Sunday morning was cloudy, windy, cool with some rain. I started the morning at the Culloden battlefield, site of the battle that ended Bonnie Prince Charlie's attempt to reclaim the throne for the Stuarts.

This is the new visitors center that opened in 2007. Inside they have very good informational displays about the Jacobite uprising and the people involved. The immersion theatre surrounds you with the sights and sounds of the battle and was very well done.

The battle took place April 16, 1746 on Culloden moor which was wet muddy uneven terrain.

It's such a beautiful place, it's hard to believe so much death occurred there in such a short time.

The feeling was similar to going to a Civil War battlefield.

And I guess being from Alabama, I am drawn to the lost cause.

The Jacobite attack started here, and the Government troops were lined up where the red flags in the distance are. The visitor center is the low gray building to the right of the picture.

The memorial cairn for the fallen.

The mass graves of the clans.

A small farmhouse like the ones that were on the land at the time of the battle.

One last view of the moor. From this vantage point it looks fairly even, but on my Picasa page I have many more pictures that give a more realistic feel of the land. Even then they don't compare to walking the moor, feeling the wind and rain on your face as you try to imagine what it would have felt like to stand there preparing for the highland charge.

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Next I visited Clava Cairns, a prehistoric burial ground with some interesting stone works.

Then off to Cawdor castle, home of the Thane of Cawdor. I didn't see Spot the dog, but I don't think he ever came back after Lady Macbeth threw him out.

(Surely you remember? "Out, out d@mned Spot!")

Obviously she was a cat person.

On the road I saw this. I know where David will want to stay when he goes to Scotland!

Next stop was Brodie castle. I got there a little after 3:30 only to find out that although the castle is open until 5:30, the last guided tour leaves at 3:30 and then they don't let anyone else in.

Then I stopped by Dallas Dhu distillery. It was built in 1899 and was the last distillery to open in the 19th century. It closed in 1983 and now Historic Scotland has guided tours that let you get up close and personal with all of the equipment, something you can't do in a working distillery.

This is what the road from Dallas Dhu back towards Cawdor looks like. Yes this IS a two-way road, not a driveway. But it's not too bad, every few hundred feet they put a couple of shovelfulls of gravel out beside the road and put up a "Passing Zone" sign.

The sun made a rare appearance as I was entering the village of Nairn, so I stopped for a walk around town.

And what would a sunny day on the coast be without a stop at the beach!

After walking back uptown I had dinner at a nice little bistro and then drove back to Inverness.

It was raining again by the time I got back into town.

I have more pictures posted at Picasa if anyone would like to see them.