The day began ambitiously enough. It was our last morning in Drum, and Michele and Terri wanted to take advantage of the fact that we were only a few miles from a castle. So they ran there and back. The view of the loch below was simply perfect. And they felt a smidge better about all the chips, toffee, puddings, pints, and whiskies they’d been so fortunate to taste thus far.
Today we were moving home base from Drumnadrochit to Fort Augustus just a half an hour down the road. So we packed up, waved goodbye to our bunk beds, and off we went in search of, you guessed it, Highland cows.
But unlike previous attempts, today we struck Highland cow
gold. First, near Drum, and then again in Invermoriston. They were so adorable, we instantly felt terrible about all the burgers, steaks, prime ribs, and meatballs that had come before them.
After the cows (who incidentally refused to sign the model release forms), we made our way to Fort Augustus and checked into the Lovat Hotel.
The Lovat is pretty fancy pants compared to our old digs but we quickly (and happily) acclimatized. We also spent a few hours basking in the fully-functioning WiFi and took the opportunity to touch base with home.
We noticed a lady working at the bar who looked strangely familiar. Her name was Briony
and we’d seen her a few days ago at the Dores Inn. We told Briony what we were up to and before we could order another round, a few other kind souls from the Lovat had appeared to offer up assistance, names of potential recruits, and places (read pubs) we could visit. All in all, a very warm reception to Fort Augustus.
We enjoyed a meal and a few whiskies at Bothy’s pub near the canal, where we bumped into Graham from Foyers again (small loch). Then we headed home for an early night and some Jerry Springer, which is somehow funnier in Scotland.