Oban wins the toss!
Looking over our options for places to visit, we settled on Oban, about a 2-hour drive from Crieff. This small port town has three castles, a tower, a museum and plenty of restaurants for a great lunch. Unfortunately, the largest castle, Dunstaffnage Castle, is closed today so we’ll have to chose one of the others to visit. Our new rental car, a Vauxhall, isn’t quite the performance vehicle we’re used to, but it will do. It does give you a true feel for the road. As I’m driving, my feet rest right on the back of the front tires so I can feel every rock and bump in the road. Yes, it is a compact. (Only $15.00USD / day!)
Weather today calls for increasingly cloudy skies with a high temp of 540. Easy drive, A85, the main road from Crieff to Oban, runs right in front of our house. Simple, turn left out of the parking lot, then drive for 2 hours and you’re there.
Loch Earn on the way to Oban
Mountain scenery on the way to Oban
Oban is a small resort town located on the Atlantic coast in the Firth of Lorn. (A “firth” is a narrow inlet of the sea) The name “Oban” in Scottish Gaelic means, “The Little Bay”. About 8,500 people live in Oban but during tourist season, the number can reach over 25,000. That’s got to be pretty crowded since there are only two main streets with shops and restaurants, the rest of the area is residential.
Oban
Downtown Oban
Over the years there have been several attempts to introduce industry in the area such as, herring fishing, shipbuilding, even a hydro-therapy hotel, but none have succeeded. The exception would be the Oban Distillery which is still there today producing “Classic Malts” Scottish whisky in small batches from the two “pot stills”.
Oban distillery
But we’re here to visit Dunollie Castle and then McCaig’s Tower before finding a local restaurant for lunch. Dunollie Castle was the home to Chief of Clan MacDougall during the 12th century. For most of the 12th and 13th centuries, Clan MacDougall was the most powerful clan in the Western Highlands. During the battle for independence in Scotland, the MacDougalls fought alongside William Wallace until Robert the Bruce stabbed to death the son of the Chief of Clan MacDougall. The killing resulted in a blood feud between the two clans. If you’ve seen Braveheart, you know that Robert the Bruce guy was a real shit!
Today, all that remains of the ancient Dunollie Castle is a tower house (keep) and parts of the outer enclosure.
MacDougall cross
The Keep
Inside the keep
Tower ruins
The views from the castle are awesome!
Firth of Lorn
This site also has the MacDougall home from the early 1800’s. In 1715, the MacDougall’s chose the wrong side in the Jacobite uprising and their lands were taken from them. In 1745, all was forgiven and the lands returned to Alexander MacDougall where he built the new family home. Today the home is part private residence and part museum containing items from the 1800’s. Best part, for us old folks, the entrance fee is only 5GBP, $6.15USD.
Servants bed with a painting of her above
A loom used by MacDougall’s wife
Collette, not Mrs. MacDougall
Ye ol’ footwarmer
A few pictures of the grounds.
Moving right along, we finish our touring of the castle and drive over to McCaigs Tower. The structure is located on Battery Hill and can be seen from most of Oban. It consists of two-storied ring of arches (94 lancet arches), 656’ in diameter. This was the outer wall of a much larger project commissioned by its architect and financier, John Stuart McCaig in 1987. McCaig had plans for a museum, art gallery and central tower to be built within the walls but unfortunately, he passed away before the project could be competed. With his passing so went the funding and the project stopped in 1902 with only the outer walls completed.
McCaig’s Tower
That’s pretty much the morning, time to find a restaurant for lunch. There are several to chose from but the consistent theme is “fish and chips”. Lots of fish and chip restaurants so, guess we’re having fish and chips.
A brief stroll through town then back on the road to Crieff.