1st time to Scotland, help!

[Babz]

In answer to your Elvis questions...I like his music but I do like others more !!

At the moment there is a weekly publication being done over here of his life and I am getting all of them !!
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As you are intersted in mills you need to visit Jedburgh...not too far from Hawick !!
Then you can have a leisurely drive down the A68 to the A1...We call it the uppies and doonies, it does
have quite a few blind crests... you think that the road has vanished lol
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It is usually cheaper to buy your petrol from Supermarket Garages and not Motorway ones as they do
tend to add on a few pence per litre and with all the milage you appear to be doing can be costly !!

I know this will take a bit of time, but a good idea might be to do route plans to where you want to visit
Multimap is a good site
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We did have a member go to a Fire Festival but that was years ago, I will look later to see if I can find
the relevant thread !!
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Are you thinking of going to the North East? (Aberdeenshire..Angus...Fife)

[stirlingtours]

For an Elvis fan there is only one place to go in Scotland. Prestwick Airport. This was the only time Elvis ever came to Scotland. When he was in the army his plane touched down briefly. Unfortunately there is nothing to mark his visit at the airport but it is a nice thought. As for your visit. The most common mistake people make is to try and cram in too much. Remember that most of the scenic roads roads are quite slow and a journey of 50 miles can seem quite long. An average speed of 30mph when travelling across Scotland is not slow if you want to arrive in one piece. On many of the A roads you will spend quite a lot of time stuck behind trucks, coaches, tractors and trailers. The roads are seldom straight so there is limited scope for passing. The good news is that you do not have to travel far to see a lot. For example from Glasgow (where most of the places of interest are free) it is only about a 30 minute drive to the Trossachs with rugged hills and lochs. Then there is the Cowal Peninsula also about 30 minutes away from Glasgow with spectacular scenery. Another hour or so heading west and you will be looking at the Atlantic with the Hebridean Islands such as Mull and Skye a day's travel away. The east coast of Scotland is very different from the west. It has rich agricultural farmland and is less rugged but is more accessible with better transport links. Although prices in the UK are quite high you do not need to spend a lot to enjoy the magic. Buy some sandwiches from a bakery and sit on a rock by the side of a sea loch and enjoy the peace. Visit a castle, touch the stones and think about the thousands of people who have passed this way before. Stay in B&Bs and have porridge for breakfast and NEVER turn down the offer of a full Scottish breakfast. One last thing. If you are visiting in April you will need a raincoat, hat, scarf and suncream - possibly all in the same day.

[slunderville]

Yep, Jedburgh was on our list but for the abbey, didn't know there were mills there also. All these road tips are great!

I do forget that just because something is near in mileage it'll take longer than I think to get there. Thanks for the reminder! My friend in Leeds is always telling me I can't drive over there like I do here or I'll be spending all my money on tickets. And the sandwich idea, I wouldn't have thought of a bakery for sandwiches and I'll bet they're delicious too.

I'm sure that once we get there we'll find that we won't travel around quite as much as we thought but then we'll just have to start planning the next trip won't we?

And yes, the northeast is also on the agenda. Would love to have a chance to meet you all while we're there. In case you hadn't noticed, I love to talk to people.

Sterlingtours.... don't forget about the chapel ruins where Elvis's great great??? grandfather was supposed to have been married. Up north, east of Elgin and for the life of me can't remember the name of the town. Supposedly many people have seen his ghost working an anvil in a barn that's not there the next day and he looks like Elvis or rather Elvis looks like him. Sirius Satelite Radio, Elvis Radio 24/7 Elvis. My kids say I've learned waayy too many trivia things and I should keep them all to myself but that's no fun. And I do listen to other channels online too. Forth 1 & 2 and Clyde 1 & 2 mostly.

[slunderville]

6 months would be good. I have to admit winter in Arizona is very nice and I have had enough of snow even though it's beautiful to look at.

[GLEN4COE]

If you get a car for your touring needs then you can save money by picking up picnic supplies at local groceries rather than buying lunch each day. We have done this on 4 different trips and it works out wonderfully well !

[Polwarth]

Again, this is is an old thread - the OP doesn't seem to have been back!