arches and ceiling.  We were explained about Green Men, masculine figures with leaves coming out of their mouth, thought to represent abundance and fertility of the soils.

Back at the flat, we focused on getting ready for an early start the next day, finally spending one night in the city sithout going to the pub.

Of castles, abbey and ferret.

Day 4 : New Lanark to Edinburgh
Km driven : 226
Explorer Pass : Melrose Abbey, Tantallon Castle, Dirleton Castle and Gardens

Snobbing New Lanark, we drove straight to Selkirk, in the Tweed Valley... to a factory outlet of high-end tartans. We spent an outrageous amount of time and money there.

Our next stop was Melrose Abbey where the ruins were of yellow stone (or a very yellowish pink if you insist). One of the highpoints is a gargoyle representing a bagpipes-playing pig. In order to see it, we had to climb a tower (three towers a day keep the doctor far away).

We moved on to the castles of Tantallon and Dirleton,  both well-kept ruins. Lilly insisted on climbing every tower we found. Tantallon we remember for its location (on top of a wind-swept cliff), and Dirleton for its magnificent gardens.

We successfully found our way to our host's, who was eager to imtroduce us to her ferret, with whom we shared the flat (he is an old, in-bred, incontinent, smelly animal with a very sweet disposition). We had our first experience of a Scottish pub, ale and cider.

Edinburgh

Nous sommes bien arrivées! L'accès internet est limité, aussi la suite de nos aventures attendra de trouver un cyber café...

First brush with the Scottish weather

Day 3: Newton Stewart to New Lanark
Km driven: 234
Explorer Pass day 1: Threave Castle, Sweetheart Abbey and New Abbey Corn Mill.

Driving on the left is logical... if you start on the right (ah ah!) side of the road. We haven't yet have an accident. Thank God there is a copilot to remind the driver of that little fact.

We started the morning with an early visit to Cairn Holy, which is actually a dual site with megalithic burial chambers and their standing stones. I had my thermos of coffee and between the view, the grazing sheep and the stones, my morning was very pleasant.

Cairn Holy I

Cairn Holy II

Cairn Holy II

Our next step was to drive back to Galloway Forest, where Solene dragged me on a short walk above a loch, before taking off to follow the Raider's Road... we stopped half-way at the Otter's Pool to have lunch, without the otters (does the statue count?).

Lunch at the Otter's Pool

Otter's Pool

Otter's Pool

Otter's Statue

 

Next was Threave Castle. That's when the Scottish weather woke up and we walked to the ferry under a pouring rain. The castle is on an island, and visitors ring a bell to call the ferryman (or, for us, a bonnie Scottish lass).

Threave Castle

Threave Castle

The castle itself is only a shell, open to the winds. It was built by Archibald the Grim, and with the rain, it was very grim indeed. Of course, it stopped raining as soon as we came back to the car.

Inside Threave Castle

We drove then to Sweetheart Abbey, a ruin of pink stones on a carpet of immaculate green grass. (We were to learn later that the lawn came in rolls). Very romantic ! We visited an old mill in the same town. Our (white-bearded) guide was a cheerful Scott, with a Monty Python-like sense of humour, which made the visit much more lively (somehow a mariage proposal came up at the time where we discussed the merits of a miller's son).

Sweetheart Abbey

Sweetheart Abbey

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sweetheart Abbey

New Abbey Mill

On the other side of the border...

Day 2: Oxford to Newton Stewart.
Km driven that day: 713

We left Oxford later than we intended and braved the motorway towards Scotland. After a few (mistakenly taken) detours, we arrived finally in the right place. We abandoned the idea of visiting Culzean Castle, too far and expensive, and went instead to the Mull of Galloway (what's a mull?), trying on the way to find Kirkmadrine's Stones (which, having driven around the land where the signs assured us they were, we didn't find).

We did find a phone booth, though.

Scotland is full of sunshine, the region where we are looks like Brittany (with a ratio of 3 sheep for a cow), and the houses are charming. We have taken of course way too many pictures which we will have to sort at home.

In the Youth Hostel, our Scottish host was (white-bearded) charming and helpful, and indicated a short walk to take, down to the burn and back.

We found a small church and its cemetery

  

Detail of a Celtic cross

We were few at the hostel,  which was lucky for us as we had decided for this trip to cook our meal, taking advantage of the self-catering option of Youth Hostels.

Scotland! (Ou l'histoire de 6 gourdes dans une voiture)

Day 1: Paris to Oxford
Km driven: 539

First night. Destination Scotland, which is why we are in Oxford.
Uneventful trip -we incidentally passed a spaceship (picture later, when we get a computer) on our arrival to the ferry in Calais.

Driving on the left: fingers in the nose, especially in queues. We had a few of those.

Oxford is a beautiful city, full of people dressed in strange robes with funny flat black hats (graduation day in most of the colleges, obviously). We arrived too late to visit something, especially since we left an arm and a leg in payment for the parking.

Tomorrow, we leave at dawn direction Gretna Green: we are secretly eloping.

Note de la petite soeur : nous nous habituons à la vie dans la voiture. Par exemple, on lui a appris à faire le café.  Utile quand on part à 6h... Et celle à la place du passager apprend à s'occuper. Lilly joue avec son GPS tout neuf et moi je fais des haltères avec des bouteilles d'eau !