My wife and I try every 3 or 4 years to go back to Scotland to visit relatives and friends. This year was a longer trip than usual (4 weeks) but proved to be one of the most interesting as we managed to visit so many sights from a long and distant past.
We based ourselves with relatives in Bearsden a northern suburb of Glasgow and a great spot to visit all the local sights. We were only 30 minutes or so from beautiful Loch Lomond and we were blessed with some of the best weather that they had had for some time. Day trips were a breeze and we had hired a car from Driveaway Holidays – an Avis Peugeot 207 which was a pleasure to drive particularly as some of the roads are very narrow and passing on-coming traffic can at times be heart stopping!
Many mornings were spent in Milngavie (pronounced Millguy) the adjacent suburb to Bearsden and the start of the ‘West Highland Way” a walking track that runs from here to Fort William 96 miles (154km) to the north, the way runs through some of the most beautiful and rugged countryside in Scotland – alongside Loch Lomond, along Rannoch Moor, Glencoe and into Fort William. We visited many of the little Coffee shops and eateries close by and these are a delight to sample local baking and great coffee, so if you get a chance visit Killearn’s Coffee Shop or the Old Mill Pub (great lunch), also the Beech Trees (a favoured stop for those on the West Highland Way). Also close to Milngavie are the villages of Blanefield/Strathbane and again great coffee or lunches!
Glasgow is known a ‘My Green City’ and has many wonderful parks and gardens that offer great walks and scenery and some literally minutes from the city centre, Museums and Art Galleries are also worth a visit – Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, The People’s Palace at Glasgow Green, The Burrell Collection on the south side, and so much more. Glasgow also has some great shopping, either in the city centre in the Buchanan Street and Sauchiehall Street areas, both of which are pedestrian precincts, or in the outer areas large shopping centres such as Silverburn (on the South Side of the city) or Braehead near Glasgow Airport.
Driving south from Glasgow on the M74 we stopped for a coffee at Moffat before heading down towards Dumfries and the Solway Firth. Moffat is a delightful little town and worth a few hours just for the souvenir and woolen shops in the main street and a delightful coffee shop/restaurant called ‘The Rumblin Tum’!. Moving on we then went to the little seaside village of Kippford on the estuary of the River Urr near Dalbeattie, a delightful quiet little village with a few shops, 2 pubs and Holiday Cottages and B & B’s. We stayed overnight at the Mariner Hotel in a very comfortable Double room, with a great cooked breakfast. Driving back to Glasgow we decided to take a scenic and slower route via the picturesque Loch Ken and on to Prestwick, Troon and Ayr and back to Glasgow, a delightful Trip.
Finally we made a trip truly into the highlands through Glencoe and on to Fort William we started travelling along Loch Lomondside – through Rob Roy Country to Tyndrum for an early morning stop at The Green Welly Stop the halfway point of the journey here you will find a restaurant/snack shop, service station, gift shop and one of the largest collections of whiskey you’ll ever see! Travelling on we then traversed Rannoch Moor before entering the famous – or infamous Glencoe scene of that massacre so many centuries ago. Having passed Glencoe you then drop down into the approaches to Fort William alongside Loch Linnhe and overlooked by Ben Nevis the highest mountain in the UK (1,344m/4409ft). Fort William and Lochaber is classified as the outdoor capital of the UK and offers a myriad of activities for both young and old, these range from the obvious climb of Ben Nevis, walks, skiing, biking, water sports and for the more sedentary shops and restaurants abound in Fort William. A cruise on Loch Linnhe on Crannog Cruises “Souter’s Lass’ is a great way to get a feel for the wildlife and scenery overlooking Fort William and if you are lucky you may see porpoises, seals and local sea-based industries of Salmon and Mussel farming.
Close to Fort William is the entrance to the Caledonian Canal, one of the great waterways in the UK running from Loch Linnhe, through the Great Glen to Loch Ness and on to Inverness. Here you can visit Neptune’s Staircase a series of 8 locks that raise or lower passing vessels 19.5 metres over a distance of 460 metres a great feat considering these were planned and built in the mid 1800’s
And so finally our holiday had come to an end and reluctantly we had to bid farewell. We flew direct into Glasgow on Emirates which offer daily services ex Melbourne via Dubai on Boeing 777 Aircraft, so the journey takes about 24 hours, with great services and minimal disruptions.
“Haste ye back”!