Finally got to get out and experience the real Scottish weather – went back to Alva to hike through the Alva Glen. My maps steered me wrong again but this time it was 100% worth it because I got to frolic through a field fo sheep and actually made it to my final destination eventually (Smuggler’s Cove). Ended the night going into town for a karaoke night and learned that “Country Roads” is as much if not more popular in the UK.
Loch Ness
Last day on the highlands so we made a few stops on the way back to Stirling: Invermoriston Falls, Loch Ness (a lot skinnier and less swampy than I preconceived, but an impressive 800 ft deep almost everywhere), Lagan Dam, and a short hike through Reelig Glen – where the tallest tree in Britain used to be (till it got struck by lightning and fell over and broke the sign talking about how tall it was).
Isle of Skye
We drove all around the Isle of Skye today. Everything felt straight out of Lord of the Rings, hiking through the mist and this big rocks slowly coming into view as you pass, it was an awesome feeling. We started out at the Fairy Pools, then went to some statue of some mountaineers to have a picnic for lunch. Then we hiked up the Old Man of Storr (which was quite the hike and accidentally took the long way round coming back down), saw Kilt Rock, the Quaraing, and finally the Faerie Glen.
The Back Walk
Walked along the Back Walk trails behind the Stirling Castle. All these areas have loads of small trails going all about, and I’ve found my favorite way of hiking around is to only have the vaguest general idea of where I might want to end up and just see where the random trail I pick takes me – there tends to be some cool statues along the way as well, and sometimes a Beheading Stone. At the bottom of the trail I landed in an open area where I have been told sometimes Highland cows hang out, but there were only sheep today, so the hunt continues. That spot was right next to the King’s Knot which is kind of just an interesting landscaping choice (I read the plaque but can’t remember the actual history behind it). Then for dinner, we walked over to Bridge of Allen again.
Doune & Callander
Went out to Doune Castle, where it seems that its Monty Python fame has now been overshadowed by Outlander. Continued up into Callander, at the edge of the Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park where I hiked to Bracklinn Falls. I tried stopping by Samson’s Stone while I was there, but I took two different  trails, and each time my GPS told me to turn there was only dense forest; even when I found an official park map there was only a dot surrounded by green and no trails so I’m not sure how to get there without a helicopter. It was a beautiful day to waste a couple hours in the forest though, I was led to believe it’d be raining pretty much everyday here but the weather’s been absolutely smashing all week.
Edinburgh
Day trip into Edinburgh where we explored Calton Hill and the National Museum of Scotland (and passed by the Forth Bridges on our way there). One of my classes then went together to the Edinburgh Dungeons (which was not at all what I was expecting after having done zero research: part semi hasted house and part heightened dramatized history lessons) and it was quite a good time – even though we got hanged (literally a ride at the end – basically a mini tower of terror). We also stopped by the Frankenstein Bar since that’s the first book we’re reading in that class.
Stirling Castle
Today I just took a casual stroll through Stirling Castle after class, as you do. For dinner we went into town to try some Scotland favorites: pizza crunch (deep fried pizza), fried haggis, and a fried Mars bar; pizza could have been really good if it had come with more dipping sauce on the side, but the others were really good.
Dumyat Hill
After class we hiked up Dumyat hill, there was about a 10 minute walk up to the trailhead which I think was the steepest part, but then we spent about 2 hours on the hill where there was lots of different paths you could take all around. It was an absolutely beautiful day, now just waiting for the allergy medicine to kick in to recover from all the grass.
Cork
Our good luck with the weather finally ran out and we couldn’t go out until the afternoon today, so we only made it to Blarney Castle. Ended up being a lot more there to explore though; I saw signs for “Jurassic Fern Park” and obviously had to wander around there for a good long while.
North of Galway
Drove up north of Galway. Saw Kylemoor Abbey, Connemara National Park, and Killary Fjord.
