Postscript

We all had a great time in the UK. London was a lot of fun, and the Highlands were a lot of a different kind of fun. Islay and Jura were yet another thing. The pace is much slower there. Edinburgh was very interesting and well worth visiting. We never got to spend any time exploring Glasgow even though we were there 3 times passing through. It didn't seem to matter after being in the Highlands.

Here are some insights and observations:

Lodging

Our hotels were all comfortable and some were a little unusual. The Sanctuary House in London was an old structure with squeaky floors, but it was clean and relatively quiet for the location. The location was great - close walking distance to the major attractions and close to a Tube station.

The Bank Hotel in Edinburgh was the most eccentric place we stayed at. It was comfortable, but definitely not quiet with the bar below the rooms. We knew that going in, so we enjoyed it instead of getting upset about it. Hey, we have time to sleep back home!

The Holiday Inn Express in Glasgow was just a stopping point between legs of the journey, so it was fine that it was pretty generic.They did have good beer in the bar there.

Kilcamb was the best. It was also an old building, but very nicely remodeled. The rooms were large and comfortable, and the staff were incredible. There was nothing to want for. The sitting rooms were very inviting, and we regret not having the time to enjoy them more.

The Bridgend Hotel on Islay was also old but nicely re-done. The rooms were again comfortable and quiet. Katie's bar had some good ales on tap.

Transportation

Here is a list of the different modes of transportation we used:

1. Passenger jet
2. Airport shuttle
3. Double decker bus
4. The Tube
5. Taxi
6. Train
7. City bus
8. Van driven by our guides
9. Steam train
10. Turbo prop regional plane
11. Car and van driven by ourselves
12. Ferry
13. Coach (bus to us, like Greyhound)
14. Our feet

The trains were the best mode of transportation we found; the most comfortable and the most affordable. They would be a good way to see more of the country next time we go.

The plane over and back was the worst, but what can you expect when you are stuck on there for 9 hours? Trying to sleep was painful, but it did help with jet lag some.

The double decker bus allowed us to see stuff we wouldn't have otherwise, but it was expensive and probably not really worth the cost. The driver seemed to be trying to set a speed record for his route and you really couldn't get many pictures.

The tube was easy and relatively cheap. Buy the round trip ticket and plan to use it.

In Glasgow, the 500 bus is the one to look for to get to and from the airport.

Our guide driven vans took away any anxiety about driving over there - we could concentrate on the scenery instead of worrying about which side of the road we were on. What are the rules in a roundabout? We did learn the rules of driving on single track roads.

The steam train was worth the expense - how often do you get to do that? It was a fun ride.

The regional airline to Islay flies Saab turbo props, 1 seat on the left and 2 on the right. Cozy and relatively comfortable for the short flight.

We rented cars for transportation on Islay, but you could go there without one. The bus service there is better than we have in the small towns here by far. Driving there was low stress due to the relatively few cars on the road, so we got used to driving on the left pretty easily. Driving the single track roads was fun, actually. The code of conduct is pretty simple - if you come to a pullout first, blink your lights and pull into it if it's on your side or stop alongside it if it's on the other side. Give a friendly wave as the other car passes.

Ferries are fairly common where it becomes necessary to cross the lochs. The mainland loch ferries are large and hold a lot of cars. The smaller ones like the one across Islay Sound are much smaller - don't be late. The big ferry from Port Ellen to Kennecraig was a luxury liner in comparison. A very nice mode of travel.

Most of all, use your feet. There are so many things to see and visit on foot in all of the places we visited that we didn't make it to most of them. That leaves some for the next visit.

Food and drink

We loved the food everywhere we went. There were no complaints (well, very few) about any of it. We tried many new things and some things that were very much like they are at home. The meals at Kilcamb were fine dining experiences. Some of the more notable things we tried were:

1. Steak and Ale Pie
2. Fish and Chips
3. Sticky Toffee Pudding
4. Haggis (really - try it)
5. The bacon - much leaner than what we have here
6. Black pudding

The traditional ales are wonderful. They are served warmer and less carbonated than the beers at home, but that isn't a bad thing. The cask ales were excellent as well. There is a small brewery on Islay that makes some very good beers.

And... When you are in Scotland and especially on Islay, you have to try the single malts. There are some that use peat smoked malts that result in an interesting Whisky, and others that use plain malts. They are all excellent in their own ways, and we enjoyed several of them. We brought some home that can't be found here.

Ourselves

Our group was rather large, 10 people. It's a little hard to please everyone, but we compromised well and got along well. We all had some different basic interests, but we all agreed when it came to the views we were seeing and the food and drink. The places we went for meals all accommodated us very well. At one pub, when told that there were 10 of us traveling together, the bartender asked "What, and you haven't killed each other yet?". Nah, not even close.


The group consisted of:

Auntie Hank (leader of the pack) Johnstone
Dick, Raylene and Sean (let's walk!) Kimball
Bill and Nancy (where are the gardens?) Wilson/Schmidt
Sue and Linda (go with the flow) Wilson/Hempel
Jack and Kim (try this ale!) Wilson

Take a bow, everyone.

Some of the more common things we heard said among the group:

Ooh! Try this!
What's the value of this coin?
Where's Linda?
Where are my camera batteries?
Wow! Look at that!
What was that? (You have to know the story about Aidan and cattle grates).
The bacon here is so good!
I'll have the sticky toffee pudding! (An amazingly good dessert)
Heilan Coo
Ling, bell and cross leaf heath (The different kinds of heather)
How many courses tonight?

and...

Where's Linda?


So, I think we need to salute ourselves and congratulate each other on pulling off a great trip. This is a great part of the world to go see, and we barely scratched the surface. There will definitely be another trip someday to see some more of it.

Day 13, August 8th, Glasgow

We got up early, finished packing and ate breakfast. We fueled up the vehicles and said goodbye to the Bridgend Hotel. We drove through Bowmore and on down to Port Ellen. We returned the car keys at the ferry terminal and bought tickets for the ferry to Kennecraig. The ferry is another great way to travel; food and coffee are available and lots of places to sit. A little over 2 hours later, we landed at Kennecraig and got on the bus for Glasgow. This ride was nearly 4 hours, and then we changed busses for the 500 bus to the airport and the short walk to our hotel. We had a final dinner abroad at the hotel, and tomorrow morning we get on the plane to return home. That's it for now, we will write up a post script when we get home and share some of the things we've learned about travel over here. It has been a great adventure; an absolutely wonderful trip.

Day 12, August 7th, Bridgend, Islay

We headed for Jura this morning after breakfast. A few miles up the road, on to the ferry, and across Islay Sound.


There are only a little over 200 people living on Jura. We drove up to Jura House Gardens. We walked the trails down to the sound and back up to the gardens.


This was another old Roman walled garden at one time, and the walls are still there. They have done amazing work in the gardens, all with only 2 full time workers.


Before we left, we had coffee, tea, scones, and other goodies from the Tea Tent while feeding some of the birds that came to visit. There is a different kind of Robin here, smaller than the ones we are familiar with.


We then headed up to Craighouse to visit the Jura Distillery.


We only had a couple of minutes to spend if we wanted to catch the 12:30 ferry, so we got a couple of souvenirs and headed back. We got to the ferry terminal to be 7th in line for a ferry that holds *maybe* 7 cars. We got squeezed on by folding in the mirrors and parking within a fraction of an inch of the Royal Mail van next to us.


We drove to Bunnahabhain Distillery next and ate lunch at the picnic tables there. We got a tasting in the gift shop and got a souvenir. We are worried about our weight limits on our luggage, so we regretfully left the Whisky behind.


On the way back we pulled into the Finlaggan site. This is where the McDonalds, Lords of the Isles, had one of their strongholds which was destroyed by King James IV in 1494.


Back at the hotel, we all got together at a table outside and just enjoyed the beautiful afternoon. We had dinner at the hotel. Jack finally had Haggis, Neeps and Tatties (you can't return to Scotland unless you do). It was pretty good, actually.

Tomorrow we return our rental vehicles in Port Ellen and get on the ferry for Kennecraig. There we get on a bus for Glasgow.

Day 11, August 6th, Bridgend, Islay

Wow, what a day. After breakfast in the hotel restaurant, we headed south to the Mull of Oa. We drove the single track road to Port Ellen and then west to the parking area.


On the way we saw a Heilan Coo.


It was supposed to be .8 miles to the monument by the straight path. We checked it out, but the way looked like it was a marsh and we didn't want to walk through that. The other way was longer, but we took it. We ended up having to walk through a pasture past cows and sheep. We weren't sure it was the right way, but we spotted a marker post with an arrow on it in the pasture. If we hadn't taken this path, we would have missed some of the most impressive scenery yet.


The Highlands were scenic, but this was spectacular. The pictures do not do justice to the views we were seeing. You had to hear the waves crashing on the rocks.


We spent too much time gawking at the views along that path and spent an hour getting to the monument. The monument itself was erected by the American Red Cross to honor the American sailors who died after their ships were sunk by U-Boats during World War I.


It was here that Bill did the second of the 3 headstands that he has planned (still don't know why).


The tower sits on a point that is a sheer cliff down to the ocean. This picture was a little hard to do, looking straight down.


On the way back we spotted the markers for the short way to the car park and took that. It was wetter, but not too bad.

From there, we went back through Port Ellen and east to the Ardbeg distillery. We ate the sack lunches we got from the hotel at the picnic tables outside and then went on the distillery tour and the tasting that followed. It was very interesting and tasty.


Continued north on the single track road to the Kildalton Cross, circa 800 a.d. The church walls are still standing, but there is no roof to protect the dozen or so so stone markers on the ground and in the wall "inside" the church.


Dinner tonight: baguettes with cold cuts, cheese and a wonderful mustard from the Bowmore Distillery, fresh tomato and cucumber slices, semi-cold beer from Islay Ales, and a dessert of fresh blackberries with shortbread and creamy yogurt. Sitting in Katie's Bar now, the Calders 70 is cold and smooth.

Day 10, August 5th, Bridgend, Islay

We flew to Islay this morning. The views of the mainland were mostly blocked by clouds, but we did get some pictures of the coast and the islands. There are sand beaches on the west shore of Islay.


We got a shot of the Mull of Oa and the monument there as we passed over.


We arrived a little after 9:15 and got our rental cars, a Volkswagon van and a Volkswagen Golf. It's been interesting driving on the left. The driver is getting numerous reminders. We wandered around Bowmore for a while and then had lunch at the Loch Side restaurant. It was here that Bill got a dram of Bunnahabhain 12 year. He thought it was pretty good.


Then we headed to the Bridgend Hotel and got checked in. More skeleton keys. This is a neat old place too.



We walked to the Islay Ales brewery and sampled some of the beers there. They make some good ones. On the way we saw a sign for the community gardens with a welcome to come in and walk around. We found that they are growing lots of fresh produce for the community.


After we got back to the hotel, We sat down in the bar at the hotel to make plans for tomorrow. We ended up going back to town for dinner - the hotel dinners were larger than anyone wanted. We split up between the Loch Side and an Indian place. Back to the hotel for a nightcap. Jack wanted to try the Whisky that Bill had, but found that the hotel bar was out of it. They did have the 18 year, so that made a more than acceptable substitute for only a little more money (the 25 year was 24 pounds for a dram, so we didn't try that).

Tomorrow we are going to the Mull of Oa and then on to Ardbeg Distillery for a tour.

Day 9, August 4th, Glasgow

Day 9, August 4th, Glasgow

We got on the road today at about 10:00AM after our final breakfast at Kilcamb. After a quick stop at Morrison's, a large grocery store, We drove to Glenfinnan to look at the monument to Bonny Prince Charlie. The prince assembled an army at this location for one last attempt to drive off the British and put the Stuarts back on the throne of Scotland.


We continued on and stopped again at the Drover's Inn for lunch and then on back to Glasgow. We had to take some time to do laundry, and then we had snacks and a few beers in Sue and Linda's room. Tomorrow we leave for Islay.

Day 8, August 3rd, Strontian

We slept even later this morning and made it down for breakfast after 9:00. The guides were due to pick us up by 9:30, but they were a little late too. We headed off for the western tip of the Ardnamurchan Peninsula to hike some trails along the coast. The tip of the peninsula is the western most point on the mainland of the UK. There is a light house there.

The drive was again on narrow one lane roads that got smaller as we went. In the U.S. these would be called "The Sidewalk", yet here are shared by anything from sleeping sheep to large lorries carrying building materials. Our first stop was at what used to be a small fishing village, probably Viking. It was here that Bill performed the first of his three Scottish headstands. (Not sure why.)


We hiked past grazing sheep down to the site.


There was a small walled cemetary overgrown with bracken and nettles, but we managed to clear enough of it away to see the grave stones. They were very old with some interesting carvings on them.


We continued on to Sanna and started walking along the shore towards the lighthouse. The water was the color you would see in the Caribbean.


Some of us walked up to the top of the lighthouse, 180 feet above the sea. Nice view on a very windy day, with surf crashing into the rocky shoreline.


Headed back to the Kilcamb for our third and final multi-course dinner. We're sitting in the lounge with coffee and wee drams, writing these few final comments about a great stay in the Highlands.