First stop was a quick visit in Ballater, a small town Victorian town. Wish I had known Prince Charles was stopping by later to inspect an updated caravan (trailer) park, something we read about in the local papers the next morning. The Duke of Rothesay = Prince Charles...who knew?
Allen feels 100% today, finally all remnants of his cold gone.
Sidetrack #1: We took the small road, almost more of a track, really, on the south side of the Dee rather than the main drag. The Dee runs through the quintessential glacial valley, U-shaped, strewn with big boulders.
And suddenly there appeared a herd of deer. We pulled over to watch then for 30 minute while they grazed, then eventually crossed the road and meandered up the hill.
We must have stopped a dozen other times along the road - waterfalls, scenic vistas, and to let the occasional oncoming car pass - when we got to the end of the road. Turns out we'd taken a wrong turn at the only possible place to do so and were way south of where we thought we were! But it was the best "Duh" because we saw so many beautiful scenes.
Sidetrack #2: Back on the right road, we came to a sudden stop when we saw a large herd of sheep blocking the way.
The shepherd had two dogs and two pups in training, and all were working together to move the sheep out of one pasture and on down the road for a bit to another. I have a video I'll have to try to post - this was one of our trip's great entertainments for me!
Sidetrack #3: A stop at the historic Royal Lochnagar Distillery, seventh smallest of the over 100 distilleries in Scotland, came next. We paid for a tour led by Gordon Muir, who makes his living talking about whisky at whisky festivals and does this tour as a sideline. The guy was one of our favorite Scots by the end of the tour - knowledgeable, friendly, personable, kind. I wish he had a Facebook page! We won't forget his story about the other 146 Gordon Muirs in Scotland ("You're the urologist! You're the whisky guy!"). No photos allowed on the tour, sadly for me.
We came out to find a rally group had arrived. Allen enjoyed a short conversation with one owner.
Aaaaand then we finally got to Balmoral quite late in the afternoon. Turns out the castle is 1/2 mile from the entrance, which is blocked to all but paying (lots of pounds) tourists, and then they only get to walk the grounds and see a ballroom because the rest of the castle is the Royals' private home. So we bought some postcards and skipped it entirely.
I've been saying I want to go to Balmoral all along, but was very satisfied to miss this because there's just so much else to see and do that's totally accessible. For instance, the beautiful Craithie Parish Church, where the Queen worships when in Balmoral, was ours to enjoy. We were told this is where to go to see royalty, especially in late July and all of August, when Balmoral is closed entirely to the public because the Queen is in residence.
As a consolation prize from the gods, we then stumbled upon Braemar Castle, and although it was closed for the day, a sign invited folks to come walk the grounds, so we did! It's becoming almost normal to be the only ones in one beautiful place after another.
And that's what we did instead of touring Balmoral.
No comments:
Post a Comment