Day 17 - Cairngorms - Part 2

The Bear guided us through forests thick with Scots pines, alder and aspen. It was the most beautiful forest I’ve ever seen. The floor of the woods were carpeted with thick peaty moss, ferns, and dotted with reindeer moss (which the Bear taught us was not actually moss, but rather a type of lichen). When we emerged from the wood into the open glen, the rolling hills were a flowing mosaic of heather just beginning to bloom with purple, and gorse sprouting yellow flowers. Interspersed were flashes of brilliant purple and white fox glove flowers. After completing our tour de force, we finished the day with a drive across the highlands to the west coast of Scotland to the quaint town of Fort William ("outdoor capitol of the UK"), where we stayed in the lovely Myrtle Bank Guest House B&B for two nights, where Dora (a former florist - evident in the beautiful state of her gardens) rules the roost with a firm, but jovial manner.Read more