All good things must come to an end😩

Final day of the tour. I thought back to the first day where I had felt rather apprehensive as we waited to be taken to the bus because this  was the first organised tour I have done. I had visions of being herded like cattle everywhere, pethaps having a difficult group, an impatient guide and not enough stops to admire the views, stretch legs and take photos. I need never have worried! 👍Everything was totally relaxed and the entire tour absolute enjoyment pure! Even when someone arrived a bit late and apologised, there was always a really pleasant reassuring  response from Alan, with a genuine smile. The tour members were fantastic and we all got on really well despite the mix of ages, nationalities, etc. We stopped a huge amount and Alan woukd have stopped more if we had asked hin. To be honest, we could have stopped at almost every turn of the road on the islands because it was so spectacular, but then we would not have got anywhere. The weather was remarkable almost the entire trip, particularly where it really mattered. As for Alan, I cannot sing his praises enough and I am sure I speak for us all.

I felt very sad to think it would soon be over, especially as I sat outside the B and B before breakfast to once again breathe in the pure air of Plockton and to enjoy the peace and the breathtaking scenery made even more special by the extraordinary light.

 

Although this area of Scotland is trying hard to save the Gaelic language, we didn't hear a lot of It spoken in this area,  but it was great to see most signs in both English and Gaelic. 

 

We left Plockton in very warm , sunny weather and made our first stop at the very romantic Eilann Donan castle. It is a really pretty castle and apparently has been used in a number of films and television series. You can see why🙂

 Guni and I opted to have a stroll along the banks of the loch rather than visit the castle. Good decision as later the weather was not as good as we have become accustomed  to.

Our trip back to Edinburgh took us back along the Great Glen and we had a rather rainy lunch stop at Loch Ness. I have been there before but I had forgotten about the fantastic lock system. Inspite of the teeming rain, I really enjoyed watchung the patient boat owners moving through one lock after the other.It is such a busy area!

Apart from a stop at a pretty little waterfall amidst a very rare patch of beautiful native forest and a couple of other wee villages and lochs, we found ourselves once again at the Forth Bridges, the old, only built in 1964 and the new which will replace it because the old cannot cope with the amount of traffic.

 

if you did not know about the old bridge around the corner,  the approach could be somewhat scary 😁

Although it only rained for part of the journey back, we certainly were able to appreciate even more the fact that we had been so fortunate with the weather. The trip would still have been remarkable, the commentary just as amusing, the clouds possibly even more dramatic, but to have missed seeing some of the spectacular parts of Scotland we so much enjoyed would have really been a big pity. 

 

 We certainly had many such moments. It was just incredible.

It was a very sad farewell to the group and particulaly to Alan, who undoubtedly contributed so much to our enjoyment of the trip . It was amazing how close the group had become in only 5 days. It seemed so much longer because we had packed so much into the days and yet had never seemed in a rush or overloaded. After a lot of hugging , Guni and I returned to our really lovely B and B with friendly manager Lukas seemingly very happy to see us again. It was great to have Guni there still and to raise a glass together as we enjoyed our final dinner in Scotland - for now! I think we will hoth  be back.