We were going to take a ferry to some of the islands of the Inner Hebrides today but I’ m still not feeling great so we decided not to push my luck on a ferry on the North Sea and then on a bus on desolate islands with no washrooms around. But I wasn’t going to stay in the coffin, so we set off to see if there was anymore of Oban we hadn’t seen. We knew there was still the Castle but other than that we weren’t sure. Oban really is just a stopping off point for other places. We decided to walk toward the ferry terminal and stop off for a coffee. So we started off and were crossing a street and boom - I ended up on my ass in the middle of the street. I stepped into a rut on the road, twisted my ankle and next thing I knew I was on the ground. Great way to start the day. Vic tried to lift me up and I’m sure we looked like frick and frack - me not being able to put any weight on my foot and him with a big backpack trying to untwist my body and get me on my feet. After the initial pain, I was fine. My ankle was feeling good and there was no bleeding or broken bones so we carried on.
It was a nice day - sunny and cool but good for walking. The ferry terminal is basically the hub of the town with hikers and tourists going to the Inner Hebrides islands. After, we made our way along the long Esplanade about 1 1/2 km up the coast breathing in the sea air and enjoying the views. We walked to the end of the Esplanade enjoying the views and past a war memorial, and then up a woodland trail and arrived at Dunollie Castle only to find it doesn’t open until noon. So we sat on a bench enjoying the sunshine and watched the ferries, seal watching tour boats, and fishing boats. There were people on the beach who I thought were clam digging but it turned out they were picking up garbage. Good on them.

Noon finally arrived and there happened to be a free tour which we took. For more that 1000 years, the Clan Chiefs and Lords of Lorn ruled large areas of Argyll from Dunollie. Today, it is still the seat and ancestral home of Clan MacDougall.

The tour started at the 1745 Laird's House which shows the MacDougall Family and Servants Quarters. The guide explained the history of the house and how it was expanded as the family expanded. I guess there wasn’t much to do back then. We made our way up to the Castle, which looked like a tower. Apparently, it was made in the Irish tradition with 10 foot thick walls looking out over the harbour. This Castle was abandoned in 1746 and that’s when the family moved to the house.

We went back to town for lunch. I finally felt like I could eat something. Success! I was feeling much better. After going to the room to unload we decided to go sit on a patio and then go for dinner. It was a relaxing afternoon and we had a nice dinner to celebrate me feeling better. We met 3 teenagers at the restaurant who we chatted with. The kids here are very polite but don’t hold anything back. We had a few laughs with them and then went back to the room to prepare for our drive to Glasgow tomorrow. We’re looking forward to leaving the coffin and getting into a much nicer flat all to ourselves.