Crossing the Firth of Forth into Fife or...the Highlands!

Yesterday I took an epic jaunt into the highlands and it was, in a word, magnificent!  After some hiccups earlier in the week where our tour group got cancelled because they thought such a large group (we had 11) would "affect group dynamics". Right. Not a real thing at all.  Luckily, most of us just rescheduled as individuals for the same day and it was fine. So, with my name on the list two of my flatmates (Rita and Alyssa for anyone who is keeping track of these things - aka my stalkers) and I woke up at 7:30 am on a Saturday.  Which just should NEVER happen.  And it was raining and cold and we were a little worried about if we'd even be able to see anything on this tour.  We met up at the departure location on the Royal Mile and also met some of the friends I've made from my International Marketing classes.  So the group was good and enthusiasm was high, but the weather was...well....crap.  However, the weather here never stays in one mood for long and before we knew it, the rain was slowing, then stopping, and the sun was coming out!  

 

During our first stop at the Forth Bridge it was a bit cloudy still, but by the time we made it to the Wallace Monument near the town of Stirling (yes, like stirling silver), the rain was completely gone and the sun was warming things up quite a bit.  Now, the Wallace Monument is on top of this big hill (also known as a mini mountain), which, in normal circumstances would not be at all pleasant for me.  But, the area was forested, with dew still on the leaves and vapor still rising in the air around us, giving it a bit of a magical quality.  So, I arrived at the top about 20 minutes or a half hour later with a rather amazing glow and a sense of accomplishment for which I was soundly rewarded by a gorgeous view!  We were still in the lowlands at that point, but you could see an idyllic little town below, with a winding river and the hills in the distance.

After the monument (and the longest story about William Wallace EVER from our tour guide who was determined to give us the "real" story, as opposed to the Mel Gibson atrocity shown in Braveheart) we headed to a location from which we could see and take pictures of Stirling Castle.  Much like Edinburgh Castle, it's located on top of a rocky hill that towers over the town of Stirling.  We didn't go in because you could spend about half a day in there and we had much more to see!  

 

 

From the castle, we went to our first lake: the beautiful Lake of Monteith which was at the base of the highlands and, with the sun sparkling off of it and fishermen in a tiny boat in the middle, looks like something out of the Lord of the Rings movies.  After the picture stop at the lake, we went up into the area known as the Trossachs, which is part of a national park and are absolutely gorgeous!  The views were stunning and we were very happy to be there during fall when all of the beautiful colors were on abundant display.  

Next, we stopped in the quaint town of Aberfoyle where our tour guide grew up for a quick lunch at a local place that served a truly delicious bacon cheeseburger (not to mention the black pudding and cheesy haggis mash pies).  Our next stop was the Hairy Coos (hairy cows) that are native to the Highlands of Scotland and we were super lucky because their were two baby coos that were only about 11 months old!  Plus, we got to feed them, which was actually a little scary because those horns are HUGE!  

 

Lake Katrine was next, and we got to stay there for a bit longer (about 45 minutes).  This was my favorite location of the day and it's where Sir Walter Scott wrote one of his most famous poems - the Lady of the Lake.  The lake was preserved because it is used as a source of pure water for Glasgow, so the area was virtually unchanged from the time Sir Walter Scott wrote about it in 1810!  The lake itself is sandwiched between verdant, green hills on the left and boulder littered forest on the right.  The combination was stunning and we were able to walk around about half of the lake during the time allotted.  

 

The final stop on the tour was Doune Castle which has become quite famous in current times because it was featured in Monty Python and the Holy Grail!   It was also used for the first season of Game of Thrones as Winterfell and in Outlander as Castle Leoch.  We arrived too late to go in and have a look around, but the castle is set alongside a river and we were able to walk all around it and see the area.

That's all the nitty gritty details of the locations on the tour, but part of what made it great was the tour guide and his truly impressive knowledge of Scottish culture.  He talked about awesome victories Scotland has had and delved into the conflict between Scotland and England throughout the years, much of which was cemented during the time of William Wallace and King Edward the 1st.  

 

Overall, it was a truly awesome experience and, if you can believe the dream life I live, while we were driving back to Edinburgh, a rainbow started forming in the sky in front of us.  It was the perfect way to end the day! 

In conclusion, I would HIGHLY recommend the Hairy Coo tour to anyone who comes over here. It was a great way to see a lot of different terrain and cover a lot of ground in a day.  For me, it just served to further whet my appetite for doing more exploring in the north, so expect more posts about other trips to areas in the highlands throughout the year!

Also, and on a completely unrelated note, I just got back from Archery!  I did end up officially joining the Archery Club through school and have been going twice a week.  I am happy to say that my form is improving and my shooting is getting pretty deadly - so, yes, I'm Katniss Everdeen. :)

Love, Fairies and Kilts,

Liz

P.S. - there will be a lovely video of me doing the coconut arrival from Monty Python on my Facebook Page, along with more photos!