Pushed for time ...

Eilean Donan, which means simply "island of Donnán", is named after Donnán of Eigg, a Celtic saint martyred in 617. Donnán is said to have established a church on the island, though no trace of this remains. The island is situated at the point Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh meet. The castle which sits upon it was originally founded in the thirteenth century, and became a stronghold of the Clan Mackenzie and their allies the Clan Macrae. In the early eighteenth century, the Mackenzies' involvement in the Jacobite rebellions led in 1719 to the castle's destruction by government ships. What you see there now is Lieutenant-Colonel John Macrae-Gilstrap's twentieth-century reconstruction from the ruins and now has a footbridge connecting the island to the mainland.

I literally parked my car here, got out and took this picture of the castle (which I'm very proud of), had a very brief conversation with a couple of Americans who were on a motorbike tour, then jumped in the car and was on my way again.

Time was really against me by now and for the first time I was worried that I wouldn't reach my final destination and I'd just run out of time.Read more