SPTCN25102 - Scotland

We are starting off ar the wonderfull mellville Castle near edinburg. There hardly is a better Place to get in to the Scottish vibes than a Castle in the Woods. The bikes are waiting in front of the Castle to get going Tomorrow. For Today we will Focus on making everybody excited for our Ride with our Briefing and a Short Video of Whats to come. Than we move on to a Nice Dinner at the Castle together and get ready to take off Tomorrow !

Our first day on the road began at the beautiful Melville Castle. We hit the highway for a few kilometers to escape the morning traffic and make our way towards one of Scotland’s most unique landmarks: the Falkirk Wheel. Though we set off under sunny skies, the Scottish weather quickly reminded us who’s boss. By the time we arrived at the wheel, we’d already had our first taste of rain—perfect timing to test out our rain gear! At the Falkirk Wheel, we took a moment to admire this marvel of engineering. It’s the world’s only rotating boat lift, smoothly transporting boats between two canals with a perfectly balanced mechanism. We even found ourselves trying to guess which direction it would turn next—joined by a curious bystander doing the same. And yes, they had some great souvenirs too, which was a nice bonus! From there, we continued our journey with the weather flipping back and forth between sunshine and rain—classic Scotland. The changing skies actually added a dramatic backdrop as we entered Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, heading deeper into the Highlands. We grabbed a quick lunch just before entering the park, and then the real adventure began—twisting roads through dense forests, winding us further north. The final stretch of the day brought us right into the heart of the Highlands. Towering mountains, rugged landscapes, and those unmistakable Highland colors surrounded us. And just when we thought it couldn’t get better, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up the hills in a way that felt almost magical. It was an incredible first day—filled with everything you’d expect from a Scottish road trip. And the best part? This is only the beginning! --- Día 2: De Castillos a las Tierras Altas – Una Verdadera Bienvenida Escocesa Nuestro primer día en la carretera comenzó en el hermoso Castillo de Melville. Tomamos la autopista durante unos kilómetros para salir del tráfico matutino y dirigirnos hacia uno de los monumentos más singulares de Escocia: la Rueda de Falkirk. Aunque empezamos bajo un sol radiante, el clima escocés no tardó en mostrarnos su verdadera cara. Para cuando llegamos a la rueda, ya habíamos tenido nuestro primer chaparrón—¡perfecto para probar nuestra ropa impermeable desde el principio! En la Rueda de Falkirk, nos tomamos un momento para admirar esta maravilla de la ingeniería. Es el único ascensor rotativo para barcos del mundo, y transporta embarcaciones entre dos canales con un mecanismo perfectamente equilibrado. Incluso nos divertimos intentando adivinar en qué dirección giraría, junto con otro espectador curioso que se unió al juego. ¡Y sí, tenían recuerdos muy bonitos también! Desde allí, continuamos nuestra ruta, mientras el clima seguía cambiando entre sol y lluvia—lo más típico de Escocia. Este paisaje cambiante añadió un fondo dramático mientras entrábamos en el Parque Nacional de Loch Lomond y los Trossachs, rumbo al corazón de las Tierras Altas. Hicimos una breve parada para almorzar justo antes de entrar al parque, y luego comenzó la verdadera aventura—carreteras serpenteantes a través de bosques densos que nos llevaban cada vez más al norte. En los últimos kilómetros del día, ya estábamos completamente en las Tierras Altas. Montañas imponentes, paisajes agrestes y esos colores tan característicos de esta región nos rodeaban. Y justo cuando pensábamos que no podía ser más impresionante, el sol rompió entre las nubes, iluminando las colinas de forma casi mágica. Fue un primer día increíble—lleno de todo lo que uno espera de una aventura escocesa. ¿Lo mejor? ¡Esto recién comienza!

We said goodbye to the lush green mountains of the Glen Coe National Park and made our way north. First stop was the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct, better known from Harry Potter, were the car is flying over the railway bridge. The impressive constructions is now attracting many visitors each year from all over the world. We had a little stop and a coffee before we hit the road again. The road was gently winding its way through a valley lined by picturesque lochs that accompanied our journey. It was cruising time, enjoying the scenery and simply taking it all in. And then we reached Eilean Donan Castle, probably the most famous castle in Scotland. It's rugged outcrop location makes it a perfect photo opportunity and a popular location for movie shoots. The castle had a cameo in Highlander, Braveheart & James Bond - The world is not enough, to name a few. From here is was a very short hop onto the Isle of Skye over its iconic bridge. We didn't had to go far as our final destination was Broadford, but parts of the group wanted to see a little bit more of the Island, so we went for a little excursion along the northern coastline before finally turning around to use the last rays of light for the way back to the hotel. It's truly been an eventful day.

The day greeted us already with a stunning sunrise over the bay. We grabbed a rich breakfast and off we went. We left Skye and its mountainous interior behind and returned to the mainland. From here we went north again, along the hills and little villages of the backcountry roads. Most of them were single tracks with the occasional layby for passing. So the riders had to be focused and couldn't be distracted by the scenery, what a challenging task, when you are surrounded by so much natural beauty. So, a little coffee stop was in order at Loch Carron before we would tackle the highlight of today - the Applecross Pass. However, first things first.. hot beverages .. toilet break ... and for Analia, our Shopping Queen, another little souvenir ; ) Then we made our way to the pass, were we stopped at the bottom and went one by one for our own enjoyment, but also Lars was waiting for us to take some excellent drone footage of the ascent. Breathtaking scenery paired with twist and turns on a single track, the Applecross Pass truly deserves his reputation and is a favourite amongst motorcycle riders. The descent was more gradually, but on brand new tarmac and continues vistas. When we reached the bottom we were in luck and had a change to say hi to some very furry highland cattle. How cute they were! The cattle weren't the only 4 legged encounters we had, near the Applecross Village we saw sow impressive red deer stags enjoying a day on the beach and we stopped counting the amount of cheep lining the road. However, Raul still needed a little educational lecture about the difference of sheep testicals and full udders at dinner. :D For lunch we stayed at loch Shieldaig and went for some traditional English/Scottish dishes. We enjoyed seafood chowder, fish and chips, sandwiches and other tasty meals. A perfect spot to reminiscing the individual riding experiences. From here we had to finish our round of the peninsula and heading across to the eastern side of Scotland to Inverness and a little further to Nairn. The afternoon ride took us on confortable a-roads to our destination. It was a relaxed ride after the more challenging ride of the morning and we all could enjoy more of the scenery. The city traffic of Inverness came as a little surprise and fortunately we only had to navigate a few roundabouts before we could finish the day on another quiet country road. What a fantastic day it was!

Today was a rest day, so we weren’t going for a ride. Does that mean we were bored and had nothing to do? How sweet of you to wonder, but no, definitely not. It came as a complete surprise to me, but it turns out William likes whisky. He had planned a tour of three distilleries in the famous Speyside whisky region of Scotland. We started off at Glenlivet with a tour. They did an absolutely stunning job right from the beginning. The shop’s design, where you enter before the tour, is beautiful, and it only gets better from there. In the first area, we walked through a field of actual barley and were introduced to the farmers, distillers, master blenders, and their sustainability experts. From there, we went through all the steps of the process, from crop to bottle, which was very impressive to see. And then, of course, we also had to taste the final result. After filling and labeling our own bottle, we enjoyed a lovely lunch, followed by a tour of the Glenfarclas distillery. It was really nice to see the contrast between the super modern, large-scale operation at Glenlivet and the more traditional approach at Glenfarclas. It’s still a big company, but the differences in scale and philosophy were very noticeable. To top the day off, we tasted some very special, limited-edition whiskies by the Spey, with beautiful sunlight peeking through. Meanwhile, the other half of the group enjoyed a relaxed day at the hotel and a visit to Inverness. I don’t think either group would have wanted to swap. All in all, a really great day, and we’re full of excitement for tomorrow! *** Hoy fue un día de descanso, así que no íbamos a salir en bicicleta. ¿Eso significa que estábamos aburridos y sin nada que hacer? Qué detalle que lo pienses, pero no, definitivamente no. Para mi total sorpresa, resultó que a William le gusta el whisky. Había organizado una visita a tres destilerías en la famosa región de Speyside, en Escocia. Comenzamos en Glenlivet con un recorrido. Desde el principio hicieron un trabajo absolutamente impresionante. El diseño de la tienda, por donde se entra antes de la visita, es precioso, y a partir de ahí solo mejora. En la primera parte, caminamos por un campo de cebada real y nos presentaron a los agricultores, los destiladores, los maestros mezcladores y sus expertos en sostenibilidad. De ahí pasamos por todos los pasos del proceso, desde el grano hasta la botella, lo cual fue muy impresionante de ver. Y luego, por supuesto, también teníamos que probar el resultado final. Después de llenar y etiquetar nuestra propia botella, disfrutamos de un delicioso almuerzo, seguido de una visita a la destilería Glenfarclas. Fue muy interesante ver el contraste entre la operación súper moderna y de gran escala en Glenlivet y el enfoque más tradicional en Glenfarclas. Sigue siendo una gran empresa, pero las diferencias en la escala y la filosofía eran muy notables. Para terminar el día, probamos algunos whiskies muy especiales y de edición limitada junto al río Spey, con una luz preciosa colándose entre el paisaje. Mientras tanto, la otra mitad del grupo disfrutaba de un día tranquilo en el hotel y de una visita a Inverness. No creo que ninguno de los dos grupos hubiera querido cambiar. En resumen, un día realmente genial, y estamos llenos de ilusión para mañana.

Today was going to be one of those days where you get a little taste of everything Scotland is known for, all packed into one ride. First up was Cairngorms National Park, the largest national park in Great Britain. From there, we rode back through the Speyside whisky region we had explored yesterday, and then on to the famous castle route around Inverness. The national park was a true highlight – wonderfully winding roads, sweeping curves, and breathtaking views in every direction. Best of all, hardly any traffic at all. It was pure joy just to cruise through and take it all in. Speyside felt much the same as it did yesterday – unsurprisingly – but it was still a treat to roll through the area on the bikes. Of course, we couldn’t resist stopping for the classic photo next to one of the whisky signs, a little tradition of its own. To finish the ride off in style, we stopped for some pictures at a charming little pink castle, a perfect backdrop to close out the day’s route. Arriving in Inverness, we had a bit of a hiccup when one of the bikes developed what you could call “gravitational problems” at a traffic light. That meant pushing it off to the side to assess the situation. As we were figuring out what to do next, a police car happened to pass by, and the officers immediately pulled over to check on us. They turned out to be probably the friendliest policemen one could ever meet. We had a great chat with them, lots of laughs, and in the end they even gave the ladies a lift in their police car to the Starbucks nearby. Definitely not your everyday ride – and certainly a fun little memory to add to the trip. 👌 All in all, it was a day to remember

The last day of our ride was the one I had personally been looking forward to the most, as we had saved some of the best for last. The day began with an unexpected surprise. I had asked the hotel for a wake-up call, but they seemed to take the request a little too seriously by setting off the fire alarm and sending us all outside. While we were waiting for the fire brigade to arrive, do their checks, and let us back in, we found out that the alarm may have had something to do with someone drying their socks with a hairdryer… but of course, that could have been any of us, since we would never do such a thing… XD Once back inside and packed up, we set off towards Balmoral Castle. The King happened to be staying there at the time, which meant we couldn’t go inside. For us it would have been perfectly fine to visit with him around, but apparently, he’s a bit selective when it comes to his guests. After Balmoral, we rode on to the town of Braemar, where the café we had planned to stop at was unfortunately closed. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because Plan B was the hotel right next door – a wonderful mix of old-school charm with some modern touches. The local gift shop was also a success. They had some really cool souvenirs, and I was even advised to pick up some handmade soap as a gift – and of course, I listened to that excellent advice. For me, the highlight came right after this stop. I absolutely love the road that winds its way through the valley after Balmoral. It has stunning views and this incredible flow to it – one of the best stretches of road you’ll find anywhere. Lunch was at a stylish restaurant where we treated ourselves to what was more or less a three-course meal. The day before, someone had dozed off in a restaurant after lunch, but today it seemed the motorcycles wanted a turn, as one of them decided to lay down for a little nap of its own. Back at Melville Castle in the evening, we shared a lovely dinner together and looked back on what had been a safe, successful, and unforgettable tour. :)