Having stayed only six miles from the Scottish border it wasn’t too long before we had a photo opportunity as we crossed from England into Scotland. Today, still running behind time, we missed a visit to Edinburgh and instead went straight to Falkirk. Here we took the opportunity to check out the engineering marvel, the world’s first rotating canal lock, the Falkirk Wheel and we were not disappointed. Taking the 30 minute boat ride on offer we traveled on the Falkirk Wheel and were amazed firstly by the engineering facts presented in a video, secondly the very patriotic Scotsman giving us the commentary and finally the number of pensioners who were our traveling companions. Except for another young couple we were the only ones under the age of 75 on the boat. At one stage I looked up at the patriotic Scotsman across a sea of white hair (I took a photo).
Leaving Falkirk in good time our next port of call was Stirling Castle. Dragging the motor home through the narrow cobbled and very steep streets toward the castle, we managed to find a large enough car park to back the old girl in (only to discover later that the castle had an ample car park that didn’t require a 50 metre walk up another steep street). Stepping out of the vehicle we were presented with the first of many Scottish kilted bagpipe players. Taking the obligatory photo and throwing him a coin, we walked on to the castle. Standing looking out from the walls of the castle, and as the weather was gorgeous, we could see for miles down the river valley and also a great view of the Robert the Bruce Memorial on another rocky outcrop in the valley. This was our first glimpse of the spectacular Scotland that was to follow. Stirling Castle was an interesting residence and you could see from its position that those that held the castle held the power. Mary Queen of Scot was born and spent the first five years of her life here. While wondering through one of the gift shops I was accosted by a man who forced me to drink a couple of small cups of honey flavoured whisky. What could I do but oblige and promised that I would bring my husband back for a taste. Regrettably, my husband was nowhere to be found so I was unable to purchase the rather over priced bottle of whisky but I felt ‘toasty warm inside’. Eventually catching up with Owen t another gift shop I was horrified to find that he had bought a Tammy (photo supplied) and insisted on wearing it in public. The yellow hat incident came flooding back and no amount of honey flavoured whisky helped!
Putting our finger on the map of Scotland we chose a caravan site for the night and made our way to the town of Killin on the edge of the Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park. The road was pretty scary but well worth it. This road provided us with our first experience of the beauty of the Scottish Loch. To our surprise the town of Killin was exquisite and when we eventually found the caravan park we were very impressed.
It is at this stage that I should tell you that the hours of daylight have been very beneficial. The sun rises at about 6am and does not set till around 7pm. The caravan park receptions remain open till around 6.30 – 7 pm. This means that if we get up and going early enough we can cover quite a few miles, a couple of attractions and still have daylight when we set up for the night. When we settled in to our overnight birth for the evening I took the opportunity to go for a walk in the nearby woods and to my pleasure I saw my first wild live red squirrel. Previously I had only seen one squashed on the road.
Leaving Falkirk in good time our next port of call was Stirling Castle. Dragging the motor home through the narrow cobbled and very steep streets toward the castle, we managed to find a large enough car park to back the old girl in (only to discover later that the castle had an ample car park that didn’t require a 50 metre walk up another steep street). Stepping out of the vehicle we were presented with the first of many Scottish kilted bagpipe players. Taking the obligatory photo and throwing him a coin, we walked on to the castle. Standing looking out from the walls of the castle, and as the weather was gorgeous, we could see for miles down the river valley and also a great view of the Robert the Bruce Memorial on another rocky outcrop in the valley. This was our first glimpse of the spectacular Scotland that was to follow. Stirling Castle was an interesting residence and you could see from its position that those that held the castle held the power. Mary Queen of Scot was born and spent the first five years of her life here. While wondering through one of the gift shops I was accosted by a man who forced me to drink a couple of small cups of honey flavoured whisky. What could I do but oblige and promised that I would bring my husband back for a taste. Regrettably, my husband was nowhere to be found so I was unable to purchase the rather over priced bottle of whisky but I felt ‘toasty warm inside’. Eventually catching up with Owen t another gift shop I was horrified to find that he had bought a Tammy (photo supplied) and insisted on wearing it in public. The yellow hat incident came flooding back and no amount of honey flavoured whisky helped!
Putting our finger on the map of Scotland we chose a caravan site for the night and made our way to the town of Killin on the edge of the Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park. The road was pretty scary but well worth it. This road provided us with our first experience of the beauty of the Scottish Loch. To our surprise the town of Killin was exquisite and when we eventually found the caravan park we were very impressed.
It is at this stage that I should tell you that the hours of daylight have been very beneficial. The sun rises at about 6am and does not set till around 7pm. The caravan park receptions remain open till around 6.30 – 7 pm. This means that if we get up and going early enough we can cover quite a few miles, a couple of attractions and still have daylight when we set up for the night. When we settled in to our overnight birth for the evening I took the opportunity to go for a walk in the nearby woods and to my pleasure I saw my first wild live red squirrel. Previously I had only seen one squashed on the road.
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