Friday, September 12, 2008

Up at 7:00 a.m. Highland breakfast. Packed up and tidied up. Left Mull on 10:00 a.m. Fishnish – Lochaline ferry. Travelled across Morvern on A884. Passed Beach (pronounced Bee-ach) on the right, where Topsy Cockburn‘s (an old friend of Mum’s) family once was – they were McGregors, later Gregorsons. Crossed the narrowest point of Loch Linnhe on the Corran ferry – a very short trip, about a quarter mile. Stopped in a nice coffee/gift shop in Ballachulish, on the right just before the (now boarded up) hotel, on what was once the old road through the village. Had coffee and sausage rolls. Bought some gifts. Mum and Dad both bought walking sticks. Moved along into Glencoe. Passed the sight of the 1692 Massacre of Glencoe. Then passed a small white house, up a hill on the left, called The Study. Ewan McInnes, who was married to my grandmother’s sister, Mary Ann McKinnon, came from there. Crossed the forbidding looking Rannoch Moor, which is essentially a big swamp. The hydro towers in this area were built in 1939. My grandfather, Alexander Fletcher, widowed 2 years by this time, worked as a guide across the moor for the work men bringing supplies to the site. He was staying with his sister-in-law, Mary Ann (McKinnon) McInnes, and her family at Rannoch Station. My grandmother had died there in 1937. Dad was there too, as a young child, and enjoyed his time with his 8 McInnes cousins.
Next, we made our way up to the ruined Fletcher castle, Achallader, built in the 1400s, burnt in 1691. Seemingly, meetings about what to do with the McDonalds, later murdered at Glencoe, were held here – a turbulent time. Took pictures. Dad ate a ripe damson plum from an old tree adjacent to the castle – I think he saved the stone with intent to planting it! I took some rowan berries with the same idea, plus 2 small pebbles that were lying on the ground – would like to get them polished to wear on a chain. Had a walk around the very, very old graveyard. Plenty of Fletchers there, but who? Many stones have sunk, possibly a foot, into the soft, wet ground (saw a frog!) The ‘newest’ burials appear to be from 1813. Before leaving, put my hand upon the castle wall which was built by my ancestors some 600 years ago. The word ‘pilgrimage’ came to my mind there.
Took a short side trip to Bridge of Orchy. Went down by the hotel and over a very old bridge. Took the road on the right along past Inveroran Hotel (now a shooting lodge) and then doubled back. Passed through a grove of old scotch pines hundreds of years old.
Went to Tyndrum. Stopped at The Green Welly, a restaurant/shop, just so Dad could ask inside if the road to Cononish was open to the public. Dad had lived at Cononish happily, before his mother’s early death and had good memories of it. His father had worked for Walter Burton in the early 1930s on this large farm. Today, gold has been found in the hills above and several companies have tried to make a go of it. We took a drive part way up, crossing ‘Fletcher’s Bridge’, a wooden bridge made by my grandfather and Walter Burton so my Dad could get to school (which was not to be – too far to walk at just over 3 miles.) Turned back and returned to Tyndrum. Booked a room for the night through the Visitors’ Centre and returned to the Green Welly for dinner. Then returned to the road to Cononish, this time using a brand new bridge, which has just been constructed over a ford in the river. Long, rough road up to Cononish. Met a Land Rover, a man and 3 sheep dogs up there. Turned out to be John Burton, son of Walter Burton. Dad knew John Burton from childhood. They had a great talk about the old days! Took pictures. On the way back down, photographed toadstools in the woods – big bright red ones with white spots like you see in fairy tale books!
Drove on to Crianlarich. Took A85 through Glen Dochart. Passed Auchessan and saw the ruins of where Rob Roy McGregor’s had been burned by his enemies in the 1700s. At Lix Toll, took A827 NE to lovely, picturesque village of Killin. Beautiful waterfalls in the middle of town. Lots of B&Bs. We stayed the night in the Dall Country Inn. I had room 3. Mum and Dad had room 4. I took a walk around the village just after our arrival at 8:00 p.m. Bought chips and pop at the Co-op store and walked back. Wrote for an hour. In bed by 9:30 p.m. Nice to have TV for a night. Looking forward to a good shower tomorrow. To date have taken 60 pictures and written 23 pages.