We awoke to another chilly, grey morning, but that didn't dampen our enthusiasm! After a scrumptious breakfast at the Navidale,
we checked out and headed south to Dunrobin Castle.
The weather was definitely on our side, as the clouds began to clear upon our arrival.
One actually enters through the rear of the castle, where a cozy fire was burning in this ornate fireplace, taking the morning chill out of the air.
The place was extremely busy, which I thought was kind of surprising. There are apparently a LOT of people vacationing in Scotland at the moment.
Walking up the stairs, we found ourselves in a gallery that displayed not only paintings of past owners of this estate, but many of the prized dear that had been hunted for sport.
Each one had a carved plaque under the head, stating the name of the hunter, the place, and the date of the hunt. One could say that these men were extremely proud of their prize!
The castle was filled with so many beautiful paintings, but I've chosen just a few to highlight in my blog.
Here you see the dining room, with the table set for entertaining.
This one features the Lady Evelyn Sutherland as well as the 3rd Duke of Sutherland, with a tame fawn and dog. Dunrobin Castle stands in the distance.
Phillip deLazlo painted this stunning portrait of the Duchess Eileen. She was married to the 5th Duke of Sutherland.
Her portrait graces the library that is filled with over 10,000 books.
Along the wall of the central staircase, a painting of Queen Victoria is hung.
And then there was this very unusual rendition of Mary, Queen of Scots. I must say that this is the first time that I've seen this particular likeness associated with her. I find it to be quite lovely.
The outside gardens were well tended and still very much in bloom.
In the corner of the gardens there was a falconry display at 11:30, and we decided to attend.
This hawk, named Amigo, nearly took the hat off of Marty's head when he was flying by.
There was also a peregrine falcon on site that showed off his hunting skills as well.
The Falconry exhibit was quite entertaining and it was fascinating to learn about the skill of falconry from this man who had been practicing it since he was twelve years old.
After perusing the gardens for a bit, we headed just a few miles away to the Golspie Burn Waterfall. The parking lot was easy to find and the path was well marked.
The only surprise was to find a group of young people who had been bathing in the water just before we showed up. No worries....they had towels to cover anything too risqué.
We decided to take a bit of a detour along a small single lane road, and soon found ourselves looking at a brilliant rainbow reflecting off the distant hills.
Not something we see every day, but it might be typical in Scotland.
We spotted a few highland coos but they were at quite a distance.
When Marty spied the Glenmorangie Distillery, he wanted to stop, so we did just that. We didn't take a tour, as we have taken SO many in the past, but we did check out the visitor center.
Next on the tour was Balintore where we were in search of the Mermaid of the North. We first spotted some fish...salmon, I presume.
A short distance from the mermaid is the Shandwick Stone. After parking in a very small space, we walked the designated trail to the stone.
It stands behind glass to keep it protected.
It's positioned on the top of a hill that is directly exposed to the North Sea, so you can see why it is behind the glass structure.
Nearby was Fearn Abbey. We just stopped for a quick pic.
Then we were off to Nigg, to a small church that holds also has a pictish stone on display.
It was really quite an amazing find considering that it is believed to stem from the year 700 BC. I'd say that it's in pretty good shape considering the age.
The church was quite near to the Cromarty-Nigg ferry, so we decided to give it a go.
Marty drove the car up the ramp and onto the fairy, and soon we were traveling across the firth of Moray to Cromarty.
It was really quite fun!
We checked into our B&B, then headed into Cromarty for dinner.
The view descending the footpath was worth capturing.
At the base of the path stands the birthplace of Hugh Miller, geologist and writer.
and right down the street, across from the court house,
is the Fishertown Inn where we enjoyed a delicious dinner.
Then headed back to our B&B which offers a great view of its own.
As I sat in the stillness of the room writing this blog, I could hear the call of a Tawny Owl as it made its rounds nearby. Pretty cool!
Tomorrow's another day exploring the area. Until then, I bid you good night!
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