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It would have been nice to get an early start, but that never happens. We packed up and left Skye. Not too soon after was Eilean Donan Castle. Very picturesque, and highly photographed. Unfortunately, we didn't have good light. After a while, a patch of sun appeared, but it never made its way to the castle. I wanted to hang around and wait for things to clear up, but we had to keep moving. Of course, five minutes after we drove off, as I looked over my shoulder as we rounded the bend at the other end of the loch, there was sun on the castle.
From there, we went down toward Loch Ness. It was sometimes rainy, but not usually. We stopped by a little cafe, where there was a Highland Coo across the road. Cyn got out to take a photo of it, while I waited in the car. I was starting to get antsy because the destination was Doune Castle, and they closed at 5:00.
And then we made it to Urquhart Castle. We didn't have much time, but we could see the castle over the wall by the car park.
It wasn't too far to Inverness. We had no idea where to go for food, but we happened upon a diner. It was odd being in a place that wasn't used to tourists. I checked Google for the time to Doune Castle, and it said we'd get there by 4:00. 4:30 was the time of last entry, I booked tickets online and we left.
Per Scotland, some of the trip was rainy, and some had sun. We hit a section of road construction, which cost us at least ten minutes. And then I made a wrong turn at a big roundabout! This was near the city, so there was an afternoon traffic jam. I'm pretty sure we lost twenty minutes. After the slowdown, I was driving pretty fast to get there on time. I was nervous to speed, since the signs said there were average-speed cameras, but there was other traffic going faster than me, so I risked it.
We got there just as they were closing the doors!
Aside from just wanting to see castles, this one is famous for being used as a set for Monty Python's Holy Grail, and also in Outlander. There's an audio tour which was narrated by Python's Terry Jones, so that was fun.
Click to see the scenes in The Holy Grail
The picture above shows the stairs that Sir Galahad fought his way up. Below is the room where he kicked the bride in the chest.
And then they used the same room as Prince Herbert's room.
"Someday, all this will be yours!" "What, the curtains?"
They say it takes about an hour to see the castle, but we rushed through it in less than half an hour. Then it was off to Stirling.
We had dinner at the Golden Lion.
Afterward we walked over to a whisky shop and picked up a souvenir. Then drove on to Falkirk, where we saw The Kelpies.
They're stainless steel and lit from within with color-changing lights.
From there, it wasn't far to the hotel.
From there, we went down toward Loch Ness. It was sometimes rainy, but not usually. We stopped by a little cafe, where there was a Highland Coo across the road. Cyn got out to take a photo of it, while I waited in the car. I was starting to get antsy because the destination was Doune Castle, and they closed at 5:00.
And then we made it to Urquhart Castle. We didn't have much time, but we could see the castle over the wall by the car park.
It wasn't too far to Inverness. We had no idea where to go for food, but we happened upon a diner. It was odd being in a place that wasn't used to tourists. I checked Google for the time to Doune Castle, and it said we'd get there by 4:00. 4:30 was the time of last entry, I booked tickets online and we left.
Per Scotland, some of the trip was rainy, and some had sun. We hit a section of road construction, which cost us at least ten minutes. And then I made a wrong turn at a big roundabout! This was near the city, so there was an afternoon traffic jam. I'm pretty sure we lost twenty minutes. After the slowdown, I was driving pretty fast to get there on time. I was nervous to speed, since the signs said there were average-speed cameras, but there was other traffic going faster than me, so I risked it.
We got there just as they were closing the doors!
Aside from just wanting to see castles, this one is famous for being used as a set for Monty Python's Holy Grail, and also in Outlander. There's an audio tour which was narrated by Python's Terry Jones, so that was fun.
Click to see the scenes in The Holy Grail
The picture above shows the stairs that Sir Galahad fought his way up. Below is the room where he kicked the bride in the chest.
And then they used the same room as Prince Herbert's room.
"Someday, all this will be yours!" "What, the curtains?"
They say it takes about an hour to see the castle, but we rushed through it in less than half an hour. Then it was off to Stirling.
We had dinner at the Golden Lion.
Afterward we walked over to a whisky shop and picked up a souvenir. Then drove on to Falkirk, where we saw The Kelpies.
They're stainless steel and lit from within with color-changing lights.
From there, it wasn't far to the hotel.
