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Part 5: Scotland/England - the end

Not too much to say about the ending.  This was the last full day before we had to leave.  If we just drove from Stirling to Manchester it would have taken about 5 hours.  But, we had one more planned stop before we had to drop Vajra off at the temple in Ulverston (he was going to be there another 2 weeks for a Buddhist retreat): Hadrian's Wall.
Hadrian was emperor of Rome from 117 AD to 138 AD, the year he died.  He built the wall as a defensive line that marked the northern limit of Britannia ( the name given to the areas of the island of Great Britain that were governed by the Roman Empire).  It took only 3 years to complete the 80 mile long wall: 122 AD to 125 AD. Depending on materials available, the wall varied in width from 10' to 20' and height from 11' to 20'.
We did not have that much time, so went spent maybe 2 hours at the site called Birdoswald. Not quite the Great Wall of China, but still impressive.

The last time you get to see this !!

We were impressed on the number of these we saw in Scotland.

After all the rather narrow roads in Scotland, it was good to see a 'big' road.

As close as we got to Glasgow.

And we leave Scotland behind...

The English countryside near Hadrian's Wall.

 And a couple of things I did not mention above.

The last time you see the red jacket !

As far as the eye can see.

I believe this is the foundation of a tower that was constructed every few miles.

Lots of sheep everywhere (that's not Caroline; it's someone else with a red jacket).

Back in Ulverston to drop Vajra off. The tents are up and ready for the influx of about 3,000 attendees at the Buddhist Festival.

Last look at the English countryside from the air.

This is the Irish Sea off the coast of Scotland. If you look carefully just below the wing, you should see a bunch of 'white' lines in the water.  They are part of a wind farm at sea.  There must have been several 100 of them.  

Part 4: Stirling Castle

A trip to Scotland would not be complete with a trip to a 'real' castle.  The most famous one is Edinburgh Castle.  In case you haven't noticed, there is no mention of Glasgow or Edinburgh in any of these posts.  We decided to skip them and concentrate on rural Scotland.  Another reason we skipped Edinburgh - the British Open was in St. Andrews (about 40 miles north) and figured the whole area would be packed with golfers and tourists.
Our next choice was Stirling Castle.  As you can see by my map, it was perfectly located for a visit on our way back.  Plus, it is not as crowded as Edinburgh Castle (about 400,000 vs. 1.4 million visitors per year, respectively).  But, from what I have read, Stirling Castle is just as impressive as Edinburgh Castle.

Hope this has helped.

  On the road again...

  Stirling Castle.  I saw this neat building while in the car.  I took a photo of it without realizing it was the castle. 

  The entrance.  Kind of disappointing; was expecting a grand entrance like you see at southern mansions.

  The castle from the parking lot.

 

  The surrounding countryside.

  ...and more.

  Queen Anne's garden.  The royal families had used this since the 1400's. 

  An outside wall.

  More views of the surrounding country side.

  ...and more.

  A sunless sundial.  If the sun had been out, it would have shown it to be 11:25 AM.

  Lots of tourists, but since the castle is so big, you would never know it.

  Along an outside wall.

  I guess this was a formidable barrier to invasion.

  The king's outer chamber.  In 2001, a major restoration project returned much of the inner castle to what it probably looked like in the 1540's.  In 2011, Queen Elizabeth attended the dedication to the finished restoration. 

  The king's inner chamber.  

  The queen's bedchamber.

  The queens inner chamber.

  The Great Hall built by James IV around 1503.  It was basically a huge banquet hall. Could not get a good photo of the entire building.  You can see a little more of it 2 photos down.

Robert the Bruce (AKA Robert I) was king of Scotland from 1306 until his death in 1329.

  Another view from outside the castle.

  This was found at the palace behind some wood paneling dating back to the 1500's.  It was made from leather and an inflated pigs bladder.  

  Downtown Stirling.

  A neighborhood just outside of town.

  Robert Burns 1759 to 1796. I guess they just liked him in Stirling.  He was born in Alloway (about 40 miles north of Portpatrick) and died in Dumfries (about 50 miles east of Portpatrick).  Doesn't seem to have anything to do with Stirling.

  We need a lot of these in Sun City.

  A pleasant sitting area along one of the main streets.

  Our last B and B in Scotland - The Ivy.  It is in an area called the Bridge of Allen, about 1 1/2 miles north of the castle and 2 miles north of Stirling.

Part 3: Scotland: Ft. William/Roy Bridge to Newtownmore

After leaving Portpatrick, we had a 200 mile ride to our next stop, which was a little town called Roy Bridge (named after the 50' bridge that goes over the Roy River; population - not many), about 12 miles NE of Fort William (it is easier to find Fort William - population 10,000).
Before we got to our B and B in Roy Bridge, we stopped off at Fort William.  Nearby was a ski lift ride up Aonach Mor, a mountain (4,006' ) just 2 miles to the east of Ben Nevis, the tallest mountain in the UK (4,409')(we thought about climbing it, but after reading the 'fine' print, we decided maybe next time: it was an 8 1/2 mile round trip and took 6 to 8 hours).  The ski lift took us to 2,132'  From there, there were 2 walking trails on either side of the building where the ski lift stopped.
After leaving Roy Bridge, we decided we just had to see Lock Ness, but to see it, we had to take the long way to our next destination: 110 miles vs. 42.  The place we wanted to see, Urquhart Castle (goes back to the 13th century, but is in ruins now), had a gorgeous view of the loch, but was jam-packed with tourists.  It was too far to turn around, so just we continued on our way on the long route. 
Our next stop was Newtownmore (pop. 982).  We spent just one night there before moving on.  A mile up the road was a Highland Folk Museum.  It was a recreated village from the 1700's.

The map again for reference.

  This was on the road along Loch Lomand, another popular tourist spot.  Remember, we are driving on the left.  Look how close the vegetation is.  We could put our arms out the window and touch it.  After about 15 miles of this, Vajra said it wore him out and had to have Caroline drive. This was along road A82, which, on the map, looked like it was a 'main' road.   

  A view along the same road after Loch Lomand (and next 2 photos).  I don't know what that type of fence was for, but there were miles of it.   

  

 We were surprised to still see snow on some of the mountains. 

  This was along the same road, but in the Glencoe area.  

  This photo and all the ones down to the herring gull photo were taken at a skiing area near Fort William.  This trail goes to the Sgurr Finnisg-aig (have no clue what it means) viewpoint, elevation 2,175.'

  We're at the top, it's cloudy, can't see a thing - so, now what ??

  Looking back at the stopping point of our ski lift ride.  You can see the clouds moving in. Going...

  going...

  Gone !!

  At the edge, into the abyss if you keep going ?

  Saved by the clouds burning off !  Same view and a long way down if you were clumsy.

  Panorama of the valley.

  What a view.  

  They are definitely pleased the clouds are gone.

  On our way to the next viewpoint - Meall Beag (no clue what that means, either) at 2,060.'

  Looking back at the other viewpoint. 

  A family portrait. 

  The Nevis Range nomad.

  Reminded me of a hyacinth. 

  I forget how many miles of mountain bike trails there were just in that area. 

  Not quite enough snow yet.

  But enough to create this small runoff stream.

A juvenile herring gull in a distillery parking lot back in Fort William.

  Shopping area in Fort William.  The town was not laid out in a way that was good for taking photos. 

  Our B and B in Roy Bridge - Homagen B and B. 

  Back on the road again.  This is the beginning of Loch Ness.  This was in the town of Ft. Augustus, at the SW end of the loch.  

  Loch Ness looking NE.

  Loch Ness looking SW.  No sign of Nessy in either photo.  What gives ??

  Our B and B in Newtownmore - the Glen Hotel.

  Looking up the main st.

  Highland Folk Museum.

  A typical home - mud and thatch.

  One of the rooms.

  Rather smoky inside.  There is no chimney, just a hole in the roof above the fire. 

  The lady on the right is dressed in period clothes.

  More of the village.

  They made their own cloth on this type of loom. 

This and the next photo were along the trail down to the village. Both were about 4' tall.

  As cute as can be !

  Didn't think to ask why this was on the property. I guess they are older than we think !!

  The view beyond the 'village.'