Loch Ness, Isle of Skye, Fort William
We left Aviemore fairly early and made our way to the north shore of Loch Ness. We made a stop to view Urquhart Castle and of course to look for Nessie. We made another quick stop (bathroom break) in Invermoriston next to a nice field. There, we branched away from Loch Ness and we passed Loch Cluanie then Loch Duish. Where Loch Duish meets Loch Long and Loch Alsh, we found Eileen Donan Castle. The way the castle is situated and the fact that you must use a bridge to access the castle make it very photogenic. On the grounds, there was also a garden and good views of the bridge that spans Loch Long and the hilltop above the castle.
When you follow the road on the north shore of Loch Alsh, it takes you to Skye Bridge which of course takes you onto the Isle of Skye. The bridge has two separate spans. One goes from the mainland to the island at the mouth of Loch Alsh. The second, bigger span leads you directly onto the Isle. We stopped there to get a view of the bridges and Loch Alsh but more significantly to have a toast to our journey onto the Isle.
We then proceeded to Clan Donald Visitor Centre. There you can visit Armadale Castle, many sets of beautiful gardens and a museum. We met a Canadian lady there, also taking a bus tour. I was interested to see that the original Greyfriars Bobby statue was in the Museum. Evidently, the sculptor created the one on the street in Edinburgh from this original model. When we were finished at the Visitor Centre, we took a quick drive to the ferry. We made the reserved time with several minutes to spare. Once on the ferry, you are of course allowed to climb upstairs to get a view of where you were and where you are going. We landed in Mallaig then immediately proceeded to Glenfinnan. The reason this place is significant is twofold. Historically, Bonnie Prince Charlie initiated the Jacobite uprising here by raising a standard on the shores of Loch Shiel. In the recent past, a viaduct railway which passes through the area has been used in several Harry Potter movies. In Banavie/Corpach, just before getting to Fort William, we went over low end of Neptune's Staircase, a series of eight locks on the Caledonian Canal.
