Autumn in Perthshire - October 2014
Photo by Beryl Simpson/CC BY
The holiday began with our coach
picking up members from Darlington, Durham and Sunderland with our usual driver,
Alan Burrell from Barnard Castle Coaches. We made our way north to the
Tankerville Arms at Wooler for brunch, before continuing to the outskirts of
Dalkeith to visit the amazing Rosslyn Chapel made famous through the Da Vinci
Code novel.
After leaving mid-afternoon we joined the two mile queue to travel over the Forth Bridge which we discovered had two lanes closed for Sunday repair work. We had plenty of time, however, to view the progress of the new road bridge being built alongside the present one. We finally arrived in the dark at the Atholl Palace Hotel in Pitlochry two hours late, more than ready for our evening meal.
The following day we began by visiting the nearby Queen’s View but unfortunately the mist was so low we saw nothing! So it was on to the House of Bruar, a large exclusive shopping complex. Our next stop was Blair Castle, a very impressive and interesting building with an amazing huge walled garden. After spending some time here our next place was to Dunkeld for a lovely walk beside the river to the Hermitage. It was then back to our hotel after an action packed day.
After leaving mid-afternoon we joined the two mile queue to travel over the Forth Bridge which we discovered had two lanes closed for Sunday repair work. We had plenty of time, however, to view the progress of the new road bridge being built alongside the present one. We finally arrived in the dark at the Atholl Palace Hotel in Pitlochry two hours late, more than ready for our evening meal.
The following day we began by visiting the nearby Queen’s View but unfortunately the mist was so low we saw nothing! So it was on to the House of Bruar, a large exclusive shopping complex. Our next stop was Blair Castle, a very impressive and interesting building with an amazing huge walled garden. After spending some time here our next place was to Dunkeld for a lovely walk beside the river to the Hermitage. It was then back to our hotel after an action packed day.
Photo by Beryl Simpson/CC BY
Day three we set off to Crieff to visit
Drummond Castle, a very old private house steeped in family history with a
magnificent garden, said to be the largest formal gardens in Scotland; they
were stunning! We then called at the Crystal Tearooms outside Crieff for
sustenance before returning to the hotel for an early dinner, as we were to
visit the major local October attraction, The Enchanted Forest. We were
taken by shuttle bus, and we walked around the paths beside the lake to see the
coloured lighting displays with music, which was most effective in the darkness.
Fortunately it was a nice fine mild evening so very enjoyable.
The next morning we had a choice
between visiting Killiecrankie for a walk through the woods to the famous Soldier’s
Leap, or to call in on the Highland Chocolatier for coffee and a chance to see
how the chocolates were made. We then made our way back to Pitlochry to look
around the town. Next we were off
to the Pitlochry Festival Theatre for a meal which preceded an excellent performance
of The Admirable Crichton. Another
full day.
On the day of our return we drove through Fife to a private house, Balcarras, near Loch Leven, belonging to Lord and Lady Balniel. They showed us round their lovely home, by which time the drizzle had stopped and we were able to tour the gardens. We then progressed to Carfraemill for a meal, and continued homewards after a most interesting and enjoyable few days with good weather. Our thanks go to Jacqui Yates for her time and hard work planning the holiday, and to Alan our very able driver.
On the day of our return we drove through Fife to a private house, Balcarras, near Loch Leven, belonging to Lord and Lady Balniel. They showed us round their lovely home, by which time the drizzle had stopped and we were able to tour the gardens. We then progressed to Carfraemill for a meal, and continued homewards after a most interesting and enjoyable few days with good weather. Our thanks go to Jacqui Yates for her time and hard work planning the holiday, and to Alan our very able driver.
