Got up ready to roll as we had a reservation for a RIB boat ride on Loch Ness. Unbelievably, there was not a cloud in the sky. We cannot believe our good fortune. It is chilly and windy especially on a fast boat, but it was not all thrill ride and he did make sure to make some quick turns and take us over some wakes of the more sedate tour boats. Our pilot was a long haired, earring sporting, rugged old Scot who stopped frequently to point out eagles and Nessie for the kids, as well as discuss the Loch and Nessie for us adults. The Loch is crazy deep, and in the middle of it runs the Great Glen Fault, which runs the length of the Great Glen itself; the Scots say on one side of the fault lies Canada, on the other side is Norway. I wondered about scuba diving here (not that I would) but apparently because of the high peat content the water has pretty much zero visibility beyond 25 ft. Also, and this is something I wrote down immediately so I wouldn’t forget – the Loch could hold the population of the entire world. Times three.

Now. About Nessie. Here are a few tidbits our guide shared with us. Upwards of 95% of sightings of Nessie are by tourists. (See: numerous distilleries in the Great Glen…). Science has been doing its thing trying to figure out what exactly is happening down there and making some interesting progress. Most importantly, sonar as recently as 2020 HAS identified something about 8 m long and as big around as the pontoons on our boat and definitely alive. Not once but twice now. A little googling reveals that there was sonar before this that never found anything but that sonar was old technology and only reflected the floor of the loch. New sonar can check out the entire water column. Coolio.

According to our guide, there was speculation that maybe it was sturgeon as they can get quite long, but – who knew? – there is very little sturgeon DNA in the Loch. They can check out DNA in water? So much for me throwing Al overboard. Anyway, I guess some fisherman in the ocean waters off Scotland caught a monster eel some time ago and it was about that size. So there is certainly a possibility that in the relatively locked in (sorry, couldn’t resist) environs of such a deep body of water could house a monster eel. Add the fact that the loch is teeming with eel DNA and you start to think… Interesting stuff, huh?

Regardless of the science or the myth, the people here clearly love their Nessie and not just because of the tourist dollars. She’s apparently a mischievous gal judging by the caricatures in souvenirs and paintings. Look closely at the painting Al and I posed in front of and you’ll see her hiding in plain sight. This was taken at a little cafe in Fort Augustus where we started the boat trip. Macaroni and cheese, margherita panini and Al-just-can-resist sweets set us on our way to Skye.

Driving is better today. I only hit a curb once. Oh. And I do feel I must submit a formal apology to everyone who was following me yesterday. It was only this morning that Al and I suddenly realized we were dealing with miles and mph, not kilometers and kph. So yeah, I was definitely holding up traffic on numerous occasions, and maddeningly slow for everyone who was actually trying to reach a destination before July. I feel pretty bad about that and was quite patient with the person in front of me today who also hadn’t quite figured it out yet.

We also stopped at the famous Scottish castle, the Eilean Donan Castle, on the way to Skye. I was tired so just rested on a bench and gazed at this lonely looking castle surrounded by water (where three sea lochs meet) and greenery while Al went in to check it out. I was of course swept off my feet by the lilac bushes in full bloom next to more rhododendrons the size of my head. My sunglasses were swept off my head while I was posing/selfie taking, which doesn’t sound like a big deal but they are my only pair for this trip and are the only ones that fit over my hexagon glasses…fortunately they were waiting for me just under the lilac bush. One more snort of that heady aroma!!!!!

We made it to the Isle of Skye (continued blue sky all the way) with several stops along the way to admire the scenery. Our air bnb is out in the middle of nowhere and we only got lost once, which allowed us to delight another ruddy old Scot who seemed delighted to have yet another tourist to tease on this gravel backroad in sheep country. These people are just the best. There is humor and a gleam in the eye of every single person we’ve encountered. Of course as the consummate flirt I am loving every minute of it. My Mom always said the boys always liked me and I know why – it’s because I am always smiling and ready to tease back with the best of them. These old Scot farts pick right up on that and while poor Al is trying to understand what they’re saying so we can get where we’re going, I’m playing one-up-manship in the clever banter department. I have to say they have been getting the last word in all this but I still win – as I drive away with a big smile smiling at them. Our air bnb is a nice sized trailer on the owner’s property, with Scottish countryside as far as the eye can see. We had to come in off the deck around sunset because the famous “midges” came out. Tiny little gnats that apparently bit like horseflies. It was literally a cloud of them. I expected them to be more mosquito sized. They look so innocuous!

We awakened again to an almost cloudless sky and are relaxing this morning before taking off for a little drive around the isle. I think I’m going to let Al take the wheel today and we’ll see which of us has the more difficult task – me sitting in the death seat while he learns the joys of driving on the left. To be continued?