Scotland and Derbyshire Easter 2025: Days 1-3
Day 1 (Friday)
I set off last night to get a few hours of the journey done before continuing today. It wasn’t the wisest move, travelling on Good Friday, but work didn’t allow for anything different. The journey was uneventful — and long.
After six hours on the road, I reached the "Welcome to Scotland" sign and thought, yay, I’m nearly there! But no — the sat nav told me I still had another 3.5 hours to go!
The main purpose of this trip was to meet up with my son, J. I picked him up in Newtonmore, popped into the Co-op for some food, and then we drove up to Glen Banchor for dinner.
Glen Banchor is a stunning glen just a few minutes outside Newtonmore. Within moments, you go from a quiet village full of houses to a secluded glen where you hardly see another soul. There are a few pull-ins along the road and a car park at the end and you’ll often spot campervans tucked away for the night.
I now have my favourite spot there — and once I found it, I knew I’d be seriously upset if someone else had beaten me to it. (Thankfully, they hadn’t. 😅)
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| Overnight stop in Glen Banchor |
Day 2 (Saturday)
I love parkrun! I love meeting up with friends each week, exploring new events when I’m away, and chatting with new people as I walk around. I always walk and will encourage anyone to give it a try — it’s done so much for me. I like to give back and volunteer when I can too.
So, Saturday of course had to start with parkrun, and my NENDY (nearest event not done yet) was an hour away in Inverness, which tied in nicely with our plans for later. The good news is that parkruns in Scotland start half an hour later at 9:30am .
The course at Torvean Park was lovely and not too hilly. It was a bit damp, and unfortunately, low cloud meant I couldn’t see the mountains — but as usual, it was a friendly parkrun. I ended up chatting with a Dutch lady all the way round. She was telling me about the mindless idiots who buy cheap tents, head up into the hills for a night, and then just leave everything behind.
I really don’t understand some people — it makes me so angry. Why go to all the effort to spend time in beautiful surroundings, only to spoil them with litter? If you’ve got the energy to carry it in, you’ve got the energy to carry it out.
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| Inverness parkrun |
After parkrun, we headed to Culloden Battlefield — the site of the final battle of the Jacobite Rising in 1745. The visitor centre told the story from both sides, which was really interesting. One of the most powerful parts was a surround-screen video projected on all four walls. It showed the brutal horror of the battle — hard to look away from, but equally hard to watch.
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| Memorial Cairn |
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| Inscription on the memorial cairn |
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| Culloden Battlefield |
After the battlefield, we went to the nearby Clava Cairns — a 4,000-year-old burial site. From there, we took a short walk (about half a mile) to the Milton of Clava. There wasn’t much to see at that second site, as only one tall standing stone remains.
Clearly others had the same thought, because we were the only ones who made the walk! Still, it gave us a lovely, quiet view of the Culloden Viaduct in the distance — worth it just for that.
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| Clarva Cairns |
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| Milton of Clarva with Culloden viaduct in the distance |
We took the back roads back to Newtonmore and stopped for a closer look at the viaduct. At 549 metres long with 29 arches, it’s the longest viaduct in Scotland — and up close, it’s even more impressive.
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| Culloden viaduct |
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| Overlooking the Cairngorm Mountains at Loch Morlich |
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| Rumikub |
Day 3 (Sunday)
Today started with a quiet morning on my own — some reading, followed by a peaceful walk. I parked in the village and did part of the Wild Cat Trail. I use the AllTrails app, which shows the route and sends a notification if I stray off course. It gives me real peace of mind when I’m walking solo.
The walk was beautifully scenic and included the remains of an ancient hut circle, sweeping views, and a few of Newtonmore’s famous wild cats. There are around 130 of them dotted around the village, and you can even buy a map to try and spot them all!
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| A nice walk with mountain views |
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| Ancient hut circle |
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| One of the wild cats |
In the afternoon, I met up with J and we walked to the Highland Folk Museum in Newtonmore. This open-air museum showcases life in the 1700s and 1940s. There’s no entry fee, though donations are welcome, and there’s a small charge for parking.
The site stretches for about a mile, so you’ll want to set aside at least a few hours to take it all in. Among the buildings are a church, a train station, a post office (where you can buy old-fashioned sweets!), a house, and a school — all beautifully decorated with period furnishings and items. It was lovely to reminisce about things I remember from my mum’s or Nana’s house.
We were lucky enough to see some Highland cows being fed, which was a real treat. The Pinewoods section involved a bit of a walk, but it was well worth it. We passed through an area that had been devastated by a storm in 2022, which brought down a large number of trees — a sad but fascinating part of the visit.
At the end of the trail, we reached the 1700s village, where a friendly and knowledgeable staff member was happy to chat and answer questions. She told us that this 18th-century village was actually used as a filming location for the Outlander series!
Later, we headed back up to Glen Banchor and sat outside for a while, but it soon turned chilly. I took J back home and was happy to "bag" my spot again when I returned.
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