Sick Kids and Sizzling Sausages
Tuesday 8th April 2008Both kids are still not well this morning, but we dragged them up the William Wallace monument anyway! All 246 steps. the view from the top was not quite as sensational as the Ochil Hills, but grand anyway.
View from Willam Wallace monument, near Stirling.It shows how fought over this land has been, that no fewer than 7 battlefields can be seen from the tower.If the size of his sword is anything to go by, Sir William wallace is a LOT taller than Mel Gibson in the film Braveheart (ironically filmed in Ireland at Glendalough where we were recently). Ella said she was glad we dragged her up there.
William Wallace monument.After this we had to shop for some more food, then into the city centre of Stirling for drugs for the kids. I dropped Karina off on the corner and proceeded to ‘drive around the block’. Several dead ends with jasper helping me reverse the van and, just getting plain lost, I parked the van, left the kids insode and walked the 500m back to where Karina was now waiting.Campervans, especially 6 metre long ones, aren’t meant for the city centres of Medieval towns like Stirling.We then headed off (kids asleep again by now) through Queen Elizabeth National Park heading towards Fort William. The scenery (that word again) was stunning snow capped mountains, roads winding along deep valleys alongside lochs (lakes). We loved it!To date, every village was left like a tourist attraction and something of a story book in it’s own right.The kids woke and wanted to stop so we pulled in at a woollen mill (read tourist trap shop) and saw ‘Hamish’ the Highland Bull.
Feeding ‘Hamish’ some leftover apple bits.By now the kids were tired so we headed Crainlarich (on the way to Fort William) and stopped for the night at Auchtertyre Farm.As I write this I’m sitting in the front of the van, with a glass of Penfolds red (hope to get some Scotch at a distillery tomorrow) looking out at snow capped mountains. Heaven.Karina and I went for a walk to the local waterfall (500m away) leaving the kids resting in the van and marvelling at the clarity of the waterfall.Day two and apart from the kids still being under the weather, Scotland is exceeding our expectations.