Inverness, Loch Ness and a Wee Scotch Tour

It was promising to be a gorgeous sunny weekend and we had 3 days off to explore a new area.  We chose to head North to Inverness.  It was amazing weather to stop and enjoy the views along the way.

Our first stop was at The Bridge of Oich.

The Bridge of Oich is a suspension bridge across the River Oich built in 1854 by James Dredge.  Dredge's design broke new ground in bridge architecture, incorporating a unique double cantilever chain support system anchored by huge granite pylons on either shore.  The main chains supporting the bridge were formed of wrought-iron links about a meter long.  At each junction of the links, the two outermost cast-iron bars were taken down as wires to support the deck, so reducing the number of separate bars in the link by one.  The bridge was in use until 1932 when a bypass road and bridge were built, now it is used solely as a pedestrian bridge. 

How would you like to have that campsite?

We continued North to Inverness.  Where we stayed at the Columba Hotel.

View from right outside our hotel. 
 Inverness Castle and The Ness Bridge.

The next day we headed to Loch Ness.

Loch Ness is the second largest Scottish loch by surface area at 21.8 sq mile, but due to its great depth, it is the largest by volume. Its deepest point is 755 feet, making it the second deepest loch in Scotland.  It contains more fresh water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined.  Of Course it is best known for the alleged sightings of the Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie".

We took a cruise on the loch to Urquhart Castle.

Urquhart Castle is a ruins that witnessed considerable conflict throughout its 500 years as a medieval fortress. The castle’s history includes Edward I, Robert the Bruce, King of Scots and the noble families – Durward, MacDonald and Grant.

Of course we had to try some local brew.

The closest thing we could find to Nessie.

We really enjoyed our few days spent in Inverness and on Loch Ness, sightseeing and shopping, but it was time to head back home.  We decided to make our road trip home a "wee distillery tour". 
Our first stop was the Tomatin Distillery,  just south of Inverness. 

We enjoyed a few tastings and decided to purchase the Tomatin 14 Year.  We took this bottle to Florida to share with our friends, gifting the remaining of the bottle to our friends Nate and Blythe. (Who were welcoming a new baby)  We enjoyed this bottle and look forward to purchasing another bottle in the future.

Or next stop was about an hour south at the Dalwhinnie Distillery, where we had a whiskey and chocolate tasting. 

Our next stop on the distillery tour was Blair Atholl, near Pitlochry.

We purchased a Blair Atholl 12 yr for our friend Carl, to thank him and his wife Dee Dee for their hospitality while visiting Florida.  

We stopped in Pitlochry for lunch and a stroll thru the town.

Getting back on the road, we stopped at Iain Burnett, The Highland Chocolatier.

A very fancy chocolate shop with oh so many choices!

After finally choosing our chocolates we continued down the road, where came to our last stop on the distillery tour, Dewar's Distillery

We purchased an Aberfeldy 12 yr for our Scotch drinking friends, Steve and Marie.

What a great way to end a great weekend, purchasing 3 bottles of Scotch and 3 packages of chocolate.

Some lovely scenic pictures taken along the way.  

Look for our next blog about our trip to Florida, a cruise on the Waverly Paddle Steamer and a visit with our friend Robin from Florida.  
We hope all of our friends are enjoying their bottles and think of us as they have a wee dram. 
Cheers!
John and CJ