Another wet and windy day today, so Sharon And I decided to lay low and stay inside for the morning while Brandi, Kathi, & Jerry went for a walk down the road a piece. Later in the day we did all head to Oban to get some groceries and eat dinner at the Waterfront FishHouse. The food was excellent again, I had the vegetarian soft tacos, Jerry had fish & Chips, Kathi had the chicken, Sharon had the sea bass, Brandi had the veggie Tacos but I don’t think she was impressed as they contained several jalapeño peppers that were pretty hot. I did covet the mussels from the next table as I remembered how delicious they were the last time we were here.
Today was a LONG day as we had to be at the Oban train station early in the morning. The Scot Rail train was taking us from Oban to Malliag and back to Oban. We arrived in Oban about 8 AM and we got back to Island View about 10:30 PM. It ended up being about 300 miles on the train and there were about 30 stops along the way. The trains were pretty comfortable and the scenery was unbelievably beautiful.
We arrived Mallaig and had about 2 hours before heading back to Oban so we decided to get some lunch at the local pub called the The Steam . Food was pretty good and we then hit a few local shops before heading back to the train for the trip back. I would certainly recommend taking a train trip if you ever make it to Scotland but maybe a shorter route than the 8-10 hours we had on the trains.
Train From Oban to Mallaig & Back
Below is a Gaia track of the train trip from Oban to Mallaig that shows some pics and stats. I only recorded and tracked the trip on the wayup as it was consuming a lot of my phone battery.
This morning the sun is shining and its about 45 degrees and I’m up and out in the back/front yard to get some drone footage while the getting is good. I’m still learning some of the tricks of using the drone and I hope to post some of these videos in the next few days.
It’s such a pretty day Jerry and I decide to take a hike around here on a ridge not to far from where we are staying. I also take the drone with us in the hope of getting some nice views up on the ridge. Kathi & Brandi are also taking a walk along the path we trekked on Monday.
The 1st mile or so go pretty uneventful and then we happen upon a group of steers behind a gate directly in our path. One steer happened to be on our side of the gate and he didn’t want to leaves buddies so we decided to take another path. Pheasants seemed to be everywhere we walked and we later saw a pen up on the ridge where there was a Pheasant feeding pen and heard that there was a shoot up there on occasion.
We kind of had a direction and goal on this hike but we found ourselves walking into areas where we had to climb over fences and walk in marshes which because of all the recent rains were wetter than usual. The fern Brackan is very pretty but hell to try to walk through and we find ourselves walking though a ton of it. It’s 4 – 6 feet tall in places and forms a mat that is almost impossible to traverse. Jerry said we traveled places even the sheep wouldn’t go.
Once we finally got to the ruins we couldn’t get to close because the plants growing on the walls were blooming and there were thousands of bees doing their pollinator business. Cool to watch and listen to but we kept our distance.
All in all a pretty nice hike. Jerry and I discussed the differences in hiking in Kentucky VS Scotland. Although I love to hike in Kentucky the biggest difference is that in Scotland the hills & mountains (Munros) lack trees and the water is everywhere and the majestic views are in every direction you look.
Today appears to be another typical Scottish day – rainy and windy but we are heading out anyways to Glencoe. Glencoe is a village in western Scotland. It lies in steep-sided Glencoe valley, in the Scottish Highlands. The area is known for waterfalls and trails that climb peaks such as Buachaille Etive Mor and Bidean nam Bian. The rain mostly stops for the drive and our visit to Glencoe.
Lovely place where we visit a museum and walk thru the village. Upon leaving we go through a very scenic drive along a waterway with moss covered trees that makes one feel like they are going back in time. Unexpectedly, we come to a very scenic spot below Buachaille Etive Mor and Bidean nam Bian where the Clachan Inn is located. The restaurant caters to vacationers and hikers and has many vegan and vegetarian options. I leave this place thinking it doesn’t get much better than this. Great views, Good food, Great beer, and Great company.
1st up is the Ardmaddy Castle & gardens a short trip from where we are staying. The drive up to the castle and gardens is quite stunning as we pass moss covered stonewalls on both sides and the canopy seems to close in on us. We pull into the car park and immediately a young timid female Labrador comes out to greet us. Well off to a pretty good start I’d say. The gardens opens up into a wonderland of native plants and flowers. I must say I have a weakness for some gardens and this one gets me buckling to my knees. I’m not a big fan of the typical English gardens with their topiaries & their manicured look, well this one has very little of that. Plants are left to their own natural shapes and sizes but not overly crowded as to seem unkept. My eyes seem to dart from one side of the paths to the other and I do recognize a large majority of the plants which pleases me to some degree. We walk through a few gates to even more areas that call out to spend more time there with them. Unfortunately, it begins to rain a little harder and we vow to leave but to come back and explore further before we depart this part of Scotland.
5 Stars for sure.
Oh yes the Castle was pretty nice too, although it’s apparently a private area under some renovations so we didn’t get very close.
Tomorrow’s original trip to the Isle of Mull has been postponed due to the possibility of nasty weather. We have been told that when the weather gets bad (windy) they sometimes suspend ferry service to & from the island and we don’t want to get caught over there. So tomorrow we plan on going to Kilmartin.