Day 3, August 14, 2007

The third day of our Scotland expedition covered 310 km and took us from Crieff via Perth – Bridge of Cally – Braemar – Ballater – Dinnet – Aberdeen – Peterhead – Mintlaw and Old Deer to Stuartfield.

We shared a breakfast table with a Spanish biker couple whose bike had suffered a flat tire the day before. Searching for a replacement, they ended up in Crieff and spontaneously booked a room with Michael for the night. They were in luck, as there was a tire shop less than 20 meters from "James Cottage" that had the right tire in stock.

We said goodbye to the two Spaniards and Michael to head towards Perth, where we were treated to our first breathtaking views. The beautiful foothills of the Grampian Mountains accompanied us along the A93 (Glen Shee) between Bridge of Cally and Braemar, following the Black Water for almost 70 km. This fantastic, winding, and quiet road passes by a ski resort (Devil's Elbow), which might explain why it was so deserted. We only made a few short stops to take photos of the stunning scenery and to prepare the video camera for recording while driving.

During the last third of this tour, we had to pass through Aberdeen, where we encountered some rain once again. This forced us to abandon our planned stroll through the city. As a stopover, we chose the fishing town of Peterhead, and to get there, we had to navigate what felt like 30 roundabouts on the outskirts of Aberdeen. As soon as we left Aberdeen behind, the rain stopped. We were slowly but surely getting the impression that it only seems to rain in larger coastal cities in Scotland.

Arriving in Peterhead, we searched the town for a fish restaurant, assuming that a fishing town like ours would surely have at least one. This wasn't the case, and we were already considering ordering a takeaway pizza again, as we had noticed a petrol station with a pizza place next door just before Peterhead. But there was no food there either, as the pizza place was closed.

So, off we went to Stuartfield with rumbling stomachs and a full tank. Finding our booked B&B proved to be quite a challenge. Millview House isn't a listed B&B, but rather a hidden gem; there's no B&B sign. We literally surrounded the place and weren't sure which road to take to get there – a bit of a puzzle set in.

As we were in Old Deer, once again examining the M&G printout we'd made for each B&B, a friendly and helpful Scotsman (wearing a biker T-shirt) approached us and explained the way. We had to turn onto a small dirt track that we'd already driven past several times. As we turned onto the track, we finally spotted a small, well-camouflaged sign that read "Millview House." The track, which ultimately led to the house, is more suited to enduro motorcycles. Shaken up and relieved that our bikes were still intact, we reached the rather unassuming B&B. Fiona, the owner, gave us a very warm welcome and showed us to our room.

We were absolutely amazed by the interior of this house, as the rooms were huge and numerous, and the furnishings were fantastic. Fiona showed us the kitchen, where breakfast is also served, as well as a "recreation room" with an exercise bike, a large TV, and a huge tournament-sized snooker table. Amazing!

However, paying for the room the next morning seemed like an afterthought to Fiona; we had to remind her at least three times that the room wasn't yet paid for. And we were more than happy to part with the £22 per person – the room and breakfast were simply superb, everything was spotless, and Fiona is a truly lovely and warm person who treats her guests like family, and you can really feel that.

The downside of the remote location was the evening meal. Since we'd showered, we wanted to give the motorcycles a rest and walk to the nearest place to eat. The next option in Stuartfield wasn't highly recommended, as the pub there only served substantial meals on weekends. So we set off for Mintlaw (a good hour's walk) and raided a snack bar once again. The walk back was perfect for burning off all the calories we'd consumed.