Travel, live, experience!
I LOVE plants, especially those of a flowering variety (just ask anyone who knows me well!). It does not much matter whether the blooms appear on commonly found plants along the roadside or in intricately maintained castle gardens; they are all lovely. And so, in the spirit of my affection for all flowering vegetation, please enjoy these flowers of Scotland in August 2020.
Our first trip to Slains Castle happened in April 2018. It was striking. A castle on the cliffs of the sea. At the time, the wind blew relentlessly and cold. One may have wondered whether the castle guarded against the sea, the land or the elements. Regardless, the castle must have been quite an impending sight in its zenith, because it was quite inspiring as ruins.
This time the weather for our visit was much more temperate, and the castle was just as striking. We didn’t explore inside the castle as much, because the site was well populated. But the nice weather allowed us to explore closer to the sea. There were some very nice green lawns around the grounds, and we sat down for a picnic lunch and enjoyed the food by the sea.
We also explored a bit down on the rocky crags by the sea. We found some flowers and scenic spots for pictures. We even found a number of very large jellyfish. Donna, Kathleen and I went in search of the sea caves that signage alluded to, but alas, we didn’t locate them. At least the hike was really beautiful anyway!
The castle inspired Bram Stoker for the setting for Dracula. Travel information can be found at https://www.visitabdn.com/listing/slains-castle. Historical information can be found at http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM3250 .
On the way back to Inverurie, we stopped at the Bullers of Buchan. What is a Buller, you ask? We asked the same question. Merriam-Webster defines buller as a whirlpool; where the sides rise and the center drops to form a low spot. This makes a bit of sense for the Bullers of Buchan, if you consider the center of the Bullers depressed to the sea. However the definition applies, the Bullers of Buchan are amazing. They are essentially cliffs that wrap around to meet (forming a land bridge), with an opening at the base towards the sea. The cliffs seem very tall (maybe 200-300 feet as a guess).
Sea gulls adorned the cliffs and the calls and echoes provide quite a cacophony. We captured several views, and fortunately the weather was very pleasant.
The Bullers of Buchan are perhaps a five minute car ride from Slains Castle, and well worth the stop.
And…Mo was kind enough to provide several self-portraits to add a more…ahem…personal touch for this post. Thanks, Mo!!
After our two weeks’ quarantine, we were excited to get out and explore the Scottish countryside (in a socially distanced sort of way). Our first adventure, on August 14, was climbing Mither Tap (part of Bennachie – a range of hills in Aberdeenshire). Mither Tap stands at 1699 feet and offers gorgeous views of the surrounding area (www.walkhighlands.co.uk/aberdeenshire/mither-tap.shtml ) . Near the top, we passed through the remains of an undated fort that may have been build n the dark ages.
The hike up to Mither Tap from the Bennachie Visitor’s Center took a little over an hour and started easily enough. We passed a lovely stone wall that ran alongside what started out as a wide packed-earth path. Gorse (sadly, not in bloom this time of year), heather and a wide variety of other plants lined our slight ascent. Gradually the path narrowed and became a bit steeper, taking us through beautiful, tall trees. The final stretch was far steeper and rocky, but offered an absolutely beautiful view of purple heather.
