Pitlochry, Scotland, United Kingdom
We’re leaving the North Sea area today and heading inland so we are up early to pack and have breakfast. Today we were early enough to find a place in the main dining room for the buffet breakfast. The day is not starting well as I filled my plate, bumped a chair, and had my fried slippery egg go flying off my plate like a frisbee! It landed with a slapping sound on the floor! The rest of the group thought that was hysterical while I was rather embarrassed although laughing at the same time (And no I didn't eat it, I picked it up and threw it away, and then got another from the buffet). Once breakfast was over we checked out and then loaded the car.
It is a cloudy dreary day and rather chilly. Our first stop is in the town of Elgin which is just a few miles from Lossiemouth where we stayed. Elgin, a town of about 23,000 people, was first documented in 1190. It is a lovely historical city but we only had time for a brief visit here. We wanted to visit the Glen Moray Distillery, touted as a small, friendly and informal distillery, is on the banks of the River Lossie.
It has been here since 1897 and is supposed to produce a fine quality single malt whisky. They gave a fascinating tour of how whisky is made and of course we had a tasting. I’m not a real fan of whisky as I find it too strong or “peaty” or “smoky” tasting. And in Scotland a "taste" which here is a very small amount is quite large there. Scotch at 9:30 in the morning is a little too much for us, how about you all?
Once we left there we drove to the Johnston’s Woolen Mill, the actual name is Johnstons of Elgin. The records say they have been creating fine woollen and cashmere clothing since 1797. Wow their woolen items are really expensive. As we weren’t going to carry off the woolens from here we decided to walk a few blocks to see the ruins of the Elgin Cathedral. This historic cathedral was originally established in 1224, but was burnt and rebuilt several times in the 1200s. It was burned again by the Wolf of Badenoch (Alexander Steward, Earl of Buchan) in 1390 as the bishop had refused to allow him to have a divorce and eventually excommunicated him. Apparently the Wolf didn’t take this too well and attacked and burned the cathedral and the town--the bishop said that they were set upon by the Wolf and his “wyld, wikkid, hieland men”. It was a fascinating ruin with some parts still standing along with an ancient cemetery. But as freezing drizzle had begun, we headed to lunch in a tea room at Johnston's. Mike and I shared a smoked salmon sandwich and a Ploughman's sandwich (cheddar cheese, onions, and pickle relish) on seeded brown bread.
We had salads with our sandwiches and a pot of tea. We kept seeing people walk by with wonderful pastries so Mike bought a strawberry cream tart for himself and a Bounty Bar (2 pieces of chocolate with coconut and toffee in the middle) for me. Oh the delicious pastries that the Scots make!!! They do love their sweets and whisky!
After lunch we were back on the road heading down the Whisky Trail to the town of Pitlochry. The clouds are coming in and it is misting very heavily. After much confusion with the fog and rain we reached the town of Pitlochry. As we couldn't find our lodging we went to the TI (tourist info) to get a map and directions. That’s when we found out that we really were staying in the little village of Logierait outside of Pitlochry. Logierait means “small houses at the gate to a castle” (which is no longer there--a small ruin on the hilltop is all that’s left). Anyway we found our guesthouse, a huge stone building (a former poor house!) called Cuil-an-Daraich which in Gaelic means “Under or between the oak trees”.
Sandy and Dennis were assigned the blue room which was a nice sized ensuite room with twin beds. We were assigned the red room which is huge with a queen sized bed, 2 twin beds and a trundle bed. it also has 2 leather arm chairs and an ensuite that has a step down to get into it (I shall have to be careful as I can see falling into the bathroom during the night).
Once we were settled we drove back into Pitlochry which is only about 5 miles away. Pitlochry is a small tourist town of about 2500 people that is famous for its whisky and hill walking (Well maybe whisky for us but not the hill walking). We decided to eat at The Kingfisher Bar in the Fisher Hotel as it looked warm and inviting. Mike and I both had a haddock and leek pie (smoked haddock and chopped leeks in a cream sauce with mashed potatoes baked on top). It came with a small salad and some frozen peas. Mike had a Tennants and I had a glass of house white wine. We all chatted some and then walked around the town a little bit in the rain.
We don’t last long after dinner as we are exhausted from all our touring--although it is difficult getting to sleep as the sun at this time of year does not set until about 11 p.m. And then it arises again by 3:30 a.m.! Isn’t that crazy? And of course our room has huge windows and not a curtain in sight!!!
2025-05-23