Ten Days in Scotland
Scotland has been a dream trip for me for as long as I can remember. My dad’s family has an extensive family history rooted in Stirling and I’ve always felt an unexplainable sort of pull to go there, without having ever heard or seen much about it. I got my first taste of it in September of 2008 when Edinburgh marked the first stop on a two month backpacking trip around Europe. After spending only three days there, I was completely hooked and couldn’t stop thinking about going back someday. Of all the 20+ European cities and countries we explored on that trip, Edinburgh is the one place that has haunted me for years after. There was something about it that felt so familiar, like I had been there and had loved that city and that country across many lifetimes before this one. Once I’d experienced it, there was no forgetting it and I’ve felt a sort of Scotland-shaped void in my soul ever since.
One sunny June afternoon last summer, Eoin and I were sitting out on the back deck when he said those magical words that most everyone wants to hear: “We should take a trip somewhere.” It took me all of one second to land on Scotland and thankfully, he was totally on board. I booked the tickets not even an hour later and started researching 10 day itineraries online. I came across one that seemed to cover just about everything from where the best pubs were in all the major cities to the most interesting hikes through the Highlands and all the stops in between. It has a little bit of everything and turned out to be near perfect. I would recommend following it in a heartbeat.
You can find it here if you’re interested.
Edinburgh
We started off in Edinburgh for this trip, since it’s one of the easier cities to fly into from Toronto. Nothing about it had seemingly changed, except for the name of the hostel I stayed at the first time, and it was even more beautiful than I could remember. We hiked Arthur’s Seat, witnessed one the largest climate change strikes in the world inspired by Greta Thunberg marching down The Royal Mile, we ate a very jet-lagged breakfast at The Elephant House where J.K Rowling wrote part of the first Harry Potter book, explored thousand-year-old bubonic plague-ridden dwellings under the city streets and ventured over to Dean Village, which is an enclave in the city that feels like a whole other era in time. It was everything I remembered it being and more. Plus, it was nice to return on a budget of more than $23/day, ha.
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Next stop was Glasgow. I was looking so forward to this stop on the trip for one particular reason: it’s where my friend Jean, who my biographical historical book is based on, had lived during World War 2. Over ten years ago, she planted a story in my head and I haven’t been able to let it go since. She told me all about the places she lived and worked and danced and played while growing up there, so I brought all of the addresses with me and spent the entire day retracing her footsteps around the city on my own (Eoin had soccer tickets so it was a perfect compromise). It turned out to be exactly what I needed to gather up the courage to start writing her story - I’ve written over 70,000 words toward it since getting home. And get this…the B&B I booked was on the next street over from her home and when we were shown our room, it turned out that I could see straight into her old backyard. How’s that for serendipity?
Glasgow
Trossachs National Park
After our day in Glasgow, we headed up through the Trossachs National Park toward Fort William, where our next AirBnB was booked. It was a bit of a long drive but it was our first glimpse of the Scottish scenery outside of the cities and it did not disappoint. Eoin decided he didn’t want to walk the path around Loch Katrine because he didn’t want to have to pay for parking (your guess is as good as mine here), so I decided to walk the path on my own to see what I could see. For anyone who has seen the movie Brave, I had been joking before we left for Scotland that I’d see Will o’ the Wisps in the forest there and they would lead me to my Scottish destiny. Well… when I was walking alone on the path, I kid you not… I saw tiny blue reflections of light bouncing around in the trees out of the corner of my eye. I stopped in a moment of shock, seriously wondering if I should believe my eyes (Scottish folklore is taken VERY seriously, guys) but they stopped moving. I started walking again, thinking that if they were real, I might have scared them off. Lo and behold, they appeared out of the corner of my eye again. WHAT. So I took off my new glasses to get a better look and to make sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me when it dawned on me… it was the glint of the sunlight through the blue light protection that I got built into the lenses. Not gonna lie- I was a little disappointed.
Trossachs National Park & Glen Coe
Fort William & glenfinnan
We stayed the night in Fort William, having arrived extremely late but thankfully, there’s not much there to miss out on. It was a pretty great stop in the Highlands because it’s got everything you’d need from a gas station to a grocery store and even a McDonalds, all three of which are extremely rare sights in Scotland, let alone grouped together within a short proximity. Fort William itself was beautiful and I immediately recognized the scenery to be that of the Hogwarts Express route in the Harry Potter movies (please don’t leave, there’s only one reference left. I swear.). We woke up early and drove about 30 minutes outside of town toward the Glenfinnan Viaduct where (you guessed it…) several Harry Potter movies were filmed. It’s the Black Lake in the Goblet of Fire, and the infamous train bridge where the great Ron Weasley first drove the flying muggle car (ok, it’s out of my system now, promise). In all fairness, that is only one of the draws to these places. They are well worth seeing regardless of being a film location. Glenfinnan and Loch Schiel are where Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites decided they were going to rebel against the English and try to restore him to the throne as the rightful heir, hence the haunting monument to Scottish Highlanders who fought in his name. This was one of those places where you could feel in your bones that shit. went. down. there. It never ceases to amaze me how places can hold so much energy and power and how if you remain open to the idea, you can feel it for yourself.
eilean donan castle
Eilean Donan Castle is situated just before the bridge to the Isle of Skye. This is the most picture perfect place I have laid eyes on in my 34 years and it was incredibly surreal to be able to see the place I have had as my computer screensaver for over 15 years. I didn’t even truthfully know the history behind it before going, I just knew that it was something I wanted to see and photograph for myself some day. To be able to see it with my own two eyes was such a dream come true. It is even more romantic and breathtaking as the photos you’ve surely seen of it attempt to convey. It was hard to pull away from it when it was time to leave. It’s the kind of place that you want to imprint an image of in your mind forever that you can return to over and over again.
Loch Schiel, Glenfinnan Viaduct, Eilean Donan Castle
isle of skye
There isn’t much I can say about the Isle of Skye other than you have to experience it to believe it’s a real place on Earth and not a figment of your imagination. Please go here if you ever travel to Scotland and hike the Quiraing and Brother’s Point, see the Old Man of Storr on a foggy morning, and sleep in Portree where the setting sun casts the most magical pink glow over the wee fishing boats in the harbour. We skipped a day in Inverness on the itinerary in order to spend a third day here and it was an excellent decision on our part.
One of the best things we did on our vacation was book a full day kayaking tour with South Skye Sea Kayak. I was personally hoping that we would kayak over to Eilean Donan Castle but our guide recommended kayaking down around the southern coast instead. It was pure magic - we saw sea otters, a whale, a ton of seals (who were very interested in my husband, so cute and a little creepy) and jellyfish. We kayaked down around the peninsula, where the water got really choppy. It was a little anxiety inducing at times, but ultimately we were safe in our kayaks - they’re built specifically for the sea’s temperaments. I’m so glad that we skipped a full day in Inverness for this and would highly recommend it.
Isle of Skye
pitlcohry
If we had realized just how charming Pitlochry was before making it a mere stopover for an evening, we would have planned for at least an entire day here. It was the biggest surprise of our trip and is yet another magical fairytale town nestled at the base of the Cairngorms National Park. There’s a stunning whiskey distillery called Blair Athol (I didn’t hate it, which speaks volumes), the liveliest pubs in Scotland where dogs are entitled to sit in the chairs around the fireplace, and quaint shops. It’s also home to a beautiful little stone chapel covered in vines and moss and old gravestones. I have hardly any photos because we were only there at night and left very early. Such a shame!
stirling
Stirling, Stirling, Stirling. Don’t tell Edinburgh, but I’m fairly certain that Stirling has taken over the #1 spot in my heart. Another huge surprise for me. We stopped here because this is where my family is from. My grandmother told me where to stand on the terraces of Stirling Castle in order to see where our family farms were once located, which was pretty special to be able to do. Our family lived and breathed here for hundreds of years. If I hadn’t believed in ancestral memory before then, I certainly did by the time we left. I knew the city somehow, without ever having stepped foot in it. I knew my way around. It felt like home in some strange way and it felt like me. It has a small town sort of vibe despite being the epicentre of Scottish royal history. It’s got winding cobblestone streets and an insanely beautiful cemetery. The castle grounds are huge and hilly and definitely haunted, yikes. William Wallace’s monument (which houses his sword pictured below) sits on a steep hill on the opposite end of the city, towering high above the trees where the reminder of his legendary bravery casts a watchful eye over Stirling. And, um… the town crier pedestal is topped with a unicorn.
We both learned something new on that trip too… Queen Elizabeth is in fact a direct descendant of Mary Queen of Scots. Did you know this?! This whole time I thought she was just…English. Maybe this is common knowledge but we definitely did not realize that until we read it in the castle.
Pitlochry & Stirling
Scotland was an absolute dream come true and it’s not lost on me just how lucky we were to be able to experience it in this lifetime. If you have an opportunity to travel there, I promise that it will not disappoint you. Just be sure to avoid midge season, I hear its…midgerable.