On Wednesday morning, September 18th, our 98 mile journey would take us through a large section of the Cairngorms north and then east to Dunnottar Castle.
We had the buffet style breakfast the Inn provided and then packed up and checked out for our travel day.
The night before I searched on my computer for likely stops along the road. The Lair Tea and Gift shop in Glenshee popped up and sounded like a great place to stop. We kept our eyes peeled along the road and pulled in.
We were the first customers of the day.
The staff were getting ready for a motorcycle group that were arriving closer to lunch time.
We placed our orders and enjoyed our treats. We all were thankful that this little haven popped up the night before and that we could enjoy our time here.
It was fun to check out the gifts for sale. Tempting but we stuck to our snacks and drinks.
This shop appeared along the road and we didn’t think fast enough to turn off the road for a visit. There are not a lot of turn around spots.
A little further along the road we did use a turnout to stretch our legs and enjoy the scenery standing still instead of in motion.
These Highland landscapes were very different from what we had experienced already in Scotland. As you can see we had yet another amazing blue sky and sunshiny day, squint, squint. This road would not have been fun in the rain or with snow.
Our next stop along the A93 would be at Braemar which is close to Balmoral where the ‘Royals’ might be seen. That will be another post.
Balmoral is not open to the public in September, typically, so there was no chance for us catching a glimpse. Maybe we’ll return during another season and make some different stops in the Highlands…
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 
Ellen, I’m enjoying the record of your Scottish trip – the description of the road, the names of places where you travelled and the photos of this area of Scotland are interesting and remind me of my own time in Scotland many years ago.
Linda, I’m glad it brings back good memories.
Beautiful landscapes and scenes from Scotland. The Tea and Gift shop look nice.
Wonderful photos of you and your family. Take care, enjoy your day and the week ahead.
Thank you, Eileen!
…the Lair Tea and Gift shop looks like my kind of place!
Tom, It was one of our favorites!
Mark and I need to head to Scotland! I think we would LOVE it! We’ve been talking and dreaming about where we will go on our next trip!!
Lisa, I don’t think you can go wrong visiting Scotland!
Your Scottish travels are amazing and so bright and sunny. Looking forward to hearing about Braemar. We had a very damp but beautiful experience there. B x
Barbara, we enjoyed our short time in Braemar. Thanks for stopping by.
You were in our neck of the woods when we lived there.
I spotted Montrose where we lived before moving on base and my daughter was born there.
We also lived in a castle just outside of Brechin.
You’ve taken some wonderful photos.
Karen, how fun is that!? Now I wish we would have known ahead of time and I would have taken photos in Montrose and in Brechin!!
I loved seeing the Highlands when we visited Scotland in fall last year. Our tour guide and bus driver told us they never saw it so colorfull. I was also surprised tpo see ski areas there. I imagine in Spring the wild heather and bright green grass on the hills is also amazing to see– maybe someday we will return in that season.
Pat, we just missed the heather. That would be something to see! Thanks for stopping by.
The Lair looks sooo charming! (I feel like i have used that word before in reaction to your Scotland posts, but I am compelled to use it again!) The scenery is stunning. What a drive!
I love those little tea/coffee shop finds. Lair looks like one of the best, esp the scones.
I just can’t wait to visit Scotland. Your photos make me want to hop on a plane right now.
The landscape is quite bleak there (but still beautiful). No trees. I wonder why. And the roads are narrow. But at least they don’t have hedgerows with stone walls like Cornwall… Willow
Gorgeous landscapes. I really like the photo of the sun shining on the Celtic cross. Stopping at little tea shops is a great way to absorb some culture, get sustenance, and fill tummies.
Looks like it was a lovely day. I always enjoy seeing all of the beautiful pictures you share. What a wonderful trip you took.