Way up North - finally :)

Today we were up early up to get on the road to a decent time and succeeded.
The weather was not that pleasant - but there is no bad weather - there is only bad clothing!
We planned to take the scenic route. That's what travelling the Highlands is all about.
Our first stop was in Callander. I always like stopping in Callander. It is a lovely wee town in the Trossachs and although a bit touristy always nice to stop. Not at last because of the shoe shop ...... I have to admit. 
There are 3 of those clearance shops in Scotland. Oban, Largs and Callander. They have the most amazing quality brands for small prices. Like Think, Paul Green, Ecco, Seibel and so many more. I do love Think and Paul Green shoes .... In the end I had 7 pairs to decide from and walked out with 5 pairs - within my budget!
Neil took much longer than me in deciding. But I guess this it because he in the end left the shop with only one pair ;).
After having dumped the bag of shoes in the car we went for a coffee. I had not had breakfast and was tempted by a apricot almond meringue. Honestly, that was my first ever meringue and it tasted heavenly.
Altogether we spent far too long in Callander and had to move on. We drove along river Tay and then took the way over the mountains to Glen Lyon. Not the fastest but a very stunning route via Ben Lawyer. The Glen Lyon route let us pass Fortingall with their 5000 year old Yew tree. Always a reason to stop. As was the collection of  5 classic MGs and their owners.
(see extra).
Next stop was at "Queen's View" in the rain and then we really had to get some miles behind us on the A9.
We drove through Newtonmore and Kingussie and then to the Ruthven Baracks, built in 1719 after the first Jacobite rising in order to keep the Scottish Clansmen under control. This was also the place where Bonnie Prince Charlie and the remaining Jacobite soldiers retreated after the lost Battle of Culloden and where he sent his army home and started his escape from Scotland in April 1746.
I have visited all those places a lot in the past when financing my studies with tour guiding. The weather had improved and we did even see blue bits in the sky.
It was already after 6 pm and we really had to get to our hotel. We again took the scenic route through the woods of Badenoch and arrived at our destination short after 7 pm.
The hotel was lovely situated at Loch Alvie and we were booked in for dinner at 7:45 pm.
And what an amazing dinner we had. Just wonderful! We stuffed ourselves with 3 courses because everything sounded (and was) so wonderful. I made plans to kidnap the chef and take him home!
The Hotel staff was lovely and the lady that I believe was the Hotel manager was a true character. What a wonderful treat!
We ended up with a pot of (also lovely) coffee in the lounge and tried to make plans for the next day. But tiredness did not allow us to get far with that.

My main blip is the stables of the Ruthven barracks.
Extras:   
1. View over LochTay from the Ben Lawyers route.
2. MG Classic Cars
3. Full view of the Ruthven Barracks.