Kyle of Lochalsh to Loch Ness

Tuesday July 9, 2019

Each morning I blog about the previous day. Dave needs to find something to do as this takes me about 45 minutes.Tuesday morning he was chatting with the B&B owner and her other mother who spoke Gaelic. Dave learns a lot from these chats.

I can see why people say you should bring “wellies” (boots) when going to Scotland. It rained until about 2 pm. We were damp all day with wet feet which made for a chilly day. It was about 60 degrees. The rain did stop as we headed toward Loch Ness.

Our first stop was the Eilean Donan Castle. It has been used in a number of movies - a James Bond movie with Pierce Bronson and “Highlander” with Sean O’Connery. The main section was built in the 1300s with additions added when more space was needed and/or when parts were destroyed by war. In the late 1800s, there was hardly anything left - just a small ruin. A member of the Clan MacLeod decided to rebuild it in 1912. It took 20 years and now is back to the original. How they knew all the details of the layout is a mystery to me. The MacLeods still live in part of it - and have owned it for over 800 years.

After some lunch at the castle, we started our journey to Loch Ness. The landscape changed from vast expanses of beautiful mountains and raging streams and waterfalls to lush, dense forest with parts of the roads canopied with trees. Also very beautiful. We got to the Loch Ness “center” where we heard both sides of the story - the scientific and personal. The people that say they’ve seen Nessie are convinced of it. The scientists can explain it away. Either way, it’s a great story.

Loch Ness is 22 miles long and apparently can hold the entire population of the world. It’s over 1,000 feet deep.

After a bit of shopping, and two cat naps along the side of the road (being on holidays is tiring stuff!), we headed to our B&B for the night. It was 6 miles away (if we could have crossed the lake), but took us an hour to get there. It was a bit tricky to find - as are many of the places we stay. The host, Michael, is super friendly and had lots of stories to share with us. He and his wife are originally from near London and loved this area so much they decided to move here. Michael said living here is very inexpensive and so can make ends meet from the B&B.

In Scotland, you can rent land from the government for about 2 pounds per acre. You can even deed it to your kids. It’s yours “forever” - if you want it. By renting the land (which your house sits on - you own the house), you’re able to get grants from the government. The people at the B&B yesterday got a 40,000 pound grant to help with building their house. How does all this get paid for if the rent is so low?

We had supper in a place way up on a hill that overlooked Loch Ness and then watched a movie (first TV since we got here) about Robert the Bruce who was a Scottish king.

Another lovely day!

One thing I learned today: Blood pudding (which is black) is made of pig’s blood and some grains to hold it together. Dave liked it. I wasn’t even going to try it!
One new thing I experienced today: Three dogs barking at each other in the restaurant where we ate supper. Dogs are allowed in many restaurants, which is fine, but the barking is NOT fine.
Most powerful moment of the day: Being able to see Loch Ness. It’s so famous. Unfortunately, Nessie was hanging out at a different part of the lake.  :(
One pleasurable experience: Eating chocolate. In addition to the “large” chocolate bar we share everyday, we had a chocolate dessert. Holidays and chocolate just go together.