We awoke this morning on the Lord of the Glens docked in the port of Oban. We took off into town towards one of Oban’s famous landmarks, McCaig’s Tower. Also known as McCaig’s Folly, it was built between 1897 and 1902. We took a great walk through town and enjoyed an incredible view of the town and port from the tower. We sailed through the beautiful waters of the Highlands on our way to the Caledonian Canal. The locks were under inspection, so we went into expedition mode and switched to a secondary plan. We docked in Tobermory. After dinner, musicians came aboard for an intimate concert of Scottish folk music. The couple, Hannah Fisher and Sorren Maclean, were amazing, and it was a once in a lifetime show for us.
6/15/2025
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Lord of the Glens
Loch Ness, Culloden and Clava Cairns
Today we entered the famous Loch Ness, home of Nessie! We then visited the hallowed Scots battle ground of Culloden. On April 16, 1746, Bonnie Prince Charlie and his highland troops fought a courageous but doomed battle against the well-armed troops under the Duke of Cumberland, the son of King George II. Fifteen thousand highlanders were killed, while the English lost 300. Culloden Moor was soddened from a recent rain, which greatly impeded the highland troops and their traditional form of warfare. Additionally, they were massively outgunned by the English artillery. Bonnie Prince Charlie managed to escape despite a £30,000 bounty on his head, and he returned to France. This ended the Jacobite efforts to return the throne to the rightful Stuart heirs. The Culloden Museum was excellent and provided an overview of the tragic event that took place there. We next visited the Bronze age site of Clava Cairns. There circular stone grave sites, passage graves, and standing stone aligned to the solstice are 4,500 years-old and part of the megalithic culture from Malta to Shetland. They have been used by the local population for ritual purposes and infrequent burials until 700 CE.
