26th April William, Neptune, Glen and Co

So our thrill ride in Pitlochry came to an end just before our adrenal glands started to wave the white flag unable to produce adrenaline at such high levels. Even an early morning 5km out to the hyrdo dam did little to calm my hyper state. Today we were off to Loch Lomond but decided to go the long way round via Fort William, just because being the kind of decadent, devil may care adventurers that we are, we could. Whether we should or not is another question.

The knee is still an issue, not mine but TOM's so anything above a glacial stroll was not on the cards. Not that there was that much to see in Fort William which struck us both as the kind of place one went to a) in order to go somewhere else ie Ben Nevis or b) to start / finish a long distsnce walk. Not that we could locate Ben Nevis from the town centre for heavens sake. 

Thankfully a trip out to Neptune's Staircase, a series of 12 locks at the start of great Glen waterway linking Fort William in the east with Inverness on the west coast rectified that. The sun finally put its hat on and the highest mountian in the UK was revealed. Yet once again just as there were no salmon leaping at the salmon ladder in Pitlochry, there were no boats of any description attempting to go up or down the series of locks.  Boo hoo indeed.

But, and just like some of the American tourists we have seen on thir trip, it was a big BUTT,  the ride down the A82 through the Glen Coe valley was simply superb. I can see why it is widely regarded as one of the most scenic drives in the UK. Towering slopes on either side of a road that slipped and slithered its way around and in between them, the moody magnificence of the partially overcast sky casting constantly chaning shadows on the landscape. Several times we just had to pull over and admire the view.

We are now just chilling at out second Shearings hotel of our little jolly in the tiny hamlet of Tarbet on the shores of Loch Lomond. Having read the local tourist information I am not sure there will be that much to do here. It says, "if you are stopping for an hour in Tarbet then why not spend it sitting on a bench enjoying the stunning views of the water. Staying for more than a hour, then move to the second bench for a slightly different view. Staying for longer, simply repeat steps A and B until it gets dark."