Hello from Fort William - haven't noticed a fort anywhere though, so don't know what the go is.

Sat got a lift with Ruari, the owner of Am Bothan hostel, to Tarbert and across on the ferry to the Isle of Skye. He dropped me at the main town of Portree. And it was raining surprise, surprise. Also I got to the tourist office at 4:02pm, it was already shut and lights out. The staff came out 30seconds later. After giving the lovely older woman a karate chop to the neck and shoulder I asked about buses the next day (the dreaded Sunday). She said 'no, you heathen'... Well something like that. So I decided to high-tail it out of that place and focus on the attractions of the mainland. I was walking along the main road asking god to be nice about the wind and rain when 2 lovely blokes in a red Vauxhall pulled over to give me a lift. They were going on a big drive so could drop me at Kyle of Lochalsh - just on the mainland (over the controversial bridge connecting the Isle of Skye to the mainland). I found the 'hostel' -- read crappy place -- paid my £12.50 and ate my dinner and went to bed.

This morning I got up bright and early at 7am. Which I later learned was the new 6am because they'd turned the clocks back overnight. So I was out on the main road again around 8am I believe... Just caught sunrise too. Wondering at the lack of church traffic - it picked up and then I did too! Got a lift down to FAMOUS Eileen Donan castle with a Macbackpackers tour group!! That was good (could see what I was missing out on by travelling all on my lonesome). Got a lift to an intersection where some cool brochs hang out about 11 mile down the road.

Me embarking my walk in super-quiet Kyle of Lochalsh

View of the Loch along the way (& a handy caravan sleeping point)

Stunning Eileen Donan castle - apparently in a scene from Highlander and can be hired out for weddings.

Me and Eileen

In 1 minute (I think that was a record) I got yet another lift to the tiny village of Glenelg and the brochs were only 1 1/2 mile up the road. So I started walking. Beautiful countryside, gentle rays of sunshine, and a bubbling brook. And only a little bit of cliche :)
Turn-off for the brochs. Ok... steeling myself for 1.5 mile walk with my full pack :)

Got to a broch and hung out there for a while. Then went to another broch just up the road and the local farm kids came out to climb all over the broch. I was eating my vegemite and cheese sandwich by the road and they yelled out 'Hello to the Australian' (wed talked about my cultural background minutes before). I turned around and they were on top of the broch - like 10m up. They said I should climb up too... So with their expert guidance I climbed up through all the gaps and wandered across the walkways within the different levels. It was pretty cool! I now have to email the pics that the boy took of us up the top to Katie (hi Katie, if you're reading this!!).
Inside Broch (Dun) Telve

The outside of Dun Troddan, note slanting walls.

Me, Katie and [check] - my guides.

So after that fun, I left for the main road. Lucky for me, the kids' dads were on their way to another farm further down the road. So I piled into the landrover with dads, 4 kids and 4 dogs. My backpack looks a little worse-for-wear after lying on the muddy fence posts in the trailor :)

They dropped me off on some deserted bit of road and then I got a lift with a guy in his Silver Seat (that's a car by the way). He was going over to his workplace, some game farm, to clean his car (good idea after having a stinky backpacker in his car). So then I was back to the Sheil bridge turn and the road that goes to Fort William (57 miles). Walked for about a mile, then got a lift with a bloke heading off south of FW for work. He was a nice guy, we talked about his grown-up kids and work and Blair and Howard being puppets of Bush... Anyway, got here to FW...

And tomorrow's forecast is for rain!! SURPRISE SURPRISE ;) ;). The rumours are that this place is the wettest in Scotland.

I'm now in Leverburgh, the southern most point of the Isle of Harris. Did have plans to head further south to the Uist islands but the weather has turned rather awful. And I need to head back towards the mainland to Edinburgh to see Marjorie before she goes to the Galapagos islands. And then I'll be meeting up with Leilani, Tully and Dan who'll probably be in Northern Italy by then.

This place though (the Hebrides islands) is just amazing. I will definitely be coming back here one day, in the summertime. Gorgeous beaches - I didn't imagine there could be nice beaches in Scotland - and so much waterlife to see. Otters, seals, whales, puffins and other migratory birds. Just fantastic. Would have loved to have seen some more of these animals this time but unfortunatley, I'm here just at the wrong time really. It has been gorgeous all the same and I have had some lovely experienced.

Stayed in Tarbert, a little tiny nothing town on 24th, Tuesday (ok, yes it was nice, don't want to offend the Tarbertans) and met some more backpacker-types. Gareth (from London) and Steve (from Aus but working in London for 7 years) were travelling on motorbikes north. We went to the local pub and played some pool. 1st game I absolutely sucked (as usual) but then after a couple of pints (thanks boys) I was playing ok. Beat both the guys - they weren't too happy. I think they were worried I was going to set the place on fire or something :P
Gareth [left], me, Steve [right] at the tiny pub.

The local bank... Tully, you could work for these guys. Little van would suit you :)

I then hitched south from Tarbert (about 20 miles) and that was a great way to see the west coast. Just happened to get dropped off at some of the great beaches. Then I'd check it out, take some pics and try and hitch another lift. Got three in total (one older lady to Luskentyre, man with two kids to Horgborst, lady going to Pilates in Leverburgh). All so friendly!! Great community and culture on these islands.
The bustop where I was dropped near the turn-off to Luskentyre.

The view from the bustop, can see famous Luskentyre beach.

Horgobost beach

View north of Horgobost, Luskentyre is to right of this pic around the headland.

Now hanging out in one of the nicest hostels I've been in (would want to be for £14 a night :)). See here: Am Bothan. Great outlook to the lochs and the bay and a lovely fireplace and living room. Just a great atmosphere and the owner is so lovely. He's letting me use his computer to type this and use the internet.

I went for a walk this afternoon to Rodel Church which just south-east of here, 6 mile (approx 10km) round-trip walk. I took Daisy the Border Terrier along with me. Beautiful coastline and just a lot of empty space. On the walk back along the road from the Church I was only passed by one car for the whole 3 mile...

Daisy all rugged up by the fire.

A cairn by the roadway.

Rodel church (1520s-1550s) where the tomb of Alexander MacLeod is. Apparently people kept nicking bits of his skeleton so eventually they took him out and sent him on a holiday to the cemetary - he is buried in a secret location.

Me in front of Alexandra McLeod's tomb.

Ooooh these would look great as a stove splashback dear.

I am in love with an Isle called Lewis. Well technically it’s an isle-land incorporating the counties of Lewis and Harris; although they’re both called an Isle on their own (Isle of Lewis and the Isle of Harris). I guess that makes sense because an Isle could be ‘for’ many different places. So from now on, I am going to tell Scots that I come from the Island of Queensland. Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, true.

Lewis and Harris is the biggish island to the left where you can just see the word Stornaway. The bit of land to the right is wee mainland Scotland.

After my last post on Saturday (after arriving on Lewis) I managed to hire a car for my Sunday driving. And drive I did – 150 miles in fact (all up £42 = £26 for hire and £16 for petrol). But before my Sunday adventures I took the car to the supermarket to pick up Saturday dinner and Sunday snacks. What a great feeling to be in a car again!!!!!!! After cooking my stirfry back at the hostel (got all these veggies for 20p as because they close Sunday, they get rid of old stuff for really cheap), I was enjoying my book infront of the heater when the other two backpackers rocked up. Dan from Ireland and Vinnie from England. These two wanted to go out for a beer so we headed off to the only pub open by this time (12pm). Was a pretty crazy place with about 99% of the inhabitants off their faces. Lots of crazy dancing, ladies falling off their high-heels, arguments (thank god I can't understand some of the Scottish accents and Gaelic), and drink-spilling. However, the band was good and my Scottish-brewed Tennants went down a treat.

Next morning, I left town and drove north-west to get to what is known as the Western road that transfers through many of the towns with important archaeological areas. I saw the Arnol blackhouses – a ruin and reconstructed blackhouse from Viking times.
The car outside the backbackers (& Dan)

Sheep with different colour spots...

The Arnol blackhouse - small windows and 3ft thick walls to keep in the heat. The roof has beams but they use little wood as it's so rare. Thatch held down with ropes (& nets sometimes) and stones. The original blackhouses have doors that are only about 4 1/2 feet high. The newer ones, like the one I stayed it at Garenin, have been updated to have 2m high doorways.

I then continued south along the coast and turned off at Shawbost and headed to the shore. Ambling down the little track I saw the 2nd person I’d seen since leaving Stornaway – had to wait for him to amble a bit further off the road before I could continue to the beach. Here I made a cheese and ham sandwich and ate looking at the beach and seaweed.

The next stop in my journey was the blackhouse village near Carloway, where there are about 9 houses that have been refitted out as holiday accommodation. Quite nice really. I went for a walk up over the peat bogs along the coast for about an hour. My bog-jumping skills have greatly improved I think (although my more than damp shoes might disagree). The rain was around, on and off, but all in all the driving around was quite easy. I had a cute little Vauxhall Corsa, which I think is actually like the Barina? It was a cool car (petrol, 1.2L) and very easy to drive. Was also good that all the townsfolk were in church for the morning and then again at 6pm. Meant there were few on the road. Although considering the small population, it might have been just like any other day really.

Peatbog - lovely stuff!

Me clambering for a better view of the vertical cliff-faces. My travel insurance was still valid then, don't worry.

After my walk I continued south and found Dun Carloway – a broch, which is an old housey/forty-type thing dating back to the Iron Age. I climbed up some of the stairs and looked out over the loch. And then I thought ‘S**t I hope this thing doesn’t collapse’. There was noone around of course, so my thoughts bounced between ‘this is great, I can do what I want’ and ‘If I fall off a cliff [or through these old broch stairs] noone is here to save me’. All the visitor centres are closed on Sundays – however, I think it’s great that people can still get in to see the sites).

After leaving the broch (in the rain), I arrived at the famous and archaeologically very significant Callanish Stones, just as the weather was clearing (for a bit at least). I was the only person there too, just as the sun came though, albeit weakly. But it was enough to form a FULL rainbow behind the stones. I was amazingly happy at this moment. One of the coolest experiences I’ve had so far on this trip. I know they’re just stones, raised up by some loonies for some lunatic reason but they are the work of three to five thousand years old loonies!!! After that almost religious experience (well I am on one of the most staunchly protestant islands in Scotland) I carried on to travel to some of the picturesque beaches of the island.

Dun Carloway Broch

Me on one of the levels in the broch, after going up some tiny corridor.

The stunning Callanish stones (don't get engaged near standing stones, apparently they're cursed. And i met a guy who believes this as his fiance recently left him for no reason!)

Did some cliff-edge driving, Kythera style, with blind corners and the occasional passing place, but didn’t panic too much as I knew IF I encountered anyone it would be wee Scottish people rather than crazy malacka-yelling Greeks (sorry Vince J). I could see that the beaches would be stunning when the sun was out. And if the water temperature was doubled! (The Isle of Lewis is the same latitude as Siberia and Nthern Canada but is kept mostly snow-free by the warm waters from the east coast of America).

After some beach-going (ie. Walking over the sand and rocks and looking at the seabirds) with a friendly dog that decided I needed his company, I drove further south along the coast towards what are apparently the most scenic cliffs on Lewis (Mangurstadh). The road however didn’t really go along the edge so I couldn’t get a great view. But it was a lovely afternoon anyway.

Me in front of Valtos (Bhaltos in Gaelic) beach - woohoo blue sky!!

My rocky sunset perch over Margeriata village.

At 5:45pm, as it was starting to get darker, I left to join a couple of backpackers who I’d met in Stornaway on Saturday night, back at the hostel blackhouse of the Garenin blackhouse village. I had their beer too, so I knew where I had to be Sunday night. Was a nice place and would be brilliant in the summer as it's right next to the beach.

Went for a walk in the Lews castle grounds here in Stornaway today. Saw lots of birds and met a couple of nice locals. Couldn't believe that I saw seals in the harbour too!! Amazing stuff.

Lews castle - uninhabited and not open for the public yet but there are plans to fix it up. The grounds were great to walk around and I saw a couple of pics of whats-his-name hanging out in his royal gardens in the 1800s.

A seal in the harbour. (Can see zoomed in - will edit and update photo at later date)

Some migrating birds - can actually see them decently when I zoom on my camera... Trust me.

Stupid rainy weather! I swear I am really trying to enjoy the Scottish countryside but the weather really makes it challenging. Had a lovely sleep-in this morning (despite the very conspicuous springs in the mattress) then decided to head off to Cromarty, a headland opposite the bay from Inverness and a good jumping-off point for boat trips into Moray Firth. I spoke to people that run fantastic-looking boat trips, going far out into the firth, finding minke whales, local dolphins, seals and birds, but they were unsure about the weather and wouldn't know till later in the day. To get to Cromarty in time for their cruise (if it went) I had to take a bus before I could hear about whether or not they were going to go out, but I just went for it anyway.

So took a lovely trip (£5.80 return) through country-side with numerous sheep (complete with tails and different-coloured spray-painted spots) and lots of cows. Also through a couple of small villages with cute cottages, small pubs, and few people - and with roads strangely reminiscent of the tiny donkey trails found on Kythera and some parts of Italy (Paul Kelly, is it true that every f--ing city looks the same??). And at one stage I wondered whether the old lady behind me was ok because she was panting so heavily. I then realised it was her four-legged friend. Although it's in many places in Europe, I don't think I'll ever recover from the shock of sharing so many human things, such as cafes and buses with people's lovely little dogs.
There's the little critter.


Map of nth-eastern part of Scotland. Cromarty on the tip where the line points to. *** Edit 27/10 note Dingwall where there has been major flooding over the last few days!!

So finally got to Cromarty and was starving so after talking to the kiwi chick who works at the boating company (the trip was cancelled due to the wind, unfortunately) found a hotel that was serving tea and scones. Must say, this scone was one of the best I've ever had. Could have been the fact that I was enjoying it viewing the harbour while protected from the rain and wind :)

Mmmm scone and tea.


Decided that a walk up the headland would be lovely, and there is a well-marked trail up there too. But, the rain-gods were in full celebratory-mode and I thought that I might come down from that headland rather miserable at being soaked, cold, and devoid of happiness after not seeing much, let-alone a view of the harbour. So I found another pub and enjoyed the house soup and a local Scottish brew. I attempted to visit the historical house where Hugh Miller, the allegedly famous geologist lived, but it shuts on Thursdays to Saturdays. So back to Inverness on the bus. It then poured right after I came out of the supermarket where I was picking up a few items (those on special of course) for tomorrow when I head off to Ullapool. I'm not really too optimistic about the weather over the next few days but supposedly tomorrow (Saturday) is going to be sunny at least (fingers-crossed for the ol' Met Office of Scotland).

Ummm the headland that supposedly sports a good view is among that fog somewhere.


Spot the oyster-catchers among the rocks.

Cute little town-houses on the water.

Hi all In Inverness now - the word Inver means 'river confluence' and Ness is the name of the river that passes through town. And yes, it's the jump-off point for exploring Loch (ie. Lake) Ness. It's a cute little town (pop about 50,000) but the rain when I first arrived made it a cute, quiet town :)

Today I went on a full-day tour to Loch Ness and to Glen Affric - including protected original Scottish forest. There is only 1% of the original forest left in Scotland and this is it.

I think it's weird that as a kid I remember seeing pictures of the famous 'Loch Ness Monster'. It's a story I have always known about, even though I know nothing of the facts. So I went on a tour today called with a company called Loch Ness Experience. It promotes itself as the 'non-touristy' tour, ie. one that tells the truth about the story. So I learned all about the history - from when it was all about a big fish (in the 1930s), to when guys that were fighting with each other, for some reason made up that it was a plesiosaurus (sp?) etc. etc. Ahhh it was all so silly. But it's made tourist-millions $$$.

We then went to a cairn - an old burial chamber aligned to see either the solstice or extreme moon positions from within - dating from the Neolithic and Bronze ages. I think the guide said it was 5,000 years old? Anyway, these cairns, and the standing stones and stone circles in Scotland, date from between 4000BC and 1500BC. (More info here and about the orientation of them here.)

It was nice weather all morning - misty but not raining!!! And then at Urquart castle, the heavens finally opened. But it was ok. I had all my cold weather gear on - incl thermals, polar fleece, scarf, gloves, beanie and raincoat.

Then we went to the Glen. The part I was really looking forward to. It was still raining alas. But it was still so beautiful, I didn't really mind. UNTIL my shoes and therefore my feet, got wet. Damnit, I wished I had some gumboots/diveboots/waterproof boots. Anything...

Couldn't wait to get back to the hostel for a hot shower. Will sleep well I'm sure.

First stop on the side of Loch Ness

The view on Loch Ness.

The boat-driver Dick Raynor (his website here)

The top of the cairn

The view of the centre of the cairn where the moon or setting sun could be seen from the inside. Burial section right in the middle.

Some gorgeous cows - the hairy ones of course :)

Me at the top of the tower at Urquart castle (the Loch behind)

In front of the ruins of the Urquart castle.

Some very wet walking along the river in Glen Affric

The original Scotland forest.


Lookout above the River Affric - not much to see really but some lovely heathland.