Dramatic Mountains of Glen Coe, Glennfinnan, and a pretty sunset

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Arriving in Glen Coe early evening, we had a little trouble finding the B&B. After a couple turns we found the Inchconnal B&B and our room was adorable, decorated in yellow and blue. We went to the Glen Coe Hotel for dinner, which seemed to be a happening place. So after dinner, we went back to the hotel and got ready and walked to the place so we wouldn't be drinking & driving. We met 2 very nice guys who were garda from Inverness. To make a long story short one of the guys went and put toilet paper in the woman's bathroom for me. This was the first time I ever had a guy do that for me! We chatted with them until closing time then walked back to the hotel only to find out we were locked out! I think we stood there for 10 minutes not wanting to knock or ring the doorbell at 1am! We had visions of us sleeping in the rental car. We did ring the bell and the owners let us in and apologized many times. Another unforgettable night!

Our itinerary for Monday was busy and started with a stop at the MacDonald Monument in Glencoe Village. This is a tribute to the MacDonald Clan that was murdered Febuary 13, 1692 by the Campbells. It is a sad story. Anyways, we went to the Glen Coe Visitor Center which has displays about the mountain area and a movie and timeline regarding the Massacre at Glen Coe. The lookout station has views of the 3 Sisters Mountains. We drove through Glen Coe and Glen Etvie taking in the beautiful mountain scenery.

Next was Treasures of the Earth in Corpach, a museum of geology and minerals with many displays of fossils and gemstones. We took the A830 to the Glennfinnan Monument & Visitor Centre. This was where Bonnie Prince Charlie "raised the standard" in 1745. We toured the centre then walked across the street and down a path to the monument which is of a kilted highlander, not the Prince. (which we thought it was) We climbed the spiral staircase to the top for views of Loch Shiel. When you look left of the centre, the viaduct from the movie "Harry Potter" is seen. We found Neptune's Staircase of locks and walked that area. This connects Loch Ness to Loch Linnhe and was built in 1847. Near here is Ben Nevis, Britian's highest mountain. We then toured the ruins of Inverlochy Castle, not to be confused with the luxury hotel. Built in the 1200's, it's on the banks of River Lochy, is a ruin and is free and opened all the time. We had to drive across a small bridge and follow little brown signs to get to it.

We then had to catch a ferry in Corran to Strontian. We got to our B&B at Otterburn where we had a cute room with a view of Loch Sunart. We ate at the Ben View Hotel. We didn't go out and saw a great sunset over the loch.

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Photos

Sunset on Loch Sunart
This was the view outside our room at Otterburn B&B in Strontian.

Our room
At Inchconnal B&B in Glen Coe.

Road in Glen Coe
There were many roads like these in Scotland.

Glen Coe
I'm not sure which mountain this is.

MacDonald Monument
This was in Glencoe village. The story with it is a sad one.

Mountains in Glen Coe
View from the lookout at the visitor centre in Glen Coe.

More mountains in Glen Coe
The scenery was desolate in some areas but beautiful.

Glen Etvie
Taken from our car.

Strange finding
at Treasures of the Earth.

Glenfinnan Monument
A statue of a kilted highlander.

Under the Scotman's kilt
I'm posing by the Highlander statue.

Loch Shiel
It was a beautiful spot.

Viaduct seen in the "Harry Potter" movies
This is where the "Hogwart's Express" passes through.

Neptunes Staircase
This is part of the Caledonian Canal near Ben Nevis.

Inverlochy Castle
This was pretty much a shell.