Rutland to Glencoe

After breakfast at the rutland inn, we packed up the car, said our goodbyes to family, took some last minute pictures and started the drive to Ballachulich.

Here’s a map of the drive for the day, marked with the major stops.

Around 1 pm, we stopped at the Mainsgill farm shop and foodhall for some lunch. The boys really enjoyed the zipline and play area outside as well as gazing at the collection of emus, sheep, camels and cows that surrounded the farm shop. The light outside was amazing, and so was the weather, so we wandered around and enjoyed as much of the beautiful weather as we could, since heavy rain was predicted for the duration of our stay in Scotland.

After a second round of desert, we resumed our drive. Suba drove across most of England, giving us beautiful views of the english country side, loads of sheep, some brief hills, and very interesting hand-stacked stone walls that divide property in the UK.

We ventured across the border to Scotland and stopped briefly in Glasgow to stock up on food, and other supplies for our stay in Scotland.

The drive from Glasgow to Ballachulish took us through narrow winding roads through Loch Lomond National Park. The views of the park were truly lovely, and made more dramatic by the rain, the spotting of impromptu waterfalls everywhere, and the narrow run-ins with large vehicles on the narrow roads.

Leaving Loch Lomond, and after crossing the bridge of Orchy, we spotted our first dramatic views of the Scottish highlands. Our breaths were taken away near Altnafeadh, where we stopped by the road-side and the bravest among us stepped out to enjoy the dramatic views, unfazed by the rain. Some beautiful photographs resulted from that stop.

The rain and the tiredness from the long drive deterred further stops, but the spectacular views of the mountains and abundant waterfalls were still thoroughly enjoyed before reaching our destination, the lovely river mill house in the village of Ballachulish.

Dinner was some lovely stir fried vegetables, noodles, and fried mushrooms, which we picked up in Glasgow