Scotland Day 2

The A9 is a long long road. I set off from Pitlochry after breakfast and got back onto the A9 to carry on driving north. Pulling in a layby to take this photo, I then drove over the bridge to carry on my journey.  

I knew I had plenty of time so I took a detour of a couple of miles and went into Dornoch for a break and a look around. This is the Cathedral.

Next to it on the green was this lovely cottage

This was a nice surprise to see, remember painting stones? On the ground in front of the museum were lots of painted stones, with pathways between them so you could walk around and read all the messages.

They told the story of a fishing boat disaster and the many lives which were lost. I wondered if the stones were real because they were so big, so I lifted one, and yes it was real.

At last I arrived in Scrabster on the north coast, and went to the dock. My boat was due to sail at 7pm. I got in the queue and waited to be waved on. All parked up and doors locked I climbed the stairs to the passenger decks.

It had started to rain, so it wasn't a good idea to go out on the sun deck, ha ha, no sun, just heavy rain. One and a half hours later we were pulling in at Orkney. The crew were getting ready to tie up the boat ready for disembarkation.

Oooh, it's looking murky out there, a complete contrast to the sunny days which have followed me all the way from home.

I had directions from my friends Ian and Christine to get to their house, it was 14 miles away. No easy task to find it in the dark. I made a wrong turn and had to ring and ask for help. Finally I got there in pitch black, guided by Ian flashing the porch light on and off so I could see it from down the road. It had been a long drive, 554 miles from door to door. Looking forward to my holiday on Orkney Island.  ilona