Sailing the Caledonian Canal and excursion to Glenfinnan
The calm waters of the Caledonian Canal beckon this morning and we sail out of Fort Augustus through Kytra and Cullochy lock to Loch Oich, the highest point of the canal at 106 ft. Just before Loch Oich at the swing bridge we are greeted by Skipper, a Golden Retriever. This dog knows the Lord of the Glens, as the occasional sausage makes its way off the ship into his reach. He’s a lovely big boy expectantly barking at the ship – and he’s not disappointed.
On Loch Oich we pass the ruin of Invergarry Castle and the Well of the Seven Heads – commemorating a nasty incident in history where clan members first murdered each other and then washed the severed heads in a well nearby.
After the beautifully tree lined stretch of Laggan Avenue, Iris Barry gives a talk on the Jacobites, in whose footsteps we travelled the previous day and will be travelling to Glenfinnan in the afternoon.
During lunch we reach Banavie, where the ship berths until the following day. After lunch we head to gorgeous Glenfinnan, where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard, rallying the clans to join him in his campaign to gain the throne of Britain. Here grand views of the valley and Loch Shiel entice us for a walk to the monument commemorating one of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s clansmen or on a nature walk with Ian Bullock. There’s also the Glenfinnan visitor centre to explore and the viaduct makes for a good picture. This viaduct was the first large structure in the world to be built with concrete, earning his engineer the nickname ‘Concrete Bob.’ After our visit we crossed this structure ourselves, by train heading back to Banavie.
In the evening Alasdair entertained us superbly with a wide variety of Scottish music.
Even though it’s still light, we are tired with all those lovely impressions of the day and go to bed after a last glance of Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest mountain, looming nearby perfectly clear.
Oidhche mhath. (‘Good night’ in gaelic)
