Blogs from Oban, Argyll, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe

Leaving Glasgow was a little complicated, with a miscommunication about the rental car, the Hertz office moving, Peter having to walk there twice because they had given away our car and him not realising that the left lane in the city is only for taxis and buses (that might have been a fine!). Oh, and switching sides back to the left again! Eventually we were off in our shiny red Clio and suddenly the city turned into country and we were heading north. There is such a characteristic look to the north country forest: a row of grass and dock weed yellow flowers, then bracken fern with lots of light green fronds at the moment, then seedling oaks and other low shrubbery, dotted with lots of pink foxgloves and pale pink rhododendrons (both seem to be ... read more

Colonsay, KiloranBay, to see if I can add pictures. We actually start our trip on Monday next.... read more

Well this is it, 0612 hours, Saturday 08th July and we are certainly not wide awake. Car fully loaded with Beverley's cases and bags etc... oh and my small case of course. Bikes attached to the bike rack, having said that I couldn't find the misplaced (lost!) bicycle lock but without further ado, we are on our way. After many stops for loo breaks and coffee, and a fuel top up, we have arrived at Oban, which is a little breezy but the sun is shinning and Beverley has her mint chocolate ice cream. We have checked into the Oban Bay Hotel, medium sized room (that is so typical of a mans opinion...it's small) but it'll do, we don't have a sea view to Beverley's disappointment (never pleased, even more grumpy now she has been bitten ... read more

Today was the day I think we were most excited about as we were of on the Hogwarts Express! When booking the trip there was the option of paying extra to take the Jacobite Steam Train and being a fan of Harry Potter, I just had to do it! We left Fort Augustus after breakfast and headed to Fort William, where we would catch the train. On the way, we had a short stop at the Commando Memorial. What a beautiful spot! The Commando Memorial was built in 1951 by the sculptor, Scott Sutherland, to honour the original British Commando Forces. It is located near Spean Bridge village, overlooking the training area the Commandos used. You can see Ben Nevis in the background. It was such a peaceful place. Knowing nothing about the memorial, I am ... read more

Geo: 56.4104, -5.46972(quote from Thomas Crawford)I sat with Martin at breakfast this morning. He's been guiding for around 35 years. Before that, he was an archeologist for a while, and he owned a restaurant. He's an interesting guy, but I wish he would talk linearly (is that a word?). He'll start lecturing on a subject, then it's like he gets distracted by something shiny so he'll start going on about that, and then it's back to the original subject but the reversal was so quick you don't even realize what's going on. When we're walking around a town or whatever, he'll stop to talk about something and then abruptly, "Follow me!" And he darts off. It's like following Willy Wonka through the chocolate factory, only there are no snozzberries.James, on the other hand, is almost taciturn. ... read more