Days 22-25 June 8-11

Departure:  Inverness

We depart at approximately 09:00 for the 3 hour transfer to Inverness.  If travelling by train please do not arrange your train home any earlier than 13:30.  If travelling by plane you flight should not depart before 15:00.  

Saturday June 8

The wind down has begun. Nine of us climbed into Richard’s van for the drive back to Inverness. Gotta say - the rain didn’t bother me a bit and the hills were a breeze. We took the coastal route on the east side, and it was spectacular. It seemed a bit more tamed and populated, but maybe that was simply the result of being on a more major highway. The coastal views were magnificent. We finally saw some coos!  We also passed a huge wind farm located pretty far out in the water - I would like to understand the logistics of how that operates. We passed by Dunbeath Castle - which is perched on a dramatic piece of coastline.  The castle dates from the 15th century but was extensively remodelled in the 1860s. Turns out it’s for sale. Offers over 25 millions pounds will be considered. It comes with over 28,000 acres and 13 bedrooms in the main castle. In case that’s not enough room, there are also 21 other houses and cottages on the property. I haven’t checked my bank balance while I’ve been away, but I’m pretty sure I won’t be making an offer on it. Anyway… we left at 8:30 and I was to my hostel by 12:30. 

I didn’t do anything productive today. Wandered around the downtown shopping area and confirmed that I neither need nor want anything.  Small world though; I met Jim in the book store.  I was supposed to meet the Madison three + Paul for dinner, but they couldn't get a taxi in from their airport hotel.  I ate at their chosen restaurant, though, and it was tasty.  But - I'm looking forward to being home and eating a bit more green stuff.  

I did tally up the stats from the ride.  Here they are:

Total km.  1646.1      Daily average km:  86.64

Total climbing (metres):  20,419     Daily average climbing (metres):  1075

Total climbing (feet):  67,192     Daily average climbing (feet):  3536

Sunday June 9

Today was a treat for me.  I took the train south to Perth (about 2.25 hours) to meet Sheila - an adventurous soul from our Sierra Cascades ride in 2016.  I believe the train was 9 carriages long, and it was pretty much full.  Ultimately it was destined for London; it was a good reminder just how small Britain is..........  Inverness to London in about 8 hours (including about 15 stops along the way).  It seemed like a good portion of today's passengers (most of a certain demographic) were headed for Edinburgh for a Taylor Swift concert.  Their collective excitement generated a bit of a buzz, not to mention sporadic sing-alongs.

 Some nice scenery on the way there and back.

Sheila met me at the train station and then treated me to lunch and to a visit to the Stone of Scone aka the Stone of Destiny, previously mentioned in my Day 16 post.  Seems I lied in that post.  I had read on-line that the Stone is kept at Edinburgh Castle.  Bad/old information.  The Perth Museum opened at the end of March this year, and the Stone now permanently resides there (except when out for a coronation).

It was a lovely day out, and I was back "home" by about 7:30.  Home is a hostel which is only about a 10 minute walk from the train station and downtown.  Friendly folks and pretty comfortable amenities.  Better than a hotel, IMO.  

Monday June 10

For today I had booked a mini-bus excursion to the Isle of Skye.  The weather was less than ideal (aka awful), but at least I wasn't on a bike.  It rained on and off all day, and it was cold and windy.  Poor Bill - still touring on the Orkney Islands.  It was a full day; about 12 hours.  Harrison, our driver and guide, was very good and the bus ride was comfortable.  Wonderful scenery the whole way!  

First stop - to have a close look at some coos.

Then we drove about two thirds of the way down Loch Ness (didn't see Nessie) before turning west at Invermoriston.  We had a brief camera stop at Urquhart Castle.

Heading for the hills.......  This might be Loch Cluanie

Maps

And a climb up to another viewpoint (not sure which lake)

We stopped for about an hour at Eilean Donan Castle.  It is situated on an island at the point where three sea lochs meet, and is surrounded by some majestic scenery.  Although first inhabited around the 6th century, the first fortified castle was built in the mid 13th century and stood guard over the lands of Kintail.  Since then, at least four different versions of the castle have been built and re-built as the feudal history of Scotland unfolded.  Partially destroyed in a Jacobite uprising in 1719, Eilean Donan lay in ruins for the best part of 200 years until Lt Col John MacRae-Gilstrap bought the island in 1911 and spent 20 years rebuilding and restoring.  I paid the entry fee and toured the castle, but honestly, I thought it was pretty much just a shrine to the MacRae family.  I've seen better............  Stunning location, though.

Back on the bus and over the bridge to the Isle of Skye.  The Skye Bridge first opened in 1995.  The total distance across is 1.5 miles, so not immense but it was controversial when it was first proposed.  Even though the weather was terrible, the scenery was terrific; one can only imagine what it would be like on a glorious day.  We had lunch and time to look around in the village of Portree - the largest on the island.  

In the afternoon we continued our drive around the north-eastern peninsula.  The pics below are overlooking the town of Uig.

Next stop - The Quiraing; a beautiful landscape.  I would love to hike here.

We did a stop by the "kilt rocks".

Next up - Lealt Gorge.

Old Man of Storr

A little leg stretch at Glen Sligachan.

Although Collie spent most of his time in this area, he also accomplished 21 first ascents and named more than 30 peaks in the Canadian Rockies over six visits.  

More pics from that stop............

Last photos on the island..............

Back to the mainland and a pit stop offering a different view of Eilean Donan Castle.

Once off the Isle of Skye we took a different, more northerly route back to Inverness.  The scenery was terrific the whole way.  We had one quick photo stop overlooking Loch Carron.

It's unfortunate that the weather was so crappy, but I was still really taken with the scenery.  Perhaps a return will be in my future somewhere?  If so, some of these books (seen in a shop in Portree) could come in handy...........

It was a very full day.  Back to the hostel by about 8:30.  Dinner, shower, pack.  The taxi comes at 4am.  I met an interesting fellow while I was having dinner.  Gary Melhuish.  He is just a few days into JOGLE, self-supported and camping, and the weather has not been kind so he sought refuge here tonight.  He's lugging a lot of gear, including a good camera and a drone, and is planning to document his journey on his youtube channel.  I post his name here so that I might remember to go and look for his work. 

Tuesday June 11

And this fabulous trip comes to a close.  The cheapest airfare gave me probably not the most efficient way home.  Inverness - Amsterdam - Dublin on KLM, and Dublin - Calgary on Westjet.  Each flight was a bit late, but I made all the connections (just).  Unfortunately my bag didn't make the Amsterdam-Dublin connection.  As I'm typing this on Wednesday morning, I think the bag is on a flight from Dublin to Calgary, although the airtag has regressed to the Inverness airport early Tuesday morning.  Hmmmm....  I think this photo below was taken leaving Amsterdam.  More windmills in the ocean.  

And one parting thought........  as we were cruising across the Atlantic at 36,000 feet, it crossed my mind that we climbed almost twice that distance over the course of 19 cycling days.  Thank you, legs, for accomplishing that!