The day started at around 0340 when the fire alarm at the hotel went off. Apparently water had got into part of the system from all the rain we had been having. The plan had been to go via Culloden but it was chucking it down and over the radio we were hearing that many of the roads we had been over the previous day we closed from flooding and mud slides. In the end we headed straight to Aviemore and the Cairngorms Brewery. This turned out to be a winner as the...

Another big day today Gairloch to Inverness via Skye and the shores of Loch Ness. Apparently the remnants of hurricane Bertha expected to hit the northern part of the UK of the next couple of days however this morning the view across the water from the hotel was fantastic, flat and sunny. This was the case for the next hour as we drove towards Skye but we started to notice that the little creeks and waterfalls had a fair amount of water going down them and sure ...

Ok, big day today, all the way to John O'Groats and the around the west coast and down to Gairloch. Given the rain had arrived it was probably the best day to stay in the car. First stop was the Glen Ord Distillery (Singleton). A good tour for six quid and a nice way to start the morning. Lunch was at Helmsdale, another small fishing village, and the weather was still holding but by the time we got to John O'Groats it was cold, wet and windy. Mind you we were at...

Today was the first of our long drives (mainly because it has been hard to find accommodation) whilst we were only going to Strathpeffer we went the long way through the Cairngorms National Park, Banff, Inverness and finally Strathpeffer. The Cairngorms seem to encompass all those scenic river shots you see on TV etc of Scotland, all that was missing were the salmon and trout fishermen flicking flys everywhere. Having said that the barrenness of the hills give y...

Day 3 and still in shorts. A short trip today from Glenfarg to Crieff. First stop was the Hermitage Trail at Dunkeld which gave us a chance to walk off some of the breakfasts we have been having (speaking of which had nice black pudding this morning). Unfortunately the rain started to turn up as well. The Hermitage has a couple of nice waterfalls to see and luckily one of the exiting cards gave us their parking ticket so a win all around. Next stop was Dewars W...