Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh, 8/6/2013, Lord of the Glens
Aboard the
Lord of the Glens
Scotland aboard Lord of the Glens
From various points
abroad, we gathered in Inverness, the capital of The Highlands, to board our
coach for the Kyle of Lochalsh. We first traveled along the north shore of Loch
Ness, which we will sail across later in our voyage. No sightings of the
infamous monster were made.
The highway continued
over the mountains and down through Loch Shiel to the pier at the Kyle of
Lochalsh, where our small ship, Lord of
the Glens, awaited our arrival. Here we were welcomed aboard by Captain Jim
Still, Hotel Manager Brian Copland, and Expedition Leader Steve Blamires.
Once we got settled into
our cabins, it was time to gather in the lounge areas and become acquainted
with our fellow guests and the ship's crew and Lindblad staff.
Having journeyed far,
most of us were ready for a good night's sleep with dreams about tomorrow's
adventures.
Trained as zoologist and geologist, Stewart 's passion is the natural world. He has been exploring, photographing, teaching, and writing about biodiversity, geology, and the American Southwest for forty years and has worked with Lindblad Expeditions-...
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Fort Augustus presented a charming backdrop as we prepared to descend the flight of five locks down to the entrance to Loch Lomond. Everyone watched from the deck, fascinated as the lock-keepers operated the hydraulic gates while Captain Tony and his crew maneuvered the ship delicately from lock to lock. Once at the bottom, traffic on the public road came to a halt, the swing bridge opened, and we made our stately progress out into the open waters of the loch. At twenty-three miles long and over 1000 feet deep, Loch Lomond holds an enormous volume of water which belies its relatively narrow breadth. Halfway along, Urquhart Castle came into view; this magnificent ruined fortress is strategically placed to dominate the region. On an ancient site, the present walls date from about 1320, and were destroyed during the Jacobite uprising of 1691. The final stages of Thomas Telford’s Caledonian Canal glided peacefully by, and we arrived at the top of the Muirtown flight of locks at Inverness. Then it was on to the bus to explore the sights of the area. The ill-fated Jacobite rebellions came to their climax in April 1746 at the battle of Culloden, when the weary highlanders were overwhelmed by the superior government forces; the impressive museum at Culloden presented this story with compelling effect. In bright sunshine we strolled around the site of the battle, imagining the highland charge and the answering report of the Hanoverian guns. A group of Highland cows were on hand to pose for photographs; their function at Culloden is to conserve the landscape with their judicious grazing. Finally we visited the Clava Cairns, a remarkable set of well-preserved early Bronze Age monuments dating from about 4,000 years ago. These subtle and complex stone structures are focused on the midwinter solstice; prehistoric farming communities erected them as a ritual expression of their beliefs about ancestors, life, and death. Our evening, and indeed our entire voyage, was rounded off after dinner with a delightful performance by the young students of the Elizabeth Fraser School of Highland Dancing. It was a fitting finale to our exploration of Scotland on board Lord of the Glens.
From an overnight stop at Corpach, today the Lord of the Glens commenced its transit from south to north, through the Caledonian Canal. This protected waterway is an engineering marvel of the early 19th century, constructed under the supervision of Scottish engineer Thomas Telford. The canal connects the west and east coasts of Scotland via the geological fault line known as the Great Glen, thus enabling ships to avoid rounding the treacherous north coast. A series of locks allowed the Lord of the Glens to safely defy gravity as we sailed “uphill,” against the flow of water as it drops from the terrain’s high point. In the afternoon many guests disembarked at Kytra lock to walk the last part of today’s journey to the dock at Fort Augustus. There was also plenty of time for guests to enjoy this charming town at the southern end of Loch Ness.
It was 6:15 a.m.; the lights of Oban harbor were twinkling and the town still sleeping as we met for our early morning hikes in the gathering morning light. Some walked along the shoreline to a lighthouse. Others took the steep uphill route to McCaig’s Tower to drink in the view of Oban with its fishing boats, ferries, yachts, and all the islands beyond. Back on board we were ready to cast off, sailing in beautiful weather between the mainland and the islands of Kerrera, Lismore, and Shuna, along the length of Loch Linnhe. Past the Corran Narrows, protected by a Stevenson lighthouse, past the town of Fort William, and finally to the entrance of the famous Caledonian Canal. Everyone was out on deck to witness the delicate maneuvering by Captain Tony and his crew as our good-sized ship, the Lord of the Glens , lined up to fit neatly into the first lock. The basin at Corpach is a lovely spot, with views over the sea and hills, dominated by the towering of Ben Nevis — at 4,411 feet, the highest mountain in the U.K. Following lunch the afternoon was ours to explore. One group had the great pleasure of kayaking in perfect conditions in the waters of Loch Eil. The rest of us went by bus to Glenfinnan, famous originally as the place where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard in 1745, thus beginning the last, ill-fated Jacobite rebellion. Its popularity today, however, surrounds the steam train that runs from Fort William to Mallaig, made famous by its role in the Harry Potter movies. On schedule, the train came puffing across the viaduct that spans the deep glen at Glenfinnan, 100 feet above the river. The elegant viaduct comprises twenty-one arches, each fifty feet wide and constructed of mass concrete, and was completed in 1897. In the evening we enjoyed the company of Alastair, the manager of Glenfinnan Estate, who fascinated us with stories of deerstalking, forestry, and life in this part of Scotland.
