Tag Archives: highlands

Bloggings, Family, Travel

Isle of Skye

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We woke up around 7 to go to the Isle of Skye. It was a 2. 5 hour drive to the town of Portree. Don did the driving and he did very well. We made a stop for pictures and gas along the way. We arrived in Portree around noon. Finding parking was a bit stressful but we found a lot and was able to walk to a restaurant. It was a really gloomy, rainy day. I felt bad because my dad had a very bad headache upon arrival. The first part of getting to Isle of Skye did not seem to be going well. It was rainy, everyone was a bit stressed from the drive, and it was hard to find a restaurant.

We got lucky and ate at a place called Cuchillin. It was pretty good. The service was not great. Most people had fish and chips. My mom had pasta.

After lunch we decided to drive to Kilt Rock. Dad rode with us, he was starting to feel better. The drive was about 20 minutes, and the weather had cleared up. We got so lucky with the weather. The rest of the day was sunny and beautiful. We took a lot of pictures here. Lucas got in trouble because he wouldn’t listen to me. It was the first real breakdown by him of the trip. We didn’t know what to do, I was very upset by Lucas’s behavior, and we had close to a 3 hour drive back to the house. I know Don was disappointed with the Skye trip so far and he didn’t want to just drive back. We all agreed to go to the waterfall we had seen on the way there and then decide what to do.

So, we turned around and stopped at Lealt Falls. It was very beautiful and I’m glad we had the opportunity to see it. Lucas was acting better, the weather was perfect, so things were looking up.

After the falls, Kelsey, Jared, and Adeline decided they wanted to go back to the house, so mom and dad got in our car because we were up for more stops. The first place we stopped was the Storr Trail. The views here were amazing. Mom, dad, and I got some coffee and drinks for Lucas and Don. Lucas and Don started hiking up a bit. I wasn’t really in the mood for a hike, but Don texted and said it wasn’t very hard, so we went up. I’m glad we did because the views were amazing. There were easy trails and much more difficult trails you could do. Some people were hiking with camping supplies. We spent a good amount of time here.

The last place we stopped was the Eilean Donan Castle. We took some pictures here. It was a cool looking castle. The drive home was more enjoyable than the way there because it wasn’t raining, and you could see all the scenery so clearly. It was a beautiful drive. Lucas slept some on the way home. I felt bad for him because I knew he was very tired earlier and he kept saying how he wanted to go home to see Lina. We got back to the house around 7:30. I wish we could have had more time to explore the Isle of Skye, but I’m also very happy today went well. We got some very beautiful views, great weather, and good memories. We had leftovers for dinner and then we went in the hot tub. We got swarmed by bugs and Lucas got scared so we went in to get ready for bed. My parents showed Lucas a paper map which he called a “paper Karen” because we call our gps Karen.

Bloggings, Family, Travel

Heading to Inverness

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We woke up around 7 to check out of house. We saw Marie, she was a great host. Lucas got to jump on the trampoline outside the house while we got packed up. We got on the road to Stirling Castle around 9. The driving was a lot better. We really enjoyed the castle. In a way, I think Stirling Castle was better than Edinburgh Castle. There were a few actors that made it somewhat interactive. Lucas was really into listening to them. It felt like you could go into more spaces of the castle than in Edinburgh. The scenery was amazing surrounding the castle. Once again, the weather was perfect.

Kelsey, Jared, and Adeline met up with us at the restaurant in the hotel right next to the castle. It was called The Portcullis. This restaurant was very good, and our waiter was entertaining. We had fish and chips, and they might have been the best on the trip. They also had Blackthorn Cider on tap, which is my favorite cider and very rare in the states! I could have stayed here for a while, but we had to get on the road to our house.

After lunch we drove all the way to Inverness. The driving was mostly like interstate driving until we decided to stop at a Tesco for groceries. This is where the trip took a turn for the worse. It was so stressful driving in this town. The roundabout going into the grocery store was all crazy. I hit a curb in the parking lot. Jared almost got in an accident near the roundabout. Tension was very high in the parking lot and in the grocery store. On the way to the house somehow, I hit a curb on the side of the road going about 45 mph. I have had trouble with realizing how close the left side of the car was getting to the side of the road the whole trip. We also got separated from Kelsey and Jared’s car in one of the roundabouts.

Arriving at the house spirits were pretty low. There was yelling, crying, and people telling me they were ready to be home. It was quite stressful and not a good time for anyone. On top of everyone being unhappy we probably need to get the car’s tire looked at tomorrow because it looks torn up.

Dad and Don went back to the store to get frozen pizzas for dinner because in the chaos of everything of course we didn’t get anything substantial for dinner. Kelsey, my mom and I talked stuff out before dinner. Things seem better. I know it must be hard and super stressful to be on this trip with a 7-month-old. There’s no way in hell I think we would have done it, so I give them credit, but I think we all need to keep in mind how we speak to each other in times of stress.

It was a disappointing arrival here in Inverness. In hindsight, maybe we should have skipped Stirling Castle, but it was really cool to see, and I doubt we would see it later in the trip. I know I let my emotions get to me and I really hope the rest of the trip goes better. After all I’m glad we all made it safely to the house because the driving was insane. It’s unfortunate to be in such a beautiful location and feel like total shit. The house is amazing. I tried to take some time to take it in and appreciate it. Hopefully the rest of the trip allows for that. Lucas was a trooper on the long drive; he did really well.  We went to bed late and I’m not sure what tomorrow holds. The tire on our car looks ruined and I don’t think anyone is up for another day of driving out to the Isle of Skye.