Two things you need to know about me.

I’m a bit of a romantic.

Okay, not a bit, a lot.

And I’m in love with the wild windswept beauty of Scotland.

Many moons ago, when my husband and I went on a road trip to Scotland (2 people, 1 car, 1 map, no plan), I didn’t know what to expect, but I was blown off my feet and fell in love with the place. I couldn’t believe something like this even exists. It was like visiting another planet, especially up north. We travelled the small roads, took detours, spent the nights at random B&Bs and stopped to take lots and lots of pictures. And that was when I also fell in love with photography. And who wouldn’t, when at every turn there was something wonderful to capture, and even with my limited knowledge back then I managed to create some beautiful photographs.

One particular place that we fell in love with was Kilchurn Castle on Loch Awe. I vaguely remember that that time we took a detour because the road ahead was closed, and ended up seeing a castle in the middle of a lake, and then spent about 30 mins driving up and down the road, trying to figure out how to get there. And we both were blown away by the simple, rugged beauty of it, and spent several hours just enjoying the scenery.

We always knew we wanted to come back one day, but busy schedules, family commitments (try having family & close friends spread across several countries!), wanting to visit new places, and then having a baby meant that we just couldn’t find the time. Until this Christmas.

Of course, it wasn’t the road trip of several years ago. Far, far from it. We had to plan, account for our toddler’s routine and the fact he wouldn’t want to just sit in the car all day and enjoy the scenery. We had to make sure we knew when and where we were eating, and when and where we were sleeping, every day. We stayed in one place and just enjoyed the family time together, the fresh air and a sprinkling of snow. I hardly even took my camera out, to be honest.

But the last day of our Christmas holiday this year was devoted to returning to Kilchurn Castle. We drove for 3 hours from where we were staying, to get there before the sun went down. It was a bitter-sweet feeling. I was happy that we managed to return there after all these years, a beautiful place to remind us of the “olden” carefree days. And I was sad we only had less than an hour to enjoy it, that it was closed for the winter, and that we were ending out Scottish holiday and and had to start the long overnight drive home.

These photos don’t really do the place justice. But here they are, anyway.

I dream that in a few years time, when Alex is older, we’ll be able to go on a proper road trip, explore Scotland again, big by bit, and have no plan whatsoever. But not just now. And that’s okay.