Holiday Day 2
Sunday 24 October 2021 - Gleddoch to Glencoe (86 miles)
Suggested Song: Be My Downfall - Del Amitri
When you admire our elegant and efficient itinerary which takes in highlands and islands, lochs and lochans, remote locations and a bustling city you might imagine that I spent hours pored over a scale map of Scotland, carefully plotting routes and stops with the forensic rigour I use to spot typos on the internet. Actually, it was all but directed by a work associate. I told him my outline plans and he gently told me all the ways I was going wrong. He’s a management consultant, so he does that a lot.
His first suggestion was that we travel further on the travel day so we could wake up on the first proper morning somewhere beautiful. Opening the curtains this morning after a blissful night’s sleep I cursed him for being right. Again.
The hours of night had swept the tide out, leaving a shallower, greener estuary, the weak October sun battling to break through the morning mist. The hotel breakfast provided a chance to plan for the day, as I played my own personal game of chicken with the undrinkable coffee.
To The Hill House first, a spectacular Rennie Mackintosh designed home, a triumph to his singularity of vision, and his collaboration with his client. The house stands as a timely reminder not to compromise, to stand firm in your truth and in your own power. If I take one souvenir home, let it be that.
From there to Luss, to take a trip out on Loch Lomond. The drive offers a chance to sound out place names in from roadsigns in my head, obsessively pondering for the second day whether it’s Lommonnd or Low-mond. Is it Lock or Logh? I sound it all out in different combinations. I can’t decide.
The loch (lock? logh?) proves to be unspeakably beautiful and tranquil. The water inky, cold and black, the mountains shining in the late afternoon sun, or fading to black under the cloud. The boat takes us out across the water, all of us soon become lost in our thoughts, lost in the beauty of the afternoon.
As the boat returns us to the village, depositing us at the remainder of our day it starts to rain. The icy drops to the face wake us from our afternoon reverie and we hurry back to the car.
The drive over to Glencoe takes us round the north of the loch (lock? Logh?}, through valleys, over moors and across hills and mountains and waterfalls. Nothing I write here can possibly convey the experience of travelling through the most extraordinary scenery I have ever seen. Being here in Autumn, the hills were painted every colour of copper penny, from shiny new coin to the molasses colour of those huge old pennies you’d find in old tins in your childhood.
Tonight’s hotel is on the side of another loch (lock? logh?) There’s a huge bed, tasteful muted decor and a well-stocked bar. Maybe, just maybe, that’ll be enough to reset my fizzing and popping brain so I can do it all again tomorrow.
Goodnight.
Love you, bye
Liz xxx