Day 7, Heart of the Highlands

In usual fashion for this trip the previous day was sunny and clear, so therefore today had to be cloudy and rainy. We gathered in the dining room for another of Pam's wonderful breakfasts. Today at breakfast we were joined by a couple from London on holiday, Kelly and Rukshad. They were heading to the northern part of Skye so we filled them in on the Trotternish and some of the must see spots like the Cozy Tea House and they filled us in on the Fort William to Mallaig trip.

Now that's a Scottish breakfast.

A recommended best read from Ron.

We said reluctant good byes to Ron and Pam, but not before Ron sent us off with a rousing and profound quote from a Scottish mountaineering book. Suitably motivated despite the weather we headed back to Broadford where D and K picked out a photograph from Alan Campbell's Woodrising Gallery. Afterward, we stopped back at Sean Cameron's jewelry shop so we could pick up a few items to bring back home. After missing the fire station training session the night before I tried to make up with it by leaving a few patches from back home for Sean. He seemed really chuffed by it and I'm sure I could finagle a station visit the next time I'm through the area.

Sean's notice to customers.

We said our goodbyes to Broadford and headed south to the ferry terminal in Armadale. We stopped once or twice to view a picturesque seaside. We got to the ferry terminal and discovered that we had actually made it in time to catch an earlier ferry than we had planned, so we lined up at the end of the group of cars waiting to board the MV Coruisk. With Sage safely aboard, we ascended to the lounge over the vehicle deck for the 45 minute ride over to Mallaig.

The tide is out on the Sound of Sleat.

Boarding the MV Coruisk. It's higher sided than the North Carolina ferries I'm familiar with.

This little guy was curious about what I was up to. Damn paparazzi.

Pulling in to Mallaig. Note the sculpture to the center left of the photo. Not sure what it is of.

 

We got off the ferry in a steady rain and made our way through the fairly large port town to the A380 to make our way to Fort William. Along the way we had some time so we detoured to a coastal route, the B8008, that took us through the small sound side town of Arisaig. A very pretty area, it is worth the detour and a trip back.

Just east of Arisaig we saw this raptor of some type perched on this fence post for a few minutes.

A neat looking place to check out on the next trip.

After Arisaig we drove through the small village of Glenfinnan at the top of Loch Shiel, famous for its Monument and the Glenfinnan Viaduct, know as the railway bridge in Harry Potter movies.  Then we made our way further east, eventually entering Fort William. As is common, the clouds had lowered and spat rain, so Ben Nevis was not visible. We drove in to downtown Fort William and after a few creative traffic movements we located the walking mall. We were quite hungry so D and K located a cool pub called the Grog and Gruel located on the mall. Great atmosphere with lots of hill walkers fresh from Ben Nevis or about to make the climb. 

A pretty good bratwurst.

I'm not sure where the pig theme came from, but BRMRG was impressed.

Nice 110 with an Ifor Williams topper.

On the downtown mall this good pup seemed to be waiting for his owner to finish a pint.

 After a late lunch at the Grog and Gruel we shopped a bit at the downtown mall before making our way back to the northern side of town to find our B&B for the night, Glen Shian. Our hosts, Glenys and Ian, made us feel at home even though D tried his hand at redecorating their lawn.

I think we were all a bit knackered so we briefly napped before going for a walk along the Caledonian Canal that was just outside the back door. The Caledonian Canal connects the west coast of Scotland at Fort William with the east coast at Inverness. Along the way it connects Loch Linnhe in front of Fort William to Loch Lochy, then Loch Oich (where we stayed at the Glengarry Castle Hotel), Loch Ness, Loch Dochfour and then to Beauly Firth at Inverness. It has an interesting history and just a few hundred yards from our B&B was the lock system known as Neptune's Staircase which is eight locks to raise or lower boats to the Canal.

The rail station at Banavie.

Another artistic attempt.

Art of the coal pile. Many of the houses were heated by coal including our B&B. It has a peculiar smell that I wasn't used to.

The boats docked just outside the back door on the Canal.

The bottom of Neptune's Staircase.

Lots of dogs about, luckily no fouling.

The well manicured back yard of Glen Shian.

My room. Appropriate what with my fondness for the purple blanketed hills of the Highlands.

 After our naps were complete and we refreshed by walking along the Canal, we decided on the Ben Nevis Inn for dinner.

Look at this tiny little Eurobox I found in the car park.

The atmosphere inside the Ben Nevis Inn was very much Mountain Days, Bothy Nights. Much of the clientele looked as if they had just completed the closest Munro, Ben Nevis. Unfortunately, what could have been a great time was slightly cheapened by the service, or lack thereof. We waited for at least 45 minutes before someone figured out that we hadn't received our appetizers. Then I had to ask if they had forgotten our meal after another half hour. The beef or lamb, I can't remember, they brought for D was overcooked and tough. He did something he's never done before and sent it back. They were gracious and quickly bringing him fish and chips. My fish dinner was good, but after the issues with apps and dinner we decided to forgo dessert.

One item of humor came from a gang of Munroists who gathered in a lounge up in the loft where we were seated. As one of their gang walked past us to get to the bar downstairs, he retorted to a friend who must have been commenting on his choice of apparel "these ARE trousers". (He was wearing what looked to me like plaid pajamas.) He was closely followed by a friend who shouted in a stage whisper "HOUSE trousers". Maybe it's just me, but I found it utterly hilarious. Could have been the starvation also.

We found our way back down the hill on the single lane road and back to the B&B. I packed up and sorted my gear as the next day I was scheduled to fly home. We arranged for an early breakfast and prepared for an early departure. The warm house made for great sleeping with the cold rain outside.