We just spent two busy weeks in Scotland, mostly exploring the west and north.
Day 1) We arrived in Glasgow on a very rainy Thusrday morning. By the time we got our small motorhome and went grocery shopping, the rain had worsened so we skipped our planned visit to Glasgow Cathedral, The Necropolis, and St. Mungo's. Instead we only visited the Kelvingrove.
After that, we headed for Oban. We needed to make the first ferry to Mull the next day so we drove right to Oban. Heavy rain + driving on the left for the first time + wide vehicle on narrow rural roads made for a fairly terrifying first day.
Day 2) The ferry ride to Craignure was fun. We'd never been on a large ferry like that. After arriving on Mull we headed right for Tobermory where we boarded Staffa Tours trip to Staffa and Lunga. Word of advice: BOOK THE LUNGA TRIP! Staffa was amazing but Lunga was like being in a David Attenborough documentary.
Day 3) We visited Iona then headed east, ending our day in Dunkeld, Perth & Kinross. Why? Read on...
Day 4) We attended the Strathmore Highland Games at Glamis Castle, the castle where Macbeth takes place. WELL worth the long drive. We ended the day back near Oban after visiting Muthill Old Church on the way back.
Day 5) We stared the day having Breakfast with the Seals at Scottish SeaLife Sanctuary, near Oban. 50 pounds well spent. We met the trainer and got to spend some time learning about the 4 rescue seals and putting them through their tricks and got to feed them. We'd planned to drive through Glen Coe next but rain and low clouds made us rethink and instead we went straight to Fort William, stopping to see Castle Stalker along the way. Ben Nevis was going to be a waste in the bad weather so, intead, we visited Inverlochy Castle & Neptune's Staircase. We then drove to the Glenfinnian Viaduct, ending our day near Arisaig.
Day 6) We caught the early ferry across to Armadale, Skye, and visited Armadale Castle and Gardens. The museum there was the most informative of our trip and my wife could have spent a week in the gardens. The next stop was the wildlife blind at Kylerhea in hopes of seeing otters. No otters but we saw dozens of seals. We visited Cill Chirosd and the Fairy Pools at Glenbrittle next. Due to the rain, the Fairy Pools were a challenge to access so we only saw part of the site. We ended our day near Dunvegan.
Day 7) Neist Point lighthouse, then the Trotternish Peninsula - Rha waterfall, Kilvaxter Souterrain, Skye Museum of Island Life, Duntulum Castle, Mealt Falls/Kilt Rock, then the Old Man of Storr. We camped for the night at Broadford, on Skye.
Day 8) Eilean Donan castle, Inverewe Garden, Adressie Falls, Corriesalloch Gorge. Camped just outside Ullapool.
Day 9) Knocan Crag, Hand Island (let me step aide here and say that this place isn't on most people's radar and its in the middle of nowhere but if you want to feel like you're on a National Geographic expedition, visit this place. I never knew you could fit so many seabirds in one place), Balnakiel Bay, and Smoo Cave. We camped near Thurso.
Day 10) Crossed to Orkney and visited Unstan Cairn, Standing Stones of Stenness, Ring of Brogdar, Skara Brae, and Earl's Palace at Birsay.
Day 11) Italian Chapel, Churchill Barriers, Tomb of the Eagle, St Magus' Cathedral in Kirkwall
Day 12) Caught the early ferry back to the mainland then to Duncansby Head (one of the few disappointments), Castle Sinclair Girnigoe, Whaligoe Steps, Chanonry Point (where we saw dolphins feeding not 15 meters from shore!), and the Clootie Well.
Day 13) Mandatory visit to Loch Ness/Urquart Castle (tourist trap), then down to Leault Farm in Cairngorms for an amazing border collie demo. Some motorhome trouble made us return to Inverness though we'd planned to continue south.
Day 14) Resolved the motorhome issues then to Dunfirmline Abbey and St Margaret's church, The Kelpies, and the Falkirk Wheel
Exhausting but amazing.