Tag: nature

Scotland: Inverness

On By JC ThrashIn Travel

Part Two: Inverness

The train ride to Inverness was absolutely gorgeous. With wonderful views of the central highlands and Cairngorms National Park, the three and a half hours passed by quickly.

When we arrived at Inverness, we changed trains to get to the Inverness airport stop, where our hotel was located. With limited time in the afternoon, we decided to go out to Elgin and Forrest, just east of Inverness, to check out a super old cathedral in Elgin, and dinner and distillery in Forres.

The Elgin Cathedral was super neat (you guessed it – also covered by the Explorer’s Pass, see Edinburgh), but for folks limited to trains and walking, I probably wouldn’t recommend it. It was quite the hike from the train stop, and there wasn’t much else to do within walking distance. If you’re driving by the area en route to the highlands, however, it’s worth the stop.

Forres was a super cute town, though. We had dinner at Mosset Tavern, which was delicious. We shared a cullen sink (creamy fish chowder) and a smoked fish. The walk from the restaurant to the train station was partially along a creak and through a park, which was nice, and there are other strolls in the area that we were interested in, but ran out of time for. Sadly, we also ran out of time for the distillery (Benromach). Next time!

Our train home was cancelled, and unable to find a taxi, we had to wait at the station for an hour for the next train. Definitely a bummer, as we hoped for an early night to start our next day bright and early. By the time the next train arrived, we were the only two aboard. The conductor chatted with us for a bit, with the thickest Scottish accent we’d encountered yet, but he was very chatty and friendly, momentarily easing our frustrations with the travel issues.

On Wednesday morning, we took the train over to Inverness to catch the bus to Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle. We had originally planned to rent a car, and we’re glad we decided not to; the Ember bus was only £2! It’s a nice coach bus, not a city bus, and very comfortable for the 35-minute ride. The ride feature gorgeous views along Loch Ness; definitely snag a lake-side seat if you can!

The bus dropped us off at the car park of the Urquhart Castle – convenient, since folks who drive must book parking in advance, the lot was already full – and we walked down to the castle for free entry with our Explorer’s Pass.

The history of this castle was incredibly interesting: they don’t have record of who lived there in its earliest times, but from year 1200 and on, the castle switched hands between the Scots and English several times (and before that, Picts and perhaps Vikings?). During an uprising when the fort was in English hands, shortly after being under siege, the English deliberately blew it up, sending the message that, If we can’t have it, we definitely don’t want the Scots to have it!

The castle has multiple levels to explore with gorgeous views of Loch Ness from every angle (no Nessie sightings, sadly). The one thing to keep in mind if opting into the bus is that it only runs about every hour. While convenient to have that reliable transport, we just had to be pretty strategic with our timing. For example, I think the perfect amount of time for the castle would have a been a bit over an hour to 90 minutes, but we had either 55 minutes, or a bit over 2 hours. Big difference!

After the castle, we booked an Ember bus back to Drumnadrochit for lunch (Fiddlers Highland Restaurant, good but pricey), and then back to Inverness to explore the town for the afternoon.

The stroll along River Ness was really lovely, enjoying the parks, gardens, water and architecture during our walk. After a bit under a mile, we reached the Ness Islands, a small island park in the midst of the river. On the other side is the botanical gardens (closed by that point) which we walked along on the way back to the city center.

Several different people (and travel books) recommend Inverness as a home base, but not necessarily a city to spend much time in, but we really enjoyed it. The city boasts several walking areas and parks, and has a lot of natural beauty to offer. In addition to the Ness Islands, we also took the city bus to the northern edge of the city, along the Beauly Firth, the Merkinch Local Nature Reserve. Folks can often spot dolphins from this area (sadly, we did not) but the water stroll was really nice, with beautiful views of snow-capped Ben Wyvis in the distance.

Once we rounded back on the path from the waterfront, we headed up the hill of Craig Phadrig. It was a steep but really lovely hike through a pine forest, with the occassional views of the firth, Ben Wyvis, and Inverness as we continued to climb. Lots of locals go here to walk their dogs. It is a bit confusing as there is no signage on the trails, but we managed to find the top with some advice from one of the local dog-moms.

At the top is the site of an ancient Pictish fort. Now, it’s just a field of grass at the peak, but not long ago, a large tree fell uprooting pieces of the land, revealing remains of a fort wall. Excavation in 1971 determined that: the fort was likely built around 500BC; the ramparts were thought to have stood eight meters tall. According to legend, this is were St. Columba came to meet Pictish King Brude with the mission of converting the Picts to Christianity.

For dinner, we went to the Mustard Seed, which came highly recommended and had won awards. It was mediocre at best, and I much enjoyed the other pubs and taverns we popped into throughout our stay:

  • Innis Bar – we came here for lunch for soup and shared a toastie. The service was friendly and food decent.
  • MacGregor’s – we didn’t eat here (just happened in prior to their kitchen opening), but we enjoyed a half pint and a dram
  • Glenalbyn – we popped into here for a quick pint before dinner. The mood was light with a decent beer selection
  • Urquhart’s Restaurant – came here for dinner for my last steak and ale pie – it was pretty tasty. We barely squeaked in, though; definitely a place where reservations are needed
  • Castle Tavern – probably gets touristy during more peak times, but it was a really nice spot for a pint and to relax for a while.

Things we didn’t get to:

When we initially had a car rental, we planned to do a hike in addition to exploring Loch Ness. Since we found such convenient (and CHEAP) public transit to Loch Ness, we opted out of the car. This was the right decision for Loch Ness, the bus was absolutely the right choice, but without a car, we were limited on our hiking options. Based on my research, particularly using Walk Highlands, I had identified two hikes:

Ben Wyvis, one of the largest Munros in proximity to Inverness. My thought here, concerning driving, was that it wouldn’t be too long or scary of a drive. The hike is long though, and challenging, but there is also Little Wyvis if its bigger sister’s 8 miles is too intense. Both have expansive highland views.

Thus, if I could do the trip again, I would have passed on the afternoon in Elgin and Forres, and instead taken the ember bus to Loch Ness on the day we arrived from Edinburgh. We got to Inverness around 1pm, which would have been sufficient time to explore the castle and enjoy the loch views. That would have left our next full day to pick up a rental car and pick one or two hikes that are inaccessible via public transit, like Ben Wyvis or Little Wyvis.

Alternatively, we could have remained scared of the rental car and taken the train back down to Aviemore (we had passed the town on the way north from Edinburgh). I think we hesitated on this due to Aviemore being such a tourist trap town, but there are several hikes accessible from the town center, like Craigellachie. It seems that most visitors probably go into Cairngorms National Park, so perhaps the more moderately challenging Craigellachie hike wouldn’t have been too busy, and boasts excellent views of the national park from the summit.

Lastly, you may be wondering — a trip to the highlands, but no Isle of Skye? We discussed it, but ultimately decided it we’d rather explore less crowded/touristy areas. It’s also such a hike out of the way, five hours from Edinburgh and three from Inverness. We looked into a bunch of tour companies, too, but they were all 10-12-hour marathons, quick tourist-grabs to take some selfies at all the top spots, but no time to actually explore. Next time, we’ll reserve a few days and actually commit to spending some time out there, rather than just a day trip.

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Inverness Lez-Travel rating:

Inverness was an interesting place. I never felt unsafe, but there were some surprised looks upon folks realizing we were together. One bartender asked if we were sisters, and we responded that we were married, and he didn’t bother to try and suppress his shock at the news “Oooooooh. Oh. …Really!? Okay! Uh. Great!” (it was awkward).

Big South Fork & Charit Creek Lodge

On By JC ThrashIn Bikes & Hikes, Dog Companion

I’ve written about Big South Fork in a previous post, so I won’t go into too much detail.

This year, we stayed for two nights in the Charit Creek Lodge. We rented the “Corn Crib,” the most loved space, judging by how hard it is to book (we booked nearly eight months in advance, a long weekend in November). Other spaces have screen porches and other outdoor seating, so I wasn’t as big of a fan as others in compared to the lodge rooms, but it was nice for the dog. The lodge rooms have an upstairs (separate access point, for staff), so our dog was very alarmed when strangers were walking around upstairs!

Our first night, we had only six other fellow guests, which offered a really nice, intimate setting. The second night, we were joined by a very large group of men – I believe a church group – and the dining hall was packed to the brim with maybe 30-40 guests; fortunately, the Charit Creek staff sat us with our friends from the previous night, two brothers who were also from Ohio.

As always, the food was absolutely incredible. Unlike last year, however, I felt that there never was quite enough food… at least, not for folks hiking six or more miles each day.

The trails:

Twin Arches Loop – I recommend going counterclockwise. You start with a nice relaxing stroll through the woods before reaching the steep incline. If you started early enough, you’ll get through the touristy section (people drive to just do the half-mile loop with the arches that’s adjacent to the parking lot) before it gets busy, then take the long, meandering, 2.5-3mi portion back down through the woods, with more unique arches and neat nature to view and take in.

Charit overlook – this is a horse trail, which is really nice because the trail is nice and wide, and not very technical (minimal roots and rocks in the path). It’s incredibly steep for the first half, but due to the width, you can walk several humans (and dogs) abreast and take your time with it. It follows a river before turning into a less steep woodsy trail before you get to the overlook at the end. You’ll see the horse parking and then the trail narrows to reach the lookout.

On our way out, we took the horse trail, which was… a mistake. We thought it’d be easier with our packs than the technical trail through the woods (which we loved on the way in), but the shorter exit resulted in a way steeper incline. Hard to believe a horse or carriage or even motor vehicle could climb that level of incline! Don’t do it!

Pacific Northwest

On By JC ThrashIn Bikes & Hikes, Travel

My brother-in-law lives in Washington state, about halfway between Seattle and Vancouver. What a bummer to have to fly out there to visit him.

It’s not even fair how gorgeous it is out there.

Our first full day, a Thursday, my wife and I started to explore while her brother and his girlfriend were at work. At their recommendation, we selected the trail called Oyster Dome, on Blanchard Mountain.

We drove up the first part of the mountain via a long, winding unpaved road. There’s a way to avoid this (adds significant elevation, with no facilities and minimal parking), but we simply navigated to the main parking area (Samish Overlook parking), which bypasses the initial ascent on foot, offering breathtaking views from the start (and toilets!). From the main parking area, it’s still about a 5-mile hike, which was sufficient for us for our first day anyway. The other trailhead is off Chuckanut Drive (must cross state highway to begin hike).

View of the Samish Bay, near the Samish Overlook parking area
View of the Samish Bay, near the Samish Overlook parking area.

We loved this hiking trail. The parking lot is quite large, signaling how busy the area can get, but we started mid-morning on a weekday and fortunately avoided crowds; we only crossed paths with a handful of people, and shared the summit with four others.

The trail begins steep, tackling a bit of the 1000-ft elevation gain, before leveling out through the cedar and fir forest. The trail crosses several creeks. Even while away from the views, the sounds and smells of the forests are incredible.

After enjoying the more level trail for a while, it spikes upward for a significant incline the final ~ half mile. As you continue up the switchback, the trail narrows as well, and becomes a bit more technical. Reaching the top is well worth it! You’re rewarded with a nice, wide rock face to sit and rest while enjoying the breathtaking views. The people of the pacific northwest are so friendly, too! When they discovered we were visiting from Ohio, they offered up other trails to check out, and their favorite meal spots nearby, as well.

We already had a plan for dinner that night, though, and after heading back down the mountain, we drove to downtown Mt. Vernon to meet our brother and his partner.

View from the top of Oyster Dome
View from the top of Oyster Dome.

Day 2

Another work day for our family, my wife and I drove to Larrabee State Park. Offering over a dozen trails to explore, we bopped around, quite sore from Oyster Dome. We drove first to the top of the park for the views, and then hiked a bit of the Ridge Trail before heading back down to the bottom of the mountain for the Clayton Beach trail.

View from Cyrus Gates Overlook

The Clayton Beach trail wound down the hill onto the beach. It’s a short trail overall; fairly steep, but a much more gradual slope than by the overlook. There are some rocky areas near the beach that we climbed up to relax and enjoy the views.

View of the beach in Larrabee State Park
Clayton Beach, Larrabee State Park

Once we wrapped up our time in the state park, we rewarded ourselves with a beer – we first tried “The Oyster Bar,” just off Chuckanut Drive, not realizing that it was fine dining (we were covered in sweat and sand and in our hiking gear, yikes!). We snuck away and instead headed to “Chuckanut Manor” — which sounds fancier but is less so. They had a good happy hour, and we ordered a couple of pints and a snack to share. The food was excellent and view from the patio beautiful.

Following our hike reward, we headed back to our family’s house for dinner. Our brother has gotten into duck hunting, and grilled some duck for us to try. My wife and I had stopped by the cheese store in downtown Mt. Vernon to complement our appetizers with some wine and cheese. Skagit Valley Larder was a great experience – we were able to sample the cheese prior to purchasing it, and they offered some recommendations that would pair well with the cheese (and the duck!)

Day Three

On Saturday, the four of us piled into the truck with the dogs and headed out to Ross Lake National Recreation Area. Just adjacent to North Cascades National Park, we were able to enjoy similarly amazing views … but also bring the dogs (no dogs in national parks, boo). We did the Thunder Knob trail, which was breathtaking but painfully crowded.

If I were to go again, I’d likely select a trail that’s typically less crowded.

On our final day, my wife and I went to Deception Pass before heading back to the Seattle Airport for our red-eye flight home. At Deception Pass, we hiked the Goose Rock Summit trail – which can be either a shorter, steeper out-and-back, or a full loop trail. We did the latter, hiking the steep climb on the way up to grant us the slowly meandering path back down to the parking area.

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PNW Lez-Travel rating:

The Pacific Northwest is an interesting place when it comes to gay travel. There are lesbians everywhere… but you’re in such a rural area, that you meet some closeminded idiots, as well, and certainly see a lot of Trump flags. Based on our experience, these are not the same folks we encounter on the trails or town centers. PNW wins 3 rainbows.

Big South Fork Nat’l Rec Area

On By JC ThrashIn Bikes & Hikes, Dog Companion

As a kid, I’d go camping most years at Big South Fork, a national recreational area in Tennessee. Within the park, accessible only by foot (or horse), is Charit Creek Lodge. They provide the room, bed (and bedding!), breakfast and dinner. The meals are served family-style, offering the chance to meet people from all over the country. At our table, there were several Tennesseans, but also folks from South Carolina, New York, and Michigan.

The main lodge with the dining hall has two private cabin rooms on either side, with a shared back porch. I will admit that I initially balked at the price of one night stay for two humans and one dog, but when I realized that the food is, like, absolutely delicious, and far exceeded my expectations (I was picturing basic “camp food”), the cost seemed to be much more reasonable. And if you’re staying multiple nights, you also get a sack lunch! Our dinner consisted of meatloaf, a cheesy pasta dish with baked beans, vegetable casserole, and a fresh salad with nuts and goat cheese. Our breakfast was a delicious crustless quiche, sausage, and nut muffins.

Upon arriving, the first trail we tried was the Slave Falls Trail, but, just as Ohio is experiencing with this long drought, the waterfall was, well, nonexistent, and the creek a mere trickle. The woodsy stroll was lovely though, although we were a bit alarmed early-on in the hike at our first bear sighting! We’d slow down and make noise at every sharp turn to not catch a bear by surprise.

From there, we drove from the Slave Falls trailhead to the Twin Arches trailhead to eat a picnic lunch. We then hoisted on our packs, hoping to not fall off an arch with the weight of our overnight stay on our back.

The arches were incredible! Of course, the pictures don’t do it justice, but it was wild that, growing up in Tennessee, I never hiked that trail to see them. 

The rest of the trail was steep down into the valley where the Lodge sits, but a nice, enjoyable and woodsy path. Most tourists hike the small, 1-mi arches loop (the larger loop is over four miles), and so we only passed two other people as we hiked about 2 mi of the full loop to arrive at the Lodge.

After checking in, we dropped off our belongings in our massive room with one queen bed and four single bunks. They provide lanterns, as well as a cooler to put in any food or other yummy-smelling thing to the bear neighbors. We went to shower next – it is a shared facility for all Lodge guests, but the individual stalls were large, spacious, the room was warm, and the water was hot – definitely the best “camp” shower experience I have had. Note: towels not provided!

I’ve already shared what they served for dinner (while drooling just thinking about it). They also offer beer and wine for purchase, so my wife and I tied up the dog with a bone and sat in large rocking chairs with our beers, enjoying the gorgeous Tennessee fall weather.

In the morning, full up on quiche and sack lunch stored in our cabin cooler, we hiked up the Charit Overlook Trail. It’s a very wide horse trail, and though steep, it wasn’t rocky. All three of us could walk side by side. It was a hike I wish we had taken more time with, because the views from the top were lovely, but we hastened back down the mountain to check out by 11. 

We packed up and gathered our belongings from the cabin and returned to the rocking chairs to eat our sack lunch.

On our way out, we did the western part of the Twin Arches Loop, about 2.5mi. It climbed out of the valley much more gradually than the eastern part of the loop, and once we were up on the ridge, the views, rock formations, and parts of the arches all were incredible to enjoy.

To make the most of our second day in the park, we booked a hotel in Richmond, KY, to avoid driving the 4.5 hours home in one go. We drove the two hours to our hotel, picked up a pizza. We were way too pooped to enjoy the stop and went right to the hotel, but we’ve been to Richmond before; it’s a cool college with great BBQ and beer. Dogs were allowed at Dreaming Creek Brewery, and they typically have a food truck on site as well. Smitty’s BBQ was fast-food meets cafeteria-style restaurant barbecue (reminds me of Buddys BBQ back home in Knoxville); we got tons of food for so cheap, and all of the everything was tasty.

Pickerington Ponds & Walnut Woods

On By JC ThrashIn Columbus, OH, Dog Companion

Pickerington Ponds

After two days of hunkering down from the hurricane (who knew those could be such a big threat in landlocked Ohio!), the dog and I were going stir-crazy. The winds had died down but the rain continued steadily; despite the weather, I hit the road and headed to Pickerington Ponds metro park. 

My dog, who usually has no problem with rain or being wet, kept giving me this look as if to say, “really? a two-mile hike in this?”

I started on the Blacklick Trail – the 20-mile paved bike path – to reach the trailhead of the Burning Lake loop, the only dog-friendly hike at Pickerington Ponds. Similar to other dog-friendly paths at the Columbus metro parks, it’s a big loop through grassy meadows, with a very small woodsy stretch at the southern part of the loop.

On the way back, I noticed a trail connector to the Arrowhead Trail, a slightly shorter walk back to the parking lot and way to bypass the paved portion of the bike path. Ignoring the “no pets” sign (honestly, it was pouring, and I was the only one desperate enough to be walking in those conditions!). We enjoyed the Arrowhead much more; a wide path through the woods, it shielded us from the worst of the rainfall and had a much more quiet, peaceful vibe (and better sniffs for the dog).

Overall, not a great option for dog-parents, what with only one trail to use (assuming you want to follow the rules, don’t take my example). Additionally, as it was pouring, I did not take any pictures!

Okay, so… I also confess to breaking the rules at Three Creeks Metro Park. Our favorite spot for biking, we’ve also brought the dog for a walk along the paved trail. I was surprised to see that, even after the hurricane, the pond is still dried up from our summer (and now autumn) drought.

When I reached the Confluence Trail, a narrow path through the woods and along the creek, marked clearly with a “no pets” sign, I decided to give it a whirl. We had never explored this path as we always have either our bikes or the dog. I was hesitant to break the rules, but I didn’t pass a single person for the mile hike, and really enjoyed being in the woods. Note: this area was heavily infested with ticks.

Walnut Woods

Now to one of my favorites: Walnut Woods Metro Park. Every single trail is dog-friendly, and most trails are paved, as well, for those preferring a more accessible stroll. The best is the “Tall Pines” area of the park – specifically, the Sweetgum Trail. It’s a 2.6mi figure-8 loop trail, with an additional unpaved cut-through to one of the largest trees I’ve ever seen in Ohio. This half-mile option is lovely: typically quieter and less trafficked, you certainly feel more in the woods. And the smell of that pine? It makes me think of the smell of home every time.

We love the Sweetgum Trail so much, we haven’t even explored some of the other trails at the park, but we’ll report back once we have Tonks’ stamp of approval.