We arrived in Invergordon early and walked into town to
see a bit of the town and the murals before our tour...this is when I
remembered I had walked around the town in 2009, again before my tour. Today's
excursion was set up to introduce us to Scotland's famous Loch Ness and two of
the country's medieval castles...one in ruins, the other a homey residence.
Traveling southwest from Invergordon, we skirted the banks of the beautiful
Cromarty Firth, past the Dalmore Distillery then we drove through the Muir of
Ord and past the town of Beauly with a stop at the Beauly Priory, a former
Monastery abbey in ruins. We continued our drive through the beautiful Scottish
Highlands to the splendid Loch Ness...Britain's deepest freshwater lake, whose
murky depths inspire tales of the Loch Ness Monster or Nessie. We stopped and
toured the 14th century Urquhart Castle ruins, situated on the shores of Loch
Ness one of the most picturesque areas in Scotland. On our way to Inverness,
the capital of the Highlands, we made a quick photo stop at the Aldourie
Castle, a 235-acre estate...our next stop was the Dochgarroch Lock at the end
of Loch Ness. Onto Inverness for a quick walking tour gave us a glance at some
of the historic sites, such as the Inverness Castle, the Gothic-style Town Hall
and Tollbooth Steeple, as well as the pretty tree-lined River Ness. After a
brief stop at the former John Pringle Woollen Mill, we headed inland through a
landscape of alternating open countryside and quiet woodland. We drove past
Culloden Moor one of Scotland's most famous battlefields. Next, we arrived at
the conservation village of Cawdor for a tour Cawdor Castle...a beautiful,
traditional medieval castle and residence with lovely gardens as well as
interesting ties to Shakespeare's Macbeth. The castle, dating back to 1372, is
still in the hands of the Cawdor family after six centuries. On our way back to
Invergordon, we stopped at Culloden House where Bonnie Prince Charlie stayed
the night before the Battle of Culloden as well as the Clootie Well, a
spiritual well where people hang ‘cloots’ (bits of cloth). The Scottish
Highlands scenery is beautiful and well worth a visit...Another glorious sunny
day in Scotland thanks to our Tours by Locals Guide Johnny McCormack.
No comments:
Post a Comment