Holiday in Scotland

It had not been long since we arrived back from our break in Rome and we were off again. This time to Scotland. We planned on a touring holiday with two nights in Glasgow, two nights on the Isle of Skye and two nights in Inveraray.

We were up very early on the Saturday morning having packed the night before. I had used Butlers to take me to Luton Airport when I went to New York, and the service was just as good. But the same cannot be said for Budget Car Rental. The plane arrived on time with ten minutes from landing to pick up our cases. It was going too well. We had to wait in a queue for an hour and a half to pick up our car, and even then it wasn't ready. Fortunately it was newish Peugeot 308 that was perfect.

A short journey to Glasgow, we parked up, had a coffee and set out on a walking tour of the city. It has to be said that we were very disappointed. The walk along the River Clyde and into Glasgow Green was very ordinary.

Things did perk up as we found the Merchant City quarter and we wandered about the quiet streets in the sunshine. It was time to find our hotel, Alison had booked a Marriott on the strength of working over Easter, and it was superb with our 9th floor room had great views and was very quiet despite overlooking the motorway. We took the car into the centre to try to find somewhere to eat on a busy Saturday night. Negotiating the one way system was fairly chaotic and we ended up parking too far away. So we did have to walk down Sauchiehall Street and pass the Concert Hall. All the restaurants in the Merchant Square were full, but we did find a table outside one in the Italian Quarter. It was great to eat our pasta outside on a warm June evening.

When we first talked about a holiday in Scotland, I mentioned that The Falkirk Wheel was somewhere I had always wanted to visit. Alison was very good to indulge my strange choice, but it gave her the chance of a run along the canal. While she ran by 11 locks to the Coran Sea Lock on the Firth of Forth and back, I went on my boat ride. The £20 Million Falkirk Wheel is the world's first rotating boatlift and opened in 2002. Originally, the Forth and Clyde Canal from Grangemouth to Glasgow was linked to the Union Canal to Edinburgh by 11 locks over a height of 34 meters and boats took nearly a day to make the connection. The whole canal system fell into disrepair and many of the locks disappeared. As part of the Millennium Link Project to restore the canals, The Falkirk Wheel was planned 3km away from the original locks and required a brand new piece of canal to be built.

Designed by RMJM ( the same architects that were responsible for the apartments contract at Discovery Dock) it lived up to all my expectations. And the hour's boat ride is definitely worth it. Meeting up with Alison, we stopped for coffee at a table right next to the wheel and were rewarded with watching a boat make it's way into place right next to us and then lifted to the top. Outstanding.

We had time to have a short afternoon walk and found our way to Carron Forest Park and a stroll by the reservoir in the sunshine. We had been very lucky with the weather.

On Sunday evening Merchant Square was deserted. so we had out pick of restaurants, plumping for a fajitas with our own widescreen TV showing a Brazil game.

On Monday morning we were off to Skye. If I had worked it out beforehand that it would take 3 hours 50 minutes to the ferry, I might have wondered what we were doing. But the scenery on the journey was just fantastic, all the way from Loch Lomond, less than an hour out of Glasgow. We went through Glen Coe and Fort William before heading down "The Road to the Isles". At the end is Mallaig, a pleasant ferry and fishing village. The ferry due out 20 minutes after we arrived was full, so we were booked on the next at 3.10pm. It meant we had time for a spot of lunch and a stroll around the harbour, and we were glad we did.

The ferry journey was very enjoyable in the afternoon sunshine. We had good views of the islands of Eigg and Rhum. Half an hour and we were approaching Armadale on Skye.

It was another hour or so to drive to our base in Portree so we headed for Peinmore House which turned out to be the best Bed and Breakfast establishment you could hope to find. Don and Margaret Greer moved here from Norfolk, and have invested quite some time and money in refurbishing the house to a very high standard. Only five rooms, and ours was a spacious and beautifully appointed suite at the top. Just gorgeous.

We took the car into the centre of Portree to find somewhere for dinner. The Royal Hotel had a basic but large cafe, and was where Bonnie Prince Charlie was supposed to have said goodbye to Flora McDonald. We had not thought much of the town until we made our way down to the harbour. This was really excellent in the evening sun, how many times could you say that in Scotland.

Tuesday was our only full day on Skye, so we wanted to do a coastal walk. We were so lucky that the day started fine and we decided on the Gleshornish peninsula in the north. A level but indistinct path alongside the Loch gave us great views of the mountains beyond. At Gleshornish Point there were wonderful views from the headland. Clifftops on the other side of the Loch were a sight. It was hard going to get around the hilly headland with little sign of a main path. We were cutting across steep heathland before we again reached the Loch side.

Just as we were on the last stretch back to the car, we felt some light rain. We had again been lucky with mainly sunshine while we were out. We had already decided to go back to Peinmore House for a rest and some refreshment. Seeing France eliminated from the World Cup was a bonus. The rain had set in when we went out for dinner but The Prince of India (strange to have a good Indian restaurant on Skye) was not far and we had a good meal.

The following day was our journey to Inveraray, but we decided to spend some time on Skye first. A Forestry Commission otter sanctuary at Kylerhea was only a slight detour on the way to the Skye Bridge, and this was our first destination. Little did we know that after leaving the main road, the six miles of single track road turned into a white knuckle ride. Precarious twists, turns and humps meant that Alison was glad when I offered to take over the driving.

We found the small car park and walked down a track to a hide overlooking the loch. There were a few people there, and we took advantage of the binoculars that were provided. No otters, but great views of seals and cormorants.

Not keen on the prospect of returning down the road we came on, we decided to look for the ferry not far from the hide. We had no idea if this was just a passenger ferry or how often it ran. There were two cars waiting when we arrived and the ferry was just arriving.

The Kylerhea to Glenelg ferry is a hidden gem, situated as it is between six miles of single track road on either side. But it is the shortest distance between Skye and the mainland, a short ten minute crossing. I think that this was Alison's favourite part of the holiday. A quiet beautiful location, a dinky ferry taking just three cars and a dog, and seals swimming nearby. And to think we were originally planning to return to the main road and cross the bridge.

The road on the other side was much nicer, mainly single track but level and straight. And we saved time by what turned out to be a short cut. There was one climb before we met the main road again, but it was worth it for the views of the Five Sisters on the other side of the A87.

Another long drive, stopping at Glen Coe visitor centre for coffee and a snack and avoiding the England game. We reached Inverary and the Loch Fynne Hotel in the late afternoon and came across the biggest disappointment of the holiday. Alison had booked a junior suite overlooking Loch Fyne. But the room was awful, so old fashioned, noisy and too warm. We went to have something to eat in the town and decided to ask to change the room. We were taken to new and modern wing with a very quiet standard room overlooking a garden. Made even more perfect with a good discount. I had the best sleep of the holiday.

We stayed in Inverarary on our honeymoon twenty years ago but not at the same hotel. Then we stayed at what is now The Argyl Hotel, and it hasn't changed a bit.

The next morning started off bright so we set off for Oban. We had no real expectation of anything special as when we visited there on our honeymoon, it had seemed quite miserable, although it was a damp day as I recall. How different it seemed when we arrived. A pretty, bustling little port with nice shops and cafes along the front and a lovely harbour.

Last time it was too wet to go out on a boat, but this time we did. Just an hour's trip out to sea to see some seals and the Islands of Kerrera and Mull. And watch one of the big ferry's arrive. Only eight passengers and our captain come guide. Complete with hand drawn pencil sketches of nearby scenes. Quite cool out on the boat, but well worth it.

We had coffee and cake in a lovely cafe, walked around the shops and the harbour before heading back. We wanted to stop to look at an old castle we saw on the way there. Inishail lies on an island in Loch Awe. There is parking on the main road, so we walked across the fields for a good view of the remains which urned out to be those of a convent and chapel.

Back in Inveraray, we decided on eating out at The Argyl Hotel and see if we remembered the interior. No luck, but we had a nice meal. The evening was very pleasant and we wandered around the front with good views of the harbour and the bridge.

On our way back to the car, we heard bagpipes in the distance. We found the Inveraray Youth Pipe Band on their practice night outside. They had won competitions in the past, and it sounded like it. They were very good.

We had a late afternoon flight on Friday, but we had all morning free. So we headed for Loch Lomond and parked at Banoch. Just in time for an hour's boat trip down the loch on the Silver Marlin.

We still had time to drive to Banoch Castle and Country Park where we had coffee and a snack from "The Slipway" cafe, sitting on a bench next to Loch Lomond. A stroll around the grounds and it was time to head for the airport.

TOP MARKS go to:

The Glenelg - Skye Ferry

Seal spotting at the hide and ferry at Kylerhea

Peinmore House - a superior B&B

The Falkirk Wheel

Sitting outside for dinner in the middle of Glasgow on a warm Saturday evening

Skye scenery

Portree harbour

The Mallaig to Armadale Ferry

Oban and the boat trip

Inveraray

Driving through Glen Coe whilst missing the England game