Day 5: Sheepdogs and the Highlands
Sheep dog demonstration
Today, we took in an amazing sheep dog demonstration. Neal, the sheep farmer, had trained each of his six dogs for two years to recognize unique whistle sounds. Each dog responds to its unique tones and whistles. With these cues, Neal can send out instructions to his group of dogs from his overlook location. It was truly impressive!
One dog had an injury, but Neal didn’t believe in retiring dogs, so this dog stayed active and did as much as he could. "Work till you die or you lose purpose" was his philosophy. Neal was an interesting guy with outspoken views on President Trump, Brexit and global warming. It was interesting to hear his perspectives. He basically spends every single day of his life on the farm, and his wife wrote a sheep dog book about their experiences that we bought to donate to our local elementary school.
One dog had an injury, but Neal didn’t believe in retiring dogs, so this dog stayed active and did as much as he could. "Work till you die or you lose purpose" was his philosophy. Neal was an interesting guy with outspoken views on President Trump, Brexit and global warming. It was interesting to hear his perspectives. He basically spends every single day of his life on the farm, and his wife wrote a sheep dog book about their experiences that we bought to donate to our local elementary school.
Loch Ness
There were no monster sightings on Loch Ness today, but we did have a beautiful boat ride and castle visit. Urquhart Castle, which was once held by Bonnie Prince Charlie during the Jacobite fight for Scottish independence, was partially destroyed in 1692, so the Jacobites couldn’t retake it. After this damage, it quickly decayed. We really enjoyed the local interpretive center which featured a nice film experience. As the film ends, the wall opens into windows overlooking the castle. That was really cool and a dramatic end to the film. On an unrelated side note, I experience "million dollar shortbread" today at Nigel's prompting. Wow! It was fantastic!
Sheep Shearing Demo |
Loch Ness |
Urquhart Castle |
Inverness
We checked into our hotel in Inverness. "Inver" means "entry to" so Inverness means "entry to the Lock Ness." Nigel took us on a walking tour, and then Pam and I walked the bridge loop after that before getting ready for our group supper which was held at the Mustard Seed. Food and company were excellent once again. This was essentially our anniversary dinner since today was our 29th wedding anniversary. Happy anniversary, Pam!
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