Stardate: 30 April 2019 - To the Crannog via Glencoe!

Thanks to the local sorceress and her patented eye of newt potion (possibly also containing adder's fork and blindworm's sting) yesterday's affliction has largely lifted and we could could venture further afield today.

Our morning outing was to beautiful Glencoe Lochan, about 70 kms away, for a ramble among the brambles.  And lovely it was too. (Thanks for the tip, Margaret!)  But the scenery en route was extraordinary with the remnants of the ancient Caledonian Mountains on either side.  I read today that this range was physically linked to mountain ranges in North America and Norway before the Atlantic Ocean was formed.

I really don't think these pics do the area justice.
Let me be the first to use the word 'awesome' in its true sense.

So rugged, huge, grim and foreboding.

There were a number of small parking areas along the A82 arterial road where tourists could stop and take pics.  Unfortunately, all the best ones with the most spectacular views were occupied by precariously parked tourist buses and enormous caravans so there wasn't room for our more modestly-sized Vovo (as we now call our SUV).

There was snow on some of the peaks.

But our destination was Glencoe Lochan - a beautiful tract of forest with three degrees of
walking tracks from easy to challenging  - perfect for me as I like the easiest route possible.  (Not lazy - I have a gammy leg.) We walked about 2 kms around a pretty pond.  We saw a sad little plaque attached to a rock in memory of "Bailey Cummings" - a dog who died at only 2 years of age but loved his daily walks at Glencoe Lochen.  Both of us teared up a bit at that, thinking how Frances and Rebel would have loved the walk.

But then we met this chap - handsome Jimmy who walks Glencoe Lochan every day with his dad.

Jimmy is a former show dog and dad said, when we asked, that "he's 10 years and 8 months old". Every month counts with older dogs, as those of us who are dogheads know!







After our walk, we headed to a little cafe in the village of Glencoe, mainly for a desperately needed wizz but also for a cup of tea and a biscuit. Our host was clearly a birder and conscious of the area's attraction for tourists and it was lovely to see our table had (next to the HP sauce and salt and pepper)  a sort of pictorial index to birds in the local area. As there were bird feeders out the window next to our table, we managed to identify chaffinches, siskins and a long-tailed tit. Apart from sparrows, these were our first positive IDs of British birds.  (No gannets!)

Over to Mr Pants now for soup and sandwich news.

***

The morning was indeed excellent, as is Hortense's description of it.  So we were not overly confident that the arvo could match it, but we think it came pretty close.  Just north of Killin is Loch Tay, which we think is one of the biggest in the area.  

We read that there is a pretty town called Kenmore at the northern end of the loch, and pretty it is, as advertised.

It's 14 miles from Killin to Kenmore (in the UK they use metric measurements for some things, but distances are still in miles.  And speed limits.)

But far and away the best attraction in Kenmore is the Scottish Crannog Centre.  We thought it would be good, but it exceeded our expectations by some degree.

This is a Crannog.  Not a real one (please read on), but an educated assessment of what the original looked like.  The originals date from 500 BC and were discovered in this area in an archaeological excavation in the 1980s.  There were apparently 18 of them around Loch Tay.  Each was built on piers over the water.  The main reason for this was apparently to ward off would-be invaders and also as a kind of status symbol.  The more prestigious clan members would have lived there while the proletariat would have camped onshore.  The Crannog residents may have fished from them but this is inconclusive.

About 25 people would have lived here, along with sundry animals.  The inside has been recreated as best they can.  There was a fire in the middle, for both heating and cooking.  Today the fire wasn't alight, because there are swallows nesting in the roof and a duck on part of the floor.

Their level of building expertise was very impressive.  In addition to the Crannog itself, there were a number of recreations on the shore showing weaving, grinding, pottery and cooking.  It seems that they were equally adept at all these crafts.

There were several staff members demonstrating all these specialties, and they were uniformly informative.  A great attraction, and highly recommended.  I'll definitely be doing a Trip Advisor review, seeing as how I'm a 'Senior Trip Advisor Reviewer' & all.  

Dunno what's on tomorrow just now, but today has set a high standard.