Passing Places Around Scotland

Motorhome Discrimination in the UK

Passing Places this week touches on the topic of motorhome use in the UK and some of the discrimination and negative perceptions that persist particularly in the more scenic parts of the country where there is pressure on car parks and local beauty spots. What a difference to my experiences in France where motorhomes are actively encouraged and great facilities ensure that local towns and villages benefit from the economic contribution that travellers in motorhomes can make during their visits.

Let me know your thoughts and any experiences you might have had, both good and bad.  Next week I will be back out on the road with some Scottish content and my own personal insights of my travels around Scotland.

Sign up for the Passing Places Newsletter by using the form on the front page of my website.

Kevin

Living The Dream

How can you live the dream in a motorhome all year round in Scotland?  I touch on the subject for the first of many times in future episodes. I also include the second part of our USA visitors experience in Scotland, including Skye and Plockton.  So are you living the dream or planning to jump off the hamster wheel, escape the rat race and take off?

Giving up the security of a career, a home and employment can sound daunting.  If that security however is gnawing away at you and you yearn for a less restrictive lifestyle, more freedom, adventure or perhaps just a simpler life in which new experience are always just around the next corner?

Get in touch and share your thoughts on full time travel in a motorhome, RV or campervan.  I am just beginning to address the whole topic of the income side of the balance sheet.  Nothing in life is ever free and travelling can be expensive.  Perhaps if you are intending to travel on a budget you may well need to think of ways of developing an income at least during some months of the year.  You might even take off to mainland Europe.

Many travelers spend some of the year out of season earning money to fund their travels during the better weather months of the year.  In any event work can be a good way to keep yourself active, meet new people and even if you don’t need an income, you might even consider voluntary work as a way to share your skills and give something back.

Get in touch with your ideas and comments.  I’d love to hear from you.

Kevin

USA – Scottish Travels

Featuring Part One of Joyce & Carlo from Boston on their recent Highland adventure as well as other listener conversations about some great locations to visit in Scotland over the winter months. Many listeners who got in touch favour the North West coast of Scotland as well as the North coast. Gairloch, Lochcarron & Gruinard Bay near Ullapool are all covered.  So whether you live in the UK, the USA or anywhere else in the world, if you have a travel story about Scotland or are considering visiting Scotland, I’d love to you here from you.

in Passing Places this week I also pick up on a wonderful suggestion for a woodland gorge walk in the Cowal peninsula in Argyll.  I mention the importance of  over wintering your van to protect against frost damage and burst pipes in particular.  Part Two of Joyce and Carlo’s Highland adventure is in next weeks podcast.  I have just re-listened and can’t believe I called Skipness – Skipton.  Dreadful.  Apologies, will correct myself next week.

Kevin

Winter in Scotland

Ideas for short breaks in quieter parts of Scotland are on my agenda this week. Where would you go for a short break to escape the crowds? I cover places on my bucket list for the winter : Moffat, Pittenweem, Elgol, Portmahomack and Durness on the north coast.

Get in touch with Passing Places and share your experiences and ideas with all our listeners.  You can leave a comment here on the website, leave a voicemail or join us on The Passing Places Podcast Group on Facebook.

Kevin

USA Visitors to Scotland

I’m in the village of  Killin in Stirlingshire.  In this weeks episode of Passing Places I catch up with Joyce and Carlo from Boston, USA, to say hello and to hear first hand how they have enjoyed their vacation in Scotland.  I also have an in-depth interview with Bonnie Hofkin from her home in California.  I also touch upon the feedback I have had about Passing Places and how I might improve the weekly podcast of my travels around Scotland in the coming weeks.

If you are from the USA and you plan to visit Scotland in the future please get and touch and our podcast community of listeners will offer you whatever help we can to ensure you have the the very best vacation in Scotland.   You can get in touch on Facebook by typing into the search box at the the top of the Facebook screen – Passing Places Podcast Group.  Just join our group and share your passion for Scotland with all of us.

Killin is a lovely little village to visit or to base yourself for a few days.  The falls of Dochart are wonderful.  They flow through the old bridge at the top end of the end of the village.  In summer it’s a great spot for a picnic and in winter the awesome strength of the river as it thunders through Killin is a really impressive sight to experience.

Subscribe to the podcast and get in touch.  Use the Speakpipe free voice-mail service here onsite and we can get your audio onto the podcast.

Thanks

Kevin

The Sounds of Scotland
In Passing Places this week I review the progress of the podcast over the past seven months and seek listener feedback on how to take the podcast forward in the coming weeks and months over the winter here in Scotland.  My podcast to date has been largely in a monologue format with a few interviews of people on my travels and a fair sprinkling of the sounds of Scotland.

I’m keen to record more audio out and about and I’m very interested in what you the listener would like to hear on Passing Places.  I often talk about where I am and what I’m up to.  I also stray at times into my version or recollection of Scottish history.  Of special interest to me however is to bring you more of the sounds of Scotland. I feel that might help you have the sense that you are there with me on location.

So please get in touch and give me your opinions and your preferences, if you have any, as to what you would like to see and hear by way of content.

I have I think improved the audio this week.  If you can hear the difference in the audio quality I would also appreciate you letting me know.  Why don’t you try using the Speakpipe voicemail service which is free and available here on my web site.  You can practice your submission before finally pressing send. 🙂

Thank you so much for listening to and supporting Passing Places.  I do hope you get in touch.

Kevin

Autumn in Scotland

In this weeks episode of the podcast I consider why visiting Scotland is a great idea in the autumn. There are very few tourists around, no midges and the autumn display of our woodlands can be a spectacular sight for photographers and all visitors alike.  I suggest some great woodlands that you might like to visit and I look forward to the onset of winter, the shorter days and longer nights and the arrival of snow at any time from now on.

The jewel in the crown for autumn colours is Glen Affric fifteen miles west of Loch Ness.  Glen Affric is a national nature reserve and conservation work and replanting is ongoing to improve the remnants of the ancient caledonian pine forest.

I also cover the new Shure SM58 microphone which I have purchased from donations to the podcast.   I have also improved my setup to allow me to take Skype calls and record them directly into the podcast episodes.

Kevin

Talbot Motorhome Owners Club – Tarland Mini Meet.

What a fantastic week-end on Deeside.  I’m on a campsite at Tarland in the the North East of Scotland on a Sunday evening and I have just enjoyed such a good time with owners of  Talbot motorhomes and similar vans.

In this weeks episode I cover the week that was but focus on the mini-meet on Deeside.   If you are thinking about buying a van for the first time or you have a van consider joining the Talbot Owners Club as you will meet like  minded folk and get access to super support as well as making some great new friends.

For more information visit the Talbot Express Owners Club and join their free forum.

Dumbarton Castle

A week spent in and around Glasgow & Ayrshire with a visit down to Dumbarton Castle.

Dumbarton Castle is an excellent place to stop off on your way towards Loch Lomond to enjoy the great views from the top of the castle and to reflect on the amazing history surrounding the ancient fortress.  From vikings, William Wallace and Mary Queen of Scots Dumbarton Castle has played a key role in Scottish history.

The castle sits on a prominent volcanic plug guarding the entrance to the River Clyde and the leven vally leading to Loch Lomond and the Highlands beyond.

I also touch upon shipbuilding and whisky distillation in Dumbarton as well recalling the impact of the slave trade in generating significant wealth on the River Clyde and Scotland as a nation after The Act of Union in 1707.

Kevin

Touring the Scottish Highlands

Some advice tips and information around planning a trip in the Scottish Highlands.  In this weeks episode I discuss possible routes through the Highlands and including a visit to the Isle of Skye.  We travel from the central belt as far as Ullapool and return via the Trossachs.

Its is possible to plan and book your trip around Scotland before you arrive but there advantages in being flexible too, not least the changeable weather.  I also mention a few iPhone apps that will provide you with weather, mapping and tourist information during your Scottish vacation.

If you do travel as far as Ullapool  you may well find that you feel compelled  to continue up the spectacular north west coast.  It’s hard not to.

Kevin

Loch Ness and the scenery around Dores is just wonderful.  This week  I enjoyed a long weekend near the banks of Loch Ness in the highlands, with a group of like minded folk in their campervans and motorhomes.  It’s the first time I have attended a meeting of motorhome users and I can’t speak highly enough of the experience.

If your interested in campervans and motorhomes or if you are a new owner attending a meet is a great way to meet people and pick their brains in terms of advice and experience.   It is also just a great social experience.

The weekend was really well organised but also very informal so it was possible to participate at whatever level I fancied.  The podcast covers the weekend including an interview with the organisers and it wouldn’t be complete without some reference to the Loch Ness monster.

I enjoyed another visit to The Mull of Kintyre this week amid some glorious late summer sunshine.  As I headed back I was acutely aware of the end of summer both in terms of less tourist traffic but also a real sense of Autumn being in the air.  In the coming weeks I hope to spend a lot more time in wild areas rather than on campsites.

I’m off to a motorhome mini-meet today on Loch Ness.  It will be the first time I have attended such a gathering so I’ll provide you with an update on my experiences in next weeks podcast.

Well I did head over to the East coast after all and what a great few days I had.  I  based myself  in Johnshaven, a small fishing village between Montrose and Stonehaven.  The weather was good for the five days and I managed to visit the beach at Lunan Bay, the open air swimming pool at Stonehaven and a very brief visit to Dunnattor Castle, one of the most photographed castles in Scotland.

If you are visiting Scotland don’t discount this coastline.  There is so much to see and do.  From small villages, historic castles and some superb beaches the East coast offers a lot.  The East coast is also drier than the West coast of Scotland and is largely midge free.

I have just arrived back on Loch Lomondside and the podcast comes from the east side of  Loch Lomond this evening.

Back from France

Well I’m back from France and returning to my weekly podcast schedule about my ongoing travels around Scotland. France turned out to be a great trip and a country I would like to live in on a more full time basis at some point in the future.  However in the meantime let’s get on with celebrating and enjoying the more remote and rugged parts of Scotland. In this weeks episode I reflect on my time in France and look forward to getting back out in the motorhome next week probably, given the weather, somewhere on the East coast of Scotland.

It would be great to hear from listnerews to the podcast so why don’t you get in touch with Passing Places either by voice-mail, Twitter or Facebook.

It’s good to be back online.

The podcast is recorded in Stirling this week with some reference to Birnam & Dunkeld in Perthshire where I stayed last week-end but also some outdoor recording of a local livestock sheep auction and reflections about my preparations for my up an coming trip to France.  I don’t intend to produce my normally weekly podcast over the next five or six weeks but I will be podcasting during my trip on an ad-hoc basis.

A big thank you to everybody who is listening to Passing Places.  I have now been podcasting for four months and I have traveled far and wide across Scotland and it’s islands.  I’ll return to the normal weekly show in mid August when I’ll get back out in the Scottish countryside to enjoy some wild camping as well as the facilities on some of the many Scottish campsites.

Have a great holiday if you are travelling this summer.

I enjoyed a wonderful sailing back from Tiree to Oban on Monday.  The views and weather were superb and entering the harbour at Oban gave excellent views of the town and McCaig’s folly on the hill as well as the cathedral and other prominent buildings.

I stayed the night at  a campsite a few miles south of  Oban.  In the morning I headed off from Oban and scouted a few possible overnight stops on my way back towards Stirling.  I ended up staying at an overnight stop near Dalmally.  In one of the car parks on the way south it was disappointing to see significant amounts of litter.

It really is sad and appalling that people choose to leave litter behind in such beautiful locations.  Argyll & Bute Council do not provide litter bins generally in laybys, preferring to encourage people to take their litter home.  In Perth & Kinross I have seen the council provide wheelie bins and this system appears to be more successful in reducing litter.

I’m off again somewhere in Scotland this week end but have yet to decide where I am going.

A fantastic week on the wonderful and remote island of Tiree

Catch up on my travels and a chat about the Inner Hebrides.

The remarkable story of the small island of Gigha, a short ferry trip from Tayinloan.

Podcasting from Muasdale about my recent travels.  Chatting about cycling and the West Highland Way.

My very first trip to Orkney, a magical group of islands off the north coast of Scotland.

Enjoying the beaches and malt whisky on the wonderful island of Islay.

An enjoyable week-end in the lovely coastal village of Portpatrick and the Mull of Galloway.

A few days in Arrochar and climbing Ben Arthur (The Cobbler).  Encountering a fox in the dead of night.

Flanders Moss nature reserve and Gillies Wood Cambusbarron.