Slainte mhor!

The loveliness of not having to get up too early! And a day of Moseying. We stayed at a beautiful B&B called Trafford House. It was about a mile or more from the end of the GGW and we were (I was, at least) really flagging by the time we arrived. And desperately in need of the Ladies! It was once the Bishop's house, and is now a little treasure of a stone house with rose gardens, a glass conservatory entrance that has a tree growing through it, and an amazing collection of artwork inside. It was created by the current owners Lorraine and Kosha... they loved doing this and then he was terribly stricken by pancreatic cancer and died just five weeks ago. It is a five star place... Highly recommended if you are ever in Inverness. If we had known how great it was going to be we might not have planned to go on to the Kings Club Spa. Oh well.

That first night in Inverness we had a great dinner at the mustard Seed. Incredible. Plus lots of Lagavulin etc. Deep sleep.

On SaturdaY morning drew went to the Culloden battlefield, Tred went to have a massage, and Lizzie and I had the worst silliest pedicures ever.
1. It was too dark for them to see what they were doing.
2. We we sitting up on tables like in a doctor's office with no back support.
3. My person was more concerned with spots on her pants and spent lots of tIme dabbing at them with a washcloth.
4. Vicious sawing with the Emory board.
5. No lotion or treatment for worn out feet.
6. They had one set of heat booties for our four feet.
... Well that was all ridiculous but we laughed about it later. They just have no idea! We were thinking that we should write to the place and tell them to send those young ladies for a proper pedi, just so they know!

We all jumped in the car and headed north to Tain, for a tour and tasting at the Glenmorangie Distillery. Lots of fun. I got an appreciation for the craft and why it costs so much... Of course there are taxes on top of the product.

We followed Dr. Entropy's advice and asked where we should go next: the beautiful little village of Dornoch. Had tea in the castle garden,visited the cathedral c. 13th century for the original church on the site, and then took a scenic coastal route back to Inverness.

Workout! Seriously, we had all missed our workout machines and weight-lifting time. Drew had faithfully done his push-ups etc every night... I had not. Felt great to do some upper body resistance work after eight days of travel and walking. (Note here about Osprey backpacks: the BEST!!! No trouble carrying our gear for a week.)

then, back to the Castle area for dinner at the Tavern. A happy rowdy crOwd, a waitress from Belgium, and then a stroll down to the river. Still light at 10:30 pm! We heard the pipes calling, for real, and popped into MacNab's for a last wee dram and the pleasure of listening to a couple of excellent musicians with guitar, mandolin, banjo, and bagpipes. One of the guys could play anything, proven by his sea shanties, pipes, and even Foggy Mountain BreakdOwn.

Today Lizzie and Tred are en route to London and drew and I are in a train for Edinburgh. More later... After a nice meet up with Justin, tour of the old city, and some Indian food... Mmmmmmm!

Please forgive the typos!

Where the great glen way ends...or begins

We did it! We finished the Great Glen Way, in style and with spirit. I will be glad to share more details and photos from home. For now, it's just such a great feeling. We also had the pleasure of finishing with our trail-pals Ben and Lena.

Inverness looks like fun. We will be here for two nights. Tomorrow Drew is going to go see the Culloden battlefield while Lizzie and I have a pedicure. Woo woo!

Ok one more thing... The woods today were gorgeous. Mounds of heather beneath ancient larch trees, with an old stone wall that was at least two miles long. My favorite stretch of the whole trail.

A few tired legs here. Eight, to be exact. We are going out to dinner now. Cheers!
Xoxoxoxo

Urquhart Castle

Today we walked from Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit. Lizzie and Tred got an early start because they needed to be in 'Drum' by 4, and Drew and I hit the road around ten minutes before ten. We made good time, considering steep long climbs and uncomfortably long descents! Just sayin'! Really loved those level canal-side pathways of days 1-3. Yesterday was somewhat hilly and today was massive. Tomorrow will be longer but not as many climbs. 14 miles today then 19 miles tomorrow, the last three of which will be in the city of Inverness.

After we were all here, our hostess Caroline gave us a ride out to the Urquhart Castle. There were only 15 minutes to see it before they locked it up, but we scrambled through... And then this rainbow happened. Isn't it amazing!

no whisky tonight, but I have taken some notes along the way. and did I mention that we had our first sticky toffee pudding last night? Sooo sticky, so naughty and good. We rationalize that walking so far makes it ok but... It's cold turkey on the sticky toffee pudding, already, after one try.

Up and out early tomorrow. And we hope to see some of our trail friends along the way, like Ben and Lena or the three young men from Glasgow... We all are doing the GGW sort of together. There are very few others on the trail. Drew and I net one man going the other way this afternoon... He said he had left Inverness this morning and hoped to reach Fort Williamk tomorrow night. that is doing in TWO days what we are doing in six. Wow!

We are well and miss you all and send special love to Danielle ankd the doggies at
Cumberland St.
Xoxoxo Sarah

Tea along the Caledonian canal

On Tuesday we walked from Laggan to Fort Augustus. RAIN!!! It was beautiful along the canal but by the time we got to the hotel, the Lovat Arms, we were wet. Naps, and whisky, put all things to right.

I love some of the sayings here. If someone is mad, they are "spitting feathers." haha.

We went out for dinner and spent the evening with a chatty man from Ireland at the fireplace.

Moss and ferns

Not going to push my luck here! We are in Glenmoriston, it did NOT rain today, the dinner was fantastic, our feet are well, and I have three bars of 3G service in this little valley. Tomorrow we will hit the road a little earlier because it's a fourteen mile day. I am sitting outside the hotel with a cloud of midgies though, so will share more another day!

Lots of love to you all, and Justin I will call from Inverness.
Xox Sarah

Wet Tuesday

Today, our favorable mini-run with the weather came to a screeching halt, as it has been cold, windy, and rainy since around 11 am. We had a nice breakfast, including, for me, an unordered but surprisingly tasty bowl of porridge, and started walking at around 9:30. The first 5 miles or so were on an abandoned rail line which is now a beautiful forest path. We stopped for tea and then walked along the canal to Fort William. The last three miles were in a cold, steady rain and we were very glad to reach our hotel by 2. We have basically been taking it easy since then, reading, enjoying a few quaffs, and conversing with various fellow travelers. It was still light at 10:45.

Only 8 miles tomorrow, so we can afford to wait out the bad weather a bit.

So far, our skeletomuscular systems are pretty sound for a vintage quartet such as us. A blessing indeed.

Drew

This was Saturday afternoon

I thought this was already up. D'oh! This is from the whisky shop in Fort William. Happy!