As usual, I'm documenting my holiday up north so feel free to ignore if you don't want to see shiny scenery, seals, stars and of course, cats! It's a big 'un this year so I'll probably be splitting it into multiple posts so it isn't such a chore to read!
If you'd rather just look at the photos and ignore my reminiscent ramblings, the Flickr album can be found -here-.
If you'd rather just look at the photos and ignore my reminiscent ramblings, the Flickr album can be found -here-.
The last time we went to the Highlands on holiday was last year, to Roshven; a lovely spot in the Inner Hebrides. It was beautiful, though the weather was less so, and while I'd love to go back, this time around we went elsewhere. We left it a bit late to book, so our choices were limited, but I think we struck very lucky in the end with a really nice cottage in the gorgeously quaint village of Portmahomack in Easter Ross.
The journey up wasn't quite as dramatically scenic as the drive through Glencoe, but there were still plenty of beautiful vistas on the way to the House of Bruar at Blair Atholl, where we stopped for lunch and a serious nostagia kick.
I have vivid memories of playing in the river there with my cousins when we were kids, as nearly every summer we'd drive up there to meet them and my aunt and uncle, then I'd travel back up to their house for a week and give my parents some peace for a few days.
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| We didn't paddle in this part, don't worry! We had a tiny amount of common sense even back then! |
In recent years I've taken the train up myself as it's easier for everyone, so I hadn't been to Bruar in a long time. Things had changed a lot; massive extensions to the shopping areas for one, but overall it still felt like good old (expensive!) Bruar.
The rest of the journey fluctuated between rain and sun, but the scenery was just as nice regardless of the weather conditions.
As evening approached we finally arrived in Portmahomack and settled into the very cosy Bluebell Cottage. Although we were a couple of rows back from the sea itself, it was easily seen from the house and made going for a wander on the beach a very casual affair as it was less than a minute away.
As I forgot to take any photos outside the cottage itself, Google Maps saved the day and lets you go for your own wee wander through the village if you feel so inclined.
We dumped all our suitcases in the house and almost immediately went for a walk - all that sand was just too tempting!
A predominantly sandy beach, it wasn't ideal for beachcombing, but we still managed to find a good selection of delightfully well worn pottery and glass shards. In Dumfries and Galloway - our usual holiday haunt - we're lucky to find anything as well weathered as the stuff we found up here, so Easter Ross definitely gets brownie points for that!
It wasn't long before the light started to fade and we were welcomed to the village with a beautifully moody sunset in blue, black and gold.
The next morning we explored the village a little more, though the draw of the sea was too powerful and we spent most of our time at the water's edge; passing the harbour and the (literal) end of the road, wandering along the footpath that eventually led to the end of the peninsula a few miles away.
After a delicious soupy lunch with an unexpectedly bunny-shaped slice of bread...
...we headed off to the end of the peninsula to see the Tarbat Ness Lighthouse.
At 41 metres high, (Scotland's second-tallest land based lighthouse) this 19th century feat of engineering still performs the job it was built for in 1830, though now with automated lighting and no need for live-in lighthouse keepers.
It was certainly photogenic, but we were more interested in what could lie before it in the sea. Dolphins and seals are common enough visitors to the area, so we stood for what felt like hours, gazing out at the water, hoping against hope to see a fin breach the surface.
We weren't alone, and those with telephoto lenses gave us hope that we might see something.
Alas, we saw nothing but a few birds, and turned to head back to the car park. Suddenly mum shouted on us that she'd seen a seal, and really close to shore, so we spent another twenty-odd minutes trying to spot it after it disappeared back into the depths.
We gave up, only for me to spot it surface a few minutes later. I managed to get a couple of shots using my now traditional stick-iphone-to-binoculars-and-hope-for-the-best method.
Buoyed up by the sighting, I finally achieved a lifelong dream and turned into a unicorn. :P
Dad was happy to stand for a nice portrait of his own...
...only to do this immediately afterwards. #sorrynotsorry
...only to do this immediately afterwards. #sorrynotsorry
While the parental unit got back into the warmth of the car, I wandered on a little to get a more pleasing view of the lighthouse from the edge of a cliff. Slightly scary with a coastal breeze at my back but totally worth it.
On the way back my dad pulled over so he could get a photo of some kind of interesting power station or something for Geograph. It's his latest hobby, and while we all gently take the piss out of him for photographing rather mundane sights like road junctions and postboxes, it's a really interesting project!
I just looked up the very image he took and apparently it's some kind of communications tower.
On that rather uninteresting note, I finish this post.😂
Tune in next time for cruise ships, Pictish stones and the possibility of dolphins!
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