We left Portree on the Isle of Skye and stopped at the iconic Eileen Donan Castle. When you see photos of Scotland, this is the castle most often shown.
The tour of the castle is self-guided, though there are docents to answer questions. We were enjoying the castle and reached the Great Hall. As we were leaving that room, we noticed an anteroom next to it with a small door in the wall about eye level. Being the curious type, we opened it and realized we could see into the Great Hall. We returned to the Hall and asked the docent about it. He was a very nice young man and explained that the opening was a peephole for watching and eavesdropping on what was happening in the Hall. He then pointed out several more of them around the room. He said the lord of the castle would station soldiers in these areas to watch and listen for trouble, especially if the lord was meeting with opposing groups who might try to harm him.
We also learned an interesting fact about the plaids (tartans) that are worn. I always thought that each clan had always had its own tartan. There was a display in one of the rooms of the various tartans worn by the inhabitants of the castle and what event they were used for - some were for hunting, some were ceremonial, etc. One of the older docents explained that tartans originally were different colors just because of the materials available for dying them. For instance, a clan in the northwest might have different plant dyes than a group in the southeast. And the dyes might change with the seasons as well. The tradition of wearing a specific tartan came about as the clans gathered and wanted to distinguish between the different groups.
We left the castle and made the drive through Glencoe (see my post about this from 2012) to the pretty town of Pitlochry. This was a nice place to stop and spend the night and the town itself is quite charming, flower baskets hanging from all the lampposts. Near Pitlochry, there is a place called Killiecrankie. There is a story told about a soldier fleeing for his life who made an incredible leap across the river at this site. We decided to go check it out. It's a fairly short walk from their visitor center to the spot where the leap took place. I have to say I would not want to try jumping across at that spot! I mean you probably could do it if you had a running start and were very athletic but if you don't make it you hit some rocks and land in the river. Ouch! And you would be a sitting duck for the people chasing you.
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