27 th Aug - 10 th Sept 2021
We are off again! This time we found ourselves heading towards Perth, and so it looks like we might be doing the North East coast!
map
itinerary
highlights
gallery
Day 1 Itinerary
Places visited: Pitlochry
Pitlochry
Our first stop this time out is in the lovely highland town of Pitlochry, and we popped into the Old Mill for a few ‘jars’ before heading back to Iona for a quiet night.
Day 2 Itinerary
Places visited: Loch Faskally - Pitlochry
Loch Faskally
Time for some exercise! So we walked around the loch, 3.6 miles.
Pitlochry
We enjoyed a pleasant walk around town this evening before enjoying a couple of ‘jars’ and getting a fish supper to take back to Iona.
Day 3 Itinerary
Places visited: Faskally Forest - Clach na Coileach - Clunie Water, Braemar - Torbeg, Cairngorms National Park.
Faskally Forest
Moving on, we stopped off at one of our favourite spots, Loch Dunmore, just north of Pitlochry. Here we prepared lunch, and afterwards, we strolled around the loch, enjoying the colours, sights and sounds.
Clach na Coileach
Heading north, we stopped off to see the MacThomas Clan Cockstane (Clach an Coileach). Fascinating historical background to this old stone which you can research online if you are of a mind.
Clunie Water, Braemar
In the late afternoon, we stopped in Braemar and had a pleasant stretch of the legs and an ice cream!
Torbeg, Cairngorms National Park.
We eventually pulled up at a fantastic spot alongside the river Dee and were sent off to sleep by the sound of a bubbling river.
Day 4 Itinerary
Places visited: Craigievar Castle - Aquhythie - Rowantree
Craigievar Castle
Today we stopped off at Craigievar Castle, sadly shut due to ‘Covid’; however, we had a great walk around the adjacent woodland.
Aquhythie
We had a pleasant 4-mile walk today and spotted some fungi!
Rowantree
Our next overnight stop was on the slopes of Bennachie. Once the hill and dog walkers had left for the day, we had a very peaceful evening/night.
Day 5 Itinerary
Places visited: Bennachie
Bennachie
Today was another 4-mile walk partially up the lower slopes of Bennachie and the adjacent woodland. After lunch in our van, we set off north to find our next stop-off.
Day 6 Itinerary
Places visited: Bridge of Marnoch
Bridge of Marnoch
Pulled into this roadside layby and parked up for the night. Not the best park-up as there was some traffic noise from the adjacent road, especially in the morning. However, we had a pleasant night.
Day 7 Itinerary
Places visited: The Mansefield
The Mansefield
Time to freshen up, and so we booked into this lovely hotel in Elgin for two nights. A comfy bed, pleasant room and a shower!
Day 8 Itinerary
Places visited: The Mansefield
The Mansefield
Drove into Lossiemouth and parked up at the beach for lunch.
In the evening, we visited Against the Grain, a fine wee pub we had discovered last night, and then we enjoyed an excellent curry in Qismat on High Street.
Day 9 Itinerary
Places visited: Elgin Cathedral - Burghead Well - Burghead harbour
Elgin Cathedral
Before leaving Elgin, we stopped off at the cathedral and wandered through the adjacent Biblical Gardens. Then we headed west to find our next stopover.
Burghead Well
The view of the Moray Firth
Burghead harbour
Having parked Iona, we had a leisurely walk around the town of Burghead and enjoyed a pint or two in a couple of the town’s bars. We then sauntered back to Iona for dinner and a quiet night listened to the tide roll in!
Day 10 Itinerary
Places visited: Burghead Well
Burghead Well
Today we had a tremendous four-mile walk along the beach and through the nearby woods before returning to Iona and sheltering from the rain showers!
Day 11 Itinerary
Places visited:
Sitting in Iona enjoying lunch when a shoal of these fellas passed by!
Later in the day, we headed east and settled on an overnight stay at the Newburgh Inn, where we enjoyed a couple of ‘jars’ and a takeaway fish supper!
Day 12 Itinerary
Places visited: Newburgh Seal Beach - RIver Ythan
Newburgh Seal Beach
As it was a lovely day, we walked down to Seal Beach and watched the seals bobbing around in the sea. Sadly, it was too warm for them to be sunbathing on the sands!
RIver Ythan
In the afternoon we found a lovely location next to a bird hide on the Ythan river estuary and then had a 3-mile + walk around the countryside.
Later in the evening, we were treated to a wonder of nature as the sun departed our hemisphere.
Day 13 Itinerary
Places visited: Newburgh sand dunes walk
Newburgh sand dunes walk
Having seen this lovely walk advertised, we stopped off after our morning cup o Java and enjoyed the fab weather and a great four-mile walk along the coast.
It was great to be able to wander barefoot in the North Sea too!
Day 14 Itinerary
Places visited:
We spent our penultimate night in a woodland car park, and the following day, we had a lovely three-mile walk in the adjacent woods.
After lunch, we packed up and headed south towards Glasgow and stopped off in Pitlochry for our final night, so we ended up where we started this trip. A nice loop around the northeast of Scotland.