Review: Scotland - 2015

 I honestly forgot to finish the Scotland blog! We got down to Loch Lomond, in the rain yet again, and by that time I was feeling pretty awful. Stopped at a campsite overnight near Loch Lomond that was dingy, expensive, boggy, and had precious little phone signal and spent most of the night curled up on my perpetually damp duvet filling up an entire doggy poop bag with used snotty tissues! I managed to pick up a rotten cold and chest infection which I'm blaming solely on the shite weather we suffered through!!

In a review of Scotland I would say some parts were nice, and some parts were bloody horrible. the weather REALLY didn't help and after 12 days of rain I was fed up and we ended up driving all the way from Loch Lomond back to home (only a few hundred miles and about 8 hours driving...) because i couldn't face another night on a now damp airbed




One positive thing happened in Loch Lomond though (other than the amazing Dug Cafe which is WELL worth a visit by the way!) was that we actually heard a piper! Real piper, not just over some speakers outside a tourist attraction! I was really happy about that and so pleased! Still didn't manage to get any haggis to take back for friends though, sorry about that folks!!

I would do Scotland again, it has some really cool sights that we didn't get a chance to visit, and some lovely places in the West apparently (I would actually like to spend a bit more time in Loch Lomond and Fort William). I wouldn't bother with the Isle of Skye again, The Old Man and The Old Lady really like Skye but I found it pretty bleak and depressing. Again I'm sure the weather didn't help, but honestly it was a let down. Even more so was the "award winning fish and chip shop" in Portree, we were really excited because Hugh Fluffy-Whittingstall had visited there etc, but they used frozen scampi and the chips were a bit crap... what a let down!!

Still some of Skye was rather beautiful and you really couldn't beat the general scenery of the highlands, We managed to Listen to the Loch Lomond song in Loch Lomond and the Hills of Argyll while driving through the Hills of Argyll and not to forget the Peatbog Faeries as we crossed into Skye, so musically we definitely tried to keep it authentic! I can now see why people write songs about the scenery and why forlorn lonely bagpipe tunes are quite popular. I can totally also see why the Peatbog Faeries made such cracking music, I don't think there's much more to do on Skye!!

In conclusion I would say definitely visit Scotland. Don't bother with the "north Coast 500" as you will really get bored of mountain scenery within a day or two and get REALLY bored of no phone signal and crap signage very very fast. There doesn't seem to be anything that says "You're on the North Coast 500" which is a huge shame!

According to those in the know, the west of Scotland is beautiful and really worth a visit, but try not to go during rainy season (which, in Scotland, seems to be most season?!) Maybe May/June is a better time to go I think!!

 It was tiring, and cold, and wet, and miserable... but it was a fun two weeks and I'm still in love with my tent (despite the fact it's now leaking) and I would do it again... but maybe hostels next time, less effort! I would 100% take the dogs too because they loved it, and I;'d try and do more resting and walking and exploring. there were loads of abandoned places just screaming out to be explored, but I wont explore with the dogs (don't now what on the floor etc) so that was out, next time though!

 Onwards and upwards, next stop: Spain!