Locks,Lochs and Peaks.

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After ten weeks of being pretty much confined at home after Stan's knee replacement we were getting itchy feet. Our need to travel is never far from our minds.
We saw an advert for a five day coach trip to Fort William going for half price as it was right on the last minute.
With a little hesitation we decided to go for it. Someone else can do the driving, cooking etc. Just what we needed!
Monday morning dawned wet, very wet and after a panic to vet to the coach stop on time I realized I'll left my umbrella on the hall table. Good start!!

The ten hour journey consisted of several stops, meaning we were never on the coach for .ore than two hours at a time. Each time we stopped we had to run through pouring rain to get to the facilities.
Needless to say the prpmised scenery on the wsy eas non existent due to poor visibility
Luckily by the time we arrived at the hotel it had stopped. The hotel was pleasant and the food excellent, we had good view over the Loch from our room.
The entertainment that night left a lot to be desired but most of the clientele seemed to enjoy it. ( the average age was about 80!)
After a hearty breakfast we were on the coach by 9.30am. First stop a gem museum where we spent an hour looming at precious rocks from around the world in their raw state and also the polished product. By the time we came out the .morning sunshine had changed to dark stormy clouds.
As we pulled into the carpark at Malaig the heavens opened and we were blasted with icy winds straight off the sea. The promised views over to the Isle of Skye are most in the mist.
We sheltered in the chip shop near the railway for a while before venturing out to explore the soggy town. The rain had stopped by then and the steam train had arrived at the station.
One and a half hours later we were back on the coach on our way to a view point of Ben Nevis.
As we pulled into the car park..... You guessed it......the rain poured again. We were told we had ten minutes. undeterred we set off to climb to the view point, the wind whipped up and once again the view was obscured. By the time we got back on the coach I was drenched. Everything!!
As we arrived back at the hotel the sun came out!
Too late!!
After dinner we joined Carol and Roy, the couple wed met last night and watched the night's entertainment together.

Next day dawned bright and clear. We were booked onto a 'waterfalls trip'
First stop was Neptune's staircase, a series of locks on the Caledonian canal. After a quick run up to the tip lock for views we dashed back to find everyone else back on the bus waiting for us. Whoops! The furthest anyone else had gone was the first lock.

From here the driver took our 48 seated coach along a single track road with passing places. A bit hair raising at times. The road came to a dead end where we stopped to see the first waterfall. Again we were first off the bus and whipped up the path to the top of the waterfall. Looking down we noticed everyone else had been content to stand at the bottom and look up, no doubt thinking we were crazy!
Back along the single track road to a ruined castle before a lunch stop at Spend bridge where there was one of the famous worn mills selling tourist tack at exorbitant prices.
One more waterfall before heading back to Fort William. By this waterfall we came across a Red Coat re enactment which made for a few good photo opportunities.
Back at Fort William the sun came out so we got the driver to drop us off in town where we found a nice outdoor bar. This felt more like it! Sipping a cold beer in the sunshine watching the backpacker pass by.
We missed the pu lic bus back to the hotel so ended up walking the two and a half kms into a head on wind. By now the sun had disappeared again.

Our last day was a trip to Fort Augustus on the banks of Loch Ness. It was a beautiful day by the time we arrived. Most of the passengers opted for the two hour boat trip on the Loch. We opted to do our own thing.
After watching a few boats making their way up through the locks on the Caledonian canal as it left the Loch we set off for a walk.
We hadn't had much time for walking on this trip and as it was such a lovely day we ambles along enjoying the sunshine and scenery.
After walking by the loch side ( no sign of the monster) we headed for a leisurely picnic in a secluded picnic sight near the coach park.



The last stop was in the town of Fort William. We already done that recently but as the afternoon was still young and the sun shining we didn't want to return to the hotel so got dropped off again and visited the outside bar again.
No walking back this time, the coach picked us all up two hours later.

Bright and early next morning we were on the coach travelling back home. It was a lovely day and the driver made a few photo stops. Glencoe was particularly scenic now the weather had come good.
Ranoch moor reminded me of the high plains in Bolivia, all we needed were a few llamas and flamingos.
The last stop was Gretna Green, our first stop on the way up only this time in beautiful weather.

Now, our ambition is to return to Scotland in our own car once Stan is fit to drive long distances again. This trip has just whetted our appetite.

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Photos

Ben Nevis
snow on the higher slopes