Sunday, 18 August 2019
Biked 34 miles to Fort AugustusAccommodations: Monks Retreat B&B, booked through Airbnb, hosts Anna and Ged. Double room with private bath, very comfortable. Anna is an elderly care physician's assistant and was studying for recertification while we were there. She has a wonderful sense of humor; she and Ken hit it off right away. She and Ged rent the two bedrooms on the second floor. They served a full Scottish breakfast in their open-plan kitchen, and their washer and dryer were available to guests. They were very warm and welcoming.
Dinner: The Boathouse. Great food, very busy place. We arrived just at 6 pm and they set up an extra table and chairs to squeeze us in.
Gray, cloudy, and rainy all day, but beautiful scenery. The sun broke through the clouds when we cam around the bend and got our first look at Loch Ness--a magical moment. Fort Augustus is a very small town with just one main street lining a string of small locks. We enjoyed a stroll through the grounds of the old abbey and up and down the main street after dinner. The only shop open was a convenience store at the gas station--which was packed with tourists and had everything we wanted (tonic water, cookies, candy, fruit).
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| Our first view of Loch Ness. |
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| New friends from France. |
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| Our only sighting of Nessie. (Sculpture on the canal promenade in Fort Augustus.) |
Monday, 19 August 2019
Biked 33 miles to Fort WilliamAccommodations: Anagrae Guest House, booked through Airbnb, hosts Norma and Lance. Double room with private batch, shared dining/lounge and kitchen with washer and dryer, dry shed to store bikes. The guest house had a total of 5 double rooms and was self-catering, with a spotless large kitchen stocked with all the supplies needed for a full Scottish breakfast. It is less than a block from the town center but still quiet, and very comfortable. Night 1 of 2.
Dinner: Garrison West. Good food, a bit more than pub food. Warm and cozy atmosphere.
Most of the cycle path was a hilly, rough off-road track, more suitable for mountain bikes. The scenery was again incredible, but it was a challenging day of cycling in the rain. We were glad to arrive in Fort William for 2-night stay.
A few miles before our destination we had another magical moment. We are riding along in the rain, floating downhill, when we think we hear bagpipe music--in the middle of nowhere, right? We flatten out at a little cove in the loch, with a picnic area, and there is a guy in a kilt playing the bagpipes, while his wife and kids are running through the trees playing some kind of game. Really. And no, we did not stop to take a photo. It was just one of those moments that has to stay in our imagination. It is impossible to capture some things in the camera.
Fort William is quite a bit larger than Fort Augustus, with lots of restaurants and shops--but the main street is only about 4-5 blocks long, so it is still quite small. We arrived too late for exploring, but got a load of laundry done before dinner.
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| Fort William is home to the steam-powered train featured in Harry Potter. We did pass it on the way into town, but did not stop to take a photo in the pouring rain. This image came from one of the visitor guides in our B&B. |
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| A view of the steam-powered train and arched trestle near Fort William, also snapped from the visitor guide. |
Tuesday, 20 August 2019
Rest dayAccommodations: Anagrae House, night 2 of 2.
Dinner: pasta and fruit cooked in the guest house kitchen.
A much-needed day of rest. We walked around town a bit in the afternoon. There were 5 or 6 good outdoor shops and an outstanding bicycle shop. We found waterproof gloves for Ken, and a lunch of hot steak pies and bakewell tarts to take back to our guest house. We also spent several hours planning the next week of our trip and making reservations for accommodations. It is good to have our chores done for a few days again!
