Fingal's Cave

Seal of approval 

After a far rockier boat ride than we'd anticipated we arrived at Fingal's Cave a little worse for wear, having passed this happy little camper on the way (^). So what is Fingal's Cave? We came across it when doing our research for our roadtrip and were instantly intrigued. Essentially its a uninhabited island made up of volcanic rock. However, technical science speil aside, the way the island has formed over time renders it quite spectacular to the eye and ear. As we approached the island and we drew closer we were confronted by a magnificent cave held up by what looked like hundreds of columns anchored to the sea bed by boulders of gold. Our boat travelled around the island to find a place to dock mercifully we pulled up next to a man made port protruding from the ocean. Once onland, and with only an hour to peruse, we made a beeline for the cave. 

Having clambered around large golden and ashen boulders, we eventually made it to the mouth of the cave. At this point we truly began to feel the immense vastness of this natural cathedral like structure... it was huge. We climbed inside, and having been the first of the tour to arrive, we had a precious few minutes to sit inside and take it all in. Our eyes were busy taking in everything the cave had to offer. The walls and roofs arched overhead and beneath us the ocean strolled in and out of the cave in an almost mesmerizing rhythm, gently crashing into the rear wall. With every crash the music changed track... it was like holding the worlds largest shell to your ear, a truly magical place.

Entering the mouth of the cave

Panoramic view of the inside of the cave

As the crowds funnelled in we made our escape and walked 30 minutes to the far side of the island on the hunt for puffins (an added bonus if we could find them). Just as luck would have it they had began to fly ashore from their watery daytime bed of the ocean. Apparently Puffins love humans, not so much seagulls, so with the arrival of our boat tour we had managed to chase off the land dwelling seagulls providing an open invitation to the puffins to nestle on dry land for a little while. They were wonderful looking creatures, tiny little penguins gliding through the air, cute enough to touch if they weren't prone to positioning themselves so precariously on the edge of the cliff face! 

All in all a trip that proved to be very worthwhile. The pictures don't do this island justice and if you have the chance i'd strongly recommend you take the time to see it for yourself... just make sure you take your sea legs! 

Isle of Mull

After looking at the midge forecast website, (yes this actually exists and just goes to show how terrible they are) we decided on Isle of Mull as our next destination. The campsite we stayed at was gorgeous, waking up with the ocean literally at your doorstep. We ate like kings with mussels the first night and venison burgers the second.  We stayed for 3 nights and explored the island by scaling rocks around the bays as well as doing a boat tour to Fingal's Cave. 

Ferry ride over to Isle of Mull

Our Camper Van/ Wind and Rain Protector

Miserable Midges

After the Lake District we made our way up to Glencoe where we spent a night at the Glencoe Mountain campsite. Arriving around dinner time we set up our tent admiring the view of beautiful luscious green mountains only to be ruined by thousands of tiny little bugs. These bugs are known as midges or as Canadians call them no see ums and they are way worse than any bug I've encountered before. They love moisture and find you by your breath. As soon as one bites you it's an invitation for all of her friends to come over for a taste. By the end of the night my eyes were the only part of my body not covered and even that didn't stop them. The next morning I woke up looking as though I was back in high school with a serious case of acne. Needless to say we were out of there pretty quickly and had to change our destinations to avoid these bloodsuckers at all cost.

Glencoe Mountain Chairlift

The aftermath- more kept appearing days later

Scotland Roadtrip Part 1

Waking up before the sunrise, we packed the last bits into our car and started our journey up North. Stopping only once on our 7 hour car ride, we managed to make it to the Lake District in time to set up our tent, make some lunch and spend the afternoon swimming in Wasdale Head Lake. Since we were staying in the backyard of a pub, we decided to treat ourselves to a pub meal and we took part in my very first pub quiz! 

Where I sent my mom's birthday package from

The next day we woke up early to spend the day swinging from trees like Tarzan. The day revolved around obstacles, zip lines and swings being at heights of up to 19m. There were a few hairy moments when we had to overcome our fears of heights, and by the end of it we were glad to be back on solid ground. 

Lunch spot on our drive home

Montenegro- Day 1

Snow covered mountains

After being home for just over a week Phil and I sauntered off to Montenegro. We booked our trip way back around Christmas time and managed to snag a really good deal. Our flight out was pretty early so after checking our bags we made a beeline for Pret for some breakfast sandwiches and tea. After a two and a half hour flight, we collected our bags, waited in line to pick up our rental car and changed our clothes before starting our drive to Petrovac. 

View from our apartment

The first thing we did once we found our apartment was put on our swimsuits and went off to the beach.

Our beach 100m from our doorstep

Our favourite restaurant/bar carved in the rocks

Relaxing with a few beers

Jump in! 

Home Sweet Home

Although I was only home for a quick visit one of my best friends came up with a list of 17 things to do to make sure I made the most of my time home. Even though we didn't quite manage to cross them all off, we made a nice dent in the list as well as adding a few extras such as a backyard sauna session, 3 separate birthday celebrations, PHO and my very first Zumba class. In addition to the list I managed to incorporate working, catching up on all my appointments and spending time with my family. Time went by way too quickly and I can't wait for my next visit back to the West Coast of Canada.

Birthday Celebrations

"I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy"

BUGZ

The 4 amigos

Check out those mountains

Celebrating my Grandmothers 85th birthday

#10- Canoe to Jimmy Chicken  ✓

We caught dinner

#2 - Rollerblade the Victoria Seawall ✓

Rollerblading the breakwater

Flying over the Gulf Islands

Vancouver Airport