Scotland Autumn Dispatch - Sunday, 2nd November 2014

 Dear Friends, after another yummy breakfast on Friday, we decided to head out on the road again – Wes had found a few spots that were of interest and we were keen to enjoy more of the countryside. Our first stop was at Dalmally, where we followed a narrow road up onto a hill where we found a Monument to Duncan Ban MacIntyre, Poet & Soldier, which had been erected after his death by his friends. Duncan was illiterate, but is the best known Scottish Gaelic poet.

Getting there, the Monument, the words and the view

 We also stopped at Balquhidder, where most of Rob Roy McGregor’s family is buried, although he isn’t! The Church was closed so we couldn’t look at it, but we wandered around the graveyard and took a couple of photos to remember it by.

Then onto the very pretty town of Callander, in Stirling, the gateway to the Highlands. Sadly there were serious roadworks going on and it was easier not to stop! We did think it would be a very pretty place to spend some time during another trip! There is a pink building called the Roman Camp Hotel, which is sited near Roman ruins, and gets rave reviews for its accommodation and afternoon teas.

Delightful road sign in Callander

 We followed another road to look for the Inchmahome Priory and discovered that it was the last day to visit. You pull up at a little shed, walk to the end of the pier and summon the boat which takes you to the island in the Lake of Menteith. Sadly we were too late to do this as the last boat home was at 3pm and it was getting close to that time.

On we drove by the side of Loch Venachar, which is between Callander & the wonderfully named Brig o’Turk. Wes had read about a café/restaurant that served lunch until 4pm and got rave reviews from Trip Advisor. We are so pleased we persevered and found The Harbour Café, as it delivered in spades. We each chose a whole baked rainbow trout, sourced from the Loch, and it would give Tuki Trout a run for its money. The only downside was that it was served without the head, but when we waylaid the chef to congratulate him, he agreed that it would be better if the head was left on, but 80% of his customers disagreed.

The photo doesn’t do the meal justice, but you can see the little vase of fresh flowers, the loch in the background, and other happy diners. Great service as well.

We drove back home through torrential rain and inky blackness as well, as wintry weather has set in by 5pm most days.

Yesterday we decided to have a break from driving and went for a lovely long walk around parts of Oban we haven’t seen before. We walked out along the shore to find the Lighthouse Pier, and managed to walk about a mile beyond it before discovering it was private property and we couldn’t get to it all.

We wandered around The Coliseum, aka McHaig’s Monument, found an old Carmelite Convent, now a private home, as well as two more churches we had not seen here before.

While Wes fossicked in one of the many charity shops here looking for a new book (Michael Dibdin hasn’t hit the spot for him), I went to the hairdresser to see if I could get a fringe trim. The young girl who did the trim was thrilled that I had come back after having a fringe trim last year and confessed that although she was now a redhead and fully-qualified, she had been the blonde apprentice who cut my fringe back in July 2013.

At 2pm we headed off to Ee-Usk on the pier for lunch and enjoyed the finest oysters we can remember. We followed them by a cold dish of salmon three ways – hot smoked, cold smoked and cold cooked with salad and tiny chips. This was a stunning meal and we finished it off with a great chat with the couple at the next table, who had moved here from England, and were loving life in Oban.

Back in our room, Wes decided it was time to try out the deep bath in the middle of our bathroom, and has declared it best bath ever! I’m sure the whisky helped give that impression.

This morning we woke early to the sound of rain battering the seven windows in our room and made a decision to cancel the short ferry trip to one of the small islands, where we had planned an 11km walk.

Instead we set off when the rain eased down and drove up to Pulpit Hill, which offers stunning views of Oban Harbour, then back down to the shoreline to see where the ferry we had planned to catch left from, and discovered it was a tiny, standing-room only affair.

Then off to visit Carnasserie Castle (1570s), a spectacular ruin, just outside of Kilmartin. You can climb 5 levels at one point and 3 at another, each of 95 steps and the very top provides great views of the surrounding countryside, which is Pictish in character. The rain held off while we walked the .5km to this Castle and explored it, and stayed away while we wandered the churchyard of the historic Kilmartin Church of Scotland. The Kilmartin Stones is an important collection of early Christian & medieval carved stones, some housed in a mausoleum & others lying in the graveyard.

Fun and games squeezing through this entrance to the walk to the Castle

I must thank everyone back in Daylesford who has made our trip away so much easier. A special thanks to Judi Allen, who has been collecting & checking the mail; as well as visiting Maloney Folly frequently, especially through the stormy days; and keeping plants watered and happy.

Thanks also to Jeff Bain, who has taken over my job of Bin Monitor for our piece of Duke Street; to our next-door neighbours, Rob & Dene, who have looked after Maloney Folly on weekends; to Barbara Simpson, who oversaw the repair of our bedroom blind cord; and to our Facebook friends, especially Jane Barrett, Lyndall Jenkin, Carol Bruce, Rod & Marg McDonald & Caroline Storm, who haven’t stopped commenting on our trip and/or keeping us up to date with local news.

Thanks to Jeff & Kev Hoolihan for following us so closely from Lincolnshire and to Leigh & Simon who delayed moving home for a weekend to join us on the Isle of Skye.

We head off early tomorrow to drive to Glasgow and hope that the rain isn’t too heavy and that we can tick off a couple more special things before returning the car at the airport and spending the next 24 hours in the air.

Good news also to read that Ian Robinson is home from hospital and on the slow road to recovery. Warren Pengilley remains in hospital in Melbourne and we hope that he will soon be home again as well. It feels strange to be missing the Daylesford Art Show and especially the Spring Racing Carnival, although with the help of tips from Leanne & Danny, we have managed to back the Cox Plate & Derby winners so far. We will be in the air when the Cup is run and will find out the result when we land in Sydney.

View from our window of the ornamental grape through the rain

Finally a big thank you to Viva, whose legacy made this five weeks happen – we know she would have been thrilled that we spent this time in Scotland that she loved so much.