Day 24 The day is Oppresive

Wednesday 11/04/2018 The Royal Guest House Dingwell Room 35

Up an organised we are gathering so many bits and pieces as we are travelling with our little grocery bags etc that taking our stuff to the car is not just one trip now, plus the fact for some reason we get the top floor of each hotel usually they have 2-3 or 4 floors and only a couple have had lifts. This one we are on the top floor of 3 with more than 3 flights of steps, so hauling our big suitcases up and down has become a real trail or if we look at it as a good exercise regime....... we are trying for the latter to make us think positive....
poor John cops the heavy stuff I tend to over balance if I try to carry the big bags up.... if I used my brain I would pack a little suitcase for every night, but by the time you try and do that in the back if the car it’s just as easy to Bring the lot.... I know one trip we did and this was with the boys I used to pack 3 days worth in a smaller bag, it did work but took organisation... and I will admit with the weather so cold it’s easier to just garb the suitcases...

Anyway enough analogy for one day!

Had our ok breaky and saw the guy from Yeppoon as we were heading off! So said farewell wish him safe journeys.... then headed north... The views past the Geo Park were stunning and as we wound our way through the mountains from West to East it was not too bad.... So many isolated homes hidden in valleys or in open plains.... they looked so lonely standing but themselves far from others... We saw a heard of Deer hard to tell they were there except for their white behinds, as they melted into the landscape being the same colour... it was a real camouflage to be honest.... their behinds were their only give away... Lots of little streams meandering along the landscape. Tiny patches of melting snow dotted here and there and rivers that were heading out to sea, as we came across from West to East the rivers were now running East... by the time we hit the East it was really awful unimpressive countryside. There had been a heavy fog since we left Ullapool that has followed us the whole way across... and by the time we hit the East Coast it really had a heavy oppressive feel to it... made everything look so dead, boring and lifeless..... when I say heavy right to the ground the whole way didn’t lift at all all day!

We did spot this massive Castle overlooking a river on the other side of the river to us... it was huge.. and when we pulled up to go to a public loo funny enough there was the history of this Castle which was a number of miles back down the road... turns out it has been lived in for centuries, but is now you will never guess it, but now a Youth Hostel... they said on the info board it was the only Castle Youth Hostel in the UK... it as massive, not sure why it is a youth hostel and what people would spend the time around here doing, must be something it also seemed very isolated so not sure how the people came and went from It, very intriguing indeed!

To be honest even the housing over here has lost any lustre they aren’t painted white like the West Coast side, they were now mid to dark stone or brick very OPPRESSIVE.... we did a small divert to kill time as it didn’t take us as long as we thought to get to this side, so we headed to Invergordon a small coastal village... This appeared to be where they worked and we think make the massive Oil Rigs.... plus you could see a large number of them out from the mainland in what we are gathering as part of the Northern Oil fields.... on a sunny day they may have looked unreal but today with the heavy fog they looked so awful and lifeless.....

Had a cuppa at a tourist shop in an odd spot at the wharf area.... Not sure why it would have been here but you could have been fully kitted out with all the gear from Kilt to shirt and everything to be dressed as a Scotsman... They had the cheapest and nicest array of goodies on display we have found yet... and all tucked away from the main areas of town... looks like they get lots of buses pull up here, as it was morning tea time and we needed a break we decided to make use of their cheap goodies and cuppas....

Off down the road where we spot a big yellow structure that turns out to be a centuries old Store house for grains back in the day... They said in the info there were 100’s that dotted the landscape all over the place but this one is the last fully intact and well preserved one left... interesting to read, inside it had displays of wild life here some facts about how it was used, and a big display about Clans their importance and a big display on the Munroe Clan.... we had a look inside their very well stocked huge deli and they had a really lovely restaurant shame we had just eaten the menu here looked fantastic....

So off we set on our last leg to Dingwell, a small village again, when I say small probably the size of Bilo... we are staying in an old hotel/pub that’s been done up as a guest house, and yep heaps of stairs to climb, with creaky floor boards. Our room is small yet very comfortable just been revamped so looked fresh and clean... it is really a rabbit warren with hallways going here and there... Our lovey and she was lovely receptionist sadly was missing most of her bottom teeth so it made her look unkept. But she was very helpful and had us sorted in no time.
We did the car unpacking in stages today with so many stairs... a bit every couple of hours... with no much space it was tricky to put our gear in the room without over crowding it... again we used the window sill as our fridge it seems to be doing the trick keeping most stuff pretty cool.... we have done this wherever possible as with no fridges in the UK it’s the only way of keeping cool... had a few things die a miserable death with not having regular constant cooling....

A look around the village.... while doing so overheard a heap of locals having a discussion about how the council is looking at charging to park their cars.... they were all very upset and had a petition going to stop the nonsense as it would turn people away....from past experience when councils plan something like this usually the residents don’t get a say even if they do voice their objections!

A kebab for a late lunch which was so huge I could get 3 days out if it, but sadly it upset my tummy very badly so guessing I won’t be getting 3 days out of it.... So with such a late dinner and being so cold here we stayed in and I heated a can of tomato soup up in the kettle..... worked a treat.

Another day down I hope tomorrow’s weather is a little more sunny, another day if dreary and we will be getting depression.... I bet depression rates due to the weather conditions here in the UK are high!!!Read more