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Published: August 15th 2006
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Now the title does not refer to the new JK Rowling book but to our adventures in the Scotish Highlands. We left Edinburgh on Sunday in the sunshine to travel to the most Northern part of our journey to Inverness. Now I didn't realise how big Scotland is but Inverness is 150 miles from Edinburgh and there is still about 100 miles more north of Inverness.
Anyway, we got to our campsite and started to put up the tent. I have been having problems with keeping the pegs straight so I came up with the idea of getting a stone and using it with the mallet to straigten out the tent pegs. Yet the stone I picked was disgusting. It had poo underneth it. I hope it was only that belonging to a dog, but I have my doubts that the the person who had the pitch before us didn't bother to use the toilets. Needless to say I did as I quickly ran over to wash my hands several times. Needless to say this didn't endear us to this campsite and Kayleigh suggested we moved on to Fort William tomorrow. It didn't need much persuasion. Inverness is not that nice.
It's a bit of a run down town. We did go to a nice pub for Sunday lunch but apart from that we were not really impressed. Even the castle was dissapointing, not really looking like a castle at all.
So on Monday we began the drive I was most looking forward to alongside Loch Ness. Now Loch Ness is huge. We were told that all the the water in the Loch could fill every other Lake and Resevoir in Britain. Now thats a factoid! On this lovely journey we stopped at Fort Augustus for a boat trip on the Loch. I know most of you will doubt the existance of the monster but we saw it. I have video and photographic evidence.
The boat trip was good. It had sonar equipment on it so that they could detect the monsters movements and such things. Also this journey allowed us to see some more freaky people as were saw a couple. Now the woman was dressed as a man and the man as a woman. Didn't look like they were doing it for a bet neither. Kayles laughed so much she dissapeared to the toilet for several minutes.
As we
The Monster
Told you we'd seen it! drove towards Fort William the heavens opened. So we had to put the tent up in really heavy rain. The front of the tent itself looked like a loch by the time we had got the tent up. Needless to say we had food in a pub that night.
On tuesday again it rained so we decided to take a steam train ride to Mallaig. This wasn't just any train ride but one on the train used in the Harry Potter films. This wasn't the reason why we travelled on it as it allowed us to see some glorious sights of the Scottish highlands. But it was the main reason for one American who Kayles overheard complaing that he was sat in the wrong carriage because the one that Harry sat in did not have tables!
We do attract some interesting people on this trip and again we did because on the way back we sat near a Welshman who knew everything about nothing. He was so annoying that even the Scottish couple opposite did everything to avoid him.
This journey was glorious as we got to see the Lochs with the mist over them on the way to Mallaig
The Train
Kayles auditions as Harry's new love interest and with the sunshine on the way back. It was definatly my favourite day even though the weather was not great.
In the evening we went to see the Commando monument. It remembers all the Marines who have died in combat as they train in the Scottish Highlands. This is quite a special place as it is really high up and surrounded by mountains. A perfect place for a place of rememberance I feel. After this we went back to camp and we were able to cook as it stopped raining.
On Wednesday we took the tent down in the rain and drove south to Glasgow. It was absolutely heaving it down in Glasgow so this didn't help our view of the city but there was nothing there that made me want to go back. Sorry Glasgow!
Whilst wet we drove to our campsite south of Glasgow and just before we put our tent up it stopped raining. Hopefully the weather has changed.
Just one more eventful thing happened here as Kayles got a grub in her Brocolli. I don't think she'll be eating the green stuff in the near future!
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Abbey
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Genius
alright darby - genius travelblog thing mate. have even subscribed to the updates so i know when more gems of literature will be available to the world. particularly like the tent pegs/stone piece. also sounds like you've come across (haha come across) some absolute nutcases on your journey as well. hopefully south of the border will be kinder to you both! and that it stops raining.