We arrived in Hull, refreshed from our 14 hour overnight ferry and back on English soil, where our adventure with Big Karl first began. With the rainy weather looming we didn’t muck around and headed straight for the Lakes District in Northern England for some scenery, real ales and good pubs. We stopped off at the Castlerigg Standing Stones in Keswick and admired the panoramic views and the ancient stones on the top of the hill. It was freezing (hence all the clothing) but stunning.
Our accommodation was at the Swinside Inn in Newlands Valley, an area famous for hiking and very narrow roads. This was our first pub meal in months and it went down superbly, we even tried some haggis and it was surprisingly tasty. The next morning we were up early and trudging through the frost to the top of Catbells Hill. This involved about a mile of direct uphill walking/climbing before we got to the summit…our fitness was a little bit lacking but we managed to get up and down in one piece.
Off to the Motherland we go! Our next destination was slightly different to usual, Dalbeattie in Scotland. With some strong family links to the town I couldn’t come to Scotland and not pay a visit to my great great grandparents and the hometown of my Nanny. The weather managed to hold for us while we walked around the town before spending the night on the river in Dumfries.
The following day we headed North to Edinburgh via a small town called Biggar, the location of an old church with some connections to the Baillie name, even the snow couldn’t keep me in the car! We were forced into a campsite in Edinburgh as we were running out of clean clothes so we pulled up and settled in for two nights – we even turned our television on for the first time in 3 months and watched the news!
Edinburgh was like a fairytale, it is no wonder that so many tourists visit each year. While a tad chilly (as you can see from the photos) we didn’t let that slow us down. A walking tour in the morning which led us through the bloody past of the city along the Royal Mile and into the present; Harry Potter sites everywhere – including the inspiration for Diagon Alley. We had the best lunch of the trip, I know, a big call, at Howie’s on Victoria Street featuring local Scottish produce before walking the streets on our own and making our way to the infamous Edinburgh Castle.
The day continued to get better with a distillery tour at Pickerings Gin (forget the whisky) which is a small boutique distillery run by two engineers! We of course listened intently to the tour while sipping a G&T and then got to taste the gins (neat) at the end. Edinburgh had it all for us, but now we are off to the Highlands!
C xx
Damien + Caitlin 