Rick Steves'
Best of Scotland
Tour Day 5: Crannogs and the Highlands
Crannog Center
This morning we visited the Scottish Crannog Center situated on Loch Tay in Kenmore to learn about prehistoric life in Scotland. They had a fully functioning replica of a crannog from 500 B.C. that we were able to tour, and we had demonstrations of the tools that would have been used. We learned about how many centuries of artifacts were found in the lake beneath these homes, most likely from personal belongings slipping between the rough floorboards. The families lived together with their livestock in these huts they built on the water. It was a beautiful day with beautiful scenery while we learned this unique history.
The Scottish Crannog Center had a replica of the original crannogs built over Loch Tay that we could explore.
The view of Loch Tay from the crannog center was just beautiful!
The Scottish Crannog Center had a replica of the original crannogs built over Loch Tay that we could explore.
Back door experience
In Pitlochry the group was set free for lunch on our own and we decided to get take-out at a little cafe we found and eat it at a nearby park. We did this at most of our lunch stops because it allowed us to spend the extra time seeing a new site instead of spending it all eating lunch. The park had only local families sitting and watching their kids play, and it is fun to do something normal with the locals when in another country. Another great part about having a good guide is she helped us find the best places to use the restroom for free whenever possible, or in her words, she helped us have "a free pee."
Cute traditional pub in Pitlochry
Pitlochry is famous in Scotland for its flowers, and even at the end of the season they were beautiful.
We snapped this quick picture of Blair Castle as we traveled by bus just outside of Pitlochry. There are castles all over the countryside here.
Cute traditional pub in Pitlochry
Pitlochry
After the Crannog visit, we headed to Pitlochry to have a look around the city and take our lunch break. It was a lovely, quaint city with several nice, traditional pubs and the prerequisite tourist shopping options. Pitlochry is famous for often being the winners of the Scotland in Bloom award, so there were beautiful flowers all over the town that still looked great even at the end of the growing season.
Speaking Scottish
The Scottish often refer to bathrooms as "loos." Our guide made this even more charming by referring to using the toilet as "skipping to the loo."
David loves nothing more than to have his picture taken with a full mouth!
If you aren't lucky enough to locate a "loo" for a "free pee," you have to pay 50 pence at most places and receive a ticket to use the restroom.
Leault Farm
Our last stop for the day was one of the group's favorite of the trip: a visit to a working sheep farm. We got to sit right in the field and watch the dogs' trainer, Neil, give his dogs commands to bring the sheep in from the field for shearing. The dogs LOVED this, and maybe the sheep did not love it so much... We were all excited to get to pet the dogs and see the puppies. We learned all about the financial and logisitical challenges to running a sheep farm the traditional way in such a modern time. Though his job is difficult, Neil loves his work and can't imagine doing anything else. After our visit to the farm we arrived in Inverness for a bit of free time and dinner on our own.
Our group settling in for our sheep herding lesson.
Sheep farmer Neil demonstrating how he can control each dog's actions with a different whistle and series of commands to help drive the sheep in from the fields.
Our group settling in for our sheep herding lesson.
We really grew to love our group and we often spent our free time together too. On our first night in Inverness we were to have dinner on our own, but our guide Anne arranged an optional group dinner at an Indian restaurant, and most of the group participated. Britain is known for their Indian food, and this was by far the best we had ever had. We ordered a bunch of dishes and shared everything family-style. We couldn't believe how well we had gotten to know and like everyone in just a few days!