My Road Trip Through Scotland Part 1

Scotland is one of those naturally beautiful countries I could go back to over and over again. From powerful peaks to raw untouched beaches, comfort food, and warm people, I like to think it has the best of everything. 

From London, we flew into Inverness, Scotland. We rented a car and Nate courageously drove stick shift all through Scotland! Everything was the opposite in the car.  This was also his first experience driving through the UK. At night, it felt like cars were coming at you, so that took a little getting use to, but we survived!

When we go again I think I would like to stay in the city of Inverness, but we stayed just east of Inverness at the Muthu Newton Hotel. It was fine for the night. Nothing we would brag about. It came with breakfast which makes it way easier when your road tripping.  When we travel, Nate likes try all the crazy local foods. Not me, I’ll try interesting things sometimes, but when I hear the words “black pudding, made from pork blood…” I quickly decided that this would not be one of those times!

The first thing I noticed on our road trip were the Highland cattle. Oh my goodness, I wanted to hug them. So cute! I called them Snuffaluffagus cows. They looked like Mr. Snuffaluffagus from Sesame Street (just swap out his trunk for some horns).  The cheese they produce is out of this world yummy, too!

We love to wander (if you haven’t noticed), especially in non touristy areas. I’ve found that you come across the really great shops and bakeries that way. And we totally lucked out! We stopped in this darling little town called, Beauly, where we found this amazing church ruin and beautiful tomb. We also came across the most beautiful wool tailor shop and pastry shop.

Campbell’s is this charming, privately owned shop, established back in 1858. This is the real deal, nothing was fake or low quality. I even watched a local farmer walk in to get his sweater mended. All of the wool products were made and tailored locally. Of course, I wasn’t going to pass on this opportunity. I had to stock up on a few items!! A wool scarf, colorful wool blanket and two wool sweaters, one for my dad and one for Nate. I could have gone really crazy, but I was able to control myself… sort of. 😉 Nate reminded me that we had to keep moving. It was a little hard to leave.

We continued to travel through the Highlands. Between the windy roads, fluffy sheep, Snuffaluffagus (Highland) cattle, enchanting forests, stone bridges and random castle ruins, what else could you want for a road trip?

Stopped at Loch Ness. The ruins of Urquhart Castle sits right on the shores of Loch Ness.

Stopped at the Eilean Donan Castle.

We found this amazing little roadside restaurant, where I had the best backed potato ever! I mean EVER! It had melted cheese on top, and it was just heavenly. Their mushroom soup was outstanding, too! If you’re traveling on your way to the Isle of Skye, then you need to take a break at Redburn Café & Gifts! When I figure out how to make a baked potato as soft and fluffy as theirs I’ll let you know!

The locals were so kind! I mean really kind. This is definitely a place we felt welcome!

When we reached the Isle of Skye, every town we drove through was adorable and colorful. In my head I was expecting things to look more wet and old with mossy broken stones. Not at all. They brightened everything up and it felt very lively.

Sheep are all over the roads. They don’t move when you hit the horn. You just have to wait.

Because Nate and I love to hike we took a break from our drive to hike up to Old Man of Storr. I’ll let my photos do the talking.

It got pretty windy at the top!

Then we took a quick peak at Dunvegan Castle.

We also hit Neist Point Lighthouse at sun set.

Then we took a long drive down to a quaint little B&B called Blarcreen House, about 3 hours outside of Edinburgh. Part 2 will be about Edinburgh.

It was all gorgeous, quiet views.

 

If you’re thinking about seeing Scotland, don’t think about it, do it! It’s absolutely worth it and I highly recommend going the extra mile up to Isle of Skye! You won’t regret it!

Oh! Midges (small two-winged flies that bite) are at their peak during July and August, so be prepared.

 

What places do you want to see in Scotland?

XOXO,

Melessa