Day Eight (Exploring the Highlands)

Culloden Field

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Next stop on our drive through the Highlands brought us to Culloden Field. This was the site of the battle between the English forces against Bonnie Prince Charlie's Jacobite army. The British crushed the rebellion and for the most part ended any further major claims to the throne. It's interesting that here in Scotland the British uniform is put on a big fat slob while the Highlander outfit is displayed by a semi-normal looking bloke.

A "real" Highlander

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This manequin wears an outfit representative of what the forces loyal to Bonnie Prince Charlie wore. Not exactly camouflage unless they were hiding in a flower shop.

British HQ at Culloden

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This primitive cottage was maintained as the headquarters for the British forces during the battle. The decision by the Jacobite forces to stand out on this open moor vastly outnumbered and outgunned against one of the greatest military powers in the World ranks as one of the dumbest military blunders in history. The British simply used their artilley to decimate Dumbie Prince Charlie's troops then picking off the survivors as they mounted a last desperate unorganized charge into the guns of the massed British army. Few Scotsmen survived although the prince did escape.

Stinging Nettle

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Earlier in the day, back at the distillery, I tried to lure the cattle closer by ripping out chunks of grass and offering it to them. At one point I grabbed a handful of this stuff and shortly thereafter my hands started burning. It wasn't as irritating as poison ivy but the burn stayed with me almost all day. Getting some of this on your face could prove rather nasty.

Culloden Moor

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We didn't have time, nor did we want to pay, to go out on the battlefield, but I think I pretty much captured most of what there is to see in this photo. The battle was out on an open field so there really aren't many landmarks to observe.

By the beautiful sea at Nairn

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A 15 minute ride from Culloden Moor brought us to the seaside town of Nairn. By now the sky was almost totally overcast but the cooling rain still held off. The cloud cover did seem to bring the temperatures down a bit. Nairn rests on the Moray Firth which is an inlet on the North Sea. From where I stood the water looked very cold and uninviting.

Not as deserted as it might look

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While there was no one on the beach this afternoon, behind me things were a bit more lively. There was a large green with a soccer and a cricket pitch, a rather lively snack bar and some playground equipment. There were maybe 25-30 people strolling through while I walked along this embankment.

Back to Newtonmore

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James gave us about an hour to explore Nairn. Because of the dismal weather there wasn't much happening at the penny arcade or at the nearby boat marina. Had we a little more time we would have headed away from the sea and into the downtown where the stores seemed rather busy. Just after 5:30 James shepherded us back onto the bus then we headed back to Newtonmore. Somewhere along the way back while I was dozing, Gail snapped this shot of a typical local rowhouse. In about an hour we were back at the hotel.

No Tatties and Neeps or Haggis for us

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Dinner was at the hotel dining room again. The place was packed with German tourists but we weren't served the traditional Scottish food. Instead Gail had salmon and I had a beef roast with lots of potatoes. Washed down with a couple Tennants beers it was quite filling. After dinner Gail and I did a walking tour of Newtonmore.