UK Roadtrip - Loch Ness and Inverness

27th September


I woke up this morning to Granny Nanny talking (quite loudly, might I add!) on the phone to people back home.  When I looked at the time, expecting it to be early morning, I was shocked (that's an understatement!) that it was 4 AM. Needless to say I was not impressed and turned over and went back to sleep. 


When I awoke again, at a much more reasonable hour of 7 am, we got up and got ready for the day.  Continuing with yesterdays tradition, the view from the balcony was incredible. 

We started the day by completing the hour drive along the A96 and the A82 to Urquhart Castle.  Situated on the side of a hill, it over looks the Loch Ness.  Once one of Scotland’s largest castles, Urquhart saw great conflict during its 500 years as a medieval fortress. Control of the castle passed back and forth between the Scots and English during the Wars of Independence. The power struggles continued, as the Lords of the Isles regularly raided both castle and glen up until the 1500s.
The last of the government troops garrisoned here during the Jacobite Risings blew up the castle when they left. Urquhart’s iconic ruins remain, offering glimpses into medieval times and the lives of its noble residents.




At the top of Urquhart Castle over looking Loch Ness

  

Next we visited the Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition Centre.  The hi-tech multi-media presentation lead us through 7 themed areas and 500 million years of history, natural mystery and legend revealing the unique environment of Loch Ness and the famous Nessie legend.  The presentations display the contents of a loch with rare and unusual properties, and discuss why some people still motivate expeditions to explore the loch, while others can "create" monsters.

Loch Ness

Once we had sufficiently and unfortunately unsuccessfully searched for Nessie, we headed back to Inverness.  Here we ambled around some more charity shops and had some lunch; where I took it upon myself to eat Granny Nanny's black pudding (as she refused).  It wasn't overly horrible... however its not something I would order again.  Once considerable purchases had been made from more charity shops, we departed Inverness for Culloden Moor. 

On 16 April 1746, the final Jacobite Rising came to a brutal head in one of the most harrowing battles in British history.  The Jacobite supporters, seeking to restore the Stuart monarchy to the British throne, gathered to fight the Duke of Cumberland's government troops. It was the last pitched battle on British soil and, in less than an hour, around 1,500 men were slain – more than 1,000 of them Jacobites.

The Culloden Visitor centre is richly researched and stands beside the battlefield as a monument and a guide to a pivotal day in history.  The centre features artefacts from both sides of the battle and interactive displays that reveal the background to the conflict. 

Where artefacts were found on the battlefield
The red line is where the Government forces stood at the commencement of the battle and the blue line was the Jacobites



 

The Clan Memorial Stones

Though Mum and Nan were growing tired of ruins and historic sites, there was one place left on my list to see today; Clava Cairns.

Clava Cairns or the Prehistoric Burial Cairns of Bulnuaran of Clava are a group of three Bronze Age cairns located near Inverness.  Dating back approximately 4,000 years, Clava Cairns is a well-preserved Bronze Age cemetery of complex passage graves; ring cairns, kerb cairns and standing stones in a beautiful setting.  It is a exceptionally well preserved prehistoric site and a fantastic example of the distant history of Highland Scotland. 

Finally we headed home, but once again we took the scenic route along a 'B' single lane back road.  Though we were risking our lives with the blind corners, 60 miles/hour speed limit and insane Scots driving erratically, we were once again not disappointed with the views, the Nairn Viaduct between Daviot - Culloden a highlight. 

A quick trip to Sainsbury's and the Co-op (because one grocery store is not enough) and we were sorted for dinner, just needed to come home and cook it! Now we are about to plan our day tomorrow before heading to bed.