If you go down in the streets today, baby, you better...

You better open your eyes.

Folk down there really don't care, really don't care, don't care , really don't , which, which way the pressure lies,

So I've decided what I'm gonna do now.

So I'm packing my bags for the Misty Mountains.

¬Led Zeppelin

7/10/10

After breakfast and a crazy morning of getting the car to "national tyres", I made my way to the gondola that takes you to the top of Aonach Mor. On the way I noticed that this is far enough away from the major cities that all the signs have to be in English and Gaelic. The brief (10 minute) gondola ride to the was terrifying. The whole time you were dangling and rocking. By the time my ears popped we were barely half way there. Aonach Mor is 4006 feet of lush green moss-like grass with streams and waterfalls that seem to come out of nowhere and is in the same mountain range as Ben Nevis the tallest mountain in the UK. 'Tis a wee bit chilly though. Except for a brief pause the gondola made it to the top with no trouble at all.

Side note: I failed to mention earlier that yesterday I had originally planned on leaving Will and Latha and making my own journey to the Isle of Skye and Inverness while they did Ben Nevis and Iona but it turned out that the train from Glagow to Skye would have gotten me there at a time that would be too late to check in so I stuck with them and am glad i did. But I was just thinking how different this trip could've been were I allowed to check in at Skye.

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming...

Having arrived at the top of Aonach Mor I am at a loss on how to describe this place. First thing I noticed was how soft and spongey the grass feels. From the drop off point I followed the footpath to Meall Beag for the views of Loch Linnhe and Loch Eli. As I head down the path I noticed all the misty opaque clouds that make it near impossible to see the mountaintops. Along the way you can see streams and waterfalls just coming out of the grass, there was constant trickling water heading downhill. Meall Beag viewpoint was unbelievable. It reminded me of just how high up I was. After taking in the vistas I turned around and went back to where I started from and take the other footpath to Sgurr Finnisg Aig. This hike was much steeper by comparison though well worth the view.

From there I turned around and headed back down the gondola to the bottom of the mountain, wondering what this place must look like in the winter. From there I went to pick up the car and had dinner at the Ben Nevis Inn where I had a delicious burger with fresh Scottish goat cheese. After supper we drove to the Columba hotel in Oban (thanks mom) where along the way I saw my first ever a highland cow a strange animal that looks like a yak with large antler-like horns. The hotel was in a great location right on the North Pier of Oban though it was quite dreary when we arrived. I put my things down and tuned into the Uruguay-Germany match which was a very exciting and entertaining game to watch up until the last second, but a German win was almost inevitable. Regardless, the tournament must go on and so must my trip, looking forward to spending time tomorrow in Oban-where the highlands meet the islands.