Ardjachie Point

It's hard to believe, but it rained all night. LOL. We woke to low-lying clouds that partially obscured the hills around us. We took advantage of the showers and facilities to freshen up both us and the wee campervan. We then set off in search of toilet chemicals and the Black Isle. The first is very important when using a cassette toilet, and although I had included them in our rental agreement, Bunk Campers had run out. Not to worry, they said we will refund the cost when you return and you can find them anywhere. Oh dear, not the case. We tried a few places and had no luck. Randy had a great idea, and we approached a campervan in the parking lot of the Tesco Extra. Lovely couple who gave us some great advice but we decided to follow it after we visited Culloden. Finding a parking spot at the Culloden Battlefield was a challenge, but after 15 minutes, we found one, and Randy backed in like it was his job. Unfortunately, we were so close to the car beside us that the driver had a hard time getting in. He came back just after we parked, and Randy offered to pull the van out to make it easier, but he was a good sport. Nice couple from South Carolina. Walking around Cullonden was so interesting. Our ancestors, at least those who survived the battle, ended up in Canada as a direct result of the loss that day. We spent a few hours wandering around, taking it all in. We then headed for the store that the couple in the parking lot recommended earlier today. What are the odds, we missed the entrance to the shop and parked at the big box store beside it and pulled up right beside the couple we spoke to 4 hours earlier. Honestly, I'm not making this s@#@t up. What are the odds. Anyway, we had to have a nice long chat, and we are now Facebook friends. We found our toilet chemicals, and we were off to the Black Isles. Wow, so beautiful here. The campground we wanted to stay was full, so they recommended Cromarty, and they had room. We are parked by the Cromarty Firth, which leads to the North Sea. The weather has been the best today, only rained a bit. We chatted with a few people here; it's a very small campground, then headed out in search of a pub. Fishtown Inn was a nice spot, at times more dogs than people, and my new favorite beer. We split a fish and chips for a combo of lunch and dinner. Oh, and a wee dram of 12 year old Mc Cullam scotch. Randys is feeling a bit of a head cold coming on, so it was purely medicinal. It was nice we could walk from the camper, so no worries about drinking and driving. On the way back to the camper, it was windy and rainy but also low tide, so I made a quick detour to the beach to look for glass. Success I found a few pieces, and I'm sure there were more, but I was soaked so back to the camper. Tomorrow, we start the NC 500 proper, and if all goes to plan, we will be parked up on a beach facing the North Sea. OMG, it's almost 10 pm, and I just realized I had my shirt on backward all day. Guess appearances aren't a priority at this point, but I did shower today.Read more