Here Nessie, Nessie, Nessie....

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Geo: 57.5837, -3.87513

As we settled into the bed the night before, I could hear the wind pick up and sheets of rain start hitting the windows. It actually made for good sleeping. I woke up a few times during the night and could no longer hear the rain, so I wrongly assumed that the storm had passed.

I was first up and showered, and I went down to the car to get something out, and I walked into the hotel lobby, I looked out the picture window and saw the hilltops all covered in a fresh layer of snow. Yes, snow! It was also at least 20 degrees colder outside than it had been just the night before. I didn't tell the girls when I returned, and instead enjoyed watching their respective faces as we went downstairs for breakfast. Everyone was as surprised, and pleased, as I.

Breakfast was yet another full-blown, too big affair, but I wasn't exactly complaining. The clouds had cleared and we were off fairly early. The drive across the bridge and through the countryside on this particular morning was another highpoint of the trip. The fresh blanket of snow and still blooming spring flowers, along with the ragged coastline made for a series of postcard-perfect shots.

Our first castle of this day was to be the most-photographed in all of Scotland -- Eilean Donan. It originates back the 13th century, but was blown up in the 18th. It is still be reconstructed by the family which owns it -- Clan Macrae. While visiting the castle, we heard several of the tour guides talking about the ongoing debate as to whether these castles should be restored or left in the "natural" state. As this one was privately held, I can't see where there'd be any debate as to what they do with it. Nonetheless, the castle was restored quite well and it was the most "cozy" castle we visited, with rooms done up what actually seemed liveable.

From here we climbed steadily back into the Highlands and, with that, we came into the snow. Rolling storms kept coming through, bringing more and more snow. Temperatures were just below freezing, so the roads remained clear, and it made for some very beautiful driving, alternating between blinding snow and bright sunshine.

After about an hour, we emerged on the southern-most tip of the famous Loch Ness. It is the deepest and one of the longest lakes in the British Isles, and it just went on and on. Being so deep, there is very little room on either side for a road, so it was a very narrow and precarious drive, with several areas of the road blocked by branches brought down by the heavy spring snowfall. We finally reached the famous Urquhart Castle, which is so often shown in pictures of Loch Ness. It sits on the deepest part of the loch, and it is the area most associated with sightings of the Loch Ness monster. The shores are so steep that you cannot even see the castle from the road. Jane and Anna chose to sit this one out, as it was a very steep walk down to the castle. It was bright and sunny when we got down to the castle, but we could see a large snow squall building on the north of the loch and working its way down. We watched it with a little trepidation, but it wasn't until the wind really picked up that we decided to hoof it back up the hill to the visitors' center. There were two sail boats out in the lake, and we watched in worry as they were overcome by the storm. We lost sight of them in the snow, but we could hear the sails on one of them as they were desperately trying to get them down. The snow -- which was really heavy pellets of hail -- hit us when we were still about 100 yards from the safety of the visitors center...and it hurt! It was actually a little scary.

After eventually waiting for things to calm down a little, we made it back to the car and headed to lunch and tour of the Loch Ness Monster Center. While there are two next to each other, we opted for the one that was deemed more "scientific." In fact, after going through, I have to say I was impressed by the fact that they focused on the science behind the sightings, and went to great lengths to basically explain away all the rumors.

I mentioned early about Bonnie Prince Charlie's defeat at Culloden; that was our next destination. The site is very much a pilgrimage site, and the signs are first in Gaelic and then English. Upon seeing the large open field, you can see why they Scots lost so badly. Charlie's generals had warned him about meeting the British on such an open field, as the Scots relied on guerrilla warfare and did not have heavy weaponry. The whole battle took less than an hour, with 2,000 Jacobites dying and only 50 British casualties. Charlie fled and never made another claim to the crown; it was the last battle fought on British soil.

We had one last castle tour planned for the day -- Cawdor Castle -- but when we finally reached the gates, there was simple sign saying "Palace Closed." To be honest, we'd had such a long day, that none of us were overly disappointed. Our B&B for the night was in the seaside resort of Nairn. We'd chosen it to be away from the tourist-trap that is Inverness, and it turned out to be a great selection. We were the only guests for the evening, and we had a wonderful meal at a pub within walking distance.

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