Our first day of travel in Scotland saw us visiting battlefields, monuments and castles. There is so much history here. I really don’t know how anyone can keep track of who fought which battle during what year. People have lived in Scotland for over 12,000 years, but her written history dates back only to the 1100s. I do know this much – the Scots love Robert the Bruce and William Wallace.
After picking up our car in Glasgow, we headed 30 miles north to the city of Stirling.
Geographically, this is where the Scottish highlands meet the lowlands. Ancient artifacts and bones found in the area have been carbon dated back to the Bronze Age.
Upon arriving in Stirling, our first stop was the site of the Battle of Bannockburn. During a two day battle in June of 1314, Robert the Bruce, King of Scots, squared off against Edward II of England in a battle over Stirling Castle. After the 2 day battle, the English broke formation and the Scots were victorious in occupying the castle.
Our next stop, was across the city to the National Wallace Monument built in 1869. This is where, in 1297, William Wallace, Andrew de Moray and their troops defeated the powerful English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge – think Braveheart. We toured the visitor center, drank decadent hot chocolate and walked the footpath up the hill to the monument.
Once there, we climbed the spiral stone staircase to the Hall of Arms level. The next level was the Hall of Heroes which housed 15 white marble and one bronze bust of Scotland’s most notable figures. The centerpiece of this exhibit was the Wallace Sword, said to have been used by William Wallace himself in 1297. Our tour guide was a former police investigator who has a couple of personal ties to sword. I teared up listening to his passionate account of Scottish history.
If you are familiar with the movie Braveheart, you know how William Wallace met his demise. Each time I watch the movie, I get ripped up at how cruel his death was – shame on you, Hollywood, for making his execution worse than it really was!! After visiting the monument, I now believe Hollywood actually softened the blow for us.
After walking down the paths of the monument, we drove back across Stirling to the Stirling Castle. (Have I ever mentioned about roundabouts being the spawn of the devil?) The city of Stirling was once the capital of Scotland and is home to Stirling Castle. Ancient ruins can be dated as far back as the 12th century. The structures now in place were built between 1490 and 1600. The castle has seen 8 sieges with the last one being in 1746.
For more than 600 years, notable writers have linked Stirling Castle to the legend of King Arthur. Recent research has revealed The Round Table may have been hidden below the castle.
Recently, nine graves were discovered under a chapel built in the 1600s. Two skeletons, one male and one female, apparently met violent deaths in the 1300s. It was interesting to view the exhibit and see the research on how they came to conclusions regarding the individuals.
The history of the castle is overwhelming, so buying books to read later is a must. There was so much more to Stirling, but unfortunately, we needed to hook it to Pitlochry 60 miles away and check into our inn before nightfall.
*Estimating time of arrival in Scotland is quite different than in Meeker. You have a lot of these to contend with….
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So into the first restaurant we saw. Some people looked at us funny but I must say those where the best tasting french fries I ever had and I didn’t care then what anyone thought and I still don’t today after a day on the trail. I love coming home from a backpacking trip or camping trip and still smelling the campfire on my coat or jacket. I guess we’re all HIKER TRASH I love it!!!”
g. We had always wanted to go there and check out their reservoirs and numerous trails. It’s only about a 4.5 hour drive from us. And we have friends in Laramie a half hour away whom we could visit. Perfect! Wait. It’s the middle of Feb. Even though the water is still frozen, the trails might be dry. Then there is the horrific wind we have to deal with. Hmmm. I’ll sit and stew on that one a bit.
As Friday morning rolled around, we found out that we were needed to work at the local artisans cooperative as no one had signed up for that day. So we spent Friday working, talking with customers, doing book work and making native Aspen wood coasters with turquoise inlay. A very fun and productive day.
, our friend called and needed Dale’s help with some remodeling he was doing. Then Dale’s uncle called from Maybell (45 miles north of Meeker) and said if we were going to be around, he’d like to drive over and pick up the snowmobiles and jeep we wanted him to have. So, our day was pretty much shot from there on. 
Five hours later we were back on the road to Glenwood. We hit Lowes fast and furiously, made our purchases, then beat it back home. The next morning, we got up, fixed breakfastthen proceeded to make a mess in our house. 
The Lollygaggers 
