Craigelachie! Stand Fast!

This is the battle cry of Clan Grant and today we set off on a circumnavigation of Loch Ness to explore their lands.

Castle Urquhart, half way down Loch Ness, was given to the Grants in the 1500s. It started as a Pictish fort village back in 500 something. The Grants got raided a lot by the Lord of the Isles - and took out law suits against them, leading Gus to conclude that they may have been thinkers than fighters....

Grant on his ramparts

The big tower is called the Grant tower...

The water gate where things came up from the loch....

Grant in his tower

Drawbridge and a good defensive ditch

A series of windows with views: I like imagining I'm living inside and looking out

Note the thistley tops!

Spiral stairs in the Grant tower

Then we went to Grantown on Spey for lunch. Grantown was built by the laird of Grant when he wanted to swap to sheep - uniquely amongst the clans he built a village for his crofters, with schools and other amenities and moved them all in there. Here is the burning hill symbol on a pub - more on this presently!

Then we went to Boat of Garten to see the Strathspey Railway - they run steam between Aviemore and Broomhill three times a day, except for yesterday when they had bust their engine and ran a diesel...

Nice station though

And an overbridge like one from a model set

Then we drove down to Aviemore, through Strathspey, the lands of the Grants. At Aviemore is Craigellachie, the hill of the Grants where they lit their burning beacons when they needed to gather the clan - hence the burning hill badge.

Fortunately Craigellachie is a nature reserve and you can climb the hill.

It starts with a very cool silver birch forest...

View out over the lands!

Lands, with a bit of the hill!

Grant on his hill

From the top you can look back down towards Fort William and the west

Cairn at the top

Lochan and view back up to the hill (there's more hill behind)

Craigellachie!!!!!!