So we tried to catch Nessie, but we missed her showtime by a couple hours. Still no pictures of that elusive monster.

We started this day with a tour of Cawdor Castle. There are several wings and towers built around a 15th-century tower house. It's claim to fame is it is the supposed residence of the Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor. Although the dates, location, and other details don't match up. It's really only the name that makes a real connection. It is a cool residence (the current lady lives there from October to April and then moves out for tourist season in the summer) with some amazing gardens.

After that, we had lunch at a conference center. Nothing to much to speak of except once again some beautiful gardens.

Our next stop was Loch Ness and the Urquhart Castle ruins. This old castle dates from the 13th century to the 16th century. It was a very well defended structure. Although it changes hands between the Brits and the Scots several times, it only really fell when the the British forces left in the late 1600's and blew it up so the Jacobites couldn't take control of it again. I had seen this castle from up on the hillside the last time I was in Scotland, but I didn't get to go and explore the ruins. It was a nice treat to finally see it up close.

We finished with a beautiful ride back through the Scottish countryside.