Day 14 – Portree to Ben Nevis to Glencoe to Edinburgh.
Don’t be too sad that our trip is ending today, because there are a lot of amazing things to check out on the way back to Edinburgh. Once we’ve crossed the Skye Bridge, we get a chance to see Eilean Donan Castle. This classic combination of a sturdy-stone fortification perched upon a loch is about as Scottish a view as you can get. Just ensure you’ve got some room left on your camera to take photos. We then travel under Britain’s tallest mountain, Ben Nevis. The peak of this mountain is likely to be shrouded high in the clouds.
Our driver-guide may become a little emotional as we move through the valley of Glencoe. This marvelously mountainous area was the site of one
of the most tragic massacres in Scottish history. The story is as unforgettable as the landscape. The hilly views become flatter as we enter the Lowlands and travel to Edinburgh. We arrive in the early evening.
Let’s talk about midges again because when they are swarming, as they were here, it can be quite unbearable. Not that I wouldn’t have done exactly the same thing but I would have bought some very thin cool long pants and thin cool long sleeved shirt and a hat with netting. Really, no shorts and spaghetti strapped camis for me! You can follow along here for the Midge Alert. Everyone eventually made a dash for the bus and everyone on the bus was yelling Get In Shut the Door Shut the DOOR.
So many greens.
We never did see a deer. We stopped here for the second time because I thought it was fab, the Glencoe Visitors Centre. We often saw Glen Coe as often as Glencoe but I never learned the difference, and now I know – Glen Coe refers to the valley and Glencoe refers to the village. Nice. But I’ll tell ‘ya, it often seems random.
Probably due to the size of our vehicle and Keith’s penchant for surprise, we got to go to many places where we were the only tourists, like this place for example.
Mòran Taing Keith, it was grand.
