Tuesday morning I was back at Timberbush by 8:15AM for the Loch Ness tour. After the Borders looked so beautiful the day before, I wanted to see some of the Highlands. There were two vehicles going, though we would have almost no contact between them - a 36 passenger bus and a 24 passenger motor coach.
I was assigned to the motor coach. One of the last passengers to board, I had an inner seat near the back of the full vehicle. As we headed out of Edinburgh toward Stirling, the seat was uncomfortable, the view not so good and the Italians behind me wouldn't stop talking. 12 hours of this looked like a big mistake. After about an hour and a half we had our first stop, at a roadside woolen mill and cafe near Callander in the Trossachs. The stop gets a lot of bus traffic, and most people feed Hamish, a large Highland Bull – a real eating machine.
When it came time to board, Mike (the driver/guide) asked if I wanted to sit in the jump seat in the front next to him. Did I! Suddenly I had lots of legroom a great view and could chat with the driver. I don't know if it was because I was the oldest person on the bus, or the only native English speakers, but the rest of the 380 mile trip was great.
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