Oban love it or hate it. Oban was on our to do list while up here in Scotland. Talking to a lot of people opinions differed from don’t bother, it used to be nice and it’s lovely. So the only way to find out is head up the A85 and visit it ourselves.

As our day off approached we were checking the weather out and the weather looked good in Oban. Not really hot and blue skies but then when you’re in Scotland you take the good days when you can. But it was going to be warm and a good chance the sun might make an appearance. Fingers crossed.

From Killin it’s 57 miles up the A85 through some stunning scenery and on uncrowded roads. Past the Green welly stop which is a big tourist shop, fuel station and cafe and on this day it was all taped off with police tape and police cars everywhere. They had been burgled in the early hours of that morning.

A few miles later with a slight diversion there is a castle called Kilchurn castle which is actually closed at the moment but there is a road with a lay-by where you can view the castle from. I wanted to get a photo so we took that road.

With blue sky, not photoshopped it looked stunning on the edge of the loch with the mountains as a backdrop. Photo taken and onwards to Oban. Parked up and find some food. This time opting for something to eat and takeaway to eat down by the harbour.

A wander through some streets soon bought us to the harbour front with the seagulls looking for scraps of food and the ferry that goes to Isle of Mull docked ready to be loaded. We found a nice seat over looking the harbour and ate our lunch keeping an eye on the sea gulls who were keeping an eye on our lunch.

It was busy on the seafront with lots of tourists getting off coaches and trying to find out where they should be and where they were going. People watching is great. Behind the shops and up a hill is Mc Caigs tower built in 1897. A monument built by John Stuart Mc Caig a local banker who had it built to provide work for local stonemasons and as a lasting monument for the Mc Caig family.

Nikki has a bad leg at the moment so she would not be able to make it up the steep hill or the many steps to get to the monument. She can manage to walk around some shops though when she needs something. so lunch eaten and we arranged to meet later and I was off.

There were a lot of steps to get up the hill which are called Jacob’s ladder. Steep and felt like they went on forever but I made it. But I forgot to count them, maybe because I was panting. Honest there was a lot.

The view was stunning also from there which made all the climbing up the steps worth it. With the Isle of Mull in the distance and on a clear day you can see for miles so they say. Today was not a clear day but the view was still stunning.

After spending some time up at the tower and admiring the view and of course taking lots of photos it was time to head back down to the harbour and find Nikki. I went down a different way which was a steep road and not steps. Through some tiny streets and passed a nice looking bar with seats outside which I could have easily stopped in but I was strong and resisted the temptation and walked on by.

By now the ferry had loaded up and was starting to leave the dock side and head out for Mull. There were other boats moored up in the harbour and one which I liked was an older looking yacht just sat there waiting for the crew to take it out.

I eventually found Nikki back at the bench where we had lunch. Not having a phone signal does not help when you’re trying to get in touch with someone to meet up. We wandered along the front and sat down again watching the coming and goings of all the people. Small boats were coming and going all the time taking people on small tours. The sea food stall was doing well and I am sure the seagulls had some pickings from The tourists .

We had seen enough so decided to head back. Our views on Oban were that it was a nice place to visit but we would not go back. Like a lot of seaside harbour towns they seem to start to look scruffy and are full of high street shops instead of small independent shops. Being busy they also attract the wrong sort of person. You know what I mean. But we are glad we went to make our own minds up. We enjoyed the harbour front and I like the tower and some lovely old buildings but a bit too busy for me.

Our day off yesterday and looking at the weather a few days before it was not looking good. Another rainy day so what shall we do.

Someone had said they had gone to Stirling and it was nice and suggested going to Culross. So a look on the map and route planned we decided to head for Culross. The weather looked better over that way also so we were on a winner to start with.

Culross sits on the edge of the Firth of Forth and is Scotlands most complete example of a burg of the 17th and 18th centuries. White Harled houses with red tiled roofs line the steep cobbled streets. The streets run from the market place to the hilltop abbey.

Culross was made famous for the filming of Outlander which is a perfect setting for it. It also has the Culross palace, a national trust property which was once the home to Sir George Bruce.

The journey for us to get there was about one hour and twenty minutes, so sat nav set and off we went. Now the sat nav is ok in the car but has sent us on some strange roads before and it didn’t fail this time.

I had looked on google maps and could see which car park I wanted to get to and which direction I would be coming from. But sat nav had other ideas as we turned off the main road onto a single track road with grass in the middle and then came into view of Culross abbey and headed off down the cobbled streets of Culross.

If you have ever watched the film the Italian job where the three mini cars race around the small streets trying to get out then you will know how we felt. Luckily we didn’t meet another car coming the other way.

We did make it to the car park where I wanted to park and had a good laugh about it. Parking was free which is always a bonus. We have found a lot of free parking in Scotland. Don’t get me wrong I don’t mind paying a reasonable fee to park, but I think if the parking is free you are more likely to spend more time in the place and spend money which benefits the place you are in.

Our first port of call was the Culross palace and walking there from the carpark we passed some lovely old houses, you could just imagine all those years ago when Culross would have been a thriving and bustling port and all the steam, smoke and noise from the salt panning and mining was in the air.

I love the old houses with big stones around the windows and doors, really solid looking and I love old doors. The history of those doors over the years, all the people that would have walked through them.

The palace like all national trust properties is so interesting and again you can imagine life inside these old buildings years and years ago.

As you walk around inside you can imagine someone sitting in the chair next to the fire and slowly nodding off after a hard days work. A hard days work for Sir George Bruce would be counting his money in his palace while the men and ladies who worked the mines and salt pannings would be in the houses. But he did pay them well apparently.

After looking around the palace it was time for us to eat lunch. Spoiling ourselves again we opted to eat lunch out and found a little cafe called the Biscuit cafe which was very nice.

After a lovely lunch it was a small walk up Kirk street to the Abbey. When I say a small walk it was a small walk but up a hill and the first part on the cobbled streets we already knew from driving down them. Funnily enough when we were walking up to the abbey no cars come down the streets so it’s quite obvious a lot of cars have better sat navs built into them than ours. We passed some more lovely old cottages and houses.

Culross abbey was built in the 1200s and is where Sir George Bruce and his family have a tomb house that was fully restored in 1905. A wonderful old abbey with a fantastic old graveyard next to it.

The graveyard was also very old and every headstone was tilted over and some were even just laying down. Years and years of settling.

The walk back from the abbey to the village was all downhill and as we walked along the road towards the carpark we passed the old pier which years ago would have been a lot bigger and stronger and very busy. Today it sits there and the odd fishing boat uses it and people like me cross the railway line, yes you have to cross a railway line to get to it, to see it and get a photo of it.

So that was our day out. Again no blue sky in the photos but it all adds to the atmosphere of such an old place. The last photo I love being a classic car outside a classic old cottage. I wonder if the owners live the old life.