We left early in the morning to head north on the M6. First stop was at Tebay Services for a traditional English breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, fried bread and black pudding. English roadside eating had a terrible reputation for many years due to the greasy spoon cafes that served up awful food to motorists who had no other options. Tebay Services is an exception, it was established 50 years ago alongside a working farm that now provides fresh daily produce for the restaurant and farm shop. The food is excellent, the staff are cheerful and the views over the countryside are breathtaking. Tebay has become something of a destination and even the subject of a TV documentary series.

We made a few more rest stops along the way, passing through the City of Glasgow before heading west towards Loch Lomond. Although the day had started dry, the rain set in and stayed with us the rest of the day. By the time we reached Loch Lomond it was a downpour with low cloud obscuring the hills and hanging menacingly over the loch. We had planed to eat a picnic lunch on benches overlooking the loch but had to stay in the car and watch the windows steam up as we passed around sandwiches and drinks. Scotland can be a beautiful place if the weather is kind, today it was not cooperating at all. The rain continued to fall.

The Green Welly is a must do place to stop. You can buy a nice meal, browse the clothing store or purchase your favorite single malt from the wide selection. We skipped the restaurant and clothing store to focus on the single malts. Back on the road again, the rain continued to fall.

We headed west into Glencoe with steep mountainous slopes that are used for skiing in winter. Today there were no skiers sliding down the rain soaked slopes, instead we witnessed white boiling waterfalls and gushing torrents crashing down to the base of the glen. Hikers were out in large numbers all over the glen, their brightly colored waterproof clothing contrasting with the dark rock. We stopped briefly at the Glencoe Visitors Center to learn more about this magical place. The rain continued to fall.

Our last stop was in Fort William to buy groceries for the week. Aldi and Marks and Spencer provided all the food we needed for 8 days but then we were faced with the challenge of stuffing all the bags into the overloaded car. We were only a couple of hours from our final destination so it was not a big problem for bags to be on the floor, on the seats and on our laps. The rain continued to fall.

A few miles further and we reached the Corran Ferry to cross over to Molvern. While waiting for the ferry, we decided to check in on Liverpool FC who were playing Southampton in their penultimate game in the English Premier League. Thanks to modern cell phones and a virtual private network connection we were able to access a channel back in the states to watch the game live. We cannot tell you anything about the ferry crossing as we were all glued to phone screen watching the game. Despite going down to an early goal, Liverpool won the game 2-1. The rain continued to fall.

The rain fell with more intensity as we rolled off the ferry. Driving along single track roads as darkness fell, not seeing a single vehicle for the next 45 minutes. Stopping frequently for sheep sitting in the middle of the road. Rounding a bend to find a herd of deer crossing, they looked at us with total disdain. How dare these humans invade our space. The rain continued to fall.

We pulled up at the Ardtornish Estate just after 9pm. It had been a long 13 hour journey and he only thing left was to unpack the car, have a light snack and a wee dram before falling into bed. The rain continued to fall.