This is a diary account for our holiday in Scotland in 2000. It is long to read, we were camping for about 2 weeks or more so be warned. There are pictures etc. to come so please bear with me.

Sunday 6th August
We picked up the tent that was to be our home for the next two weeks from Nigel's brother. Heading upwards and westwards we hit the M6 and had some food at the Southwaite Services. We spoke to my uncle and advised him of where we were. From there we drove to Glasgow and within two hours, we were at our first destination.

Monday 7th August
We drove from Glasgow towards Stirling and up to Perth. From there we drove on the A9, the Great North Road. The weather turned to slow rain and at times very hard sheet cutting rain. We were at times over five hundred above sea level, we were in the clouds (which were very low down), and at first I thought that we would not spend the night in the tent. When we reached Inverness it was still drizzling but we decided to camp regardless. We pitched camp under a tree as it was raining and learnt our first rule of camping - don't pitch under a tree! The campsite was in North Kossock on the shores of the Beauly Firth. The tide was out and the shore stank. Nigel did not have a good night of it, the ground was too hard, and the sleeping bag was too small. I had forgotten the pillows and the camping facilities were not entirely clean. I cannot remember where we ate that night but we must have as I remember heading back into Inverness for a meal.

Tuesday 8th August
We decided that we'd head somewhere different and Fort William was the next destination. We headed down the A862/A852 road down Loch Ness. There was a line of trees in the way and it was possible on occasions to pull over and take some snaps (some of which are going to be here) and then continue our drive to Fort William. As we got to Fort Alexander the weather brightened up, making our decision to move southwards appear a little worth while. We sent some postcards from Inverness and we even managed to get the cameras out for a decent shot at holiday snapping! (Take a look once they're on line) We ate in the local seafood restaurant and it was most pleasant! I would recommend it to anyone. It was raining that evening. When Nigel and I went to bed I asked him to bring his shoes in under the tent canopy, which he did. He got up during the night (as is normal) and forgot to make sure that his trainers were in the canopy - one of then got soaked! Nigel had a better night of it though as he'd bought an airbed and a larger sleeping bag whilst I bought some air pillows.

Wednesday 9th August
We bought the boots on the Wednesday for the simple reason Nigel's trainers were wet; mine were getting wet so when Nigel bought his, he bought me some too! We ate as McTavish's kitchens for breakfast and they have traditional Highland Dancing in the restaurant in the evenings. We didn't stay to see it though, don't ask me why but we didn't. Anyway, we went for a drive later that day around Loch Leven and saw Glen Coe, which I have to admit, was a beautiful view. We took some photographs of some waterfalls that suddenly appear at you from the depths of the rocks. For the second night we camped under the shades of Ben Nevis, which stands at 1343 meters above sea level. Opening the tent and seeing that mountain look down upon you is a sight worth remembering; it took my breath away. For dinner I had my traditional black pudding supper and Nigel had a chicken kebab. I had picked up a blue wax hat to keep the water off my head since I couldn't use a camera with an umbrella in that terrain.

Thursday 10th August
It started out somewhat drier that the previous day, even if the weather was still somewhat fickle. We decided to drive to the Isle of Skye and see what she had to offer to us. We drove along he A830, passed Loch Eil, Glenfinnan, Druimindarroch and upwards on that road to Mallaig. Mallaig was nice, small and compact but it was lovely as the sun was out! We paid over £20 to drive the car and two occupants to the Isle of Skye. The boat was a short 30 minutes of sea time and before I knew where I was, we were being asked to return to our vehicles and drive out the boat to Ardvasar dock. From there we could drive on a small road up and through the Isle and it was breathtaking scenery. (I am not sure if we took any photos but trust me, in the summer time it's worth it) Through the Tourist Information point at Broadford we found a small place in Lower Breakish ran by a woman called Chrisann. The house was new (Under ten years old) and she had a wee baby boy to look after. The small village was scattered out amongst concrete islands in the peat heather marshes and it was quaint. Chrisann was (and probably still is) a very charming woman with a wicked sense of humour. We ate in the local pub (Which was a decent half-hours walk through the peat bogs and heather but it was worth it) and had a wee drink.

Friday 11th August
There were several Italians in the same B&B and in the morning when breakfast was served I was informed of an ancient tradition (I am not sure if she was trying to wind me up or the Italians or if it were true but...) about porridge. Apparently if you do not eat it at breakfast you're supposed to line a drawer (empty of course) and pour the porridge into it and wait until it goes hard (Usually that night) and then eat it. The Italians didn't like the haggis or the porridge (I love it and so did Nigel) but they liked the black pudding. The conversation for the morning was a subject I can relate to (Providing it contains Rangers or Celtic as one of the teams), football.
We left there and drove on the A863 to Dunvegan Castle, the home of the Clan MacLeod. If I had been a MacLeod it would have held more interest but none the less, I enjoyed it. We drove back on the A87 and drove to the Skye to Kyle Bridge. I can understand why there is uproar on the toll on that bridge. It looks as if the bridge was build on a council budget (or part of the M25) and it's an eye sore (Photo going on line for this). It is certainly is not worth the £5.70 private car (£41.90 for a coach, full or not or the £14.50 odds for the local buses) and should we start tolling for the M25, there would be hell to pay. However because it's Scotland no one seems to give a damn. SKAT (Skye and Kyle Against Tolling) is a worth while campaign! We drove westwards and headed for Sheil Bridge, coming across the Castle that the BCC use on their adverts with the weather balloon: Eilean Donnan Castle. It is famous not just because of the above reason but also because it is the Castle used in the Film Highlander. Where the Clan MacLeod leave for battle, that is the castle. (Enjoy the pictures!) We camped that night at Sheil Bridge, underneath the Five Sisters (Named as there are 5 ridges in that range). We took a walk up a small hill (Nigel climbed it better than I did I have to admit) from which you can see Loch Duich and some pretty views. We didn't take the cameras out that evening, sometimes it's nice just to walk and remember things. Nigel won at Pooh Sticks. The first bridge we used we couldn't tell whose came out first (Using a bridge at the base of a waterfall is not a good idea) so we called it a draw. The next bridge we came to the sticks kept getting stuck as it wasn't flowing fast enough but Nigels' came out and mine didn't.

Saturday 12th August
It was windy wen we broke camp, it had showered through the night but it didn't take long to pack everything away and set a trail. Nigel wanted to go to John O'Groats but we had decided the previous evening that it was too far so we wouldn't go. However since I wanted a closer look at Stirling and it was southwards of where we were, we agreed that heading North was a good idea, so across the Grampians we went and then headed to Inverness once more. This time it was sunny when we arrived and we took in our brunch, since we'd driven through breakfast. (In truth we weren't that hungry in the morning!) Xei picked out a campsite at Elbo near Tain and we pitched camp. There's some pipe music on in the centre of Durnoch tonight so we're going for a look see and hear!

The marching pipe band was very good, even if they did start about fifteen minutes late! The marchers at the front were good and there was one of them, the girl, who didn't seem to be enjoying herself. Once the band had turned and stopped, I encouraged her to smile (Putting my fingers in my cheeks and forcing myself to smile made her do the same) and for the rest of the march she smiled whenever she saw me. One of the pipers called her Kay and I have to say, she looked very well turned out. Xei pointed out how formidable something like that would have been in battle and I have to agree! We went back to Embo and had supper and a drink and headed to bed.

Sunday 13th August
When we awoke it had rained through the night but we fairly dry, so where the daddy-long legs under the inner skin. We broke camp and drove further long the A9, passing another distillery at Brora, which reminded us that we had passed the Glen Morangie's distillery the previous day! We stopped at Helmsdale at El Mirage, a local restaurant that reminded me of Dame Barbara Cartland, everything was in pink! There was a wall full pictures of Nancy (Whom I assume is the proprietor) with various celebrities (Sally Whitakar and Ian Botham to name two) and one of Princess Diana. There were several pictures on the wall, although not immediately obvious, of Nancy and Dame Barbara Cartland herself.
We played Pooh sticks again, as there is a bridge where the river meets the sea. Xara won though because Xei picked long pooh-sticks that blew further up the river from where they started. Pooh-sticks score is 1-1.
From there we passed to Badbea (Which is historically depopulated. I don't know why but if someone can tell me, I'd be grateful) and upwards to Wick.
We hit a slightly windy route on the A99 and at around 14:00 we arrived at John O'Groats. There isn't a whole lot to do there, we bought some more Irn-Bru (Nigel is drinking it like mad) and some gifts. The weather was beautiful and we took some photos. We left there to head to Thurso, passing some small quaint looking places on the way. When we reached Thurso we didn't like the look of the campsite (£5.00 deposit for a toilet key!) so I took us down to where I thought the Glen Morangie distillery was, in Brora but I was wrong. We ate in Brora after pitching camp at the Green Park (for £4.00 a night) which is literally just off the A9 just as you approach Brora from the north.

Monday 14th August
There wasn't anywhere to get breakfast in Brora and since we did not have any cooking utensils or a hob, we didn't have anything for breakfast. At around 9:30 I awoke and we broke camp, determined to find the Glen Morangie distillery. It had rained during the night so the pitch where we had made camp was just about the only dry piece of grass on the site! At around eleven thirty we came across the Glen Morangie Distillery and had a guided tour. Glen Morangie is one of my favourite whiskies but I kept getting its name mixed up with the Glen Fiddich one. Glen Morangie is the third largest (Or correctly speaking, the third most popular whiskey Scotland produces) distillery in Scotland.
They use bourboned seasoned casks from that USA, put them inside a peat fire and then put in their single malt, which stays there for 10 years or so, before being bottled in Edinburgh. If you're a whiskey drinker, then it's interesting but if you're not, the "Malt Whiskey Trail" is not one to follow.
After that we headed Southwards once more and came through Inverness. The weather had turned bad and we stopped for breakfast at a Safeway supermarket, stocked up on Irn-Bru then headed to Aberdeen. This is the second time this holiday where we've stayed in a B&B but at least I had a chance to relax. We ate in a small Irish theme pub and played darts in the Albert Inn (Which is where we were staying).
I won the first two games of darts, starting at 301 and on the third game Nigel won. I won't mention the game he won was when he switched from his right hand to his left for the double two that he needed and that he is naturally left handed. Neither will I mention that I feel somewhat cheated on the whole issue!
I started the day on a dram of Glen Morangie and I finished the day on the same note - two whiskey's later.

Monday 14th August
Kicking off from Nairn we followed the Malt Trail to the Glen Fiddich Distillery and I found it most impressive. There is no entrance fee and the tour starts with the history of the William Grant building his distillery building with his seven sons. After the short film you are taken around the distillery with someone who speaks your language (Spanish, French, Portuguese or whatever). Then you're shown the old Malt House, (They stopped malting their own in 1969) and the washback vats which hold 50,000 litres of whist and water and so the process of making the whiskey begins. There are two still houses on site, all fired up with the traditional coat. Since it was built in 1887, the process itself still hasn't changed, save the malting process. I don't think that any of the large distilleries malt their own barley anymore, esp. since Glen Fiddich can get through 4 tons of grist a wash and they can do 4 washes per vat (there are two vats) per day.
Each of the stills is made of copper and I haven't seen another distillery in Scotland with this many stills or in such a shape. Every twelve years they get replaced so they get through a lot of copper.
Glen Fiddich bottle their own whiskey on site (Which is their claim to fame) and again, I'm not aware of any other distillery in Scotland that does this, large or small. Nigel bought me a bottle of Glen Fiddich and we high tailed it out of there (with a wee measure for me later on) and headed northwards and somehow we ended up 20 miles outside of Inverness. We tried reaching some friends in Aberdeen but they were not available. Once again we find ourselves at a campsite, Invernahaven Caravan site. We went to the RSPB site at the Boat of Garten (Loch Garten) to see some Osprey's but despite being there for about an hour, we never saw any. We were told that the female of the pair might have been flown to Africa, leaving behind her mate and the two nearly fledged chicks. We got some cool photos of a red squirrel and some smaller birds but not the osprey.
We ate in Newtonmore at a pub called the Glen Inn. The food was very nice and homecooked and highly recommended for anyone!

Wednesday 16th August
We started out just outside Dalwhinnie and the day was beautiful! Xei tried to pack the tent up and I started by having a shower and fussing the local horses, although Xei was not amused at this! We drove to Pit Lochery, Xei had his hair cut and we had a look around the wooden shops. We then headed for Perth and the heavens opened up! When I say that the heavens opened up, I mean that: It lasted ages and bounced off the floor. We stopped at Stirling Castle and had a wee nose around. To be honest there wasn't a lot to see but maybe next time a guided tour is required but Edinburgh had portable tape recordings that just allowed you to listen as you walked around the castle at your own pace.
The rain fell again and with Xei navigating, we camped at the Queen Elizabeth Forest and met three French people who had their car flooded in a small ditch as they tried to reach the same campsite. We spent the evening either sheltering from the rain in the Forth Inn in Aberforth or talking with the French people.

Thursday 17th August
We started on the west side of Loch Lomond in the Queen Elizabeth Forest. We awoke before our French counterparts, who admitted that my warnings on how cold it was going to be during the night were deadly accurate. We said our goodbyes and wished them safe journey, still unsure if their soaked car was going to start. We had breakfast in Callander, which was quite lovely in a little place called Munchies. Then we drove to Craiglarach and drove down the eastside of Loch Lomond. We found a campsite at Luss but there wasn't much there to entertain us in the evening or to eat in so we drove on to Balloch, then we headed north again on the small backroads and found a campsite right on the west coast of the Loch. We pitched the tent and soon afterwards the heavens opened and threw what rain it could down. The rain went for it hammer and tongues, I was inside the tent inflating the air bed when the rain started and it sounded as if I were in a kettle drum. I couldn't hear a thing, not even my own thoughts!
The rain passed and it was a comfort to sit and take some photos of both the loch and the rabbit that seemed to be hopping around the place! We drove to Drymen and ate in the Winncok Hotel. Half way through dinner a pipe and drum band struck up, this made it for me. We drove back to the campsite and Xei fed a swan cookies but the swan was pestering him and chasing him and then Xei decided to feed the ducks, something the swan didn't like and went for him!

Friday 18th August
Today is the last day, homeward bound tomorrow. We started out at Loch Lomond with a deflated pillow. I gave Nigel mine and tried to sleep on my fleece - not recommended! We drove across country, aiming for Edinburgh. It was strange because I was driving through some places that I knew and lots of places that I did not but we stopped for breakfast in Falkirk. When we returned to the car all the electric's on the driver's door, including the mirror, speaker and window had stopped working - need to get it checked by a dealership I think (Car is still under warranty). Xei and I suspect that someone tried to break in and failed - we'll see.
From Falkirk we drove to Edinburgh and saw (if somewhat briefly) the Scottish Parliament Building. And we found a campsite called Gilsland at North Berwick for £7 a night. Until seven thirty that night it didn't rain. We went to fetch pie and chips and sausage and chips for tea and sat in the car to eat them whilst it rained. Afterwards we scoured the newspapers or I wrote some more to this diary.
If it were possible to not go back to England I would - but I miss my cat and the car needs fixing so I guess I'll go homeward bound tomorrow.

P.S. I fixed the car, the electric lead had fallen out of the door, and I noticed it as I was opening the car door to get out, and this is the first time today I've opened the door completely!