The effects of glaciation are apparent in the sculpted glens, but even more striking to me is the influence of what I’ve decided to call mono-ungulate rumination.  This little tree germinated on top of the rock, high enough to be out of reach of the pervasive Ovis aries.  I suppose the exposed rock emphasizes the starkness of the mountains.

The quality of the light was incredible, something I don’t recall ever seeing anywhere else in the world.

We spent the night on the Isle of Skye, arriving just in time to shelter from the approaching storm at a lovely hotel.  Molly described the tempest as “chucking it sideways”.  The next day, when it was merely “spitting it sideways”, we hiked a relatively sheltered forest trail near Portree.  The bridge from Kyle of Lochalsh to Skye is visible in the picture below.

From Skye, we made our way to Fort William and spent a night in a hostel in Glen Nevis, just under the shoulder of Ben Nevis.  Ben Nevis is the highest peak in Britain; the elevation at the summit is 4406 feet.  I had thought of hiking that route, but we decided it was a bit too long and the peak was shrouded in cloud anyway.  We settled on a route through the Glen Nevis gorge to Steall Falls.  The signs at the trailhead were a bit disconcerting, but we decided to go ahead anyway.  Somehow it seems very British: “You might die here, but at least make sure you have good shoes on!”

The recent (and ongoing) rains rushed down the mountainside.  We had to leap across this waterfall:

River was in good spirits the entire day, smiling and singing along the trail.

We eventually arrived at this beautiful meadow and caught our first glimpse of Steall Falls.

The torrent we had observed through the gorge was fed by this cataract.

I traversed the bridge to get a closer approach to the falls.  It was hard not to think of the cautionary signs at the trailhead while inching my way across.

The power of the water plunging from 120 meters was pretty amazing!

Continuing south from Fort William, we drove through the spectacular Glen Cloe.    The landscape here is simply stunning.

I’ve seen these “Blind Summit” signs before, but this one just happened to get into the frame of this picture.  It turns out that they are warning of a hill in the road that hides oncoming traffic, rather than a commentary on the perennial cloud-covered state on most of the local mountain summits.

After leaving Glen Cloe, we drove through Rannock Moor, which was much flatter but still starkly beautiful.  I’d certainly like to return to Scotland some time soon.  We are considering planning a backpacking trip next summer.

Our friend, Gudrun, has also been visiting Scotland recently and took another amazing rainbow photograph.

We spent the night in a Victorian era hotel in Strathpeffer, just north of Inverness.  Apparently, it was one of the first locations to have electricity installed.  Sage has been learning about Victorian times and was excited to tell us about how they would have done things when the hotel was first built.

We stayed on the third floor and it was a veritable labyrinth to get to our room. We didn’t mind the walk, though, and we loved the character of the hotel. The garden outside was beautiful as well.

From Strathpeffer, we went to Chanonry Point to look for dolphins and seals swimming in the Moray Firth. For those like me who were not familiar with the word, a firth is a narrow inlet of the sea or an estuary. The most northerly population of bottlenose dolphins lives in the Moray Firth and can often be seen swimming close to shore here.

We quickly spotted several seals who kept poking their heads out of the water to look around. We spent some time exploring the beach, but were just about to leave without seeing any dolphins when we noticed one in the water off the point. There was a pair of dolphins that leapt through the water together. We couldn’t tell if there was more than one pair, though, or if they just kept swimming in circles and reappearing in the same place. Anyway, they were beautiful to watch.

Next, we went to see Culloden battlefield, the location of the last battle between Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Jacobite forces and the government soldiers. We have an interest in the Bonnie Prince because he and his army camped in the fields outside our house near the Swarkestone bridge before retreating back into Scotland. Also, one of our local pubs is “The Bonnie Prince”.

Anyway, the new visitor centre there is fantastic. The interpretive displays presented the background of the conflict and the details of the battle in a very accessible way. It is perhaps the best historical presentation I’ve ever seen. We saw interactive maps showing how the armies moved through Scotland and England, heard accounts from soldiers from both armies, and got a chance to hold some of the rifles and pistols used in the battle.

Finally, we drove along Loch Ness towards our accommodation on the Isle of Skye.  Loch Ness was beautiful and very, very long. We talked a lot about the Loch Ness monster and Molly read about the evidence for and against the existence of such a creature. River was convinced that it was a hoax.

We stopped to check out the ruins of Castle Urquhart, located picturesquely on the north shore of the loch.

And we stopped at just about every wide stop in the road, just because it was Loch Ness and it was a particularly beautiful, sunny day in the Great Glen

Then we headed for the Royal Mile, the famous section of streets between the Holyrood Abbey and Edinburgh Castle.  We ate a late breakfast in a cafe and then wandered towards the castle.  River took quite a few pictures along the way.  Some of the highlights include these classic red telephone boxes.  These are now being replaced by more exposed public phones that offer internet and text messaging in addition to the traditional phone service.  They aren’t nearly as aesthetically pleasing, though.  

We also encountered Adam Smith, father of modern economics and creator of the invisible hand metaphor.  It seems to me that the market’s guiding hand hasn’t been merely been invisible recently, but perhaps absent altogether? 

Nearby is the Heart of Midlothian, marking the spot where the tolls where collected at the old entrance to the city.   Apparently, some people have a tradition of spitting on the heart or leaving their chewed gum here.  There are several interpretations of the origin of this custom, but all of them seem pretty barbaric to me.

At the top of the Royal Mile, Edinburgh Castle is perched on the basalt plug of an extinct volano.  This position provides an incredible view over the city as well as making the castle almost impossible take by force.  The water supply, though, was restricted due these geological circumstances and became a severe weakness during sieges. 

There is an incredible historical legacy in this castle.  We learned a bit about the people who lived in the castle, including Robert the Bruce and Mary Queen of Scotts, while looking for clues to complete puzzle sheet the kids were working on.  While exploring the castle, we saw the sword, sceptre, and crown known as the Honours of Scotland and heard the one o’clock gun that ships in the harbor once used to set their chronometers.

This lion guards the entrance to the Scottish National War Memorial in the castle.

We also saw the churchyard known as Greyfriars Kirk where the scottish terrier Greyfriars Bobby is buried.