We start the day thinking how we will get back to mainland Europe. The tent is still lying unused in the back of the car so it would be ideal to use it to hop back across the UK. Sadly the weather is not really helping, a rain front will move over the entire island from north to south so there’s no escape.
So we look at some holiday park options and although the deals are gone, we find one in Northumberland which is reasonably priced and on our way south. The website won’t let us book on this short notice so we have to call them and spend 30 minutes spelling names and numbers.
At 9.30 we are ready to go and head back east to Aberdeenshire to cover some of the castles we’ve missed before. Of the five castles on the list, only two are self guided so we head for them first. The first is Castle Fraser, the most elaborate example of a Z-plan castle in Scotland. Work began in the 15th century but most of what we see today is 18th century improvement.
We climb the winding stairs upwards, looking into the adjecent rooms on the different floors. At the top you can exit the tower for some great views of the grounds and the surrounding area.
A bit to the south lies Crathes Castle, another 16th century castle with harled walls, a special sort of stuco to protect against the Scottish weather. Once again we climb the long winding stairs and visit all the rooms while the children go on a treasure hunt. This castle has more of the original decoration inside with remains of the frescoed walls and the painted wooden ceilings which were restored after a fire in the 1960s.
The walled garden of this castle is especially nice with lots of different flowers, sculpted hedges and small paths. There also is a big fenced off playground which is free for members so the children get to climb and glide before we head for the last castle of the day.
This is another famous harled castle, namely the pink Craigievar Castle. This is one of the guided castle and we have arrived 5 minutes to late, and the last tour will start in 25 minutes at 16.00. Since it’s already this late in the day and we have to drive for another 1.5 hours to get back we just walk the grounds and head back. While driving the weather changes and rain clouds cover the hills.
Back at our park the rain has stopped but it’s cold and windy. Tim still decides to go for a dive in the North Sea while Olga cooks dinner. After dinner the children go for a slightly warmer swimming trip in the indoor pool.
