Scottish Winter road trip and beyond to Europe! (Title edit Feb 24)

[mcdonaldneal.]

Of course, the only reason anyone would go to Huntly is to see the magnificent stadium where Huntly FC work their magic. Imagine if the San Siro was… in Huntly.
Other highlights: the Glendronach distillery, the ice ponds of Turriff and generally beautiful winter scenes.
I stopped in Turriff to fill up with fuel (and, mainly, to go for a pee). The fuel station toilets and taps were out of action with ice. The other customer there was demanding to know why her washers weren’t working despite having filled up that morning. The manager and I shared a smile and I was thankful I put -20c washer fluid in before I left home!
We helped her clear her screen with bottled water from the shop.

 

[Corradobrit]

Glendronach was one of the 4 distilleries I visited a few years ago. The other 3 were Balvenie, Glen Grant and Edradour. I have had some exceptional whisky's from Glendronach.

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Next stop, the lighthouse museum in Fraserburgh. I was looking forward to it, as the lady in Huntly said I would get in with Historic Scotland. Sadly no, the lonely man at the desk told me (I was the only vehicle in the car park!) They had been talking about it for two years but they were still two separate entities!…
I was free to walk around outside though, which was plenty, as the car park, paths and every other surface was glassy, treacherous ice!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Glendronach was one of the 4 distilleries I visited a few years ago. The other 3 were Balvenie, Glen Grant and Edradour. I have had some exceptional whisky's from Glendronach.

Funnily enough, I drove in on the recommendation of a friend the day before, who said the 15yr old was magical! High praise!

 

[Corradobrit]

Funnily enough, I drove in on the recommendation of a friend the day before, who said the 15yr old was magical! High praise!

If you get close to Dufftown, Balvenie has one of the best tours available in Speyside, and probably further afield too. They limit the participants to 8. Not cheap but considering we got to try a 40 year old, that by itself was easily worth the price of admission. I got to extract it from the barrel by hand in Warehouse No.24 .

 

[Lambeth Cali]

The pictures are more dramatic than it actually was. Light snow and good grip. I was going to turn around but the cloud cleared and the passing places and car parks made for impressive looking photos.

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My favourite Cali colour

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

At last, I started along the North Aberdeenshire coast, which is where I meant to be all along. Sadly, there was not all that much of the day left, and I stopped almost immediately in Rosehearty. A beautiful harbour, a fine picnic spot with a view, and a detour to see a very impressive doocot, also with views!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Next stop: Pennan
This is a small, pretty fishing village, accessed down a very steep bit of road. Pretty much deserted at this time of year.
It is famous as the setting for the ‘80’s film ‘Local Hero’. I conferred with my friend Graham and we came up with some top facts:
Filmed sometime in the early ‘80’s
Set in Pennan
Stars Burt Reynolds, Peter Capaldi, Fulton Mackay, Gregor Fisher and many more
Soundtrack by Dire Straits
Something about a buyout by ‘Big Oil’
All communication done via a red pay phone box
Anyway, I thought it was very good when I saw it 30+ years ago and I always wanted to go to Pennan, so there I was!!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

I was now running short of daylight, so I briefly stopped at Portsoy-18thC harbour and cracked on to the community motor home ‘Aire’ at Findhorn, arriving just as it was getting dark. Pic is from the next morning. It was supposed to have toilets, waste emptying, water supply etc but everything was frozen up, including the hard standing which was a large sheet of glassy ice. My friend arrived at about the same time in his camper and we went for a wander in the village. Not much happening, so homemade curry in the vans. Delicious!

 

[BeagleMum]

I was now running short of daylight, so I briefly stopped at Portsoy-18thC harbour and cracked on to the community motor home ‘Aire’ at Findhorn, arriving just as it was getting dark. Pic is from the next morning. It was supposed to have toilets, waste emptying, water supply etc but everything was frozen up, including the hard standing which was a large sheet of glassy ice. My friend arrived at about the same time in his camper and we went for a wander in the village. Not much happening, so homemade curry in the vans. Delicious!

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You cannot go to Portsoy without having it’s fabulous ice cream, even in freezing conditions it’s obligatory

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

You cannot go to Portsoy without having it’s fabulous ice cream, even in freezing conditions it’s obligatory

Now you tell me! I actually went into the ice cream shop (looking for cream for my coffee) and swithered over buying some to take away. And didn’t!!!
There was indeed a huge queue.
Next time!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

I finally managed to get to sleep upstairs. It was -2 overnight and, interestingly, I was colder upstairs than I had been with the roof down at -12! Nevertheless, with a thermal top, heater on, a hot water bottle and a beanie hat I was pretty comfortable. Just a cold nose!
My friend Graham on the other hand had been having trouble getting his heater and fridge to stay on recently and I plugged my dashboard volt meter in: 10.6v. We established that it was charging with the engine on, just not holding charge. Safe to say, his leisure battery is buggered!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

The next day dawned and it was my birthday! Happy day!
I started by trying to find a working tap. The outside taps were frozen, the toilet taps were frozen and the only thing working was the flush for the chemical toilet disposal. So, I emptied my portaloo and spent 20min dismantling the outside tap and removing ice but although I freed the mechanism it still wouldn’t produce water. I didn’t have much left in my on board tank after 3 days!
Then we drove to Inverness (no time for reading birthday cards or phone messages!)and tried to contact people we knew who might have tools to remove the leisure battery. We sourced an adjustable spanner which wasn’t quite enough, as we needed to remove the front seat to make space. So, we went to Tesco and bought a spanner set for £7 and removed the seat and the battery. I then drove to Halfords and got their cheapest battery (which is 49Ah, not bad!) and dropped it in as a replacement. The old one was lead-acid as well, not AGM. Graham reset the fuses and everything now works perfectly! Good to go!

 

[Lambeth Cali]

Next stop: Pennan
This is a small, pretty fishing village, accessed down a very steep bit of road. Pretty much deserted at this time of year.
It is famous as the setting for the ‘80’s film ‘Local Hero’. I conferred with my friend Graham and we came up with some top facts:
Filmed sometime in the early ‘80’s
Set in Pennan
Stars Burt Reynolds, Peter Capaldi, Fulton Mackay, Gregor Fisher and many more
Soundtrack by Dire Straits
Something about a buyout by ‘Big Oil’
All communication done via a red pay phone box
Anyway, I thought it was very good when I saw it 30+ years ago and I always wanted to go to Pennan, so there I was!!

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Always wanted to go to Pennan. For my 40th my wife hired a screening room to show Local Hero.
If you’re planning on lots of -5 camping, I would recommend a Pucer screen. It just keeps the heat in.

All-Weather Roof Screens for Campers and Caravans | UK

At Pucer Screens, we specialise in all-weather roof screens for campers and caravans in the UK and across Europe. Contact us today to find out more.

www.darenpucerscreens.co.uk

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Highlights of the drive up to Helmsdale: frosty dawn on Findhorn Bay, bridges over the Dornoch and Cromarty firths, Portmahomack and Tarbat Ness lighthouse. The double rainbow was a cracker!

 

[Georgeo]

Next stop: Pennan
This is a small, pretty fishing village, accessed down a very steep bit of road. Pretty much deserted at this time of year.
It is famous as the setting for the ‘80’s film ‘Local Hero’. I conferred with my friend Graham and we came up with some top facts:
Filmed sometime in the early ‘80’s
Set in Pennan
Stars Burt Reynolds, Peter Capaldi, Fulton Mackay, Gregor Fisher and many more
Soundtrack by Dire Straits
Something about a buyout by ‘Big Oil’
All communication done via a red pay phone box
Anyway, I thought it was very good when I saw it 30+ years ago and I always wanted to go to Pennan, so there I was!!

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Burt Lancaster.

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Always wanted to go to Pennan. For my 40th my wife hired a screening room to show Local Hero.
If you’re planning on lots of -5 camping, I would recommend a Pucer screen. It just keeps the heat in.

All-Weather Roof Screens for Campers and Caravans | UK

At Pucer Screens, we specialise in all-weather roof screens for campers and caravans in the UK and across Europe. Contact us today to find out more.

www.darenpucerscreens.co.uk

Thanks. I thought about a top cover for this trip (and Europe in February). I’m a bit concerned about storage space on a long trip and the insulated screen cover is already quite big. Pucer looks good but I might favour a smaller cover that can be stored in with the chairs. It’s all a compromise!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Burt Lancaster.

Dammit. Of course! Thanks.

 

[BeeBee]

Good to see your eating we

Now I’m nervous! It’s on 4 and it’s 19deg inside (ie: fine!)
The chilli is heating and the cat is happy, so I think I’m alright.

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Good to see you’re eating well

 

[wildslammer22]

Thanks. I thought about a top cover for this trip (and Europe in February). I’m a bit concerned about storage space on a long trip and the insulated screen cover is already quite big. Pucer looks good but I might favour a smaller cover that can be stored in with the chairs. It’s all a compromise!

The pucer screen absorbs no water and can be wiped dry with a cloth. In winter I lie it out flat and store it in the roof so it takes up no room at all. I concur with Lambeth Cali - they are very efficient at keeping heat in. I’ve slept up top in -10 with diesel heater ticking away very comfortably.

Loving the blog


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[mcdonaldneal.]

We arrived in Helmsdale just as it was getting dark (about 4pm!)

We quickly found the pub which promised all the delights: a friendly welcome, delicious food, toilets, showers, free spaces reserved for motor homes… everything we could possibly need.

The pub was shut. Dammit.

Ok option two was a small car park by the harbour, covered in sheet ice, but a pretty good spot. There was a community centre nearby with toilets and showers (9-5pm) and all the streets were like ice rinks. Never mind. We went for an exploratory wander and ended up at the best restaurant in Helmsdale (the only one!) Apparently Barbara Cartland used to take lunch there when she was staying on a local estate and it had been going for 40 years. We both ordered fish, chips and peas, and I had a pot of tea. I finished the day by opening the birthday cards that had been slipped into my luggage. Absolutely perfect day!

 

[andyinluton]

@mcdonaldneal.

Please keep this coming. It makes such a nice change to read a travel blog with decent photos rather than the negative posts on the forum.

I am also rather jealous as I would rather be doing what you are than sorting my mud bath of a building site in the bad weather we've been having.

 

[wildslammer22]

If you read up I think he said they were from Aldi in Australia so probably not easy to find now!


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[Bryan2411]

If you read up I think he said they were from Aldi in Australia so probably not easy to find now!


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Cheers, Noticed just after posting and deleted. You beat me!

 

[mcdonaldneal.]

Cheers, Noticed just after posting and deleted. You beat me!

I missed the first post, but to elaborate: I did get these seat covers in Aus but I have also bought an identical set in Aldi in Scotland before (for another vehicle) and I’m sure I saw similar in Lidl once but it was years ago. Hope that helps.