Train Ride to Stirling

After the disappointment of Edinburgh Castle, I took the train over to Stirling to visit the castle. Now this is a proper castle, where you can walk on the battlements and gaze out over the landscape and imagine the battles that have been fought here, and descend down steps into underground vaults. Set up high above the town, I tackled the steep walk to get to the entrance, rather than take the tourist bus from the station, which negotiates the narrow and crowded approach road with inches to spare between vehicles and the brick wall. The same bus took me over to the National Wallace Monument, to climb the 246 spiral stone steps to the top of the tower. There are, thankfully, rooms on the way up where you can look at the exhibits and take a breather (if you need one). Fantastic view from the top is worth the effort. I really enjoyed Stirling and it was an easy trip from Edinburgh, only 50 minutes on the train, and the sun was shining.Read more