We left Fortrose on Wednesday morning (April 16) to continue our way south. We took the scenic route to Loch Ness via Beauly Priory. The priory was built in the 13th century and partially destroyed during the Reformation. Beauly was a pretty little town half way between Fortrose and Loch Ness.

We had intended to visit Urquhart Castle on the side of Loch Ness but we hadn’t booked tickets and it was full. The whole Loch Ness area was swarming with tourists so, after a quick photo stop, we made our way to Culloden Battlefield. Nessie would have to wait until a quieter time.

Culloden Battlefield is where on April 16 1746 the Duke of Cumberland defeated the Jacobite army under Bonnie Prince Charlie. The battle lasted just one hour with the Jacobites losing over 1500 men. There was an informative and immersive exhibition before we found the stone on the battlefield site for Clan Fraser who had been on the front line. It was all quite moving.

After that we visited the ski resort of Aviemore before making our way across the Cairngorms National Park to Balmoral Castle where we parked in their car park for the night whilst it absolutely tipped it down with rain all evening.

The next morning we were ready for our visit to Balmoral Castle at 10.00. The staff very kindly allowed us to drive up to the castle and pick up a mobility scooter to tour the grounds.

The Royal Standard was flying so we are assuming that Charles and Camilla were at home. It started raining so we decamped to the restaurant for coffee and scones to warm up!

We were staying in Pitlochry overnight so we made our way over via Braemar and Glen Shee Ski Centre. Braemar was a lovely village but the Fife Arms hotel was amazing. It had been refurbished recently and was stunning.

We then crossed paths with friends, Ben and Liz, in their new VW campervan, Lola, at The Bridge Of Cally Hotel. They were on their way to Blairgowrie and diverted to Bridge of Cally to see us.

We finally arrived in Pitlochry around 15.00 to meet up with an ex work colleague of Liz’s, Helen. They hadn’t seen each other for over 10 years so there was plenty of catching up over a great curry at the local Indian restaurant.

Miles since last blog: 201

Miles this trip: 1,395