Northern Highlands & Islands - Scotland - page 776

Kyle to the Great Glen
It's 55 miles southeast via the A87 from Kyle to Invergarry, which lies between Fort Willi-
am and Fort Augustus, on Loch Oich.
EILEAN DONAN CASTLE
Photogenically sited at the entrance to Loch Duich, near Dornie village, Eilean Donan
Castle ( 01599-555202; www.eileandonancastle.com ; adult/child £6/5; 9.30am-6pm
Mar-Oct) is one of Scotland's most evocative castles, and must be represented in millions
of photo albums. It's on an offshore islet, magically linked to the mainland by an elegant,
stone-arched bridge. It's very much a re-creation inside, with an excellent introductory ex-
hibition. Keep an eye out for the photos of castle scenes from the movie Highlander ;
there's also a sword used at the battle of Culloden in 1746. The castle was bombarded into
ruins by government ships in 1719 when Jacobite forces were defeated at the Battle of
Glenshiel. It was rebuilt between 1912 and 1932.
Citylink buses from Fort William and Inverness to Portree, on the Isle of Skye, will stop
opposite the castle.
MADDENING MIDGES
Forget Nessie; the Highlands have a real monster. A voracious bloodsucking female fully 3mm long, known as
culicoides impunctatus , or the Highland midge. The bane of campers and as much a symbol of Scotland as the kilt
or dram, they drive sane folk to distraction as they descend in biting clouds.
Though normally vegetarian, the female midge needs a dose of blood in order to lay her eggs. And, like it or not,
if you're in the Highlands between June and August, you just volunteered as a donor. Midges especially congregate
near water, and are most active in the early morning, though squadrons also patrol in the late evening, around
10pm.
Repellents and creams are reasonably effective, though some walkers favour midge veils. Light-coloured cloth-
ing also helps. Pubs and campsites increasingly have midge-zapping machines. Check www.midgeforecast.co.uk
for activity levels by area, but don't blame us: we've been eaten alive when the forecast said moderate too.
GLEN SHIEL & GLENELG
From Eilean Donan Castle, the A87 follows Loch Duich into spectacular Glen Shiel , with
1000m-high peaks soaring on either side of the road. Here in 1719, a Jacobite army was de-