Speyside Way – Day 3 – Aberlour to Fochabers

June 20th, 2018
23.8km | ascent 446m | descent 504m
Fochabers

After a quick visit to the Walker’s shortbread factory (the smell was heaven!) and now carrying an extra 500g, I finally left Aberlour to continue the Speyside Way.

: I didn’t actually see any squirrels of any colour during these three hikes in Scotland

: Speyside Way waymark

: The trail skirts around Ben Aigan

: Views of the River Spey from the trail around Ben Aigan

: The one and only newt I saw

: I took the side-trail, but I never saw the Earth Pillars…

: This was my view from the Earth Pillars – I’m not sure if I just didn’t walk far enough or if the trees have grown ALOT, but I never saw the Earth Pillars

: This is the beautiful side-trail to see the Earth Pillars before Fochabers

: A posie of flowers on a bench in Fochabers with a note, “I am a ‘lonely bouquet’. Please take me home or give to someone to enjoy. Made with love from Gordon Castle Walled Garden.” What a lovely gesture.

: Gordon Castle Walled Garden… In a series of weird and wonderful events, while eating dinner at a pub in Fochabers I was warned of another storm passing through in the night with high winds. I was planning to eat then continue on before finding somewhere to camp, but after this news and a few sleepless nights already in the tent with Scotland’s strong winds, I decided to see if there was anywhere in town available. And then I met some very kind people in a pub who offered me a spare room in a cottage they had rented overlooking Gordon Castle’s walled garden. The views from every room of the stunning cottage overlooked the magnificent walled garden… I’ll never forget this night, their generosity or those views!