Homeward bound from the Highlands

Lochs and mountains

Sadly our road trip was now drawing to a close. Fewer lochs and mountains, time to head back south to Hastings again. We woke to bright blue skies. A classic crisp, chilly morning, with even a sprinkling of snow on the roof! Welcome to the highlands! So glad we insulated the camper for times like these!

Goodbye Glencoe

It had been a brief but fun stop at Glencoe. Another place we would definitely want to come back to again. To be fair, we would say that about pretty much all the places we’ve been to. It’s been a great trip for finding places to see and visit.

We were hoping to make it back home in a couple of stops, so a fair bit of driving to do. Still, plenty of opportunities for the journey to be a fun part of the overall experience. That”s what’s great about road trips! A final use of facilities, one last look at the stunning views and we headed off on our way.

Lovely Lochs

The roads through Glencoe were as amazing as we had remembered, and with the sunshine and blue skies above, we were really experiencing them at their best! Hard to resist stopping at some just to take in the breathtaking views.

Our lunchtime destination on the way back was our favourite little stop by the beautiful Loch Lubnaig in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. We had found this little stop on our last visit here. We loved the location and views, plus having benches, tables, and raised BBQ points, it was an ideal place to pull over and have a break.

Lunch at Loch Lubnaig

Loch Lubnaig is a small freshwater loch near Callander in the Scottish Highlands. The whole area is stunningly beautiful. An amazing place to visit, and a perfect spot for lunch after a longish session behind the wheel. I guess living near the sea, I like being near water, so the numerous Scottish lochs are a surrogate replacement of sort!

Lorna’s creativity is not just with knitting needles or illustration, she’s also a great cook! So whilst I did all the driving, Lorna mostly took care of the cooking. Another amazing lunch on the go. The combination of our Cadac 2 cook deluxe and Trangia stoves covers pretty much all of our cooking kit requirements.

360º landscape

It was great to have a bite to eat and take in the beautiful surroundings. We’ve been surrounded by almost constant 360º beautiful mountainous landscapes during our time in the Highlands of Scotland. Not something we’ve taken for granted during our travels, but something I know we’ll miss once we’ve left.

After a great lunch and a break, we pushed on and headed back to our first stopover for the night in Scotland at Lochmaben. Fewer mountains, but still a pretty good view for the night! A bit short notice, in the end, to catch up with, but I discovered a friend from years ago who actually lives really near to here. Next time we’re up, hopefully, we will manage to catch up with her on our next visit.

Possibly the best service station in the UK?

We made an early start in the morning so we could push on to Snake Pass in Glossop for our next stopover. On our way out from Scotland on the M6 passing through the Lake District, we noticed a sign for a farm shop off the Motorway? We had seen these on the way up too and at the time wondered what they were all about?

Normally it is just the same old, fairly poor quality service stations to choose from. Needing a break, we thought we would give it a try. So glad we did. It is quite possibly the best service station in the UK, Tebay Services is the first family run motorway services on the UK roads.

The services’ story begins in 1972 when John and Barbara Dunning opened set up Tebay Services as a small 30 seat café serving home-cooked, locally sourced food when the M6 cut though their farm. There are no franchises or fast food on our forecourts. Instead, a Farm shop selling locally produced food, a Butchery featuring meat reared from their own farms and a Kitchen serving home-made dishes produced daily using local ingredients. Proper locally sourced food (where possible) was at heart of everything they aim to do. It was a real breath of fresh air in terms of a concept for a ‘service station’. The food was amazing, it was like a mini-farm shop, high-quality food centre! Another place we will be coming back to again on our travels back to Scotland in the future.

As our journey south continued, the mountains gradually became hills and then soon turned into the green and pleasant land of England. No more lochs for us. It wouldn’t be too long before we got back home so that Lorna could attend a pre-booked event in London she was due to be at. Looks like the road trip is drawing to a close. The camper has done us real good, clocking up very nearly 1,800 odd miles without issue. Credit to the guys at Resto Classics for helping me keep the bus in good mechanical shape!

Road trip video…

Overall we’ve had a fantastic time our road trip to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Still, so much more to see and do. It’s a country with so much to see/do. Perfect location for a road trip. No doubt that we will be back up here again real soon! Amazing weather, lots of fun making memories that will stay with us for a very long time. Can’t wait to start planning the next road trip!