Dundreggan Rewilding Centre and a peaceful CL in Drumbhan

Saturday 30 August 2025

Nido's parked up on a CAMC CL on the Drumbhan Croft, about 2 miles from the village of Bonar Bridge in Sutherland.  We've  a cracking view over the Sutherland hills and Loch Migdale.  We arrived yesterday for two nights to rest and recuperate after a few days on the road and to top up our leisure battery.  As I type one van has just joined us for our last evening.

Yesterday morning we visited the Dundreggan Rewilding Centre.  We came here a couple of years ago and it's already matured since then.  There are four marked walks: Juniper, Oak, Pine and Heather and we completed all but the Heather walk.  There's a huge diversity of flora and fauna and we enjoyed walking around the Centre. It's also the HQ for Trees of Life, who are working hard to replant many of the Scottish forests.  We made use of the cafe for some well needed tea, coffee and cake and I'd recommend a visit if you're in the area.

Driving along the western shore of Loch Ness, we joined a traffic queue of mainly tourist buses and motorhomes, many stopping off at the Nessie tourist honeypots.  We continued on to top up food and fuel in Inverness before driving a further hour north to the CL.  It took a while to get the van level, but then it was out chairs and table in the warm evening sunshine for a glass of red wine.  After supper I took Salty for a walk along the very quiet road, with the fields full of rabbits which was his idea of heaven!  That Cathy time to wash up and clear up before we had a quick YouTube catch up.

Breakfast this morning was eaten outside in hot sunshine with no wind.  We walked for a couple of hours along the quiet roads and into the forest.  The roads very much reminded me of France - quiet, with lots of trees and shrubs and various eclectic houses (Crofts) leading off up and down dusty, rocky tracks.  Back at the van, lunch was again outside and I spent the afternoon researching places to visit on our first couple of days on the Isle of Lewis.  By mid-afternoon the clouds had appeared with a fresh wind, so we retreated into the van, still enjoying the panoramic views from the cab.  I cooked a dinner of Ramen hot pot with chicken, vegetables and noodles and we chilled for the rest of the evening.  

Tomorrow we'll be making our way to Ullapool, ready for the Monday morning ferry to Stornoway. 

Bridge of Orchy, Fort William and the Bridge of Oich

Thursday 28 August 2025

Nido's parked up on a CAMpRA (Campaign for Real Aires) aire at the Bridge of Oich, right next to the Caledonian Canal.  There are two pitches available on a first-come-first-served basis, with the payment of £10 made online via a QR code or their website.  It looks and feels like a French aire; in particular the canal is wide, like many of those in France, with plenty of diverse trees and undergrowth alongside.  The A82 runs within view over the swing bridge that's opened when a boat or ship want to pass through, as it did when we arrived.  So there's some road noise but I'm sure it'll quieten down later.

CAMpRA have been running a campaign for several years to persuade local communities, businesses and councils to set up a small aire in various parts of the UK, making the point that those who stay spend money in the local economy.  They've been quite successful and it's free to join to make use of their growing number of aires, which are all listed on the Search for Sites app.

We had a very quiet night's sleep at Grey Mare's Tail and drove north through some heavy rain., parking up at the NTS Geilston Gardens, on the banks of the Clyde between Dumbarton and Helensburgh.  We had some lunch and waited for the rain to ease so we could visit the gardens, but unfortunately it remained heavy, so we reluctantly drove off; a couple of umbrellas are now on the Nido shopping list!  We may be passing it on the way back down and will try again.

Driving north along the western bank of Loch Lomond, after a quick van service stop at Tarbet Pier, we carried on to Bridge of Orchy, where we turned off and drove along a single lane track for about 3 miles, which is part of the West Highland Way, complete with several teenage walkers carrying enormous rucksacks, no doubt 'enjoying' their Duke of Edinburgh task! Our park up was in a gravel car park close to Victoria Bridge.  We joined one van and another turned up later in the evening.  The rain had eased so we took Salty for a walk, with views over the misty hills and glens.  Back in the van, as evening approached the rain stopped, the clouds broke and we enjoyed some later evening sunshine.  This, along with no wind, brought out the midges but they weren't too bad.  

Today the rain eased at about 1100 as we arrived in Fort William.  We parked in the West End Car Park, which has ten large spots just for motorhomes; £3 for 4 hours or £5 for 10 hours parking, although no parking is allowed overnight between 2100 - 0800.  Salty had a walk and splash in the loch, before he enjoyed some me time in the van.  The high street was only a couple of minutes walk and is mainly pedestrianised.  After some shopping for a pair of trainers and a couple of brollies, we visited the West Highland Museum.  It's free with donations welcomed.  I particularly liked the section about the history of the Royal Marines training nearby during the Second World War and all the artefacts and information from the Jacobite period.

On the way back we stopped off at Nevis Bakery for a Scotch pie which went down well with a cup of tea back in the van, overlooking Loch Linnhe.  On the way out I drove to the Kilmallie Community Hall where they have set up a motorhome service point; very welcome and only a £5 donation.  Driving on we soon arrived at Bridge of Oich to pitch up for the night.  After our meal we took a walk along the canal, returning on the opposite bank after crossing at one of the lochs.  Time for a cup of tea now!

The Highlands and Islands of Scotland - 2025

Tuesday 26 August 2025

Nido's parked up in the car park at Grey Mare's Tail Nature Reserve in the Moffat Hills in Lanarkshire, with three other vans for company.  It's a National Trust for Scotland site and costs £5 per day to park, but as we're NTS members, we get to stay for free.  Top tip: NTS membership is cheaper than the equivalent England and Wales NT, especially if you're over 60 but not yet 65.  A reciprocal arrangement exists whereby NTS membership can also be used for free enty to England and Wales NT properties and sites (and vice versa).  In fact the reciprocal arrangements applies to similar NT organisations all over the world.

There's a steep walk up the hillside to a view over the waterfall and up to Loch Skeen, but after a long journey we did a shorter lowland route, which still provided us with a view of the the waterfall at least.  We left home this morning and drove up through warm sunshine, stopping once for lunch and a leg stretch.  

We've had a few short trips away this year (South Wales, Montgomeryshire, Derbyshire and East Anglia) and I've not blogged all of them, but this is our 'big' trip. We decided to take a break from visiting the EU but still wanted a bit of an adventure. So we're spending a week making our way north before catching a ferry next Monday from Ullapool to Stornoway, on the Outer Hebridean island of Lewis. We'll be spending a fortnight in the Outer Hebrides, starting with Lewis and Harris then heading south to the Uists and Barra (via two short ferry crossings) before returning via a ferry to Oban on the mainland. The rough plan then is to follow the west coast down into Dumfries and Galloway.  The weather will now doubt be changeable (to say the least!) but we've packed clothes and coats for all weather and, after a long hot summer, we're not too concerned about the approaching autumn.

So for tonight, we've eaten and are having a cup of tea in this very quiet car park surrounded by heather-covered hills and sheep.  Tomorrow we'll continue our journey north, albeit at a more leisurely pace.