Culloden Moor, Loch Ness, Dornie 05-02-10

Breakfasted at Westbourne House, including some lovely homemade shortbread made by our hostess, Nan. Following Mom's devil-may-care, let-serendipity-reign attitude, she asked me to find some possible B&Bs online last night to stay in tonight. Fortunately, her amazing luck was with us, and the first one we called had room for us!
(the memorial stone of Clan Fraser on Culloden Moor)
Left for Culloden Moor, and arrived for a 10am guided tour of the historic site of the final battle of the 1746 Jacobite Uprising. On the way in, I happened to notice Gerard Butler's donor stone. (squee!)
Our guide at the site was passionate about his subject, without being overly dramatic, and the weather was appropriately misty and cold. He very evocatively described the scenes of the battle - the events leading up to it, who stood where, Hoe many there were, how long it lasted, and the desolation of the battlefield at the end of the fight. One wall of the visitor centre was built in such a way as to illustrate the considerable loss of life on the Jacobite side, vs. that of the English, or government side. (click on the photo to see the details.)
The visitor centre was clear and thorough, and when we finished our tour, there were some ladies demonstrating how to turn freshly shorn sheep's wool into warm winter socks and sweaters. I was in heaven. But we couldn't stay - we were heading to Clava Cairns - a medieval burial site (said to have inspired events in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series of novels).

By the time we got there, the weather had cleared up, and since Mom, Dad, and I had all read the series, we really enjoyed wandering around the area where it all began. I kept going back and forth through the cleft in the stone to see if anything happened - if I went back in time 200 years to find my true love: a handsome, strong, educated, fierce and loving Scottish warrior with red hair, but alas. T'was not to be. Maybe if I go back near an equinox or something...

It was a lovely area for a picnic, but since we'd eaten already, we moved on toward Loch Ness.
The loch (lake) was vast and calm, and I could tell that Dad was aching to get on a boat and go out on it to fish. I wanted to get in a small sub and look for Nessie. We stopped at the Official Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition (not to be confused with the Original Loch Ness Monster Exhibition Center, which is completely different - update: they've now changed their names to Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition & Nessieland Castle Monster Centre, respectively.) and watched the film and walked through the center. It was interesting enough, and well put-together, but basically we spent $10 each to find out that it's unlikely that Nessie ever existed. Maybe if we'd gone to the other center, we could have gotten the other viewpoint, or at least a photo by the Nessie sculpture.

Continuing on, we came upon the ruin of Urquhart Castle, but since we'd spent (wasted?) so much time at the exhibition center, we had no more time to tour the castle. We stopped briefly for pics, but if given the choice again, I'd pick the tour of Urquhart over Nessie.

Continuing westward, the hills became starker and steeper. The heather is a rusty brown this time of year, and fewer sheep can be seen. (I'm sure Dad's relieved not to keep hearing "SHEEP!" every 3 seconds.) We stopped at Dornie for the night, at the perfectly situated Donan House, directly across from Eilean Donan castle. Mom and Dad's room has a stunning view of the castle, which is beautifully lit at night. Our host was patient with us Americans, and very kind. Considering we'd only booked the room this morning, I'd say we couldn't have been more lucky!
(view of Donan House from Eilean Donan Castle)
Dornie is the pretty village that faces the point where three lochs meet, and we had dinner there at the Dornie Hotel. I had some more haggis, with 'neeps and tatties, and Mom said that her dinner was the best she's had in Scotland so far - and that's saying something! After dinner, we strolled around the grounds of the castle, casting long shadows against the walls from the lights surrounding it. We can't wait to tour it tomorrow, and when I got back to the B&B, I "friended" the castle on Facebook. They have lots of photos, one of which "cheekily" proves that their kilted guides dress in the traditional manner. Suddenly, I'm looking forward to that tour even more!