I have been motoring all about this little country…via boat, bus and train. Getting to the corners of the highlands and out to the islands is a grand proposition that can require somewhat silly travel routes.

Ferry to bus, to bus, to ferry, to train, to bus, to ferry…it’s all quite entertaining though as the scenery here never disappoints. Sometimes the clouds look as though they are ready to fall from the sky…like if you jumped really high you could catch a cotton-candy handfull.
No matter that the scenery is often green hills and water, and inevitably clouds…each day is spectacular to look at. I have to say the clouds are the highlight of Scotland…though it’s not always raining you get these crazy layers of clouds: cumulus and cirrus with a watercolor wash of stratus and sunlight behind them. I’m enamored.

Clouds!

Ah yes…so…
The other day I boarded a train from Ft. William to Mallaig, a little ferry port town. There’s a line called the West Highland Railway, which runs a steam train each morning. Okay, I know how much of a dork I’m going to sound like here…but…it’s the Harry Potter train! I didn’t actually take the steam train, at twice the cost of the normal train, but I rode the same route and it’s straight out of the Harry Potter movies…the green valleys, misty meadows and arched concrete bridge…it’s all there. Supposedly it’s one of the most beautiful train rides in the world, and I’d have to agree. I was pressed, smushed nose, to the window the whole ride.
A couple of my shots along the way, remember they’re shot through the train window so some of them have a bit of glare.

(Straight out of the Harry Potter movie)

Mallaig was my destination…of sorts.
The tiny port of Mallaig

…this is where I caught a ferry to the Isle of Skye. The name evokes vivid images of awesome nature and, again, it didn’t disappoint. Skye is the largest of the Hebrides Islands (thus far in my blog misspelled, I believe). It’s about 50 miles long and chock a block with rivers, mountains, waterfalls, forests, flower-filled meadows and other pretty stuff. But it was also coooooold! My first day there the temperature was about 45degrees…in July?!?

I spent a couple days in the main town on the island, Portree, but there wasn’t much to look at. I was more excited to visit one of the most Northern towns, Uig. I’d read about a place called Fairy Glen that I just couldn’t pass up. It’s a small area of conical hills that is described as seemingly impossible that they’re natural formations.

Near the Port of Uig

It’s only a mile off the main road from town…but the ferry port where I left my bag was about 2 miles down the road…so it turned into quite a hike!

The road to Fairy Glen

I ambled along through pretty hills and valleys, amidst cows and free roaming scairdy-cat sheep (they run as soon as you look at them!), past wild flowers and castle ruins…it was marvellous! Would you believe I managed a bit of a sunburn in Northen Scotland!?!

Idle and idealic sheep

Wildflower field

Uig’s church

The Glen was amazing…really strange formations that I’m lacking in words to explain. (I really wish the Scottish believed in USB, webcams and other such modern computer accoutraments!) I’ll leave it to your imaginations for the moment and post (a million) pictures as soon as I get back to the 21st century.

The Glen…was a bit hard to photograph

From Uig it was back to Mallaig to catch the train…to catch the bus…to Inverness…home of Loch Ness and the monster that makes the town famous. Actually, let me take that back, in 2000 Inverness was proudly upgraded to a city…and is the capital of the Highlands. Ooooooh!

Anyway, I’ve just gotten here so I’ve nothing to report as of yet…
…except…I was in the bookstore on the High Street wanting to reserve a copy of Harry Potter at their London branch (again, I KNOW, dork, dork, dork) and was asked by the clerk if I’d heard what had happened. My blank look led him to inform me of the bombs that went off today. Here I am trying to avoid the madness surrounding the G8 and Edinburugh and now London is hit by terrorists…it makes me sick. Seriously, it’s troubling. It’s a sad world sometimes…and so wonderful most of the time.
When the clerk told me, before he gave me any details, I had a little flashback moment to NYC a few years ago. It made me want to cry and to scream…though I did neither and settled on a vague nausea in the pit of my stomach. From the news I’ve read here online Londoners seem calm…but pissed off. The whole thing is a shame though, really. There’s no need for such things…nor others that are currently being propagated in other parts of the world.
My heart goes out to all those in London affected by the blasts and the subsequent confusion.
To lighten the mood…my first thought…maybe it was the Parisians in retaliation for London winning the 2012 games…