We are taking a four day break from the boat to explore the Highlands with my sister and her other half, Steve. First stop Inverness, (where we will meet Deidre and Steve and a car!) We got to Inverness by using two buses, very inexpensive and reliable, Josh and I are very impressed with the public transport system here in Scotland. We have spent a couple of nights in a charming, very rural B&B in Kiltarnity, where we experienced true Highland hospitality.
When we arrived in the afternoon our hostess, Ethna, provided a full tea for us. On the dining room table in the farmhouse, laid with a lovely old embroidered table cloth was a three tier tea stand with home made shortbread, scotch pancakes with butter and home made jam and on the bottom tier a selection of home made cakes and fruity tea bread. The breakfast in the morning was equally stupendous, with fresh laid eggs and bacon and a selection of bread and home made scones. I tried the porridge, which was different as it is made with oat flakes and pin head oats so quite granular and flavoured with salt rather than sugar.
We have now moved on to the Glencoe area, which I always thought was a mountain but is the name of the valley and the surrounding area, infamous for the Glencoe Massacre. We are staying in a wooden lodge which is newly built in someone's side garden in a tiny hamlet near North Ballachulish on Loch Linnhe. What a stunning view greeted us as we entered the lounge, at the end of the garden are a range of Highland Hills, and a five minute walk away is the Loch and a friendly seal.
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| Loch Linnhe a few minutes walk from our lodge. |
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| Deidre enjoying the view |
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| Our lodge with the view reflected in the windows. |
In the evening we decided to go for a stroll down to the loch and back and on our way back fell into step with a local man walking his old English sheepdog Molly and another neighbour with his black spaniel Poppy. The conversation went something like this. (Poppy's owner is originally from Haworth in Yorkshire, so we were told he is still on probation.)
Us "Who does the dilapidated old house and barn belong to?" "Ah, that was John MacDonald's. He's nocturnal, he only comes out at night." Us "You mean he still lives there?" "Och nay, he's been dead 20 years, there is a dispute with the family that has been going on for all this time." Us "Really, what happened?" "Well, he made his will and signed it and one evening he took it down to his friend Hamish in the town to sign as witness. Well, they both enjoyed a dram, they signed the first page and that is as far as they got. There was another page but they never got as far as signing that, so when he died the will was invalid. The family have been fighting ever since!"
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