Rick and Janell's News: Family History Trip Scotland Part II

The second part of our trip saw us traveling up to the north of Scotland.

After leaving Culross we drove to Stirling Castle which wasn't too far.

We there for about an hour just looking around. The girls went into the gift shop and looked around while we all used the bathroom facilities. There was a charge to actually get into the castle courtyard, and we wanted to get up to Balmoral so we didn't stay long.

Here is a picture of our group just outside of Stirling Castle.

Some fun pictures around Stirling.

This was a nice picturesque spot just down the road from the castle.

Larry and Darla looking happy!

It was about a three hour drive to get up to Balmoral Castle, (one of the royal family's residences), which I was hoping to get to before it closed.

The drive up to the North was incredibly beautiful! It was full of mountains and hills and farmland and quaint towns and cute cottages. We sure enjoyed the drive!

We arrived at Balmoral in time for a quick tour of the grounds. I was hoping to have dinner there before walking around, but the restaurant closed at 4:00, and we just barely missed it.

We were able go inside the ballroom to see the exhibits there, and then we walked around the castle and its gardens. It was nice.

We stopped for dinner that night at a small town close to the castle.

I was certainly unimpressed. The table next to us had three HUGE dogs and it smelled like, well...dog in the room. Then it took FOR-EV-ER to get our food. I think we were all pretty much fit to be tied by the end of the meal.

This is the restaurant.

Not recommendable.

That evening we arrived at Thainestone House, our accommodation for the next two days.

Thainestone is an old manor home and was really fun to stay in. Rick and I had a nice suite in the old part of the house while the others had their rooms in the newer part. Our room had a wonderful bedroom area and a nice big bathroom with an old fashioned footed tub. It was a great stay for us!

Here is a view of the front.

This is just inside the front doors. Off to the right was the check-in desk which led into the newer part of the manor.

These were the stairs leading up to the others' rooms. I thought this siting area was just so pretty.

The next morning before breakfast, which was fabulous, Rick and I took a walk down a path near the house. It was full of wildflowers, flowering trees and huge sequoia trees. A breeze came up and rustled the trees causing the blooms to fall off and float to the ground. It was almost like the snow falling.

That morning we knew we needed to do laundry so we headed over to a nearby supermarket that had an outside washer and dryer. Between Trent and Kath and us we had three loads that took a couple of hours.

During that time we perused around this cool supermarket and bought a few things. Mostly goodies...haha! At one point we sat in some available chairs for a rest. Why do supermarkets generally not have chairs to sit in? If that's not the biggest oversight....

We were grateful to be able to sit for a few minutes.

After our laundry got finished and put away we drove off towards Aberdeen.

We were told by Sarah, the proprietor of the Dundonald House, that we should go see Seal Beach and Dunottar Castle. First we stopped at Seal Beach. It was super windy and cold, but we bundled up and walked to the shore's edge. We got to see some seals in the distance sunning themselves on a distant beach. We also saw some seals in the water not too far from us. Those were fun to see.

We didn't stay all too long on the beach because of the cold, but we stayed long enough to enjoy the sights.

True Love......💝

After Seal Beach we didn't have a lot of time until our scheduled dinner so we hurried over to Dunottar Castle. Man, we are so glad that we did not miss this spectacular castle. Even though it was in ruins it was just so picturesque sitting on this outcropping of rock with the ocean in the background.

Looking back on our trip this is one of the things that I enjoyed the most.

While we didn't have a lot of time here it was just such a beautiful thing to see.

Just before we left a bagpiper came and started playing. It just made our experience all the better!

Pictures could never do this place justice...

That night we joined the rest of our group at Amore Ristorante in Aberdeen. I don't remember much about this dinner but I'm sure it was good...

The next morning after breakfast we packed up and loaded the car.

Just a few miles from Thainestone House was Fraser Castle.

It looked fun so we got over there fairly early to take a tour.

Trent and Kathy and Darla and Rick and I were able to walk through the castle.

It was really interesting.

It sure is a cool looking place!

The view at the top of the tower was worth all those steps! One hundred and fifty of them! It was a beautiful vista!

Looking down into the courtyard...

Me coming out into the courtyard

There was a little gift shop and a tea shop in the courtyard.

Before leaving we took a short stroll through the gardens.

This was an amazing tree. I wish I knew what kind it is!

On our way towards Culloden Battlefield we stopped at Nairn Beach. It was SOOO cold.

We stopped to use the bathroom then stopped to get a picture and went right back to the car to get warm.

Isn't this picture funny with my hair giving Rick a mustache?

Next we visited Culloden Battlefield, the last major battle between the Brits and the Scots.

We got there with not much time to see things so I didn't get any pictures.

Our next stop was just northwest of Inverness. Kincraig Castle was our next stay for the night. We wanted to have a night in a castle and while this says it is a castle, it doesn't look too much like one...more of a nice manor house, like Thainestone. I believe we all had nice accommodations this night. Rick and I had a very nice room.

That evening we met outside the hotel restaurant in the sitting room. Here we are waiting for Brad and Ruth.

We were able to have a great dinner at the hotel restaurant. The food was delicious, and the service outstanding! It made for a fun, memorable night!

The next morning we had another nice breakfast (all our breakfasts on the trip were really good and filling). We had lots of delicious pastries on this trip.

After breakfast we went to Sacrament Meeting in the little branch in Invergordon. It was fast and testimony meeting. There were some sweet testimonies given.