Woodbank House, Balloch

Again a sunny mornings drive down, this time down to Oban and then across to Balloch (Loch Lomond.)  Back to the same site we went to on the first night.  Not much choice in this area.

We revisit the old derilict house adjacent to the campsite and read up about its sad recent history of neglect.  Woodbank house, Balloch (Grade A listed) has stood empty after two fires in the 1980's and the owner refusing to sell or carry out their legal obligation to maintain the property.

The roof and floors have all fallen in and the back wall has been demolished and it is evident that recent work has been carried out around the site.

It looks like finally Woodbank House will be saved by the local council and turned in to a leasure/ Tourist information centre as it is adjacent tourist complex at Loch Lomond Shores.

Read more about the history of Woodbank House here

End of the holiday

Up early for our last Scottish dog walk of this trip, we walk the shores of Loch Lomond and up the estary to Balloch.

Back to the van to get everyone up as we have get the van back to Glasgow by 10am.

Chemical toilet emptied, grey water emptied, left over food dumped and the van cleaned up ready for return.

A short 30 mins drive back to an industrial estate adjacent to Glasgow airport, we safely deliver the van back to Andy our contact at Open Roads Scotland all in one piece!

Andy gives us a lift back to Queens Street, Glasgow to catch the train over to Edinburgh and then back to Stevenage.

Woody waiting for the train at Queen's St Station

At Edinburgh station Woody attracts a lot of attention.  We are 2 hours early, but have already spent a hour with Woody's fan club.  They are everywhere!

An hour to spare, so on to the first class lounge for crisps, biscuits and refreshments.

Curry, sun and time for reflection

Woke up to sun breaking over the Trelee bay and woody and I headed out to explore.  There is a tower on the distance, but have been told you need a key to gain access.

Time for a few observations.
The locals are friendly and always say hi, which is nice.

Most Scottish dogs are not so friendly and seem very aggressive.  Been told several times to keep Woody away as their dog does not like other dogs.

Views and scenery has been fantastic!  Better than I expected.

Scottish beer.  Excellent selection and quality of craft beers.  Only had one twice. - 7 Giraffes and no Tennant's or Brew dog.

Campsites
On the whole have been pretty good.  If facilities have been average, the location has made up for that.

Customer service and facilities
Scotland has a way to go on this front.  We did have some great customer service, but on the whole, it was not brilliant.

Silversands to Benderloch

We head back towards Fort William in the sun and decide to take the cable car up Ben Nevis.

Lucky for us, three old biddies (on a coach trip) had got group tickets, but didn't fancy going up to the top and hand over the three tickets to Tess.  This meant we only had to buy one ticket. (Saved us about £30!)

Woody was not impressed with the cable car and didn't want to get in.  I had to man handle him in and he sat shaking the whole way to the top.

Once on top (not the very top, just the ski station) we head off on a walk across the snow and avoiding skiers to a vantage point to take a few photos.  It was a bit nippy, so not long before Tess and the boys do a 'U' turn and head for the cafe.  Woody and I carried on to grab a few photos of the views.  As the weather was good, visibility wasn't too bad and I could see all the way back to Skye and the Cuillins.

Back to cafe, only to find dogs not welcome, so Woods and I sat outside for a bit before we got the cable car back down again.

Once south of Fort William, the weather changed for the worse and showered turned to rain as we arrived at our campsite (Seaview).

The site is immaculate and very neat with lots of nice touches.  Including frozen home made curries in a freezer. Yum, can't wait to try one!

Ferry to Maliag

As we leave Skye, the sun is out and we have a nice relaxing drive in the sun across skye to Portree and then down to Armadal and the ferry to Malaig, leaving just a short drive to our Silversands campsite.

We stop for more photos of the Cuillins.  I will miss this view.

At Armadal we board the ferry. £23 all in, van and all of us, for a 30 mins crossing.

At Malaig the steam train used in Harry Potter runs along the line to Fort William.

We just manage to get the last pitch at Silversands and although we are not waterside, we still have a fantastic view across the sea back to Skye.  Again the Cuillins stand out majestically against the the dramatic sky.

Joey and Ben are brave enough to go in the sea for a swim.  There are Otters in this area, but we are not lucky enough to see any.

Bye bye Nessie

The 17 miles from Foyer south to Fort Augustus was full of cyclists, pretty fit cyclists, as the route is undulating and very scenic.

Once at At Augustus, we fill up with diesel and supplies and drive North to Invermoriston and turn left along the A887 (A87).  Again we are blessed with good weather and dramatic scenery.

Over the Skye bridge and we witnessed a police car stop on the A87 and perform a 8 point turn, to give chase to a bus!  (It reminded me of that Scottish film - Restless Natives, where two kids on a Suzuki GP100 turn into modern day Robin Hoods).
Anyway we see the Police car stop the bus. But what happens after is anyone's guess.

On to Skye via the bridge and lunch at a cafe in Dunvegan.  Venison salad for me and toasted sandwiches for the others.

The campsite is at the other end of the village and most expensive yet at £39 for the night.  Pitch is right on the waters edge we views down to the castle and back to the village.

One thing about Skye, is that the skyscapes dominate the dramtic scenery. Constantly changing and always demanding your attention.

Dunvegan, is a bit a shanty town, that sits on the estery.  Village shop, multiple B&Bs, oldest Island bakery and a dodgy looking museum.

In the morning Woody and I take in a circular village walk, which gives fantastic views back to the Cuillins.

On to Skye

It seemed a shame to leave Loch Ness as both weather and views are fantastic.

Up and out at 7am, Woody and I off for our last explore of the area.  We head down to out disused Alcan aluminium foil factory.

We then go further along the Loch shore to the new hydro electric station, before heading up hill to Foyers.

Two more spots of red squirrels, although my attempt to capture and image of them leaves a lot to be desired...

Spot the squirrel competition!

The hillside woods are a delight to walk through at this time of the morning.  I can imagine in the summer it would be busy around here.

The above photo shows the upper derilict bridge across to lower Foyers and the new bridge at the bottom, that leads to the campsite.

Access to the shore during victorian times was via paddle steamer.  The adventurous tourists would then scramble up the hillside to see the falls. In those days, there would have been much more water cascading over 165ft fall.  The flow of water being reduced by the building of the hydro-electric generating station, to supply power to the Aluminium smelting works in 1894.

Afternoon stroll with Tess and boys

Plan A, was head West today for Skye.  As this site, is just so nice and the scenery so good, we decide to stay another night.

So we all head out on a family walk along the Loch shore line and then up to the stair case to the falls again.  By this time it is busy with sightseers.  After seeing the falls we head up to falls cafe for lunch.

We take a circular route back via the cemetery and loch-side for a pleasant 5 mile walk.

Red squirrels and Robert Burns

Up at 7 for my usual balushions. Woody is keen to get out and explore.

We walk the shores of Loch Ness and make the most of the early light to capture a few photos.

After passing the 500MWatt power station that is hydro, we start to climb back up the hillside, using the various network of paths.

Red Squirrels are everywhere, and Woody can't resist chasing a few.  The hill side path takes us to falls stairs that zigzag down.  Woody races ahead but seems very nervous of the increasing loud roar of the falls we are yet to see.

Eventually we reach the upper view point and grab a few photos and then drop down again to the lower view point.

On the way down there are a number of carved slates with poem by Robbie Burns.

I had previously seen photos of a bridge, higher up the falls, so we head of to try and find it. After chasing a few more red tree rats we come across the bridge.  The whole village is powered by a 120 year old hydro system.

Loch Ness shores campsite

Long day yesterday.  The campsite we headed for, was closed.  We hadn't booked and thought it would be open as it was close to the town centre (fort Augustus).  The campsite gate had a very helpful sign. 'Open Easterish!'

After some discussion we head to the other side of Loch Ness, via a single track backroad.

After a steep climb, we were presented with spectacular views and I quickly gained confidence driving the big bus on such narrow roads.  We finally made it to Foyers Falls and took the switchback road down to the Loch-side to what has turned out to be a fantastic campsite in a rather special location.

Saturday - board games, deer chasing, laughter and no monsters

Up at 7.30am, bit tricky to make a silent exit from the van as it rocks gently when anyone moves.  Still, didn't wake the boys.  Woody looks keen for a walk and the two of us are soon out in the open air, leaving the sleepy heads behind.

There is a large wooded area, loch-side of the Pap of Glen Coe and we head that way.  It turns out the wooded area (Stac a Chlamhain) is all graded walks through the woods.

We follow the strenuous blue route (1.5 miles) as far as we can up and then take to a path that skirts along the side of the mountain and out of Stac.  Great views of Loch Leven and the light rain comes and goes as does the slight breeze.  Under foot the ground is very wet and the path goes from boggy peat to rocky river bed.

Woody has more fun giving chase to 4 hind deer he chases them up the side of the mountain and soon gives up as it becomes too steep for him and the deer are too quick.

Heading back, we drop to the road for a bit, before back in to wooded area again.

I think the two of us covered 8 miles or so, which was good.

Back at the van, the sleepy heads are up, well Ben and Tess are.  Joey is still in his pit, still trying to get WiFi access.

A quick breakfast of toast and the van is soon on its way towards Fort William, where we stop at Argos to pickup a cheap dog bed for Woody. 

Then on to Drumadruchit, where we stumbled on a lovely little cafe (Annie's Apple Farm Shop & Cafe) where the portions are massive!  Ben's pizza was enough for all of us and Joey's cheese and bacon panni is served with a big salad and chips.  Everyone in the cafe makes a big fuss of Woody, so he is happy.

There is a board game on our table called logo, which we play.  Basically questions relating to company logos (old and new).

There was several amusing moments, where others in the cafe helped out with answers (or attempts on answers).  The highlight has to be, when Ben was asked 'what paint manufacturer used a English Sheep dog in their adverts?'. Ben eagerly shouts out across the cafe, (loud enough for all to hear).... 'I know, I know, it's Durex!!'. Tess and I could not hold in the laughter, where as the other adults, looked the other way.  Ben, says 'What, what, Did I say that was so funny?'

Mind you I should talk.  I failed to answer - 'What Japanese car manufacturer has 3 diamonds as part of its logo?' The old lady who owned the cafe shouts out 'Mitsibushi!'. Oh dear!

Cracking cafe, well worth finding, if you are in the area.

A short drive to Urquhart castle, where Tess and the boys gain access just before closing.  I take Woody for a walk of the car park and then back to the van to wait the others (no dogs allowed in this castle).

17.10 and yet to find a camp site.  Food shouldn't be too much of an issue tonight.