25-JUN-2008
Dunstaffnage Castle
This here is Dunstaffnage Castle, built on a large rock in the Firth of Lorn, a short drive from Oban. Built in 1275, it was captured in the 14th century and turned over to the Campbells. Its claim to fame is that Flora MacDonald was imprisoned here after she helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape dressed as a maid. Apart from the outside walls, very little of the castle remains -- but it was possible to see features such as the bread ovens and loo chutes.
25-JUN-2008
Bird watching
Janet, bird watching during a break from the rain. Our drive from Oban to Spean Bridge was very wet -- but, along with Dunstaffnage Castle, there were plenty of mostly-indoor activities along the way. We visited the "Hollow Mountain" power station at Ben Cruachan., which has two nifty features; the first is that the turbines and operation rooms are all buried inside the mountain, and the second is that it operates what is essentially a battery: during periods of low power use, excess power in the wires is used to pump water from Loch Awe to an upper reservoir, formed by a dam. Rainwater tunnels have also been built through the mountains to funnel rain into the reservoir. Then, during periods of high power use, the water in the reservoir is used as normal hydro power.
25-JUN-2008
Bonawe iron works
This site wasn't entirely indoors, but indoors enough to keep us relatively dry. This is the Bonawe iron furnace, which produced iron between the 1750s and the 1870s. The site of the furnace was based on the availability of trees for charcoal and, at its peak, over 600 tree cutters and charcoal burners worked here. This photo shows some of the charcoal sheds, where charcoal was loaded in from second story windows at the back. The iron made here with either cast into pigs, and shipped back to England, or made into cannonballs.
25-JUN-2008
Inside the furnace
Detail of the furnace room itself (upper story).
25-JUN-2008
Glen Coe
Glen Coe -- absolutely stunning, even in the pouring rain. Glen Coe is a long valley which climbs from Loch Leven (a sea loch) to the Rannoch Moor plateau, which sits at an altitude of over 1000 feet. The road through is a narrow two-lane track, and we were lucky enough to drive it twice, and absorb the scenery from both directions.
25-JUN-2008
Rain, rain on the lens
Waterfalls, hills, and mist in Glen Coe. It was cold here, and difficult to take pictures because of water on the lens.
25-JUN-2008
Glen Nevis
This is no longer Glen Coe, although in some ways it looks quite similar. It is in fact Glen Nevis, next door to our B&B in Spean Bridge, and one valley over from Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Great Britain. Glen Nevis is the site at which many of the outdoor scenes for the Harry Potter films were shot. Again, we had mist and light rain, but this was -- after all -- Scotland!
25-JUN-2008
A wet Richard
Richard in Glen Nevis, looking cheerful despite an entire day of rain. That's our rental car in the background.
26-JUN-2008
A blustered Janet
Janet, demonstrating that when it wasn't raining, it was windy! This is the back side of Glen Nevis, near the Commando memorial.