On the seventh day though we explored the Scotland's countryside again =)
We got up early in the morning to drive to Glasgow and find a car boot sale there. Car boot sales in Scotland are the same as flea markets in England =D So lots of old, antique and interesting stuff for less money than normally =D My mom went crazy on the shopping but I can totally understand her XD The things were really nice and I enjoyed talking to the people about the history of some of the articles they sold. =)
After an hour or two on the market we stuffed everything into our car and took off to Alexandria. Yes, the city is really called Alexandria XD
After a short stop at McDonalds we drove further into nowhere to Balmaha (our "Bahamas" XD).
Balmaha is a super small village at Loch Lomond but it's THE place to go if you want to get on the island Inchcailloch. You can get a ferry ride from Balmaha boat yard to Inchcailloch for around 5 pounds per person, return inclusive. We got on the island with the nice Lady Jean =D
There is also the chance to rent a rowing boat but the current seems quite strong when there's wind (which is nearly always XD) so the ferry is nicer =D
Inchcailloch is a really interesting island as nobody lives on it and it has quite a lot of history for such a small island =)
We used 2 of the 3 possible tracking routes on the island and it's just perfect =D The trails are done well enough that you can hike comfortably but not so obvious as that they would destroy the view. Oh and there are animals everywhere =D
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| the boat yard you get dropped off at =D |
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| find the trail =D |
Walking around is really nice and everything is so quiet! There were relativly few tourist so you could really feel like an explorer find new things everywhere =D
I would absolutly recommend to take the hiking trail that gets you on top of the mountains. The few is just fantastic! (and there are benches there in case someone need a pause XD)
On the island everything is green =D Everywhere you look seems as if it could hide some magical secret or be an entrance to a magical new world =) Places like this are where fantasy stories are born =D
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| love the "wood monster" XD |
If you choose to go around the whole island halfway point is of course the other jetty of the island. There is a nice sandy beach, some toilets and an area for grilling =D
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| the beach |
And, as it's still Scotland with way to many golf courses, my mum found this at the beach:
On the way back to "our" jetty we came by the Inchcailloch burial ground. This place has a sign with lots of very interesting information about the island, its former inhabitants and the graves on the burial ground. Though it is quite creepy with the remains of the old church and some graves that nobody knows who's in them.
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| the burial ground is actually bigger than this but I didn't want to photograph random people |
From the burial ground it's only a short walk back to the starting point =D Another thing I liked about the island was that every sign is in English and in Gaelic ! Makes it all seem more magical =D
While waiting for our ferry back we meet Daisy Duck.
This lovely lady was dancing around and in front of us and kept expecting us to feed her. Sadly we didn'T have anything with us =( And I wouldn't let my dad feed her cigaretts!
But she kept us entertained during the whole time we were waiting for the ferry XD Everytime we thought she was finished she showed a new trick XD
In the end we were back in Balmaha and from there to our cottage.
I will never forget Inchcailloch and swore to come back there again. If only to have some place to really relax!
Love
Thym
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