We are on Bute! (Tuesday, Sept. 22)

Smoky standing beside road just after
getting off the ferry to the
Isle of Bute.

There is so much to tell about today, and it is already after midnight on the Isle of Bute. So I'm going to post a picture of Smoky after we crossed to this island, and I'll save the rest for later.

Off to bed!
--Shann

Wednesday morning update:

We are up, breakfasted (thanks to Sara at the Boat House B&B) and preparing for a new day of exploring Bute. Here are some additional photos taken on Tuesday, along with more narrative about each.

We thought we were saturated with castles, having already toured the inside and photographed the outside of quite a number (I'll count how many later), but we took a chance on the Kilchurn Castle as we were driving from Oban to Colintraive, where we caught the ferry to Bute. Smoky thought Kilchurn was one of those you just photographed from afar, but that turned out not to be the case. 

We thought these were touch-me-nots, 

but Smoky looked them up and decided 

they were Himalayan balsam, sometimes 

called poor-man's orchid.

From the carpark, we followed a trail through a wooded area that was edged with these lovely pink flowers. They looked similar to our touch-me-nots, with seed heads just ready to burst.

The Himalayan balsam lined our path
to Kilchurn Castle.

We continued down the path, turned a corner, and crossed under a railroad bridge. From the other side, we could see the reflection of this bridge in the water of a small stream that flows from Loch Awe.

Railroad bridge reflected in stream.

Kilchurn Castle came into view. For some reason, it was enchanting! We walked to the castle and then went inside, reading signs explaining a little about the castle's history. It actually has an inscription over the front door, acknowledging John Earl of Breadalbane (IEB) and his wife, Countess Mary Campbell (CMC), with the date 1693. The view from the top of the tower house's battlements looks over Loch Awe, and it was awe-inspiring!  

Inside Kilchurn Castle.

Kilchurn Castle had lovely stonework. More than ten stone masons worked on it; some of their "signatures" can still be found in the masonry.

Kilchurn Castle.

After leaving the castle, we drove on down the road to Colintraive to catch the ferry over to the Isle of Bute. 

The ferry from  Colintraive to

Rhubodach, the Isle of Bute.

Once we crossed the Kyles of Bute, we were in Rhubodach on the northeast shore of Bute. The photo of Smoky at the top of the blog was taken just after the ferry landed. We were both pretty surprised at the impact this small island had on us as soon as we landed. Rather than try to find the words for the feeling it invoked, we will just continue with some pictures.

We were following the east coast of the island to the main town, Rothesay, where we were booked into the Boat House B&B for three nights. Along the way, we spotted these Highland "coos" grazing on the lush green pasture.

Some Highland "coos" grazing on the lush green pasture of Bute.

We drove through one small village with a lovely harbor. Rothesay was visible just a little further down the coast, a quaint tidy place perched aside the hill overlooking Rothesay Bay. As we pulled into town, Smoky remembered seeing roads on Google Earth that now looked familiar, and after a turn or two and some good advice, he found W and J Duncan Car Sales, the shop of Jimmy Duncan, whose DNA is a very close match to Smoky's. We had hoped to talk with Jimmy while we were in town and learn a little more about the Mcc (short for all the ways to spell derivatives of McConathy) history on the island.

Smoky and Jimmy.

We were in luck, The man himself was in, and we had a great time chatting with him about the DNA results that he and Smoky received. Before we left, Jimmy offered to show us around the island on Wednesday afternoon! What a treat to look forward to. 

We found our B&B, checked in, and walked to town to Harry Haws for dinner.

Harry Haws, a local restaurant in Rothesay,
had this interesting logo, caused by the
reflection of a tree behind Smoky as he
snapped the picture.

On the way back to the B&B, the harbor at Rothsay reflected the glowing sun
as it set. The night was magical.

--Shann