After we explored Stirling Castle, it was back in the tour bus for the ride into the Scottish Highlands. Again, our tour guide did a great job telling stories the entire trip.
Our first stop was Doune Castle, which gained fame as the shooting location for several scenes in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I actually would have liked to have explored the place, but it was really just a potty break.
We stopped at a number of lochs whose names escape me, unfortunately. We had lunch at a small town at the foot of Ben Lomond, with the famous loch on the other side.
Then, we drove around Ben Lomond, passing countless more lochs on the way. We spent an hour or so at a quiet spot on Loch Lomond. It was peaceful and relaxing after a day cooped up in a bus.
I think my favorite stop may have been Loch Katrine. Our tour guide pulled out his bagpipes, sat down by the loch, and played. It was amazing.
Our last stop was Lake Menteith, supposedly the only lake in Scotland. According to our tour guide, it was the clan home of Sir John Menteith of Ruskie, who betrayed William Wallace (it was not Robert the Bruce, no matter what Braveheart said).
After the betrayal, they changed it from the Celtic word “Loch”, to the English word “Lake”, because he didn’t deserve to be known as a Scot any longer.
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Tech Notes: All images shot on my Nikon D200 with either a Sigma 24-70 or a Sigma 15-30 lens. Images were processed in Photoshop Elements.