Spittal of Glenshee was closed, so we had to head south east on Saturday morning - and we couldn't even go over Cairn o' Mount, so it was the Slug Road to Stonehaven for us. We had thought we might have to go all the way down to Dundee and across to Perth and back up the A9 from there, but it seemed fairly mild so we cut across country from Forfar - to Kirriemuir and Blairgowrie, with the intention of carrying on westwards to Pitlochry from there. Bad luck - roads closed due to flooding, so we ended up having to go down to Perth anyway - only on the country roads rather than the main dual carriageways.
So, despite leaving Banchory nice and early, we were a bit late arriving for lunch but at least I'd managed to get hold of Barry and let him know. We parked at our B & B in Strathtay and took the short walk to the Inn on the Tay - only we started walking in the wrong direction and had to go all the way back again! I guess it just wasn't our day.
Lunch was nice and we caught up on all the news. Barry and Helen are back working again - part-time, 2 days a week as Assessors for the new Modern Apprentice scheme. They're actually training as they're doing the job - the first in Glasgow as well. Harriet, the dog they were training for the Guide Dogs for the Blind, has now gone. She failed, I'm afraid, so she's now just a house dog somewhere. I think Helen misses her.
Dawn told us about Julie having quit her PhD, which came with some funding which has now obviously gone, so it's going to be tough for them with just Kieran's wage coming in and a wedding on the horizon.
After lunch, we posed outside the Inn:
Don't know why Barry and I are looking so unhappy?
Jo and I walked back to our B & B and Dawn, Barry & Helen drove back home. Riverwood was a lovely, high quality place - if a tad precious. We were told the house rules as soon as we arrived - including wearing slippers in the house.
The Evening with Tony Robinson at the theatre in Pitlochry was good fun. It was very informal and was far from a full house. He was on stage with a fellow actor and he just chatted away. He is very small - and very round. His chosen outfit of sparkly cardigan over plain t-shirt wasn't exactly flattering either:
We popped in to the Moulin Inn for a quick pint before heading back to Strathtay.
Breakfast was lovely - sitting at the window looking out at the Tay, with red squirrel and pheasant roaming round the garden. French toast with maple syrup and bacon - delicious.
We had decided we wanted to do a walk before coming home, but it appeared that the planned trip over the hill to Pitlochry was a lot more than the 4 miles I'd been led to believe it was, so we looked elsewhere. I spotted a walk from Grandtully to Aberfeldy - 4 miles apparently, but it would be a bit more than twice that there and back, as it transpired.
Arriving just outside Aberfeldy, first stop looked like being Dewar's distillery, but their coffee shop was shut on Sundays in winter, unfortunately. Nevertheless, there was a photo opportunity in front of their symbol:
You'd never guess we'd just had words, would you?
We found a lovely new coffee shop in the town centre however - the Habitat Cafe. Suitably refreshed, we headed back along the trail to Grandtully, passing Dewar's once more:
Then, the long drive home - on the main roads this time!
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