West Highlands & Hebrides, Scotland Day 7 - Glenfinnan & Oban
Day 7 was the day to say good-bye to the amazing Skye. Instead of going back the way we came, we drove down to Armadale, a village near the southern end of the Sleat peninsula on the Isle of Skye and took the first ferry of the day to Mallaig, a port on the west coast of the mainland - the Highlands of Scotland. It was foggy and misty in the early morning. We couldn't see much on both sides.
I wanted to see seals and otters during our stay in Skye, but I didn't see any. I kept watching the sea from the ferry to find them. Sadly I didn't see either. When the ferry was getting close to Mallaig, something popped up on the water. A dolphin!!! J saw it, too! I was so happy!
Our first ferry ride with car was successful. It didn't save much time but certainly some travel mileages, and provided us different views. The Glenfinnan Viaduct was on the way. Why not to stop and see the famous Victorian bridge that were used in several Harry Potter movies?
It took about 20 minutes to get the viewpoint from the car park. The place was very popular with many other visitors. If we waited there for 30 minutes or so, we could have seen the Jacobite Steam Train, a.k.a Hogwarts Express traveling on the viaduct. However, we hadn't planned it at all and left there in short, avoiding people and bugs. It wasn't raining but muggy!
We drove to South for about one and a half hour, passing by some familiar places such as Fort William, Onich and the bridge near Glencoe, and arrived at a well-rated cafe called Poppies for lunch. The cafe was a part of a garden center, located on the shore.
Their reputation was true. My roasted beef sandwiches, J's mac & cheese, and pear & walnut salad to share were all good! We were seated at an outdoor table with a water view. It was a very nice break after a long travel.
I saw a castle on the other side of the shore from the cafe. It was our next stop!
Built before 1240, Dunstaffnage Castle is one of Scotland’s oldest stone castles and a witness of the trying times the Kingdom of Scotland and Norway were struggling with each other to control the Hebrides. Standing on a huge rock outcrop, the castle was captured by Robert the Bruce in 1308 and remained in royal hands until 1469. Today it's ruined.
There was a tiny beach at the foot of the castle. The weather became much better by then.
It was only about 10 minute drive from the castle to Oban, a resort town that we stayed two nights. There were so many people and cars in the town! Oban was the busiest place that we visited during this trip.
We were still full with lunch but it was no problem to find some space for gelato. I had strawberry. J had banana. Interesting choice, again!
Walking with gelato and browsing shops on the seafront promenade was lovely. Meanwhile, I felt a bit shocked by people since we hadn't been so close to many human beings for the some past days!
To be continued...
