My annual pilgrimage to the Scottish Mecca...Amsterdam to Fearn

 

 

 

 

 

Strong winds had the King of the Seaways keeled over for most of the 16 hour passage

 

 

 

 

Newcastle ... you get off the ship...taxi it to Newcastle central station and with 2 hours to kill you coffee it up at the station pub ... and you grab a 4-pack for the rail

 

 

 

 

 

North Cadboll ... this land owned by the Glenmorangie Distillery adjacent to my parents place.

 

 

 

 

 

Cadboll, from me mum and dads backyard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mansfeld Castle in Tain... home for the next week

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guess I best head downstairs  for my tea and crumpets

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Village of Tain

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Breakfast at the Castle

 

 

 

 

A Highlanders breakfast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Portmohamack, only West facing village on the East side of Scotland

 

 

 

 

 

Rockfield ... Scotland raw

 

 

 

 

Somebody bought the ruins to an old 14th century lookout post and rebuilt it into probably the ugliest castle in Scotland

 

 

          

When we were kids we used to hang around the original old ruins of the structure

 

 

Surprised it was even possible to rebuild it

 

 

 

Meanwhile, Back at the Mansfeld .. a bunch of ghosts are whooping it up..

 

 

I'm starting to feel like the Omega Man...where the hell is everybody ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Out for an early morning walk in Tain ... and watching out for werewolves ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Day at Crosswinds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1963

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Mansfeld in HDR glory.

 

 

Off to Istanbul, Turkey