Dunrobin

A pleasant stay last night in Grantown on Spey but I’m not sure I’m a fan of Whiskey and Honey smelling hand wash, thank fully it was Wild Nettle and Heather shower gel! (Both from a well known Scottish soap brand)

We arrived at Dunrobin Castle at 11.00 am just when it said it would rain but it only amounted to a few spots.
We’ve passed by several times but never had time to stop but today we spent 3 hours here.

A sunny start to the day so we took a look at the River Spey at the Old Spey Bridge, extra,  before heading north to Golspie.

At the castle we were just in time to descend to the gardens to see the first Falconry display of the day. A Harris Hawk followed by a Gyr Falcon, apparently the largest of the falcons. 

I suggested, being a philistine, that this would be a good time to head back to the castle for a coffee whilst so many people, including a bus load of French school children watched the display.  The plan worked and we could see the falcon flying from above.

Whilst there we did a tour inside. The seat of the Earl of Sutherland. An earlier Countess of Sutherland married the Earl of Stafford and a double ‘S’ emblem adorned much of the china including that in the bathroom which was one of the earliest to be installed. 

Back in the gardens I took the blip, I can’t resist poppies!

The rain finally appeared on our journey to Thurso but had stopped when we arrived. We are here for the night prior to our early ferry to Orkney in the morning.