Back in Inverness at dusk, I headed straight for the now iconic Joker Steps. I’ve no idea why those folk are heading for the Bronx to do the iconic dance when they’re in the Highlands. It’s four years since I last visited Inverness, back in the early days of this blog when even 100 words… Continue reading INVERNESS PART I – BELIEVE
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OCTOBER ’19 STOCKTAKE + NOVEMBER PREVIEW
“When the leaves come falling down, I’ll be ticking in a Highlands town” Van Morrison, When the leaves come falling down, 1999 Or in the words of Katherine Bush’s Halloween single from 1980 “October will be magic again“.* BLOGGING ACTIVITY 77 posts in October, which gives you a clue to how many pubs I used.… Continue reading OCTOBER ’19 STOCKTAKE + NOVEMBER PREVIEW
CARRBRIDGE OVER UNTROUBLED WATERS
One more from Scotland before the international break monthly review, and a highlight of my Highlands week. My last pub before the last train back to Inverness, so a bit of a rushed effort in the Cairn Hotel in Carrbridge. I really love visiting pubs in places I’ve never heard of (not Scotland). 708 people… Continue reading CARRBRIDGE OVER UNTROUBLED WATERS
AVIEMORE-OR-LESS
I’d been looking forward to Aviemore since I decided to swap Orkney ticking for the Cairngorms. EVERYONE has heard of Aviemore; it’s the best-known place in Scottish after Paisley, Edinburgh, Berwick and Carluke. This is the Cheddar Gorge or Windermere of the North. A long parade of bakeries and hiking booteries (?) awaits you, and… Continue reading AVIEMORE-OR-LESS
THE LITTLE BOYS ROOM
Next stop, Newtonmore, geographical centre of Scotland, which is just weird. If you want to go there right now, there’s bargains to be had. There must be a thousand villages bigger than Newtonmore in England that don’t have a railway station, but I guess Potton doesn’t have is a setting by the Cairngorms and shops… Continue reading THE LITTLE BOYS ROOM
IT’S A LONG WAY FROM TIPPERARY TO BLAIR ATHOLL
You’ll probably have worked out by now I failed in my Orkney expedition. By the time I reached Inverness after a breathtaking stretch of A9 I’d worked out that exploring the Cairngorms by train, and a night on the town by Loch Ness (#Believe), was more enticing than another 4 hour slog up to Lands… Continue reading IT’S A LONG WAY FROM TIPPERARY TO BLAIR ATHOLL
MOULIN BROWN
Some things I appreciated about Scotland on this trip… It’s always sunny Complete disinterest in the Rugby World Cup among locals Fewer lorries on the dual carriageways Train stations mandatory within a mile of any GBG pub That’s a civilised country, if you ask me. OK, there aren’t masses of trains, but just enough to… Continue reading MOULIN BROWN
YOUR COMPLETE DUNKELD & BIRNAM CULTURAL GUIDE
Just to prove this blog isn’t all beer, here’s some tourist highlights i.e. things I could actually see when daylight returned to Dunkeld. In the morning, over world-beating smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, the nice owner of Merryburn told me more about Dunkeld and Birnam than you’d find on Wiki, sparing me all those… Continue reading YOUR COMPLETE DUNKELD & BIRNAM CULTURAL GUIDE
A HAGGIS SUPPER BY THE TAY
Yes, you’re hooked now, aren’t you? First of all, my second GBG tick in Dunkeld, which had the “Royal” in its name but was clearly relying on Inter v Borussia Dortmund to draw in the gentlefolk diners. And local beers, of course. I was the only one not wearing a jumper (there was a heatwave… Continue reading A HAGGIS SUPPER BY THE TAY
DARKNESS DESCENDS ON DUNKELD
I’m on the way back from Scotland now, (Spoiler) defeated in my quest to reach the fabled Orkneys but buoyed by the accumulation of a wealth of scenic discoveries. And 30 ticks. So the chances of this blog being up-to-date by the end-of-month review are Less Than Zero. But I’ll press on, back at Dunkeld… Continue reading DARKNESS DESCENDS ON DUNKELD
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