Scotland (2015)
There were several reasons why year 2015 was significant for us. Not only we were about to be married, but more importantly, we have finally decided to set off together for our first bigger (meaning longer than one week) holiday. Such a pre-honeymoon if you will. Since beginning our eyes were fixed on British Islands, since we both prefer nature to city tourism. The only thing left to decide was is it going to be Ireland or Scotland. Lakes won us over in the end and although we are sorry that we haven´t seen Ireland yet, we definitely don´t regret our decision.
Content
- Edinburgh
- Stirling – Loch Lomond & The Trossachs
- Fort William & Ben Nevis
- Cairngorm
- Summary and road map
As is my good habit I have ordered a travel guide (I personally prefer Rough Guides, however Lonely Planet is not bad as well) and one month since that I had the whole thing planned, accommodations booked and plane tickets in my mail. You can fly to Edinburgh directly from Prague and it takes a little over two hours, which is actually less than we need for the trip from Budweis to the airport. Concerning luggage we were fine with just one checked bag (backpack for easier handling) and one small cabin bag. When all was set we could in the mid of June finally set off to our Expedition-Scotland.
Edinburgh
After arrival we need to get from the airport to the centre of Edinburgh. Luckily, since Scotland is not CR, there is for this purpose available comfortable and fast train, which takes you in 30 minutes (and 6 Pounds) directly to the heart of the metropolis. Because the centre is not that big you can easily walk anywhere and we had no problem finding and checking in our first check point – Mansion Group Hotel, which in off-season serves as a dormitory of the local college. Bit cramped maybe, but clean, directly in the city and only for 60 Pounds for two nights. In Edinburgh is, fortunately, same as in most of capitals, enough of options for accommodation and the supply surplus often brings the prices down to a level acceptable even for Eastern European tourist.
Our first exploring steps led us to Calton Hill. Besides the nice view to the city (and near Arthur´s Seat, which we had planned to visit before flying home) we were primarily stunned by sight on National Monument of Scotland. Monument in honour soldiers who fell during the Napoleonic Wars was meant to be a pride of the city, however, Scots ran out of money after only one fifth of the structure was completed. So they stack the shovels in the ground and since then are soldiers honoured only partially. On the second day we explored the Old Town a little. As I mentioned, we are not much into city tourism, but Edinburgh is a very nice historic city with a pleasant atmosphere and most importantly there is not as many tourists as in other European capitals. You can take a walk from the castle along the main street Royal Mile (which in fact consists of four streets) all the way to Holyrood Palace and Scottish Parliament. When walking, beside obvious purchase of Scotch (you can´t leave Scotland without it), don´t also forget to taste some fudge, which is regional sweet and main source of income for local dentists. I like sweet and Nina loves it, but even we have limits. Our first day in Scotland was finished by a short climb over Hunter´s Bog, which is small elevated moor with nice view over the city.
Stirling – Loch Lomond & The Trossachs
With next morning we said goodbye to Edinburgh went to the bus station. Now, looking back to whole holiday I really regret only one thing. Namely, not renting a car and deciding to use public transport the whole time. Not only we would be able to see much more with own car, but also the difference in price would not be that big because buses and trains are in Scotland often more expensive than accommodation. It happened to us once during a bus ride that the English couple sitting in front of us complained how expensive the fare is. Well and if it is expensive for locals, what about poor Czech not even two years after finishing school? Nevertheless the decision was made and I was determined not to admit mistake in front of my future wife. So I deployed my heroic face and for the rest of the trip I was pulling Pound after Pound out of my wallet, knowing that I still have both kidneys, therefore sufficient financial reserve.
Next pit stop – Stirling. Historic town approximately 50km west of Edinburgh, known mainly for its castle and Mel Gibson William Wallace Monument. We were again loyal to the academic environment and this time we unpacked our bags for three nights in Willow Court Hotel, directly in the University Campus. It costed us 130 Pounds, but we enjoyed such luxuries as a bed for two and even breakfast (Haggies). Most importantly, we had an opportunity to soak up the atmosphere of old university, lawns cut like fingernails, groves and ponds. Lovely. If I was studying there, I might even go to some classes. We have also encountered our first problem with the language barrier. It is true that English is spoken in Scotland and that was the case in Edinburgh. However speech I was addressed by hotel receptionist was a harsh clash with Scottish reality for me. I speak English quite well and I don´t have problems to communicate most of the times, but my attempts to interact with this lady bear comparison with our future communication with Malaysian rain forest guide. Eventually we managed (with significant help of non-verbal means) to explain, that we would like to check-in (which I think you could expect working as a hotel receptionist, but what do I know).
At Stirling we visited mentioned castle and also The Monument, which was even visible from our room. But our main destination in this area was Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, which was reachable by public transport and for us meant first confrontation with Scottish wilderness.
Our schedule allowed us to have two whole-day trips. For the first one we chose Loch Ard, which was calm and peaceful walk around our first lake. The best part was not meeting any other tourists. On the second day we hiked around Lake Katrine, which was a bit more demanding. I have to again mention our handicap of reliance to public transport, which deprives you of both time and money. But in particular you have to all the time think about not missing the last bus, which would cause problems. Despite these limitations, we enjoyed our first Scottish hiking, supported by beautiful weather. An ironic fact worth mentioning is that the only things we brought to Scotland and did not use were our raincoats.
Fort William – Ben Nevis
Next stage took us firstly to Glasgow, where we spent only two hours waiting for connection. After that we were again joyfully heading north in another bus to Fort William, lying at the foot of the highest mountain of United Kingdom – Ben Nevis. Here again I have to mention my sadness over the fact that we didn´t have a car, because on the way we pass through enchanting valleys of Glen Coe, which we could unfortunately admire only from bus windows. But even like this it was one of the most beautiful views I have ever seen. Moon-like landscape of many hills, valleys, streams and lakes in emerald colour and without a single tree. Do you know why there are no trees in Scotland? Great Britain in its previous imperial glory was known as significant maritime superpower. And in order to be maritime superpower, you usually need some ships. A lot of ships you could say. And the devil wanted it that ships are made of wood. That is how the gentlemen in London decided that they will not cut down their own forests, where they are huntings for piglets, and cut down Scotland instead. You can almost start to understand the mutual hostility.
After arriving in Fort William, for which is label “town” maybe too generous we found local B&B Ardmory, where were we supposed to stay for following three nights. It was a small rural house with two rooms for guests in the attic, for one of which we paid 190 Pounds. The landlady was incredibly nice and friendly, made excellent breakfasts and wanted to chat with us all the time. True that travellers from the wild east don´t visit her every day. After finding out that we aim to climb Ben Nevis on the next day she wished us best of luck and added that she hope the mountain is still there because she has not seen it over half a year.
Before we left home next morning we were stopped by our landlady on the porch and given hers visiting card with recommendation to secure it in our pockets. That it would make it easier for paramedics to identify our bodies after we will fall somewhere. We took it as a nice joke. Naive Czech fools…
Ben Nevis is not a particularly high mountain. Or outstanding in any way true by told. But it is the highest around and as such it needs to be conquered. And not as Nina suggested “Just tell at home that we climbed at it”. I enjoy deceiving family as any other person, but even I have some dignity. So it towered over us (at least we guessed due to clouds) to a height of 1.345m, which is not too much, but considering that our B&B was towering in height of 9m we had some steps in front of us. We set out on a journey and after 3 kilometres arrived to the visitor centre at the beginning of the climb. After obligatory toilet break we read the local information board, recommending us to carry during the climb: fire making kit, flare, map, compass, warm hat and gloves. Of course we didn´t have any of that, but we believed that our enthusiasm will compensate any lack of equipment. Although there were some clouds covering the mountain, it was a lovely sunny day and we were enjoying walking around herds of sheep and the occasional tourist. As elevation rose, grass was exchanged with rocks and sheep were blown away by rising winds. After 90 minutes we managed to drag ourselves to lake Lochan Meall in the pass under Nevis. It was there where we could for a last time look around to enjoy majestic Scottish fjords, before we were swallowed by clouds. It was slowly getting cold and to our surprise, after another hour of climbing, we found snow. I was trying with my joking to lift the falling mood of my fiancee, nevertheless after another 30 minutes when having the snow almost to our knees and each step meant sliding a bit back even I started to feel my optimism leaving me. Unfortunately snow and cold weren´t our biggest problem as we were about to find out.
We started to realize the gravity of situation in moments, when we really didn´t know which way to go. The visibility quickly declined to 5-10 meters and we moved trapped within white sphere. After those several meters we could saw couldn´t be told where the snow ends and the cloud begins. The path to the summit was marked by stone mounds whose peaks stood out of snow and each time we managed to get to one, we had to stop, staring into the white darkness trying to find another one. The only thing that kept us going, instead of turning around and return, was the presence of some human steps in snow around us, promising that in worst case we will not die alone. The strongest experience came at the moment when a gust of wind lifted a cloud for a few seconds and we could see, just few meters from us, snow cornice and abyss several hundred meters deep. Suddenly we started to determine our direction with much more care. After 5 hours of strenuous climb we finally stood on the peak of United Kingdom, imagining how beautiful the view must be, when you can see it and how precious are situations, when you don´t have frostbites on your fingers. In the end, we managed to return safely and whole trip took us between 8-9 hours.
Our bodies survived without any harm and so did our relationship, which is equally important. We conceived the second day in more recreational spirit and went for a walk through the valley under Ben Nevis, which served as filming location for many scenes in the movie Braveheart, towards the Steall Falls waterfall. There and back to Fort William it was 24 kilometers, but with minimum elevation, lovely views and most importantly without snow.
Cairngorm
Our mountaineering episode successfully ended and with it so our stay at Fort William. The next stop on our tour in Scotland was supposed to be town Aviemore in Cairngorms National Park, reached again by bus via Inverness, which was the most northern place of our journey. By the way, we pass by famous Loch Ness, but without stopping. It is really true anthill of tourists and there are plenty of gorgeous lakes in Scotland, where is no danger of getting hit to the head with selfie stick. I won´t write much about Inverness because it was only interchange station for us and we spent there only few hours in proximity of the bus station. However, one fact stuck in my head and I can recollect it even today, four years later. It was the smell which attacked us right after getting off the bus. It wasn´t caused by some fish market or something in that manner. It was simply the local equivalent of fresh air. Another small complication was getting decent food. When you have two hours to kill it is effective to use them to gain some strength. The problem in Scotland was, that there weren´t many opportunities. You could find some restaurants, but it was not exactly a viable choice for a guy with Czech paycheck and his student-fiancee. And you can´t live all the time just on fast-food, not mentioning that McDonald´s in Czech Republic can be compared to a Michelin restaurant after seeing McDonald´s in Scotland. Normally we solve such predicament by visiting Tesco and buying some basic groceries (ham, cheese, pastry), but even that was hard to get. Scots, as I have observed, don´t bother themselves with such dull activities as cooking most of the time. Bag of crisps is enough for lunch and dinner can be always bought at some fast-food. And in time of crisis you can always get a deep-fried Mars bar. I was not that brave, to the delight of my veins.
Our last stop, as was mentioned, was Cairngorm National Park, where we accommodated for next three nights at nice lodge Highland Hotel for 190 Pounds. There is a regular shuttle bus going from Aviemore to Glenmore, which is an ideal place to start many trips within the park. We decided to climb on near lying small hill (Munro, as it is called by locals) Meall a’ Bhuachaille, which meant for us some 550m of elevation. Then climb down on the other side and walk to famous lake Lochan Uaine. All together only 10 kilometres or something, but as days went by, we slowly started to feel the fatigue. That was the reason why we in the end voted to stay at Aviemore on the following day, rest and gain some energy.
The time has come for our return to Edinburgh, which we already knew quite well and therefore it was no problem for us to find our old hotel, spend one more day in the capital and buy so much Scotch which is legally allowed to export. And as an icing on the cake we indulged ourselves with a climb to the Arthur´s Seat – an extinct volcano right in the middle of the city, with wonderful view. If you won´t get blown away by the wind it is a perfect spot for enjoying the sunset and reminiscing on great holiday.
Summary and road map
In the unlikely case that you have read up here, you have my thanks and I hope that maybe some of mentioned information will help you with the planning of your trip, if you once decide to visit Scotland. We managed to carry out all which are described above within 14 days in this beautiful country. If we had a car, this article would be surely much longer. nevertheless, I have a feeling that even in that case I would complain that we didn´t see enough. Scotland offers so many things and there is only so much time. I wish you all to find all you are looking for there.
Gallery