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High country... yes!! Just like Colorado, only different. We knew we were there when the landscape started leaving us speechless and people were stopped by the road taking photos. More pristine beauty... would it ever end?!! Away from the madding crowd and the big cities... yes!! Herewith our lodging for the duration...
The view above from our B&B window is of Loch Linnhe, which is 31 miles long, and follows the line of the Great Glen Fault. It is the only sea loch along the fault. If we did it again, we would stay here for at least a week, but 4 nights would be just fine. Loch Linnhe is known upstream as 'The black pool,' and downstream as 'The salty pool,' 'linnhe' translating as 'pool.' So the name of our lodging, Craiglinhe, translates to Rock Pool.
Lock Linnhe is on the Great Glen Fault, the same fault that we were on in Clew Bay Ireland. From Wikipedia: Aligned northeast to southwest, the Great Glen Fault extends further southwest in a straight line through Loch Linnhe and the Firth of Lorne, and then on into northwestern Ireland, directly through Lough Foyle, Donegal Bay and Clew Bay. More on Wikipedia
We were needing more local directions once we got in the area of our B&B. We happened on a game of Shinty in the nearby town of Ballachulish, and asked directions. From Wikipedia: Shinty (Scottish Gaelic: camanachd, iomain) is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands, and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread, being once competitively played on a widespread basis in England and other areas in the world where Scottish Highlanders migrated.
Local color like this is the most interesting and rewarding thing about traveling, which is why we enjoy driving when possible. From the bonfire and Smores in Lecanvey, to a game of Shinty in Ballachulish. And the real beauty is you find that behind our customs and distinctions, we are all very much the same.
Tuesday was our longest day of driving on the trip, so we had dinner at a nearby restaurant, and then came back and crashed. On Wednesday, after a late breakfast and nice chat with the owner of the place, I did Internet and napped while Jan took a little walk along the loch (photos below). It rained heavily in the afternoon... we drove around and found a place to get some snacks to have on hand, and then had an early dinner, burgers at a pub out in the middle of nowhere which we had no little difficulty finding. A day of recuperation. Rested and ready to seek out Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, on Thursday... we had little doubt that we would be successful (Any excuse for a boat ride!).
Kudos to the powers-that-be for keeping this area free of over-commercialization and development. The pub in question ended up being down a typically narrow, really barely one lane, road and was not visible from the main road. Most lodging consists of quaint little B&B's. The Highlands are an attraction to the foreign traveler, and also to those living in the UK and Ireland as a weekend or vacation get-away. One of those places on the planet that leave you with a loss for words.
The double rainbow, visible from the window of our room, was a fitting end to a beautiful first day in the Scottish Highlands.
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