A Walk Beyond Stonehaven


Last September we stayed in Stonehaven, Scotland, for four nights, and almost every morning there was a beautiful sunrise over the North Sea. Something this amazing yanks me out of bed for a few pics. :)


 On this particular day, which was very nice, warm and sunny, we decided to take a walk and explore Stonehaven. From our hotel room window, we had a view of the above cliffs and island. I don't know the name of it. We walked in that direction along the shore.


We passed this beautiful garden and talked to the gardener who created it. Although he was saying it hadn't grown well because of the weather, we thought it was one of the prettiest we'd seen, ever.


Standing on the shore, this is the view back toward the area of Stonehaven where we stayed and the beach. Click the photo to enlarge.


We walked out onto a pier and had this great view of Stonehaven Harbor.

 
 The War Memorial atop the hill above Stonehaven. We decided that would be our destination because we could see it from our room, and it is also visible from Dunnottar. But as you can see the hill is far too steep to climb.

 We walked along Shore Head Street which faces the harbor. I love all these old buildings. Some of them are hotels and inns.


Another view of Shore Head Street.


 Beyond Shore Head Street, nature takes over again. I loved this view of the harbor with the flowers.


The beautiful flowers in front of The Granary, a historic building.



The sign said it was a 2 1/2 mile walk to Dunnottar Castle. We had already been there the day before (we drove), but we wanted to walk to the War Memorial which was not too far from the castle. Unfortunately, the normal road and walking path was closed down due to a landslide, so we had to take an alternate route. We soon left the town and walked along the road through the forest.


After turning off the main road and walking up a hill along a narrow road through the trees, we came out near this beautiful farm land and hay fields.

We still had the War Memorial in our sights. For some reason it always looked not that far away, even though it was.


We walked through a picturesque dairy farm. This barn had lots of cows inside it and the farmer was bailing hay.


Here we find another road to walk along. I think the cattle drink out of the wee loch. This pasture was surrounded by an electric fence. We know it was working because one brave tourist touched it. She screamed and jumped around a bit. I know the farmers must think we're all nuts. LOL


 A view of Dunnottar Castle from the road. We continued on toward the War Memorial. Seeing an open fence gate into a field where the hay had been cut and hauled away, we thought why not take a short cut? By then we had been walking 2 or 3 miles and were tired. But we shouldn't have gone that direction!


You can't get there from here. This field was surrounded by a fence. Was it electric? None of us wanted to touch it and find out. We would've needed to climb through or over the fence to get up to the War Memorial. There was another way... going back across the hay field and walking along the road which circled around the huge field. It was probably another mile at least. Sigh. We were all too tired. Besides we also had to walk back down to Stonehaven. So this was as close as we got to the War Memorial.

The Stonehaven War Memorial sits on top of Black Hill. It was designed to look like a ruined stone temple of early Doric design to signify the lives that were ruined during World War I. Over two hundred men from Stonehaven gave their lives in the war. The monument was unveiled on May 20, 1923. I thought this was interesting. The Black Hill was chosen for the site because it was: “Where the Men o’ Mearns kept watch and ward over their homes in troubled times”, and, “which has been from time immemorial the rallying ground for defence of the coast”. So this site had great historical significance in regards to war. You can learn lots more about the War Memorial here.


Even though we didn't get up to the memorial, we had this spectacular view of Stonehaven from the hilltop. We could even see our hotel from here.


This hay field appears to lead right to the sea.


 We headed back to town. Stonehaven has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Neolithic pottery has been found in the area. This town sits on the only Medieval route from south, along the coast, up to Aberdeen. This route was an old drover's road called Causey Mounth and used in the 12th century. Some of the ancient roads remain and some were simply footpaths. Some were destroyed and taken over by fields. Aside from this route, the Grampian Mountains and bogs blocked off the Lowlands from the Northeast.


We walked back through Stonehaven a different way than we had left. I loved this picturesque bridge.


I was glad to get back to our hotel so I could rest. We estimated that we probably walked at least six miles. A bit more than I'm used to.



Later that evening, we went to eat. A rain shower came and this this beautiful rainbow.

I hope you enjoyed this short trip through and outside of Stonehaven. :)
Thank you!!
Vonda
www.vondasinclair.com

Beautiful and fiercely protective of those she loves, Lady Seona Murray captured Keegan MacKay’s attention when she first set foot in Dunnakeil Castle. Though she is a chief’s daughter and forbidden, Keegan has fallen in love with her from afar and burns to possess her. But so does the clan traitor, Haldane, an obsessive outlaw bent on murder and kidnapping.

Sinfully handsome, Keegan MacKay is a fearsome guard as well as the chief’s cousin, but Seona’s father would never consider him a worthy husband for her because he is not a titled laird. Seona has secretly watched the sensual, tawny-haired warrior from across the crowded great hall for months, but when he is tasked with escorting her across Scotland, back to her home, their simmering attraction flames into sizzling passion with just one kiss.

Though she fears she is endangering Keegan’s life, Seona cannot resist his seductive charm or his spellbinding kisses. Keegan sets fire to the memories of her sad past and shows her what it means to truly live. But her father has other plans. He’s arranged for her to marry a wealthy Lowland laird. Is Keegan daring enough to steal her away? Or will the vindictive Haldane snatch her first?

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a very quaint and lovely town. Thank you for the tour. I tweeted.

Anonymous said...

Hi Vonda, thank you for sharing your photos of your trip to Scotland. I am going there for 2 weeks next June. It enjoyed it very much. I have never got the chance to read any of your books, but after reading your beautiful comments, I will definitely choose one! I am hooked to Highlander romances, thank you.

Vonda Sinclair said...

Ella, thanks so much for the tweet! Yes, Stonehaven is really picturesque and friendly.

Vonda Sinclair said...

Nicole, have a great time on your trip! Thanks so much for checking out my books! I'm hooked on Highlander romances too. :)

PJ Sharon said...

Thanks for the magnificent tour. Just lovely!

Vonda Sinclair said...

Thank you, PJ, for taking the tour with me! :)

Clover Autrey said...

It's all so picturesque. Thanks for sharing.

Paisley Kirkpatrick said...

Lots of memories here for me, Vonda. We loved staying here - we weren't in town, though, we found a charming B&B where we stayed a couple of nights. Thanks for the great tour. Loved that garden, too.

Vonda Sinclair said...

That's true, Clover. So beautiful there. Thanks for checking it out!

Paisley, I'm glad you had a great time in the Stonehaven area too. It was one of the prettiest home gardens I've seen. Thank you for taking the tour with me!

Gerri Bowen said...

That was lovely, Vonda, thank you! A great tour with super photos. :)

Vonda Sinclair said...

Thank you, Gerri!! I'm glad you liked them!

Pat McDermott said...

You certainly had gorgeous weather for this little tour, Vonda. I love seaside towns, especially the ones with so much history-and rainbows! I hope you're planning your next trip back.

Vonda Sinclair said...

Yes, the weather was wonderful that day (but I had my raincoat just in case. LOL With Scotland, you never know.) I'm also a big fan of seaside towns. This was the 3rd rainbow we saw in and around Stonehaven. I had never seen so many in quick succession. Yes, I'm planning my next trip. LOL Thanks for stopping by!

Vanessa Holland said...

What a charming town. I'd love to go there and see it real life but for now I appreciate the photo tour!

Vonda Sinclair said...

I hope you get to go too, Vanessa!! Thanks for checking it out!

Carole St-Laurent said...

Great pictures, Vonda, thanks for sharing.

Amy Jarecki said...

Lovely photos, doesn't it feel like going back in time?

Vonda Sinclair said...

Thanks, Carole!! I'm glad you like them.

Amy, thanks!! Yes, it does feel like going back in time. Maybe that's one reason I love it so much. :)

Margaret said...

What a wonderful trip and lovely pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Vonda Sinclair said...

Thanks, Margaret!! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Unknown said...

These are amazing photos, Vonda! I’m sure you totally enjoyed your vacation in Stonehaven. It is true indeed that everything in that place is picturesque, and not just the castle. Harbor Street looks awesome! Did you try out some of those inns? Some of them serve great food too! 
Malinda Arab