Wrapping It Up and Haunted Castles

Tonight we are in a town that is unbelievably 10 minutes from the Edinburgh airport but feels like it's miles and miles away.  It is a very old B&B with a bar and restaurant and is located in the small town of Ratho on a canal by a stone bridge.  So quaint!
Last night was, for me, a very different story.  We stayed in a castle in Dingwall that is said too be haunted.  While I didn't see any ghosts, while on the 'ghost tour' and in the dungeon, I felt very ill and somewhat faint.  The dungeon we were told was the site of many horrible slayings and imprisoning's but (and I quote) "Is now used for weddings and small dinner parties to dispel some of the negative energy."  In my opinion, it will take much more than that!  It felt like a horrible place.  Other than that, we slept through the night with no hauntings and liked the staff and the food a lot.
My favorite part was more about the town of Dingwall which is, in itself, unremarkable.  However, there is a Pictish stone there in a churchyard that dates from 500 - 800 AD.  No one has been able to decipher them to this point.  So amazing!
Today on our way to Ratho from Dingwall, we visited the Culloden Battlefield outside of Inverness.  It was a very moving walk and remains pretty much as it was when thousands of Jacobite Scotsman were killed by the British in a matter of minutes in 1746.  I am just at a loss.
We then stopped in the medieval village of Culross for a brief walkaround.  It has been preserved pretty much as it was in the 1600's (except for the cars).
Tomorrow back to Dublin for a night and then home.  We have loved the whole trip but both of us feel that Scotland has our hearts - especially the highlands!  We hope to return . . .

The Pictish Stone

The Castle inside and out sans ghosts

A very old house with thatched roof

Holding a sword like the ones used

in Culloden (but smaller)

Still very heavy!!

A path near the castle through farmland.

Culloden - Above a cairn dedicated to those who died.

Below is one of the grave markers.  There is one for every clan.

The blue flags indicate the line of the Jacobites.  There were red

flags indicated the line of the British.

The palace of Culross and some homes in the village.

And finally - The Bridge Inn - Our last night in Scotland.

From Glencoe to the Isle of Skye

It has been an amazing few days,  We accidentally stumbled upon an inn from the 1600's (The Clachaig Inn) while driving around the countryside in Glencoe.  We saw a small lane to the left and drove down it.  The sign said whisky tasting so why not?  It turned out to be the coolest place with lots of people including several kilted (is that a word?) men and some really delicious lunch.  We ate in the boots bar in the back.  Super old and really cool.

Another Highland Cattle - Aren't they cute?

On the way to Skye

Eilean Doune Castle

At the Boots Bar 

Today we drove to the Isle of Skye through beautiful mountains and lochs with the birch trees just starting to turn yellow.  We stopped for lunch (our main meal) again accidentally at the Broadford Inn which is the home of Drambuie!  The inn is the very place where it was introduced by Bonnie Prince Charlie after escaping the Jacobite war.  The story is that he was hidden by the Mackinnons who owned the inn and he gave them the recipe which he may have acquired in France. I believe they still are the makers of the amazing liqueur and the recipe remains a secret.

A Stag and his 'harem' across the bay

The old mar of Storr, Skye from our B&B (small peak in foreground)

I know . . . How many photos of highland cattle does one need to see?  My sister and I are definitely taken with them.  They are SO sweet - and some have similar hair color to ours!

Along the way - - - And the 'Old Man' up close after a fairly wet hike.  

And a cool house with a thatched roof

A Wee Car in the Scottish Highlands

Well, it is nothing short of fantastic up here!  We are already regretting the things we do not have time to see (like the Harry Potter train crossing the Glenfinnen Aqueduct), but we are making the best of what we can see and wishing for the most part that we could stay in every place we have been for a bit longer.
Some of the towns seem touristy during the day but we are staying pretty much away from those areas.  We did spend some time in Fort Augustus along with the tourists to watch a series of six locks open and move boats from one level to the next.  Ingenious!  We stayed on a farm on Loch Ness (no Nessie sightings) outside Fort Augustus with highland cattle, horses (the oldest is 33!) two dogs and many bird species.  Not long enough!! There was another couple there from Glasgow celebrating their 55th anniversary and a young host who was not only kind, knowledgeable and super efficient but handsome as well (according to a reliable source, Liam Hemsworthy).
Anyway, we have unfortunately moved from that location but are now in an amazing apartment with a view of Lock Lihanne.  There are trails right in back of our place - one (the murder trail) leads to the place where Colin Campbell of Glenure was killed by an unknown assailant in 1752.  It is said that he was thought to be too sympathetic to the clans after the Jacobite uprising and was ordered by the British to remove the Stewarts from their land.  He never made it there and some say that only the ancestors of the Stewarts know who actually killed Campbell.  A man named James of the Glen was hanged for the murder but it's believed he was innocent and that the real assassin - one of the Stewarts - went mad because of this.  There is a cairn dedicated to Campbell in the woods behind our temporary home on the spot where he was killed and another cairn dedicated to James by the bridge which crosses Loch Linnhe.
Further up the trail are views of the loch toward the west and a rock to sit on to watch the sunset or just to listen to the forest.  I stayed as long as I could until the midges started to bother me and it got really cold.
This is a really cool place!  Tomorrow more exploration of Glencoe!
Here are photos from the last couple days.

Our B&B on Loch Ness and below our
first highland cattle

Views of Loch Ness with Rainbow, at sunset and in the morning with mist.

Some of the wild (and not so wild) life

Our host with his dogs, Amber and Ella

        

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And at Sunset

Cairn for Colin Campbell

A bird along the way

 GLENCOE . . .

                      Exploring on a cold and windswept day

The photos below are after we arrived in Ballanchulish near Glencoe.  It is an incredible area with some amazing hikes.  You could easily spend a month here just exploring the area.  Below is a very small sampling of some of the beauty of this area.