June 13
Fort William

A mixed start to the morning. Outside, there was a trace of blue sky when I peered through the bedroom curtains and even more when I had walked the 90 yards from my door to the end of the corridor and descended the stairs. Once in the open air, however, it was distinctly chilly so I had to unpack my waterproof.

Sitting in the station was a pretty yellow train. I'm not sure what it was doing but it brightened up the morning.

A pretty yellow train - and some blue sky
The West Highland Museum	More blue sky on the High Street
Fish ...	... and meat but no veg

My plans started to unravel when I attempted to find a café on the main street that was open for breakfast. I found the museum, more blue sky, even a small market. No breakfast, however, until the Weatherspoons pub built under the Travelodge right at the far end of the High St. I should have noted that the market stocked meat, bread, fish, flowers and clothes - no sign at all of fruit and veg. There's a surprise.

The bacon roll and coffee were good enough and very cheap. From there, I walked back along the High St to the Post Shop in order to return my room key to its owner on Skye.

Then it was back along the street - one of many trips along the route throughout the day - to the pier for a boat trip.

I paid my money and joined a few others aboard. Just before launch time, a whole coach party of old people arrived so that there must have been more than 50 aboard and I was probably the youngest! The cloud gathered again and as we sailed along Loch Linnie into the wind, it was bitterly cold. My fingers started going numb, which made photography difficult. There wasn't anything too exciting to see - a passing freighter, a salmon farm, a mussel farm and a couple of seals.
I joined a few others ...	... and we sailed into the wind
Passing a freighter ...	... a salmon farm
... a mussel farm	... and a couple of seals

The sun appeared occasionally, there were some very nice properties on the banks and Ben Nevis remained stubbornly hidden behind the cloud. A neighbouring hill (mountain?) did have a little lying snow.

Some snow but no Ben Nevis	Very smart houses

The return journey, away from the wind, was much warmer. It only became obvious how much warmer when we swung round again in order to moor at the pier. Everything suddenly froze!

It wasn't a wildly exciting trip but it was a nice way of spending a restful morning chilling out - both literally and metaphorically.

Back to the pier	Another length of the High Street

Another length of the High St took me to the second CAMRA listed pub but I was disappointed so I retraced my steps to the Grog and Gruel, where I lunched yesterday.

I chose a chilli cheese dog, which was far bigger and better than I expected. Good sausages, home made chilli beans and even some salad. The beer was OK too.

A chilli cheese dog - very good	Not much colour on my walk

The walk to the distillery was more than a couple of miles - the distance suggested by the guy in the pub. It took 45 minutes along a very busy main road. Not pleasant walking conditions. The only objects worthy of photographs were some beautiful bushes in a garden

I finally got there, had a good coffee in the little café and joined about a dozen others on the tour. The guide, it transpired, had strong New Zealand connections. His family owned thousands of acres near Cambridge, which they leased to Mark Todd. The guide and he had ridden together many years before at a riding school in Oxfordshire.

Along a very busy main road	The Ben Nevis distillery
Local guard dogs	Lots of casks (not barrels)

I didn't learn too much from the tour but it was well done. We were allowed to sniff the fermenting vats - and all received a nasty shock. The carbon dioxide being given off reacts with the moisture in your nose to generate hydrochloric acid. At the end, I actually drank my tiny glass of whisky. I can't say that I really enjoyed it.

Feeling that I could manage the walk home, I set off at a good pace. The road was still very busy and not a nice place to be. About half way along was a posh hotel and bar, so I stopped there for a cold drink and a rest.

I made it back to the hotel without further ado and had another rest.

Just after 6, I set out again along the water front to the restaurant. The food wasn't as good as last night but still perfectly acceptable. I discussed the issue with my little waitress and we agreed that the answer was to eat fish cooked as simply as possible. My belief that she was a bit clever turned out to be correct - she is about to finish her fourth year at Aberdeen Medical School - which makes her both very clever and a lot older than I had thought.

I walked home, stopping in the square to watch a rather good school pipe and drum band. Once back at the hotel, I packed in preparation for the morning's early departure.     Right: Evening concert in The Square