Monthly Archives: May 2011
Portree, Isle of Skye

Today we drive to the Isle of Skye. We’ve been looking forward to the Isle of Skye since before we left Australia. Don’t bugger it up Scotland! The weather has cleared up a bit today, and we’re rewarded with an impressive mountain-scape as we drive to Portree, where we’re meeting Keith and Sarah. Our short drive through the little town … Continue reading
Scottish Weather: 3 / Team Nettle: Nil

We get up at noon, feeling a little seedy. We’ve been vacillating as to whether or not to drive to the far north for a driving tour that Lonely Planet describes as “perhaps Scotland’s most spectacular road trip, … a scenic feast, almost too much to take in.” We’ve accepted that we’re not going to see and do everything we’d … Continue reading
Making Friends and Meeting Family in Scotland

We have a very sociable few days coming up. First, we’re meeting up with some quasi-distant relatives of Mike’s and then an American couple who we’ve met online through the travel twittersphere. We drive back via Loch Tay and Glen Lyon, as we can’t get enough of scenery like this: We do a walk on the way to meeting Dennis … Continue reading
Watching the rain in Perthshire

Having arrived after a quite dramatic introduction to Perthshire, we awake beside our very own loch to howling wind and rain (which kept Katherine up all night and dogged her dreams with visions of a flooding Nettle), and rather quickly our plans for a day-long hike dissolve. To be honest, I’m personally not so shattered at the idea of spending … Continue reading
To Loch Tay

An oft-abroad friend had waxed lyrical about a spot in the lower highlands called Loch Tay, and so it’s there to which we point our trusty steed as we leave the sheep-dotted fields and tidy urban sprawl of Edinburgh. The countryside rapidly increases in prettiness, as we pass by escarpments adorned with ancient-looking rocky buildings that might well have simply … Continue reading
Edinburgh

I’m really looking forward to Edinburgh. The Lonely Planet’s description of the city is enchanting: “Edinburgh is a city that just begs to be explored. From the vaults and wynds that riddle the Old Town to the picturesque urban villages of Stockbridge and Cramond, it’s filled with quirky, come-hither nooks that tempt you to walk just that little bit further. … Continue reading