Monthly Archives: August 2011

Burghead, Moray

Burghead is a small town about 13 km north-west of Elgin, Scotland. The town is mainly build on a peninsula and has sea on three sides. It was built between 1805 and 1809 and the harbour is mainly used by fishing boats.

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 8 – 08.08.2011 – Newtonmore – Dalwhinnie – Muir of Ord – Burghead

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Speyside Distilleries

The Speyside area is one of the main centres of the Scotch whisky industry and has a high concentration of single malt distilleries, including the Glenfiddich distillery and the Balvenie distillery.

The Cardhu distillery is situated near Archiestown, Moray, Scotland, founded by the whisky smuggler John Cumming in 1824. The distillery started as farm distillery working on a seasonal basis and was running by his wife Helen Cumming, who used to sell bottles of whisky to passers-by through the window of their farmhouse. In 1893 the distillery was sold to Johnnie Walker and Sons and the whisky makes up an important part of the famous Johnnie Walker blended whiskies.

Cragganmore is a whisky distillery located in the village of Ballindalloch in Banffshire and was founded in 1869 by John Smith. The place was chosen for its proximity to the waters of the Craggan burn and because it was close to the Strathspey Railway.

The Glenfiddich Distillery is owned by William Grant & Sons in Dufftown and Glenfiddich means ‘Valley of the deer’ (Gaelic), hence the presence of a deer symbol on Glenfiddich bottles. Glenfiddich has now become the world’s best-selling single malt and it is sold in 180 countries, and accounts for about 35% of single malt sales.

The Tormore is one of the younger Scottish whiskies, the distillery construction began in 1958 and was completed in 1960. It was designed by Sir Albert Richardson and it is one of the most architecturally striking distilleries. The main building is made of granite, has copper rotors and a clock which plays four different Scottish songs each quarter of an hour. The nice topiary hedges in the front garden are clipped to the shape of a bell or still.

Dalwhinnie Distillery

The Dalwhinnie Distillery was founded with the name of the nearby town Strathspey in the late 1890s and is set in splendid mountain scenery. Furthermore, it is the the highest distillery in Scotland. Only 10% of the produced Whisky is marketed as single malt, the remaining being used in the Black & White blends.

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 8 – 08.08.2011 – Newtonmore – Dalwhinnie – Muir of Ord – Burghead

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Isle of Skye – Neist Point Lighthouse

Neist Point Lighthouse commands one of the finest vintage points in Scotland. The Lighthouse is sitting in the north west of the Isle of Skye (Duirinish peninsula) and presents the most westerly point of the island. It is renowned for the impresive rock formations, which closely resembles the famous Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. A steep path leads down from the road.

The Lighthouse was designed by David Alan Stevenson and was first lit on 1 November 1909. The aerial cableway is used to take supplies to the lighthouse and cottages. Since 1990, the lighthouse has been operated remotely from the Northern Lighthouse Board headquarters in Edinburgh.

From Glencoe to Isle of Skye

Glen Coe and River Etive

Glen Coe is one of the most spectacular and beautiful places in Scotland (in my opinion…) and is surrounded by wild and precipitous mountains. Most of the Glen is now owned by the National Trust for Scotland and the nice visitor centre displays the natural and historical significance of the glen. Glen Coe is a very popular tourist destination: partly because of its scenic qualities and attraction for walkers and climbers.

The River Etive rises on the peaks surrounding Rannoch Moor and from the Kings House, the Etive flows for about 18 km, reaching the sea loch, Loch Etive. A narrow road runs down the glen and ends at the head of the loch, though rough tracks continue along both shores. The river is one of Scotland’s most popular and challenging kayaking runs. It provides a multitude of solid Grade 4(5) rapids with a variety of falls and pool drops.

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 2 – 02.08.2011 – Oban – Port Appin – Glencoe – Gualachulain (99km)

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Fern and clover

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 2 – 02.08.2011 – Oban – Port Appin – Glencoe – Gualachulain (99km)

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Castle Stalker and Port Appin

Castle Stalker is situated at the picturesquely Loch Laich, an inlet off Loch Linnhe and is visible from the A828 road around mid-way between Oban and Glen Coe. The small isle is accessible (with difficulty) from the shore at low tide and it is one of the best-preserved medieval tower-houses surviving in western Scotland. It was brought to fame by the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It also appeared in the film Highlander: Endgame.

The coast around Port Appin is extremely beautiful – a combination of seascapes and rugged and mountainous country inland – and Appin forms part of the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area, one of 40 in Scotland.

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 2 – 02.08.2011 – Oban – Port Appin – Glencoe – Gualachulain (99km)

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Inveraray and Oban

Inveraray is a small fisher and tourist village in west scotland. 1770 the 5th Duke was rebuilding the town in its present form and the end product was an attractive town. The village included houses for estate workers, a woollen mill and a pier to exploit herring fishing. The distintive white bildiungs at loch shore make it photogenic and it is a popular tourist destination.

Oban is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area and occupies a beautiful setting in the Firth of Lorn. The bay of Oban is a near perfect horseshoe bay, protected by the island of Kerrera, and beyond Kerrera is Mull. One of the tourist attractions is Dunollie Castle, which is a small ruin located on a hill north of the town. In the 13th century, the 3rd chief of the MacDougalls probably built a castle there and lost the land after siding with MacDougall kinsmen, the Comyns, and fighting against Robert the Bruce.

Our Scotland travel experience can be found here:

Day 1 – 01.08.2011 – Aberdeen – Inveraray – Oban (440km)

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