Places of interest to visit during your holiday at Aspenwood Cottage overlooking Loch Ness in the Highlands of Scotland. They are all within easy reach and are good days out. We have personally enjoyed them all many times.
EAST COAST VISITS
Dolphin Watching. The best place to see the famous Moray Firth bottlenose dolphins is at Chanonry Point opposite Fort George on the
Black Isle. Travel out of Inverness north over the Kessock Bridge and turn right at the first roundabout marked to Fortrose and Rosemarkie. Go through the village of Avoch and at the next village of Fortrose drive past the Coop and Police Station and then turn right at the signpost showing a dolphin down to Chanonry Point. Drive down a single track road through a golf course to the car park at the end. The hungry dolphins can be seen between one to two hours after LOW TIDE as they come in on the rising tide after the fish. We leave a print out of the tide times and directions in the information folder on the desk by the laptop.The Moray Firth also welcomes a number of seabirds, seals and harbour porpoises as well as rarer visitors such as basking sharks, minke whales and common dolphins.
Fort George on the east coast is a fascinating visit - a huge Georgian fort filling a headland, jutting out into the Moray Firth. It was built as a base for George II's army following the defeat of Bonnie Prince Charlie and his Jacobite army at Culloden, in case the Jacobite cause was rekindled. By the time it was completed in 1769 the uprising had been firmly quashed, a shot was never fired and it has been used ever since as active artillery barracks. There is a visitors centre, exhibitions, historic barrack rooms as well as the regimental museum of the Queen's Own Highlanders and it is considered to be one of the finest fortifications in Europe.
Nairn. After a visit to Cawdor Castle and lunch at the Cawdor Tavern why not travel on to the seaside village of Nairn about 40 miles drive from Aspenwood on the east coast. A rather quaint town with a busy boating marina and yacht club plus various shops and places to eat. Take a stroll along the footpath by the side of a marvellous long sandy beach with dunes. Picnic tables by parking bays.
Culbin Sands. Just beyond Nairn is the Culbin RSPB Nature Reserve and Culbin Forest walks. Situated between Nairn and Findhorn Bay.
Findhorn Bay on the Moray Firth with beautiful windswept sandy beaches. Travel along the A96 east towards Forres and look for signs
left to Findhorn Village. Walk along the clean sands at Burghead Bay. The River Findhorn flows northeast for a distance of 62miles from the Monadhliath Mountains into Findhorn Bay. Can be rather breezy but very exhilarating!
Burghead Bay near Findhorn is a long windswept clean sandy beach for a really exhilarating walk.
Dunrobin Castle is a 70 mile trip up the east coast to just beyond the village of Golspie. It is the 
largest house in the northern Highlands - an enormous fairy tale castle with a distinctive French-style look with spires and elaborate stonework, modelled on a Loire Chateau. It is one of Britain's oldest continuously inhabited houses by the Sutherland family, dating in part to the early 1300's. There is a fine display of antique furniture, china, tapestries, portaits, works of art and other luxurious goods acquired by one of the wealthiest families in the land. It is set in a great park with magnificent formal gardens inspired by Versailles. There is a very entertaining falconry display in the grounds every afternoon and a great chance to see birds of prey up close in their pens.
Black Isle Wildlife Park. Cross over the Kessock Bridge on the A9 and take the first turning left to Drumsmittal. Open every day from March to November. If you areinterested in animals and birds you will enjoy a visit to this quiet corner of the Black Isle. Tea room and gift shop available. Ideal outing for the children.
Fairy Glen Waterfalls on the Black Isle at Rosemarkie. A beautiful peaceful walk with a series of stunning waterfalls.
CENTRAL VISITS
Urquhart Castle juts out onto Loch Ness and is clearly visible from Aspenwood on the opposite shore especially in winter when the castle is lit up. The new Visitors Centre is discretely set back into the hillside and looks out over the castle ruins, Loch Ness and the
mountains beyond. It opened in summer 2002 and is well worth a visit- with an audiovisual display describing the castle’s turbulent history, an exhibition and medieval artefacts found during excavations. A short film show is available with a spectacular ending. Open all year. It was once one of the largest castles in Scotland but was blown up in 1692 to stop it falling into Jacobite hands. The castle is near the village of Drumnadrochit on the A82 and can be reached either by going east through the city of Inverness or by going west via Fort Augustus at the southernmost end of Loch Ness.Take a day tour round Loch Ness.
Fort Augustus is a bustling village at the most southern end of Loch Ness, about 16 miles from Aspenwood. This is where the Caledonian Canal, with its many stepped lock gates, comes into operation for boating purposes enabling travellers to continue their journey. It is well worth a walk along the side of the Caledonian Canal watching the various boating craft in the lock gates waiting to go on their way. Various eateries, shops, petrol station. It is possible to travel from the east coast to the west coast of Scotland by various waterways along the entire length of the Great Glen.
Glen Affric is a truly pictureque glen with the River Affric running through it and opening out onto an island-studded loch, surrounded 
by a string of Munros. It contains one of the largest surviving native Caledonian pine and birchwoods in the United Kingdom. On a calm, sunny day, the reflection of the islands and surrounding hills and mountains is breath-taking and well worth the journeyCar park/toilets at the end of the track and some good walks to be enjoyed. Ideal for a picnic. There are various colour coded walks available -our favourite is the circular walk through the shady forest down to the River Affric which feeds into Loch Affric. Stroll along by the side of the river and watch it cascade over the rocks. Look out for the dipper birds sitting on the rocks and then walking underwater upstream 'hoovering' up their food. Picnic tables also at Dog Falls nearby.
Culloden Battlefield is 5 miles east of Inverness. It is a windswept, bleak moorland which, in 1746, saw the end of the Jacobite uprising in the Battle of Culloden - the last ever battle on British soil. This battle is graphically described as an excellent audiovisual in the New Visitors Centre which is open all year with restaurant & shop. Outside you can walk freely round the battle sites; flags mark the position of the two armies and clan graves are marked by simple headstones.
Falls of Shin. These are to be found just outside Lairg, off the B864 north of Inverness. Here you can watch the wild Atlantic salmon leap up the dramatic waterfalls on their annual journey to the spawning grounds in the headwaters of the River Shin and its tributaries. . The salmon start their run as the waters warm from the end of April through to the end of November and can be easily seen from the well-maintained viewing platform near the car park. Enjoy the forest walks nearby. Restaurant and Harrods gift shop.
Plodda Falls. From the A831, from either Beauly or Drumnadrochit take the unclassified road signposted to Tomich. Go through Tomich and continue slowly along the very bumpy forest track to Plodda falls carpark and picnic site about 3.5 miles along. From here there are two circular waymarked walks which go to Plodda falls - the Tweedmouth Walk and the shorter Falls Walk. The falls plunge about 200ft. The area around the Falls is a rich and diverse woodland. Around 1900, Lord Tweedmouth planted a large number of Douglas Fir, Larch, Giant Redwood and specimen conifers. Together with the native tree population they have combined to provide an ideal habitat for the native red squirrel and a wide variety of bird and insect life.
Cawdor Castle is about 30 miles from Aspenwood on the way to Nairn and is open to the public from June to October. An interesting tour inside through low doorways and up winding stone stairs. Beautiful gardens especially in the summer months. Go over the drawbridge and into the splendid house and home of The Dowager Countess Cawdor. Good food available at the nearby Cawdor Tavern in the village.
Highland Wildlife Park is at Kincraig about 7 miles beyond Aviemore and about 50 miles from Aspenwood. View Scottish and European wildlife and endangered animals of the world’s mountains and tundra. Drive round the Main Reserve in your car and then explore the Walk-Round area to view the animals at close range. This Park opened in 1972 and, along with Edinburgh Zoo, is run by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland. The latest addition is Walker the polar bear. View the playful Amur tigers in their large paddock. Open every day except Xmas Day. A good day out.
WEST COAST VISITS
The Isle of Skye off the west coast is about 60 miles from Aspenwood, passing Eilean Donan Castle and going over the famous Skye 
Bridge at Kyle of Lochalsh. The bridge was started in 1992 and took three years to complete. It spans the narrow channel known as the Sound of Sleat for 900m/1000yd between Skye and the Kyle of Lochalsh on the mainland. Skye is the largest island of the Inner Hebrides, lying just off the northwest coast of Scotland. It is also one of the most scenic, with several peaks of the Cuillin Hills rising above 950m/3120ft. Eilean Donan Castle is on the road to Skye, about 8 miles from the Kyle of Lochalsh and well worth stopping for a visit. It is built on an island on Loch Duich and can be reached by buying a ticket and going over the narrow stone bridge. It consists of a 14th century tower house surrounded by a 13th century wall. Badly damaged during the Jacobite rising of 1719, the castle was rebuilt between 1912-1932
Plockton. Alternatively, if you don't want to go over to the Isle of Skye, travel on from Kyle and journey a short distance up the coast to the picturesque village of Plockton where palm trees flourish in the warm west coast winds. This part of the Scottish west coast is virtualy frost free due to the influence of the Gulf stream, a warm water current which sweeps up from the Gulf of Mexico and passes close to the shores of Scotland. Seal trips available.
Corrieshalloch Gorge. A little further after passing the turn to the Kyle of Lochalsh & Inverewe Gardens on your left there is a sign to Corrieshalloch Gorge & Falls of Measach. Park in the car park on the right and walk across the road down to these dramatic scenic sights. There is a good viewing platform and a suspension bridge over the Gorge with good photo opportunity. Not for the squeamish! This spectacular gorge is 1mile long and 200ft deep.Here the River Droma tumbles 150ft dramatically onto broken horizontal rock formation over the Falls of Measach.Corrieshalloch Gorge is the best example in Scotland of a steep sided gorge formed by glacial melt-waters during the later stages of the Great Ice Age [between 10,000 – 13,000 years ago]. The whole length of the gorge was notified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in March 1984. The extremely steep ungrazed sides of the gorge support a rich and varied collection of untouched mosses and ferns. It is so deep that it is very difficult to see down to the base of the gorge.
Ullapool. The idyllic white-washed fishing village of Ullapool curves round a natural peninsula on the shores of Loch Broom and is about 80 miles from Aspenwood on the west coast. Today there is still an important fleet of boats catching lobster, oyster, mussels and scallops for an international market. A very popular place in the summer season. For a longer trip journey on up along the west coast from Ullapool and view the Summer Isles situated at the mouth of Loch Broom. The islands are also a very famous haunt of divers with their huge underwater caverns, spectacular caves and coral-crusted wrecks. Along the way you pass the conspicuous triangular shaped pinnacled peak of Stac Pollaidh [Stack Polly] at 612m/2009ft with a very rocky summit ridge - a favourite for really serious climbers who enjoy a challenge. There are wonderful secluded sandy beaches on the west coast often with a breathtaking backdrop of snow topped mountains. The islands of Harris and Lewis in the Outer Hebrides can be seen across this stretch of water on a clear day.
Inverewe Gardens are up on the west coast where a profusion of mature, rather unusual plants and foliage flourish in the area's famously temperate climate, a consequence of the warm Gulf Stream. The gardens are protected by Loch Ewe's corrosive sea breezes by a dense screen of various well-established trees. Visit some of the clean sandy secluded beaches on the west coast such as Gruinard Bay.
Applecross. The trip to Applecross takes about 3 hours and is a journey of about 100 miles but well worth the effort. Originally the
only way to get to Applecross was by boat until the Cattle Pass was built in the 18th Century. This narrow road zig zags spectacularly for about 11 miles attaining a height of 2053 feet where there are breath-taking views of the triangular Cullin Mountains opposite on the Isle of Skye. You will now began the descent to Applecross Bay and the welcoming Applecross Inn which is always very busy and the food is wholesome. From Applecross there are terrific views over to the Inner Hebrides to the isles of Skye, Raasay and the outcrop of Rona. Take the coastal road back to the settlement of Shieldaig on Loch Torridon. This road was only built in 1976 as an easier alternative to the mountainous Cattle Pass. Travel across to the east coast and home.
NORTH COAST VISITS
Dunnet Head Cliffs is the most northerly point of mainland Scotland—and not the famous John O’Groats as is widely thought. Look 
across to Orkney and Scapa Flow. Enjoy a picnic on the cliff tops watching the teeming bird life contending with the sea breeze is great fun. A bold sandstone promonotory 417ft high, with a lighthouse and views across the Pentland Firth to Orkney and along the north coast. Remains of old look out posts across to Scapa Flow where naval ships were based during wartime. Drive back through Strathnaver – a fertile valley extending 19 miles from Loch Naver to the north coast. It is very sparcely inhabited as it was the scene of wholesale evictions from 1812–1819 in ‘the clearances’. This was when local crofters were forcefully removed to the coast and their land taken over by more profitable sheep farming. These events are reviewed in the Strathnaver Museum at Bettyhill village on the north coast. Bettyhill has an unbroken arc of beautiful pure white sand which forms between the Naver and Borgie Rivers and is a popular surfing centre.Visit the nearby Castle of Mey the holiday retreat of the late Queen Mother.
Castle of Mey is at the end of a scenic journey right up the east coast to the Pentland Firth and not far from John O’ Groats. This was the favourite summer retreat of the late Queen Mother and you can almost sense her presence here still. The Queen Mother purchased
it in 1952, after her husband’s death, and had it lovingly restored. After her death the castle now belongs to a charitable trust and is open to the public. Beautifully maintained gardens. It is situated on the most northerly coast of mainland Scotland and has superb views over the Pentland Firth to the Island of Orkney and Scapa Flow. Falls of Shin - just outside Lairg, off the B864 north of Inverness. Here you can watch the salmon leap up the dramatic waterfalls from the viewing platform above the River Shin between April & November. Enjoy the forest walks nearby. Restaurant and Harrods gift shop/car park.
