A Royal residence

 Sunday 23rd

Considering we parked overnight next to the A93, it was remarkably quiet. Saying that one car did beep at 7.30am but as we were already up, so it mattered not.

We left towards Braemar, nearly had another run in with a sheep...again...arghhh. 

The road continued its winding route and at Auchallater a slight detour bypassing the old bridge. Crikey we thought we were back in New Zealand. Detours like this was a regular occurrence.

 Today we went to the summer residence of the Royal Family. Balmoral Castle was about a 30-minute drive, we arrived early, around 9:30 am and had a 30-minute wait for the gates to open. Before the crowds turned up I walked across the bridge and up to the gate.

   When we booked online a few weeks ago we had high hopes of going around the interior but, and this was a big but, tickets cost from £100 each, and for the rest of June, all of July, and into August the tickets were sold out! The castle closes to the public on 11th August.

By 10 am the place was heaving, mostly foreigners because there was not much English talking heard. We headed for the Cottage Gardens and were so glad we did because the view of the Castle was pretty spectacular. Had we left it later the view would not have been so good. More of that later.

An audio trail was followed and we found ourselves at Garden Cottage. 

The Garden Cottage provided a secluded retreat for Queen Victoria after Prince Albert's death. She often breakfasted, read her papers and wrote her diaries here.

 The audio tour continued to the Ballroom. This was the only room that could be viewed and of course, no photos allowed. On show were some of King Charles water colours. Mightily impressive, and I didn't know how good an artist he was. Aligning the walls were stag heads with antlers points rnaging from 6 to 14. I dont think a 16 pointer (Monarch) was on view here.

After lunch at the café, (Leek and Potato soup for me, Ham and cheese Panini for Ian) we viewed the castle from different angles.

It was as we came around to the front that we noticed the cars. They must have arrived shortly after our photo was taken. I feel for all those visitors who won't get the magnificent sight of the castle without a load of vehicles spoiling the view.  So glad we did the Cottage Gardens first!

Somewhere on the grounds was a statue of Queen Victoria's favourite collie Noble. The map showed it along a 40-minute circular walk that took you past the pet cemetery, along the river Dee, and back towards the castle. Both our knees had improved substantially since taking those joint care tablets so felt confident enough to attempt it.  We walked through the forest watching for signs of Red Squirrels. None were seen but the walk through the trees with the sun shining through the branches, was a delight.

The inscription reads, Noble. For more than 15 years the favourite collie and dear and faithful companion of Queen Victoria. Died at Balmoral 18th Sept 1887 aged 16 years. Noble by name, by nature Noble too. Companion, sympathetic, true. His remains are interred here.

 We decided to go back to Glenshee once we left the castle, stopped at a slightly different layby, the views were just as spectacular. Tomorrow we head for Aberdeen, will go into a proper site so Ian can wash MB in readiness for the ferry crossing to Shetland on Tuesday.