ABC Tour – Creepy Crawly, Castle (another one)

THURSDAY 23 JUNE

When we asked for information at the tourist office for the Braemar area we were advised that Braemar Castle is only open on the weekends, so we will miss it, there is Balmoral, a distillary and a bit of a waterfall and that Braemar is only a “tiny wee village”.  That didn’t bother us, as a lazy day was in order.

When we got here yesterday we were pleasantly surprised, as being a bit touristy there are some lovely shops and several places to eat.  We had dinner at a big old hotel and after eating, were watching an English couple playing dominos.  We were invited to join in, which ended up in the “Braemar Ashes” match until about 10.30pm.  Not how we expected to be spending the evening.  Our B & B  is a lovely stone cottage and our room is nice and big.

After a leisurely breakfast we decided to have a look at the waterfall.  It had been raining earlier and had now stopped.  Our hosts told us of a second waterfall a bit further along as well, so we went to see them both.  The first one is the “Linn of Dee”.  We saw them at a good time, as with all the recent rain there is lots of water going down them.  The nice wide river funnels into this tiny gorge.

Quite spectacular, although not a big drop.  That little spot at the top right is Mick.

There is a pretty bridge over it  as well.

You don’t have to worry about snakes over here, but as we were walking along we saw a few of these revolting looking slugs.

Look how big they are in comparison with the toe of my boot.  Yuck!

The Linn of Quoitch was a really pretty spot as well.

Look how the water flows through the hole in this rock and out the bottom.

I just thought I’d show you that Olga is still going fine.

By the time we had finished looking at the waterfalls it was lunch time.  Then, after lunch we went to visit the Queen at Balmoral. The weather was a little bit warmer, getting up to 14 degrees C brielfy.

Apart from the ballroom, you don’t actually go into the castle, which is fair enough, as it is their private home.

You do get to have a good look around the grounds though.  There is a huge productive garden.

They grow lots of vegetables and cut flowers for when the royal family are in residence from July.  Because it is such a cold area the season is rather late.

By then it was late afternoon and we didn’t get to look at the distillery or the Heritage Centre in the village.  I did get to have a quick look at a couple of shops that closed late, and bought a bundle of tartan patchwork pieces, which I think were an absolute bargain.  I’ll jam them in somewhere.

So much for wondering how we would fill in the day.  It was a really nice place to visit. On the road again tomorrow.