Dave on top of Britain - our May holidays
Jun. 6th, 2015 04:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dave_future_predatorBit late, but I should share some pics from our trip to Aviemore :)
This was a trip to celebrate the 70th birthdays of my parents this year, we went with them and with my brother and family. It was a nice cottage with a hot tub, lovely view over a wee loch to the Cairngorms, a dusting of snow still there.
One of our first trips took us to the Ruthven Barracks, built in 1719 after the Jacobite Rising. I've seen them from the A9 so many times, it was great to finally be up close. They occupy a masterful view over a large valley, sitting on top of a natural hill left after glacial erosion of the surrounding area.
We found a wee Highland cow at the entrance! He was very friendly, we all got a wee pat of him, and he liked my dad's orange puffy jacket :p
The ruins had explanatory signs dotted around. I misread this as '28 horses and dragons' :D
Dave did think the location was the perfect defensive spot.
Then we went to the Highland Wildlife Park, where I saw my first proper Scottish Wildcat. Anyone who thinks they are the same as domestic cats hasn't really seen them. Although the kittens didn't look so different, and they were very cute!
Sorry, too hard to get a pic of an adult! One of the best things about the park was the excellent local wildlife, obviously benefitting from the protection of the park. Seeing a lapwing just feet away (and chicks!) is pretty good!!
We visited the RSPB reserve at Boat of Garten, where we saw the osprey - Odin, to be precise - watching over his nest, though sadly, his eggs laid by E.J. had been turfed out by a young upstart called Fenrir, so no osprey babies for Odin and E.J. this year :(
The young man talking to us about the ospreys was a wonderful chap called Nimrod, and he came from Malta. Malta are actually now doing better than us at keeping birds alive, as this country now has a horrific record of killing hen harriers and the like, it's a disgrace. We also saw woodpeckers, a vole, a red squirrel, and many common little birds around the reserve centre as well. One of the cutest things was a chaffinch that insisted on keeping the lady at the reception desk company, not often you have to reach around a chaffinch to get your entry badge :)
We also travelled one day to a remote valley where it is likely to see Golden Eagles. It was certainly remote! Myself and Hubby saw a very large raptor over the farthest hill, but only through binoculars. Was probably an eagle, but can't be sure. Still, cool place, and we chatted to a man who was walking into the hills and he said they were seeing them every day there.
We did go up to Cairgorm mountain and went up the funicular railway. It was pretty cool. They claim it's done wonders to protect the mountains and manage visitors, and I'm sure that's true. You're not allowed to leave the centre at the top, except on guided tours.
It was a bit blowy on top!! And yes, bitterly cold. Amazing view though, all the way to Ben Nevis. That's about 70 miles. As ever, we seemed to get good weather for our hols!!! I know the clouds look low, but it's probably a miracle we could see anything from the top.
Down at the foot of the Cairngorms is a geological anomaly, a wonderful inland sandy beach at Loch Morlich. It was still pretty cold, though!
We had some lovely meals out both at lunch and in the evening. Gorgeous food at the Rowan Tree Hotel, Druie cafe, Old Bridge Inn, and Anderson's in Boat of Garten. Superb quality dining.
We went on the Strathspey Railway.
My dad held up Dave to get his photo taken with the Glenbogle sign - a fictional place on TV for Monarch of the Glen, they filmed the station at that railway. The steam engine was fantastic, a super day.
This was Loch an Eilein, a lovely loch with a castle on a wee island, and a handy Dave post.
It was a lovely area, with lots to do. Only one half day or rain. We used the hot tub every day. Filled an entire page of hubby's new large Moleskine notebook with birds and animals seen over the course of the holiday, using his new Pilot fountain pen.
On the way home, we took a short detour to visit the Kelpies. You get a fab view of them from the motorway, you can just see the a blue sign there under Dave? We took this from the top of the hill near the car park, we didn't bother walking over, needed to get home. Hubby needs to work on his Dave-holding skills. They are still building the visitor centre etc.
And that was it! A week in Scotland, good company, good food, plenty of champagne. The house could have been better, had a lot of niggly little problems, but overall not a bad holiday :D
The weekend we got back was Little Miss's 14th birthday. She had jokingly asked for a cake that was a globe of the world. She said it was a joke, but I don't like to feel I've given up on a challenge... The globe part went surprisingly well. The land parts went probably better than they could have gone, LOL!! As long as you ignore the bits I missed, and don't look too closely at south east asia, I'm pretty happy! Let's just say it's abstract. It was also bloody delicious sponge with pink buttercream inside *g*
Thanks for looking!
~
This was a trip to celebrate the 70th birthdays of my parents this year, we went with them and with my brother and family. It was a nice cottage with a hot tub, lovely view over a wee loch to the Cairngorms, a dusting of snow still there.
One of our first trips took us to the Ruthven Barracks, built in 1719 after the Jacobite Rising. I've seen them from the A9 so many times, it was great to finally be up close. They occupy a masterful view over a large valley, sitting on top of a natural hill left after glacial erosion of the surrounding area.
We found a wee Highland cow at the entrance! He was very friendly, we all got a wee pat of him, and he liked my dad's orange puffy jacket :p
The ruins had explanatory signs dotted around. I misread this as '28 horses and dragons' :D
Dave did think the location was the perfect defensive spot.
Then we went to the Highland Wildlife Park, where I saw my first proper Scottish Wildcat. Anyone who thinks they are the same as domestic cats hasn't really seen them. Although the kittens didn't look so different, and they were very cute!
Sorry, too hard to get a pic of an adult! One of the best things about the park was the excellent local wildlife, obviously benefitting from the protection of the park. Seeing a lapwing just feet away (and chicks!) is pretty good!!
We visited the RSPB reserve at Boat of Garten, where we saw the osprey - Odin, to be precise - watching over his nest, though sadly, his eggs laid by E.J. had been turfed out by a young upstart called Fenrir, so no osprey babies for Odin and E.J. this year :(
The young man talking to us about the ospreys was a wonderful chap called Nimrod, and he came from Malta. Malta are actually now doing better than us at keeping birds alive, as this country now has a horrific record of killing hen harriers and the like, it's a disgrace. We also saw woodpeckers, a vole, a red squirrel, and many common little birds around the reserve centre as well. One of the cutest things was a chaffinch that insisted on keeping the lady at the reception desk company, not often you have to reach around a chaffinch to get your entry badge :)
We also travelled one day to a remote valley where it is likely to see Golden Eagles. It was certainly remote! Myself and Hubby saw a very large raptor over the farthest hill, but only through binoculars. Was probably an eagle, but can't be sure. Still, cool place, and we chatted to a man who was walking into the hills and he said they were seeing them every day there.
We did go up to Cairgorm mountain and went up the funicular railway. It was pretty cool. They claim it's done wonders to protect the mountains and manage visitors, and I'm sure that's true. You're not allowed to leave the centre at the top, except on guided tours.
It was a bit blowy on top!! And yes, bitterly cold. Amazing view though, all the way to Ben Nevis. That's about 70 miles. As ever, we seemed to get good weather for our hols!!! I know the clouds look low, but it's probably a miracle we could see anything from the top.
Down at the foot of the Cairngorms is a geological anomaly, a wonderful inland sandy beach at Loch Morlich. It was still pretty cold, though!
We had some lovely meals out both at lunch and in the evening. Gorgeous food at the Rowan Tree Hotel, Druie cafe, Old Bridge Inn, and Anderson's in Boat of Garten. Superb quality dining.
We went on the Strathspey Railway.
My dad held up Dave to get his photo taken with the Glenbogle sign - a fictional place on TV for Monarch of the Glen, they filmed the station at that railway. The steam engine was fantastic, a super day.
This was Loch an Eilein, a lovely loch with a castle on a wee island, and a handy Dave post.
It was a lovely area, with lots to do. Only one half day or rain. We used the hot tub every day. Filled an entire page of hubby's new large Moleskine notebook with birds and animals seen over the course of the holiday, using his new Pilot fountain pen.
On the way home, we took a short detour to visit the Kelpies. You get a fab view of them from the motorway, you can just see the a blue sign there under Dave? We took this from the top of the hill near the car park, we didn't bother walking over, needed to get home. Hubby needs to work on his Dave-holding skills. They are still building the visitor centre etc.
And that was it! A week in Scotland, good company, good food, plenty of champagne. The house could have been better, had a lot of niggly little problems, but overall not a bad holiday :D
The weekend we got back was Little Miss's 14th birthday. She had jokingly asked for a cake that was a globe of the world. She said it was a joke, but I don't like to feel I've given up on a challenge... The globe part went surprisingly well. The land parts went probably better than they could have gone, LOL!! As long as you ignore the bits I missed, and don't look too closely at south east asia, I'm pretty happy! Let's just say it's abstract. It was also bloody delicious sponge with pink buttercream inside *g*
Thanks for looking!
~
