Category Archives: Ordinary

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Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Storehouse of Foulis

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In our previous post from Hettie’s Tearoom we were on a mission to Dingwall to explore some family history. We’re still up north but this time we are on another sort of mission … to find an old friend. We haven’t seen him for something like thirty five years. Problem was that, other than his address, we didn’t have any contact details so we couldn’t warn him we were coming. Perhaps that was just as well otherwise he might have arranged to be ‘out’. After our sojourn to Dingwall we were heading for home but a slight diversion to Evanton, further along the Comarty Firth coast, was not going to add too much to our journey. First though, we stopped off here at the Storehouse of Foulis for a cuppa.Internal view of the Storehouse of Foulis

It gets its name because it was built as a Storehouse in 1740 as a central collection point for estate tenants to bring their oats and barley. These were then redistributed to farm workers as wages or sent off to markets further south. Boats would land on the beach, load up, and then take off on the next high tide. That’s all in the past, now it’s a large farm shop/restaurant.Internal view of the Storehouse of Foulis

What’s in a name?

Last time we were here seven years ago we had a chocolate and banana scone which left us somewhat underwhelmed. This time we played safe and ordered a fruit scone and some coffee. Scone at the Storehouse of Foulis We had a table by the large bay window looking out over the water and a few redundant oil rigs parked like monuments to a time of plenty squandered by an idiotic Westminster government.

We thought we should check the address. Sacre bleu, he didn’t live in Evanton after all, he lived in Edderton. Evanton/Edderton, an easy mistake to make? We wanted to go south and home but Edderton would take us even further north to the Dornoch Firth … aargh! We deliberated on what to do as we ate our scone. It was nice and came with a nice pot of jam and some prepackaged butter. With this being a self-service place it was never going to be a topscone but enjoyable nevertheless.cakes atthe Storehouse of Foulis

Deliberations over, we returned to the car and headed north. Edderton is a small village which lies amidst beautiful countryside on the southern shores of the Dornoch Firth. It also has the good fortune to be sandwiched between the Balblair and Glenmorangie distilleries and presumably has a very happy population of about 400. Our satnav took us straight there but when it announced “you have arrived” it left us a choice of numerous houses at the end of a cul-de-sac .

I stayed in the car while Pat went to make enquiries. Suddenly, there was tap on my window and a chap wanting to know if I was looking for someone. They don’t miss much in Edderton! I told him the name to which he just shook his head and said there was no one of that name in the village. “He was a vet” I said, to which he replied “Oh, that’s his house there“. We had indeed ‘arrived’.

Young lads

after such a long passage of time, turning up unannounced isn’t really very fair. At first he didn’t recognise us but then he gasped “Good grief” … or words to that effect and we were welcomed in. Many years ago, he, I and another friend  went on a climbing holiday to St Moritz in the Alps. It’s a long story of wrecked cars and other mishaps the like of which could only happen to young lads with no responsibilities. Suffice to say we never made it. We did, however, in a very round about way, manage to end up in the Pyrenees.

John Simpson and George McKenzie in the Pyrenees
The Pyrenees in 1970, quite like the Alps, another easy mistake!

Magically it seemed like no time had passed at all since we last saw each other. Needless to say there was much catching up to be done. We did eventually get home … in the dark!

IV16 9UX         tel: 01349 830038.         Storehouse

///elsewhere.surreal.giggle

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Braco Coffee

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Braco Coffee is in the pretty little of village of Braco (pronounced break-o) population about 500. You would be forgiven for thinking that nothing much has ever happened here but you would be wrong.

On the outskirts of the village lies Fort Ardoch, a long abandoned Roman fortification. There’s only grass covered mounds these days to denote where the walls once were. Diagram of Roman helmetOnce while walking by the river we could hear distant commands “sinister dexter, sinister dexter.” Eventually it got much louder and a platoon of marching Roman Legionnaires appeared. They were in full costume and carrying spears with a commanding officer at the front giving them their marching orders. We spoke to them and apparently this is what some men do instead of going to football on a Saturday afternoon. They just march around for a bit, then go home again. We don’t understand either but they seemed very happy.

Damned cows!

But never mind the Romans, more importantly, my mum lodged here during WWII when she worked in forestry. 

My mum lodged in one of these houses with a lovely lady called Jessie Allan

My dad was in forestry as well and Braco is where they did all their courting.  Apparently on one of their dates my dad left his BSA motorbike in a field. When they returned (from wherever they had been 🥴) the straw stuffed saddle of the bike had been eaten by a cow.  We tell you this to illustrate the fact that without this wee village this blog might never have materialised. Unthinkable, we know. Logo of Braco Coffee

Somewhere as salubrious as Braco Coffee wouldn’t have been available to dad back then hence mum’s invite to a field. Even if it had been, words like “cuppocinno”, “americano” or “flat white” would have been absolutely meaningless to them. We pass through Braco quite often and have had this place in our sights for a while. The clincher came when the Laird reported the cakes as excellent though he wasn’t sure about the scones. Obviously we had to check!Internal view of Braco Coffee

There was a steady stream of people coming and going  so we had to wait a wee while to place our order at the counter. A scone atBraco CoffeeNormally these cafes are staffed by young girls but here it seemed to be all young lads. Anyway, it didn’t take them long to have us sorted with our coffees and a fruit scone. There wasn’t any cream and the butter and jam was all prepacked but the scone itself was really good. We thoroughly enjoyed it. Not quite topscone but close.

Memories

Afterwards I took Pat a couple of hundred yards along the road to the Pack Horse Bridge. It’s tucked away behind the more modern road bridge over the river Knaik. Pat was surprised and swore she had never seen it before and wasn’t even aware that it existed.It was built around 1650 and must have been the main crossing point for the river for many years. It’s only about four feet wide with very low stone parapets so it must have been interesting taking horses over it.

The Pack Horse Bridge in Braco
Built around 1650 as Ardoch bridge but now known as the Pack Horse Bridge

When we got home I looked up my photo library because I was sure that I had photographed it in the past. Sure enough I had a picture from 2006 … with Pat and the rest of our family standing on it. Such is our memories these days!

Pack Horse Bridge at Braco
Before Health & Safety … now you are not allowed to walk over it
Travelling

As if that wasn’t enough Braco based anecdotes, here is one last one … promise. Given the problems in Gaza and Israel’s genocidal tendencies it made me think of a conversation about Braco when I was a mere sapling. My brother and I were working for my dad during school holidays when one of the elderly estate workers joined us while we were eating our packed lunches. He told us, when he was our age he was an estate worker in Braco with a 7am start to his working day. At that time he lived six miles away in the village of Muthill. When we asked him how he got to and from his work he said in his broad Scottish accent “oh aye, I just travelled“. Puzzled we asked if he maybe cycled or got a bus. “No” he insisted “I travelled“.

Misunderstanding

After some more probing it eventually dawned on us that by “travelled” he meant he walked. He walked six miles to his work in the morning and six miles back again at night. We hadn’t thought of that! The only reason I’m telling you this is that it was the first time I became aware of the vagaries of language. There we were, all speaking the same language but totally misunderstanding each other.

It’s why I’ve always been amazed by the EU, a union designed to stop wars but consisting of countries speaking twenty four different languages. Prior to the EU these countries used to fight like ferrets in a sack so the room for misunderstanding was immense. And yet it has been phenomenally successful at what it was designed to do. Maybe they should make Israel a member … after all it’s in Eurovision but we’d far rather they find some other solution.

FK15 9PX         tel: 01786 880 333          Braco Coffee

///magnets.poetry.showering

Ordinary, Scones

Basecamp

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Believe it or not we are still at Crieff Hydro for this post, or at least we’re still on the Crieff Hydro estate. Now, however, we are in Action Glen, about a five minute drive from the main hotel. And at the centre of Action Glen is the appropriately named Basecamp bar and cafe. Like all good basecamps it’s where you set out from on your daring adventures. It could be horse riding, off-roading, or even zip lining, There’s four zip lines side by side so you can have races.

Me on zip slide
Is it a bird, is it a plane, no it’s supersconey

Competing with the grandkids I always seemed to come last … greater wind resistance was the problem! So unfair!

Mysterious forces

Slide from the castleThere’s a very tempting giant maze where, if you really tried, you could easily lose grandkids! We have to say, ours had an uncanny knack of finding us again. There’s paddle boarding or fly fishing instruction … whatever takes your fancy really. Then there’s the Glen’s Fort where you can rock climb up to the top of the tower then whoosh down a metal tube back to ground level. There’s Segway experiences and huge inflated pillows you can bounce on. There’s even 4×4 driving for kids. Amidst all this non-stop fun, however,  we were delighted to discover that they also did some serious adult stuff … like scones. It wasn’t too long before we were drawn into the Basecamp cafe as if by some mysterious irresistible force. Ice cream seemed to have the same effect on the kids.Internal view of Basecamp

Unfortunately, the cafe was being manned single handedly by a chap who was completely out of his depth. He was probably supposed to be doing off-road driving instruction and had been told that he would have to do the cafe instead because the normal staff hadn’t turned up. It was all quite funny as he frantically rummaged around looking for things. As he wrestled with the orders the customers felt his frustration and were very supportive. Basecamp is a good place. All fairly basic but the kind of place you’re very pleased to get back to after all the outdoorsy stuff.

No worries

A scone at BasecampOkay, it’s not exactly  high altitude Everest Basecamp but nevertheless we felt a scone report would be appreciated by our fellow sconeys.  A fruit scone with some tea. was our relatively simple order. We took our scone to a table and waited for the tea … and waited …  and waited! Needless too say, our fish-out-of-water server had completely forgotten. No worries it all worked out in the end. No cream but the slightly over-cooked scone came with some prepacked butter and a generous portion of blackcurrant jam. Enjoyable enough but not a topscone. Who cares when you can just sit looking out towards distant Ben Vorlich. The kids didn’t share any of their ice cream but by all accounts it was very good.View from Basecamp

This is your intrepid sconey team for 2024. From Basecamp  we will venture forth into the nether regions of the world in search of topscones for another year. Wish us luck!Scenes at Basecamp

PH7 3LH        Basecamp cafe

///prevented.crowbar.bandstand

 

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Crieff Hydro

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Let us begin 2024 by wishing all our readers a very happy and healthy year. May your troubles be few and your scones be many! Traditionally it’s a time for reflection on the past year and making ambitious resolutions for the new one. Apart from all the horrible stuff going on in the world, 2023 was good. We had over sixty scones and topscones in such diverse locations as Busta House on Shetland and Coll Hotel on the lovely Isle of Coll. Our most important New Year resolution is not to have any and just enjoy whatever comes along. External view of Crieff Hydro

Memories

And talking of enjoying ourselves a few days back we visited Crieff Hydro Hotel and Spa with some of the family. Crieff is a Perthshire town we know quite well. We have lots of family connections  and many happy memories were made here. Over the years we’ve visited Crieff Hydro several times but always just fleetingly for lunch with relatives. This time we’re staying over with family.

Internal view of Crieff Hydro
a small part of the breakfast room

In 1868 it became Scotland’s first hydropathic establishment where people could go “to take the waters”. It may seem a bit odd these days, however. back then when good clean water was hard to come by, places like this flourished. A favourite for wealthy Victorians. Today it’s still run by the same family. It’s still labeled as a ‘spa’ hotel but nowadays it’s more for massages, saunas and luxury therapies rather than the waters. With over 200 rooms, 50 lodges and over 900 acres of hills and forests, it’s more like a small town than a hotel. It has a swimming pool, tennis courts, ice skating, a couple of golf courses  and off-road driving experiences … oh, and don’t forget the funfair.

External view of Crieff Hydro at night
Main entrance
Family, family family

It’s a family hotel and probably not the kind of place you would book for a quiet romantic weekend away. There are kids everywhere! Not that we could complain, we had brought some of our own. We decided to try the scones in the Wintergardens … a large dining area with magnificent views over the Perthshire countryside. And this is only one of several restaurants.

Internal view of Crieff Hydro
the Wintergardens

The Wintergardens is all self-service.  They had three different types of scone, all freshly baked. A scone at Crieff HydroPredictably, perhaps we chose a fruit one to share … obviously we had to save ourselves for dinner later.  We  loaded up our tray and found a nice quiet table by a window. Surprisingly perhaps, there was no cream and the jam and butter were all prepackaged. The scone itself was very good but taking everything into account it failed to gain topscone status.  

Enchanted forest at Criedff Hydro
Part of the Festive Forest

Having dabbled in hospitality ourselves we are slightly in awe of this place. With its 850 staff and multitude of facilities it must be a logistical nightmare to manage. And yet it has done so, apparently without a hitch, for over one hundred and fifty years … amazing!

Fun and games at Crieff Hydro
Funfair, skating and roller coaster experience with VR
Virtual reality

We are thankful that none of our grandchildren are having to experience anything remotely like what is happening in Ukraine and Gaza or any of the world’s other disaster areas. Their life experiences are so vastly different from some others, and here at Crieff Hydro it’s almost as if we are living on a different planet. And, of course, they do have the best grandparents in the world 😀

PH7 3LQ         tel: 01764 655555           Crieff Hydro

///trainer.amicably.callers

Ordinary, Scones

aran

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Just over a year ago we reported from ‘Aran’ in Falkirk and it got pretty close to a topscone award. It has since closed and today’s ‘Aran’ is in Linlithgow but run by the same people. In our  original Aran post we said we would report from the Linlithgow establishment at some point in the future … so here we are!Internal view of Aran Linlithgow

Linlithgow is a very picturesque historic town and this cafe sits not more than two hundred yards from the Palace where Mary Queen of Scots was born in 1542. Unfortunately Aran is housed in a large 60s architectural monstrosity that does no favours to the town whatsoever. A plaque on the wall, however,  indicates that it won a design award from the Saltire Society. What were they thinking?Saltire Society Award

You will remember, of course, that “aran” is Gaelic for “bread”. They take great pride in their sustainability and sourcing local produce. They bake everything themselves using 100% renewable electricity as well as recycling  75% of their waste. Highly commendable but what would their scones also be highly commendable?

Topless

Over the past year we have had our fair share of scone disasters. Aside from the relatively few places that have had below average scones, A scone at Aran Linlithgowthere have been places with no scones and others with outlandish flavour combinations. Here, however, we had another kind of disaster … topless scones! Because I had ordered a bowl of soup Pat went ahead and chopped the top of our shared scone before I could take a photo. Not only that she had eaten it before I even noticed. This is the first time we have posted a photograph of a topless scone and I cannot tell a lie … it was her! However, she did say that the top was very good and with cream it would have been a topscone. The bottom was delicious as well … one of the best bottoms I’ve tasted!  So not quite a topscone but highly commendable.Logo of Aran Linlithgow

Goodwill

This is the season of merriment and goodwill to all men (for men read men, women and everything in between and beyond). However, sitting here looking at the world from Linlithgow, where the town motto is “be kind to strangers”, we’re not seeing much in the way goodwill. No-one seems to have told the Putins, Sunaks, Ali Khameneis, Bidens, Netanyahus. However, here in Scotland, in three days time we will have our shortest day at slightly less than seven hours. From then on the days start to stretch and we begin again with renewed hope that all these guys mentioned above will try to enact that motto.

Pat and I are getting ready for the usual deluge of grandkids so sconological adventures may have to be left to one side over the festive season. We thank all our readers for your continued loyal support and wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and sconey 2024. 

EH49 7EY          tel: 01506 844477            aran FB

///stumpy.excusing.beaters

Ordinary, Scones

The Old Mill

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You might think that Mary Queen of Scots crops up quite a lot in this blog. George Buchanan Monument in KillearnHonestly, it’s only because there are reminders of her dramatic but short life everywhere we go. Today we are at the Old Mill in the village of Killearn and almost directly opposite is the imposing, 103 feet high obelisk – the George Buchanan Monument. It dominates the house where he was born in 1506. George was Mary’s tutor as well as tutor to her son King James VI. George was educated in Paris and was seen as one of the leading intellectuals of the time. However, we’re not too sure he made such a great job of James … and thereby hangs a tale.

In 1589 the twenty three year old James married the fourteen year old Anne of Denmark by proxy. She was in Denmark and he was in Scotland. Earl Marshall substituted for James, and ‘consummated’ the marriage by lying fully clothed on a bed next to his new Queen.  What kind of job is that? Eventually she sailed to Scotland but a storm meant she ended up in Norway. James sailed to Norway and they were married in Oslo and honeymooned in Scandinavia for three months before eventually reaching Edinburgh in yet another storm. James blamed these storms on witches. He became obsessed with witches. Church leaders decreed that witches had to be punished with fire thus kicking off a century of horrendous witch burning. Pity help you if you were the slightest bit odd or your neighbours complained about you.

Woman of the year 1590

The marriage between Anne and James wasn’t exactly blissful.  Within twenty years Anne had seventeen pregnancies and gave birth to eight children only three of which survived infancy.  However, one became King Charles I, another became Queen of Bohemia and the other became the Prince of Wales but died when he was eighteen! During this time James had fathered numerous illegitimate children and reputedly courted several male lovers too.  Poor guy, he had complex needs. Surprise, surprise, he and Anne spent the last ten years living apart! She died aged 44 … same as her mum-in-law Mary Queen of Scots. Ahh, the good old days!

Sign for the Old Mill in KillearnOkay, enough of Royal debauchery and witch burning. The last time we were in Killearn was back in March when we were at the Kitchen Window. And again in May for Kenny Endo’s taiko drumming concert. It’s a happening place for being such a small village! The Old Mill was built in 1774 and is now a pub with a café across a courtyard area where horses used to be stabledInternal view of the Old Mill Killearn

Coping manfully

It was a nice day but quite windy and the couple at the next table said that they had booked to go to the Isle of Man but the ferry had been cancelled. It’s them witches again! a scone at the Old Mill KillearnWe got a fruit and cinnamon scone which came nicely presented with plenty butter and jam. No cream but hey, sometime you just can’t have everything! There only seemed to be one young girl on duty and she was doing a lot of dashing to and fro. Turned out the kitchen is in the pub across the courtyard. Just as well it wasn’t busy otherwise she would have been exhausted. Fruit and cinnamon was a nice combination  but not a topscone.Internal view of the Old Mill Killearn

You might think that a pretty little place like Killearn would be relatively untouched by war and that is largely true. However in 1943 the UK had well over 1000 prisoner of war camps and one of them was here.  Fifty POWs were housed in two huts on the edge of the village. Don’t think any would have been frequenting the Old Mill … but who knows? Forty miles away in another village, Comrie, there was a much bigger POW camp. In 2009 a former German inmate announced he was leaving his entire fortune to the village as thanks for the kindness he had received there. Let’s hope the current exchange of prisoners between Israel and Palestine can lead to some sort of reconciliation.

G63 9NJ             tel: 01360 550068                 Old Mill Killearn

///decoded.forces.tapes

ps: Killearn lies in a beautiful valley called Strathendrick which coincidentally is the name of our house back in Falkirk. Don’t know why it’s called that but that was the name when we bought it!

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Spean Bridge Mill

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Getting to Spean Bridge Mill wasn’t by way of our intended route. Our mood on finally leaving Kinloch Lodge matched the weather … it was raining! We wanted to take the ferry from Armadale to Mallaig  on the mainland so that we had a different route going home.  Unable to book on line, however, we decided to just turn up. The ferries are big boats after all and during the winter months they would be quiet. Wrong! CalMac, the ferry operator, had not only reduced the number of crossings from nine to two per day, they have also reduced the size of the boat. It could only take ten cars and guess what, we were … car eleven! The ferryman said “you couldn’t book because it was full” We said “but it doesn’t say that on the booking site?” He said “I know, it’s not fair“… argh!

Skye Bridge
the bridge from Skye to Kyle of Lochalsh on the mainland
Retracing

We had no choice but go back the way we had come and use the Skye Bridge, Now our return route was to be the same as that taken on our way to Skye several days ago. Thankfully, this time, there was no snow on the high ground as we approached Cluanie, We stopped briefly at the Commando Memorial just before  reaching the village of Spean Bridge. The Memorial looks out over the hills of Ben Nevis though today they were all shrouded in mist.

The Commando Monument at Spear Bridge
Pat and the Commando Memorial

On the 11th of this month we had Armistice Day. Wouldn’t it be good if this day was used to display the true horrors of war and the abject stupidity of it all? That might be more productive than one that honours it and sanitises it with poppies. These commandos were paid a pittance to go out and kill and be killed. Most veterans say wars are nothing but a complete waste. The way we honour war makes it much easier for politicians to ease their consciences and start meddling in other people’s affairs. Perhaps with wars being a veritable gold mine for some people it might be an idea to forbid all MPs from holding any kind of interest in arms companies.  Or … world leaders should be compelled to recite the words of “Where is the Love” by the Black Eyed Peas. Just a thought! 

Panto season

At least Armistice Day finally gave Rishi Sunak the backbone to, at long last, get rid of Home Secretary, Suella Braverman.  Her rabble rousing statements labelling Palestinian protests as ‘hate marches’ didn’t really leave him much option. They were attended peacefully by over 300,000 people with most of the trouble caused by thugs from the Islamophobic, English Defence League.

The return of Dave

In his reshuffle, Rishi has brought back former Prime Minister, David Cameron as Foreign Secretary. Since he’s not even an MP, Rishi could only do this because yesterday at breakfast time, the King made Cameron a Lord. That means he can only sit in the completely unaccountable House of Lords. And here’s us thinking that the pantomime season hadn’t started yet!

Cameron was PM when we started this blog eight years ago and there’s been an unbelievable five PMs since then. With Ukraine and Israel, Cameron has undoubtedly got his work cut out so we can only wish him luck. It’s ironic that Israel seems hell-bent on casting itself as the worst abuser of human rights and breaker of international laws since the Nazis. America’s unswerving support for Israel could make you suspect that it will become the 51st state. Could it be that they just see themselves as fellow colonisers? The war is thinly disguised as a war against Hamas but what is Hamas? Nowhere in the media have we seen any attempt to explain why Hamas even exists. Another mystery!Internal view of Spean Bridge Mill

Self service

Anyway, enough ranting, what about the scones or is that going to be another rant? Spean Bridge Mill is only a couple of miles from the Commando Memorial. It is a woollen mill quite obviously set up to cater for busloads of tourists … gift shop, whisky shop etc.  At this time of year it’s quiet. In the cafe, almost the first thing we came to on the self-service counter was the scones … preloaded!. Goodness, they were impressive! So impressive we decided to give them a try. It wasn’t until we reached the cash desk we realised they had some normal scones as well. By that time it was too much hassle to go back and start again.Scone at Spean Bridge Mill

To make matters worse they had put the jam on top of the cream! And here we are thinking Cameron had problems! And to make matters even WORSER, they were quite good. Mamma mia!  You had to eat them with a fork and knife and spoon but they tasted good and were a nice consistency. They reminded us of Kiki McColl’s scones at Liosbeag Café on the Isle of Lismore eight years ago. Obviously Spean Bridge Mill wasn’t a topscone but definitely an experience.

After that we were homeward bound again after a memorable few days away. Although we covered a fair bit of Skye there was lots we didn’t get to. We need to go back … and the sooner the better!

PH34 4EP         tel: 01397 712260          Speak Bridge Mill FB

///nickname.splint.triathlon

ps: Suella has just published a three page letter announcing that her former boss, Rishi Sunak, is a complete waste of oxygen. He’s behind you Suella … oh no he isn’t, oh yes he is!

Ordinary, Scones

Antlers Tea Room

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You know how we’ve been going on bit about family connections to the Isle of Skye. We’re very aware that if you’re not a MacDonald or a McKinnon then it could be of limited interest. So, if you’re bored already you should stop reading because there’s more MacDonald stuff coming up in this post. My middle name being MacDonald has got nothing to do with it … honest!

Titles

Today we are at the Antlers Tea Room which is part of the Portree Hotel. The hotel was built in 1875 and stands on the corner of Somerled Square.

Painting of the Portree Hotel
A painting of the hotel in the bar

The Square is so named to commemorate the great Celtic warrior Somerled who died in 1164. His son, Donald,  became the first Lord of the Isles and the MacDonalds (sons of Donald) are all descended from him. The current Lord of the Isles is Prince William, Prince of Wales, who also bears the other Scottish titles of Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick and Baron of Renfrew … really? We think the MacDonalds,  whose chief now lives at Kinloch Lodge, need to get that “Lord of the Isles” title back! It seems only right.Internal view of Antlers Tea Room

Anyway, we ordered a fruit scone to share at Antlers because they were quite big and we thought that’s all we could manage. A scone at the Antlers Tea RoomWe have to be ever mindful that there’s a fabulous dinner being prepared for us back at Kinloch Lodge. It would be rude not to be able to do it justice.   A good decision because our scone wasn’t that great. It had plenty of fruit but it was just too soft and a little bit stodgy. Shame because with its big wood burning stove it was a nice cosy place.

View across Portree harbour
Looking over Portree harbour
Good guys

There’s a small plaque on the wall outside that commemorates a speech given from the hotel balcony by radical republican Michael Davitt in 1887. He had already been imprisoned a couple of times for speechifying. Scotland’s land ownership has long been something of a monopoly. Most private land is held by a mere handful of people. During the Highland Clearances people were driven off the land – you can see ruined and abandoned villages all over Skye. Davitt campaigned long and hard for crofters to have the right to stay on their land. Not a MacDonald but still a ‘good guy’. He must have been because he spend much of his life being imprisoned by the British establishment.Internal view of Antlers Tea Room

But enough of Davitts, let’s get back to MacDonalds. When we left Antlers replete with half a scone each we headed north on the road that leads to the Old Man of Storr. Normally we would cut off at Staffin and take a rather tortuous road across to Uig where we were usually trying to catch a ferry to the Outer Hebrides. The road, however, carries on through Staffin and round the Trotternish peninsula. Eventually it ends up at Uig as well. It’s longer hence we have never taken it before. We were now venturing into unknown territory. It’s very scenic and, if you’re not in a hurry, well worth the extra miles.Sign for the Antlers Tea Room

Unsafe

At the most northerly point we came to ruins of Duntulm Castle, an ancient MacDonald stronghold.As recently as the 1990s a large part of it fell into the sea and what’s left is considered too unsafe to visit. However, that may also be because of several ghosts that we’re told  still reside there.

Just a mile or so further south we came to Kilmuir churchyard. There’s no church these days but the graveyard where Flora MacDonald is buried is still there. She and  Bonnie Prince Charlie landed here having sailed from Benbecula where he had been hiding from the redcoats. He was dressed as Betty, one of Flora’s female servants. Something, we suspect the Bonnie Prince enjoyed more than he should. The crossing was romanticised in the song The Skye Boat Song.

Monument to Flora MacDonald
The monument looks out over the Minch to South Uist in the Outer Hebrides where she was born

The headstone inscription reads: ‘Flora MacDonald. Preserver of Prince Charles Edward Stuart. Her name will be mentioned in history and if courage and fidelity be virtues, mentioned with honour.’

She was imprisoned in the Tower of London for her trouble and is generally seen as a Jacobite heroine.  Later, however, she said that if she had found the Prince’s arch enemy, the Duke of Cumberland in similar circumstances she would have done the same for him. She was just another ‘good guy.’

Fashion

Lee Alexander McQueen headstone at KilmuirAmazingly we also found that Alexander McQueen, the talented but troubled fashion designer and couturier is also buried here. Although from London he loved the Isle of Skye … the land of his father. Readers have probably always wondered why Pat and I are always so stylish and debonaire.  One of our twin daughters was Digital Director for Alexander McQueen while her sister was doing the same for Jimmy Choo. We know you’ve always wondered!

Sadly this is our last day on Skye. On our way back for dinner at Kinloch Lodge we stopped off at Sligachan hotel. This was an old haunt  when it was mainly frequented by hairy unwashed climbers. It’s definitely gone upmarket since then.

Black Cuillin from Sligahan
Evening view of the Black Cuillin from Sligachan

Seeing this view of the Black Cuillin brought back memories of camping high up amongst these peaks and using them as a kind of playground. At that time ‘wisdom’ wasn’t a word that could be remotely associated with me or my friends. However, they say it comes with age. I wish I could say that today when my desire to be back up on the Cuillin ridge was tempered by age-acquired wisdom. It wasn’t, t was all down to age-acquired decrepitude.

The Cuillin Ridge
Black Cuillin ridge by www.summitpost.org

There was nothing else for it … back to Kinloch for more pampering!

9EH              tel: 01478 612511           Antlers Tea Room

///exploring.risking.starch

ps: In the interests of balance we should point out that some people see the MacDonalds and the McKinnons as nothing more than lying thieving good-for-nothings. However, they are usually McLeods or Campbells … and what do they know? Pots and kettles come to mind!

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Green Welly Stop

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We’re off on a bit of a road trip! The idea is to make it to the Isle of Skye.  Haven’t been there in a long long time so we’re excited at the prospect of visiting old haunts. However, unable to leave until mid afternoon the distance was going to be too much to reach our destination before dark. We are almost nostalgic for the days of just a few months ago when you could still drive around in daylight at 11pm. Now it’s dark about 4.30pm … boo!

Logo of the Green Welly StopThe solution was to stop off about half way at Ballachulish Hotel. And half way to there is the Green Welly Stop where we took a break from driving after an hour or so. We are very aware that our Aussie readers are scratching their heads in. disbelief wondering why on earth we need a break so soon.  Okay, Scottish roads are small and winding, there’s a lot of traffic and, most persuasively, our aging bladders leave us no option.

Locusts

When we used to hitchhike to Glencoe every weekend many of our lifts would turn off here in Tyndrum to go to Oban.  We had to go straight on so we would get dropped off here at what  was just a wee shop with a petrol pump. There was nothing much else in the village. Now, the wee shop has been transmogrified into the Green Welly Stop, a huge supermarket type place selling everything a tourist might conceivably want. It has a huge car park to cater for all the cars, coaches  and motor bikes that also stop here. The West Highland Way passes close by, so lots of walkers frequent the place as well. It is extremely busy in the summer months and, of course, it has a cafe/restaurant to cater for people who descend like a plague of locusts and move on just as quickly.Internal view of the Green Welly Stop

For those not in the know, green wellies (rubber wellington boots) are associated with wealthy upper class people who  like to visit the countryside. They wouldn’t be seen dead in anything else. The “green welly brigade” is a term that kind of  pokes fun at them. The Green Well Stop, however, is anything but posh. It simply caters for loads of people who are just passing through. And the shop sells wellies in pretty much any colour you want!

A scone at the Green Welly StopWe last reviewed this place back in 2015 and it hasn’t changed very much. A fruit scone and some coffee was the order of the day. A bit on the big side for our liking, the jam was extra and there was no cream. That said it was perfectly acceptable and exactly what you would expect from this sort of place. 

Golden sunsets

Tyndrum has a gold mine but we couldn’t find anything in the shop made out of local gold. We left and headed on towards Glencoe.  We did find local gold, however in the sunset as we started out across the expanse of Rannoch Moor … fab!

Looking from the Black Mount with Loch Tulla to the left

It was fabulous to drive through mountainous Glencoe in the evening light. We just caught the last of it as we arrived for our stop-over at Ballachulish and a catchup with an old friend.Sunset from Ballachulish

Terrorists?

A trip like this  makes you realise how fortunate we are to live in a country like Scotland. Wars and disasters elswhere in the world make us feel even luckier. Israel will eventually learn that eradicating Hamas simply won’t work. Traditionally, Britain has always labeled everyone who disagrees with them, ‘terrorists’. That is until the ‘terrorists’ are eventually proven to be right. Then they are invited for tea with the Queen.  Britain tried to eradicate the IRA and although there is peace at the moment, the IRA is still there and always will be until the fundamental problem created by Britain is resolved. It’s the same in the Middle East

FK20 8RY          tel: 01838 400271                Green Welly

///conclude.mended.patrolled

ps: our wonderful Utah correspondents have sent us news. It’s about as far away from Utah and Tyndrum as you can get. Recently, they were adventuring in East Grinstead and came across  Bench RH19 and this rather delicious looking scone. They are hoping to return next year for more scone adventures … yeah!.A scone at BenchRH19 in East Grinstead

RH19 3AS        tel: 01342 322 333          Benchrh19

///flags.many.starts

 

 

Ordinary, Scones

The Aurrie

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Storm Babet has abated leaving much devastation in its wake. We have come through unscathed and are out and about again. Having said that we got here to the Aurrie in a very round about way. Here’s how!

Miracles do happen

You all know by now that when the days start getting shorter we sometimes go to the cinema after breakfast. Today we had to drop our car off for repair, so the garage  drove us to the Hippodrome, Scotland’s oldest cinema, to watch The Miracle Club.  Set initially in Ireland it’s a heartwarming story about the women of Ballygar going to Lourdes in search of miracle cures. A tad predictable but suffice to say that they find Lourdes a bit of a con. Unsurprisingly no miracles of the God given kind but some minor ones of the human variety. It’s a good watch.

You get a cup of tea and a biscuit at the Hippodrome. It’s called a “cuppa screening”. All too much for a lady seated behind us who snored loudly for a considerable part of the film. Thankfully more a comment on her state of exhaustion rather than the quality of the film. There were a few giggles but no-one woke her. It’s all part of going to the cinema with a load of other retired folk. The garage collected us again and with our car restored and it being a nice day we set off into Fife.A sign at the Aurrie

Eventually we ended up in Lower Largo. it’s a pretty little fishing village where Pat used to go on holiday as a teenager.  She would come with her best friend by bus and, at the time, although just about fifty miles, it seemed like the other side of the world from Glasgow. That was a fair while ago so she didn’t see much that seemed familiar today.  However, what you do notice driving down to the beach is a number of strange sculptures and elaborately carved gates. They’re by local artist Alan Faulds who carves them from solid Scottish oak and decorates them with up to twenty coats of paint and varnish. Presumably to protect them from the salty air.

A couple of gates close to  the Aurrie
Service over and above

The Aurrie is housed in what used to be a Baptist church down near the beach. These days it’s a café come gallery and event centre for the local community.  It even serves as the cinema. A sign at the AurrieThere seemed to be very few customers when we arrived but it was quite busy.  Lots of people hanging a new exhibition and setting out craft stalls. It had a great community feel to it, summed up nicely by one of the counter staff. She was sitting at a table with a baby sound asleep on her chest. At least it wasn’t snoring! The baby wasn’t hers, she was just looking after it for one of the women mounting the exhibition. Now that’s service!Internal view of the Aurrie in Lower Largo

Apparently, the Aurrie gets its name from an old Scots word for “area”. It’s applied to the slipway road leading down to the beach.  The locals say that there are as many ways to spell it as there are grains of sand on the beach. We counted the grains and can confidently report that that is a slight exaggeration.Internal view of the Aurrie in Lower Largo

Plain as well as spiced apple scones were on offer. It had to be spiced apple! As we sat there with our scone watching everything going on (always interesting watching people deliberating how to hang pictures) we completely forgot to take a photograph of our little spiced apple wonder. Apologies! Suffice to say that it wasn’t topscone material but still very enjoyable. Logo of the Aurrie cafeNo lessons learned

Having watched The Miracle Club and witnessed community spirit thriving in Lower Largo the total disaster happening in Israel and Gaza seems all the more confusing and sad.

K6 in Lower Largo
Another Alan Faulds piece on top of a K6 telephone box outside the Aurrie

What is noticeable, however, is the one-sided nature of the media coverage. With world leaders lining up, one after the other, in support of Israel it seems as if there is only one side to the story. The whole thing has been sparked by an atrocity launched on a music festival in Israel from Gaza. No-one seems to be asking why they would even think of doing that. As with most of the world’s trouble spots the origins lie with Britain. Past masters at creating countries based on religion. After partitioning Ireland on religious grounds in 1921 you might think that they would have learned from that experience before doing it again in India in 1946 and Palestine 1948? Apparently not!

KY8 6BT                                                  The Aurrie

///pounding.tummy.proved