Land Of Adventure
SCOTLAND’S a fantastic country for adventures. This month I’ve been all over the place, from the Highlands to the islands, having loads of fun and creating great memories along the way.
I had a super trip to Arran, with my dog Storm and friend Nick. We climbed a few mountains, walked part of the coastal path and spent some time just chilling out at the peaceful Lochranza campsite.
The dog joined me on a few other mountain days but the highlight of the month was a wonderful weekend in the Cairngorms, with my sister Carrie and nephew Archie.
We stayed in Aviemore and started the trip with an exciting visit to the Landmark Forest Adventure Park at Carrbridge.
I told five-year-old Archie my campervan was a time machine, which explained how we were able to visit the park’s dinosaur kingdom – he was awe-struck by the huge animatronic creatures, especially the T-rex!
On the way home, we time-travelled again, with a visit to the Highland Folk Museum at Newtonmore.
It’s Britain’s first open-air museum, with replica and reconstructed buildings demonstrating what life was like in rural Scotland from the 1700s up to the 1950s.
Unfortunately, the brilliant 1700s Township was closed due to severe damage from last winter’s storm Arwen. Guides told us more than 200 trees had been downed. They hadn’t even been able to assess the damage as workers were still trying to make safe the area.
Luckily the rest of the incredible museum can be visited – and the 1950s houses proved a hit with Archie. I told him I remembered dial-up phones, bakelite switches, radiograms and the like from elderly relatives’ houses when I was wee in the 80s – he looked at me like I was a Landmark dinosaur...
He wasn’t so impressed with the 19th-century cottage (pictured). With its dark, smoky interior, dirt floor and cobweb-draped rafters it was altogether a bit too “spidery”.
Whether you like your adventures big or wee, in the great outdoors, in museums, galleries or at festivals and events, you’ll find plenty inspiration in this month’s Scots Magazine.