Dunnottar Castle

A place needs to be pretty memorable to visit it more than once.  In Scotland that place was Dunnottar Castle.  Recommended to me by a college friend who'd been in Aberdeen the year prior to me, I visited it three fabulous times during my semester in Aberdeen (1. with American friend Ellie Feb 21, 2000,  2. with DH March 27, 2000 and with my parents June 5, 2000).  It was by far my favorite site in Scotland!

Dunnattar Castle is located just south (1.5 miles) of the village of Stonehaven, a mere 20 minute (15 mile) bus ride from Aberdeen's bus depot & train station.  It sits on a cliff hugging the North Sea.  It not an easy journey to get within its walls.  The footpath one takes after the initial parking lot walk is steep and narrow and full of stairs one must traverse both up and down.  On a sunny day, it is bright and invigorating to see a place with such history and on a wet day it is forboding and haunting as an old sea-side fortress should be.  To learn more quickly, read the Wikipedia article. Quick piece of trivia:  The castle was used in the filming of Mel Gibson's Hamlet.

Pictures are a hodge podge of those three visits.

Walking down the main entrance from the road.

The village of Stonehaven, as seen from a footpath walking north from the castle to the village.