Kenmore
Highlights to Look For
Dunkeld grounds
Whisky tours
4th of July Bagpipes
Raffle Prizes
Kenmore Itinerary
Day 10: Dunkeld, Crannogs Center, Aberfeldy, Pitlochry Highland Night
Today's tour plans didn't start until later in the day, so I took a long walk around the beautiful grounds of the Dunkeld House Hotel. The grounds had miles of walking paths, most following along the River Tay.
Today just happens to be the 4th of July! Our guide James said he'd be very disappointed if he caught us pouring our tea into this beautiful river
Our tour began with a walk through the town of Dunkeld, including the ruins of the Dunkeld Cathedral which had a great clocktower still standing.
Following our walking tour around town, we headed to the Crannogs Centre, where we learned about life during the Iron Age (2500 years ago!). Crannogs are hut-like structures built up on wooden stilts situated on the Lochs. Not only did we see crannog ruins and many artifacts, the museum has an interactive area where you can learn about cooking, woodworking, and many other skills that would have been utilized by crannog dwellers 2500 years ago.
Our next stop was the Dewar's Distillery in Aberfeldy. We walked through the factory side, learning about the distilling process, as well as the difference between their blends and the single malts.
And of course what tour would be complete without a tasting or two!
Some of the barrels in the cask room are older than I am!
Tonight's events were an incredibly special treat. Our first night in Pitlochry consisted of a bagpipe exhibition. After her show, our piper Helen informed us that the Vale of Atholl Pipe Band was putting on a performance in town the next evening. The band would be performing at Highland Night - an event that takes place throughout the summer and features a variety of dancing, singing, and music in the traditional Scottish Highland style. Watching bagpipe performances in 45°F weather was one of the most unique Fourth of July performances I've ever seen!
The Blair Athol Distillery donates a bottle of whisky for each highland night and it's raffled off based on program numbers. Luck was on our side that night, and our bus driver Ian won the bottle!
Background: Bellflowers outside Dunkeld