A Long Weekend Trip to Glenfinnan Part 2 - Are We There Yet?

At Neptune's Staircase with Ben Nevis in the Background

One of the benefits of going on trips without our kids (who are pretty much grown ups now) is having the option to ad-lib with the itinerary. Any parent will be familiar with being constantly asked the same question over and over," are we there yet", from roughly a mile away from your starting position until you reach your final destination. This progresses to "I'm bored" - even when you think
you are off the scale with your best banter - so it's nice to decide that you can make a change to the plan without the need to employ a persuasive diplomat. Since we were passing through Fort William en-route to Glenfinnan we decided to stop off and have a look at Neptune's Staircase which is situated on the Caledonian Canal at Banavie.

It was still early in the morning, so the plan was breakfast, a gallon of coffee, clean up the van, quick showers then head off. With the breakfast and coffee done it was cleanup time. It was at that point we

Neptune's Staircase

discovered that hot water system had failed yet again. Disaster! Disappointment! My heart sank to the depths of despair. I quickly dismantled the seating area that housed the hot water heater only to find a small leak had got into the electronics and rendered it beyond repair. All those night's of sealing, testing and resealing, all the re-engineering not to mention the financial outlay of the new controller unit. Was the trip over? It was Mamabroon's birthday. We were like two kids that had just been told, Santa Claus didn't exist. A minute of silence passed. We could patch up the leak and we could always boil hot water for a stand up wash at the toilet sink. I quickly set about stemming the flow of water (a small dribble really). It would be enough to allow us to continue using the cold water system without flooding the van. We filled the kettle many times to wash dishes then wash ourselves - I even had a shave. A stand up wash takes longer than a shower, but we were soon on our way and heading to Fort William for supplies that we might not be able to find in Glenfinnan. Our spirits were high and we were back on the A82 for what was a pleasant drive.

It had started to rain by the time we reached Fort William, but we were going for supplies so were not worried about the weather. There are a few supermarkets, Morrisons, Aldi and a Lidl. We opted for Lidl and that turned out to be a great choice - I got new wellies for the princely sum of £7 and it wasn't even my birthday. I've always wanted to own a pair of wellies, so I was completely made up.

One of the 8 Locks on Neptune's Staircase

We were soon back in the van and heading along the A830 to Banavie. It didn't take us long to reach our stop off, but I drove past it twice while Mamabroon was yelling "turn right, turn right", as I trundled past without a care. I was busy telling my story about the time when I had played a gig in Fort William - I can only focus on one thing at a time. We eventually made the correct turn and drove into the car park (56.8462° N, 5.0940° W). We had a quick coffee before we left the van - that's something else we drink too much of, but it was a cold day and warm drinks were required. Neptune's Staircase was build in the early 19th century by Thomas Telford and took around 20 years to complete. There are eight locks making up the staircase and it's the largest of its type on the British Isles. It truly is a fantastic feat of engineering and well worth a visit. There are lots of things to do in Fort William, but I would recommend a visit to this site to see it for yourself and to take in the views all around. You can see Ben Nevis and beautiful Loch Linnhe as you wander up and down the canal towpath. We walked for a while talking rubbish about how certain parts of the staircase must have been built, wondered about how they positioned the sixteen, 22 ton gates and admired the spectacular scenery. The rain had started to fall, so we headed back to the van for a late lunch.

Loch Shiel and the Glenfinnan Monument

Once we had been fed and watered we were soon back on the A830 for the short drive to Glenfinnan.

The Glenfinnan Viaduct 

The rain was heavy but the scenery driving alongside Loch Eil was nice when there was a break through the trees. Before long we arrived at the visitors centre on Loch Shiel with its truly magnificent views of majestic hills that rolled down to the loch and the towering monument that marks the areas historical significance. The Glenfinnan viaduct (used in the Harry Potter films) can be seen from the visitor centre car park. The rain was heavy now, so we decided to wait until the following morning before going out to explore. We don't mind the rain, but we had plenty of time. We would't have enough time to see everything we wanted before it was dark anyway. The visitors centre doesn't allow over night parking, but it wasn't difficult to find a suitable spot nearby. With our trusty Park4Night app we found a great place next to a river. It was sheltered by trees and the ground was flat. The coordinates are 56.8578° N, 5.4066°W if you are ever up that way and need to stop for an overnight or even just fancy a nice place to park. As it was mid March it was getting dark, so we settled down to some dinner and a couple of rum's before bed. We had a great nights sleep and were up early with a good breakfast and ready to explore the area. There's never any real choice other than getting up early in the van. Mamabroon is usually up by 6am and wearing her weighted divers boots, or so it would seem. She's light on the dance floor but heavy on the van floor.

Glenfinnan Monument

We drove up past the visitors centre to a car park on higher ground - we're not tight, but we had paid the parking fee the previous day and only stayed for 10 minutes. Our aim was to go walking and the visitor centre only allows parking for an hour. After parking the van we made our way down to the visitor centre. You can buy coffee and there's a gift shop with some interesting stuff for sale. The staff are friendly and very knowledgeable about the area and it's historical significance.
We bought some keepsakes and tickets to go up the monument. We met our guide outside and headed across the road toward the loch. Getting up the monument involves climbing a narrow spiral staircase and exiting onto the viewing platform via a small hatch - perfectly manageable unless you have problems with stairs. The view from the top is well worth it. Looking out over the loch and breathing the clean fresh air was a joy in itself. We took some time to take some photographs and made our descent back down the spiral staircase. At the bottom, our guide was waiting to answer any questions. We had a few and we ended up chatting for over an hour. Just as well it wasn't busy that day, although quite a few other visitors came and went and the guide paused to answer their questions. We already knew a little of the history, so I think we were prime candidates for a good old chin wag.

After our blether with the guide we set off for a relaxed walk to the viaduct and through the hills. We drove down to Glencoe for a late dinner and birthday drinks, but more of that in the next blog.  Thanks for taking the time to read this post - if you managed to get this far, please feel free to leave a comment.

A Long Weekend Trip To Glenfinnan Part 1 - To Bridge of Orchy and Beyond

We've always been a bit envious of those who live their lives travelling in vans. The thought of the freedom to go where ever the notion takes and soaking up as much as we  can en-route has great appeal. It's therefore a rare treat for us when we can extend the weekend and head out in Mowgli (our 20 year old motothome) whilst we leave our worries and cares well behind. We don't really do a great deal of planning for these trips, other than what the final destination will be before we need to start the journey back home - and of course, how many bottles of rum we will need. I should say that I don't condone the excessive use of alcohol, we just like rum.........honest. I am partial to malt whisky, but it's easier to manage if we both drink the same thing 😊. Far too much focus on alcohol in the last couple of sentences, so I'll move on. It was Mamabroon's birthday in March, so we decided that a long weekend was in order and the destination would be Glenfinnan.

First Sighting of Leaky Tank

Some work on the van was required for this trip as we had some trouble with the water heater on a previous trip - the structure holding the water cylinder to the heat inducer had mechanically failed and a large leaking gap had rendered it unusable. Worse than that, it also meant the we had no cold water either as the water pump is  multi-functional and fills the hot water tank as well as pumping the fresh water. If that wasn't bad enough, the electronic gas controller had come out in sympathy with the mechanical parts and that too needed replacing. Oh, and I also had a diesel heater to install due to the van's gas heater becoming somewhat unreliable. These types of jobs have become common place and I have found myself sadly deriving some pleasure from them. I must have gone insane - there is nothing rational about that behaviour. Having little patience and due to the compact nature of the van, being forced to work in small spaces is quite a pain, so I've no idea why I just made the proclamation of derived pleasure. I spent nearly six whole evenings on that confounded water tank practically re-engineering it. It's old and not easy to get spare parts.......and not cheap either. On the other hand, the diesel heater was a doddle - time consuming, but all the hurdles were easily over come.

So, two weeks of solitary confinement and intensive hard labour, coupled with the the hardest of weeks at my day job, Mamabroon and I were most certainly ready for a weekend away where we could bombard each other with our rotten patter and see some of Scotland's fantastic scenery (and enjoy the occasional rum).

Our plan, if you can call it a plan, was to leave on the Thursday evening after work, but two things prevented that from happening and the schedule was compromised right from the off. First of all, I was still trying to repair the water heater and secondly the clutch on my car decided it was getting less attention than the van, so in a fit of what can only be assumed to be mechanical envy, it decided it had had enough and ended it's days without notice. We would have shed tears if it hadn't been for the fact that on  the Wednesday, we found a deal for two bottles of Captain Morgans at around the same price as we would pay in our local supermarket. It wasn't actually Captain Morgans, but rather a cheaper equivalent that turned out to be a tasty beverage.

We awoke on the Friday morning, well Mamabroon did - she rises at ridiculously early hours. I on the other hand had been grafting away on the Thursday evening and was woken - well before lunching hours - by a rather impatient and excited wife. My first port of call was to go and test the water heater that had been consuming my every spare hour and was resealed, a third time, the evening before. Mamabroon filled the fresh water tank in preparation whilst I cleared away my entire tool collection ( don't just use a set of spanners when you can use a drill, power screw driver, hammer, ratchet sets......). A few finishing touches to the water heater assembly and it was time to test and all the while the new diesel heater was pumping out ferocious temperatures. Fresh water tank now filled I listened for the gurgling sound of the hot water cylinder filling - all good so far. Quick check for leaks - all good. Turn on the gas valve and ignite the water heater - all good. We were like two kids at Christmas tears of joy and hugs all round. I was a hero for ten minutes. A great feeling. A few minutes later and it was time to turn on the hot water tap in the hope of warm water. It was piping hot. Damn, it was as if it were actually a good hot water system. Whoops of joy and  and some silly dad dance moves were quite enough celebration. It was time to throw our stuff into the van and head off. It was 4:30pm after all and time and tide wait for no man.

View from the Van Bride of Orchy

Our loosely drawn up plan was to drive part of the way and stop over night. Glenfinnan is three and a half to four hours away (Mowgli isn't very fast) so stopping for an overnight made good sense. It didn't take us long to plan that surprisingly enough. Setting off up the scenic A82 we were soon passing Loch Lomond's bonny banks. When we are travelling up the west cost of Scotland, Loch Lomond is marker that we have made our escape from the concrete jungle and the beauty of nature is in every visible direction. The road at the north of the loch becomes a bit narrower with frequent sharp bends. It's also the most scenic part so a bit more focus is required. The A82 is a fantastically scenic road that opens up to some of Scotland most dramatic vista's the further north you travel on it. For us, it's one of the most enjoyable roads to travel when heading to the Scottish Highlands. We had looked at the route before hand and had nominated a couple of areas that would be suitable for an over night stop and after much deliberation decided to stop in Bridge of Orchy. Well, it was more like;
"where are we"?
"Bridge of Orchy"
"Let's stop here then"
"OK"
We quickly found a place - we usually wild camp and use a great app called Park4Night which is great for finding areas to stay. We have used it in France too and it has never let us down, but this is the point where we normally have a bit of a tiff if it's me who's doing the driving.
"The sat nav said turn left"
"I didn't hear it"
"I've been telling you for the past ten minutes"
"I couldn't hear because you had the music up too loud"

A Rather Dirty Looking Mowgli

However, the gods were with us on this occasion and Mamabroon had got bored of her music and I was free to listen to the instructions of the sat nav. Actually, the truth is that it was getting dark and I was paying attention. My senses were heightened like someone who can tel butter from one of those 'I can't believe it's not butter' alternatives. We were eventually directed to an empty car park off a single track road. It was quiet and there was the sound of a river flowing just behind us. It was dark and we couldn't see, but the relaxing sound of the river on a quiet night told us we were in a nice spot. Mamabroon has a great routine of going for a smoke and turning the gas on for a first brew while I give myself a pat on the back for being an excellent driver. She assures me that the gas is turned on and the gas locker closed before she lights up her cigarette. I am eternally grateful for that. And for the fact that she can rustle up a tasty bite to eat and two coffees in half the time it takes me to even think about what needs to be done. When she does the driving we are usually half starved before I have anything prepared.

We like to get a small colander fire going and enjoy a small libation after we have digested our food, but it started to rain, so with the cosy warmth of the new diesel heater, we settled down to a couple of rums before bed. We kept the measures small and few and had an early night to ensure we were good to drive the following day.

After a ten hour sleep (it's amazing how well we sleep in the van) I was awoke by the excited Mamabroon clog dancing, or at least it sounded like that as she clattered around the van, as is her wont of a morning, making the breakfast in an exceptionally successful scam that get's me out of bed without fuss. It was a fresh morning and the river behind us was furiously delivering vast quantities of water from the mountains above to where ever it's final destination was. We had a loosely scheduled timetable to keep, so I didn't have time to check what river it was or to where it flowed - it was nice to wake up with it in the background, but the clock was ticking. Not really, we have a very casual approach, but I thought I'd add that for dramatic effect. The next leg of the journey takes us to Glenfinnan via Fort William. See you there.
  

The Grey Mare's Tail

View From The Hill Path

The Grey Mare’s Tail is a 60 meter waterfall in the Moffat hills, situated about 10 miles north east of Moffat town centre. The falls are created by the water from Loch Skeen winding its way through the hillside via some smaller falls and over the 60 meter drop on its way to Moffat Water which runs along the side of the road through the valley.

You can reach the Grey Mares Tail (Nature Reserve) by heading along the A708 from the town of Moffat - the road takes you into the valley between the Moffat Hills, so it’s a pleasant, picturesque view. There are two car parks and we stayed the night in one of them. The car park location is Moffat DG10 9LH. GPS coordinates are 55.417987, -3.287556 (according to Google Maps). If you are going for the day it is advisable to get there before noon – even though it was a cold day, it was quite busy and the car park got full just before mid-day. There are a number of wildlife attractions such as peregrine falcons and wild goats. We weren’t looking, so we didn’t see any, but there were plenty of wild life lovers with binoculars and stuff so we possibly missed out on that side of things. It’s definitely a place that we will go back to and the intent is to see more. The purpose of this visit though was to walk up to Loch Skeen and enjoy the scenery (including the falls) en route.

The upkeep of the Grey Mare's Tail is overseen by The National Trust for Scotland and in the car park there is a donation box in lieu of an actual parking charge.

Loch Skeen is listed in The Daily Telegraph as one of Britain's finest one day and half day walks. You can see the White Coomb hill from the east side of the loch itself.

The Grey Mare's Tail

White Coomb is the highest of the Moffat hills at 821m at its highest point. There is a circular walk following the path past Grey Mare's Tail or the most direct route sees you crossing the Tail Burn.There are stepping stones to allow crossing but it can be tricky following any heavy rain, which in Scotland is mostly a given! There are also 18 subsidiary summits of White Coomb so plenty of choice as to which route you want to take.

We arrived on the Friday night to a) Ensure a good parking spot and b) have our weekly party!

We had a look around during the short daylight hours left on the Friday and as an inexperienced hill-walker I will confess to nothing short of a feeling of dread looking up at the path we would be taking.

The Saturday morning dawned with some passable attempts at sunlight, however starting up the cliff path the weather changed every 5 minutes. Glorious sunshine giving way to driving rain, snow and hail returning to more glorious sunshine - all within a 5 minute span.

The path itself was mainly stairs for the first part, which is apparently a good workout for your calves but it's a lot harder going than it actually looks. After the stairs the path itself would be easy to see and follow when not covered in snow. There are also a few places where you have to use stepping stones to cross wee streams. It can be a strenuous walk but manageable for all ages and fitness levels.

The path at times was quite narrow and the howling gale was forcing me to have to hold my hat in place before it blew away for the sheep to eat! However holding a hat with one hand and trying to keep my balance when the wind was doing its upmost to blow me off the path was at times a bit scary. I was really envious of those sheep wandering unconcernedly about the steep slopes doing sheep things.

We did stop a lot to take photographs, particularly when jumping over small streams where we could see icicles, where the dripping water had frozen solidly.

Frozen Loch Skeen

As hubby will testify, I can be a bit of a drama queen at times especially when it began snowing on our climb up. I did tend to decide that we were going to die in a big frozen drift, however, that didn't happen and when we got to Loch Skeen the view was nothing short of incredible. Looking at a frozen loch and being the only people there in all the silence was actually way more dramatic than I could even imagine.

The weather started to close in whilst we were admiring the dramatic scenery so we started retracing our steps. Again, the weather gods couldn't quite make their minds up and at one point, looking back, the hills were bathed in glorious sunshine and I even took my hat off, but looking forward we walked straight into another snow squall.

As is our wont, we got back to Mowgli (our motor home) for dinner and a rest - and as darkness fell, we realised that there was still one car in the car park, the couple having set off just as we were coming back down.

View Coming Down the Hill Path

The snow started to fall in earnest and darkness had really set in and still no sign of them. In my dramatic moments I decided that they had strayed too far from the path and fallen to their deaths, or they were suffering from hypothermia and had got hopelessly lost, when in actual fact they were clearly experienced walkers and came bobbing back down a few hours later with their head torches happily showing them the way.

A Gatecrasher

I was so relieved as it had started to snow quite heavily at this point (in March!) so in celebration we threw our own welcome back party, to which they weren't invited......some gatecrashing sheep did turn up though and just pottered around doing sheep things and trying to shelter from the snow.

All in it is well worth a visit regardless of the weather as the scenery itself is fantastic.

Just a Site Test With Videos

Some videos of pictures taken on our travels. We bought our motorhome back in October 2017. We've had some problems along the way, but see it more as part of the fun. Regardless of the fact that we have to make some repairs now and then, our aim is to get as much enjoyment as possible from it and we have certainly been doing that.

Now that our three children are no longer children - ages 15, 19 and 21 - we tend to get away in the van as many weekends as possible. The younger child is only too keen to stay at home with her older siblings so as to avoid the embarrassment of her two parents who are rediscovering their youth.....so to speak.

The plan for this blog is to share our adventures......and repairs probably, but hopefully it will be more pictures and stories from our travels in Scotland. We have a two week trip coming in July this year where our plans are to do some island hoping in the Hebrides, then a jaunt across the North Coast 500. We are not professional photographers and our equipment doesn't stretch beyond our mobile phones and a go-pro clone, but hopefully there will be some decent images and interesting stories, with a bit of humour too. The first interesting question being will the van make it the full distance? We'll see 😄

I will post the story of the van in a future blog - there is certainly some humour there, although it wasn't so funny at the time.

Winter Wild Camping in Scotland

Random Scottish Locations

Out and About in Scotland