Some normality this summer, at last, when Lorraine and I travelled to Dingwall in July, although not completely without a speed bump or two – just two weeks before our trip, I received an email from the Club to the effect that due to staff shortages around Covid, they were unfortunately having to close a number of campsites around the UK, and one of our bookings was affected! I had planned around our holiday dates, and booked months in advance to avoid the Stay-cation rush. I had booked for two campsites, one being Dingwall, the other at Aberlour in Speyside, which are about 80 miles or so apart. And now, the Aberlour campsite was closing! I frantically searched for the dates we had booked anywhere else in Scotland or the North of England – and wound up booking three nights at Moffat. Unfortunately, this isn’t 80 miles away…. more like 230! Still, we know the site, and we’ve been lucky with pitches the last few times we have stayed, so we were quite content under the circumstances.
We set off on a Saturday morning from home, around 11am, filled up Ali Bongo locally, and headed off. Through Glasgow, and north toward Stirling and the A9, stopping as has become a bit of a tradition at the Subway just after Dunblane. Easy parking, spotless clean toilets and cheery staff have made this the first choice, a good distance on the road to make a stop. We bought fresh sandwiches and hot drinks, and sat in the hazy sunshine at a picnic table. A quick trip to the loos, and off we go again! None of the drama we had experienced the last time we stopped here – power steering fluid spraying everywhere from a pinhole in a pipe – the van was driving perfectly. We were making good time, despite the seemingly-perpetual roadworks north of Perth, and the occasional slow vehicle creating queues, and I didn’t stop again until the Ralia Cafe, near Newtonmore. Another check round the van – all good! – and off we set for Dingwall.
We arrived around 4pm, found the campsite right where it was supposed to be, and checked in. We decided to set up the awning, have a brew, then go for a walk around the area. The Obelink Trinity awning went up fairly easily, now we’ve pitched it a few times we know the best order of events for fitting to the van. All looking good, drinks consumed, we headed off for a bit of a walk. Dingwall is a lovely town, and boasts a huge Tesco with a filling station(fuel ceaper than back home!), as well as every shop you could wish for and plenty of choice for food too. We wandered over to Tesco, bought some fresh bits and pieces for dinner, then headed back for food and a movie. The weather was glorious now, the evening skies clear, and surprisingly very few midges. We ate a blend of fresh salad and a dehydrated meal, which I washed down with a few cold ciders! We watched a movie on my tablet, then turned in.
We woke, ate, showered and decided on a walk again. This time we wandered along the river mouth where it meets the estuary which becomes the Cromarty Firth further out to sea. There are large expanses of mudflats here in the shallow delta, and wild birds were feeding along the shore. We watched them for a while, then almost at the same time, suggested we might go into town for some lunch!! Great minds think alike! We had seen a little cafe last night, and headed to it. Batty’s Baps said the sign above the door, so we ordered some sandwiches and drinks and sat at a table outdoors.
The food was wonderful – so fresh, full of flavour, and all prepared in-house by the friendly staff. Both Lorraine and I really enjoy sampling the local eateries, and it’s great to find such good quality fresh food, what a treat! We decided that we might just sample the local chippy later on , too! We wandered around the shops, taking it in turns to mask up and browse. There is an Original factory Shop in town too, and I bought a large plastic box with a lid here, for the purpose of transporting the awning should we have to pack it up wet. There’s no point in rolling a soaking wet awning up to pack in it’s bag, when it will have to be dried anyway, and even less point when moving to another site the same day. Plus, the box will come in handy on longer trips for keeping the inevitable odds and ends in something dry in the awning off the ground. I soon found it doubles already as a handy side table, and even a foot stool!
I had intended for us to do a bit of exploring the surrounding area by Bongo, but as the days flew by we found ourselves very content to just take long walks along the lanes and into the town. Sometimes, just doing almost nothing is the order of the day, and we were very comfortable at the quiet campsite, within easy reach of everything we needed for a few days. So, there is plenty to do around Dingwall and Cromarty for our next visit! On our last eveing, we went to the nearby railway station to The Mallard pub. Yet another tasty meal, in a lovely welcoming pub, and reasonably priced, too. A perfect finale for our visit….which we just couldn’t end the next day after we packed up without a sandwich to take away from Batty’s Baps! Delicious!!
I filled up at the Tesco filling station, and we headed south for Moffat.
We set off around 1130 southbound, and although the traffic was heavy, we negotiated Inverness without misshap, and continued on the A9, stopping for a well earned pit stop at House of Bruar to use the loos and eat our delicious sandwiches. We headed off again, but the traffic was terrible for the next part of the journey, and we stopped again just north of Perth at the services, parking next to another Bongo. We only waited a few minutes, and we never did meet the owner. Maybe catch up again another day!
We had a long way still to travel, and after reaching Glasgow, we picked up the M74 and headed south. The weather was clearing up again ( we had indeed packed up wet in Dingwall) and it was looking promising as we finally approached Moffat around 6pm. We booked into the reception, and were taken to a brilliant pitch, on the end of a row, with plenty of room all round, and views over into the neighbouring sheep field. Perfect!
We settled in after pitching the awning and walking to the nearby Co-op for fresh supplies. An early night was in order. The long journey had been far from ideal, but under the circumstances unavoidable without shortening our holiday, and we were here now, settled in and very comfortable. A full day’s travel due to roadworks and the distances involved, but Ali Bongo had handled it like a champ, and the miles had passed without any incident. We had a lazy morning next day, then a wander into Moffat for brunch. The little market town was bustling with locals and tourists alike. We found Randall’s restaurant, and got seated quickly. A lovely breakfast roll and coffee, followed by a home baked cake. We wandered some more round town, ending up back at the van, and had another movie night and turned in early.
We had arranged to meet friends from Ecclefechan the next day, and they drove up to meet us at the Mill car park. We wound up at the Green Frog Tearoom for breakfast, enjoying yet more home cooking and good company. We chatted and wandered for a pleasant few hours before saying our goodbyes (campsite policy was for no visitors to site, otherwise we would of course been far more hospitable!) before heading back to the site, passing the kayaking school shack at the site entrance to be met by the most incredible smells coming from their wood-fired pizza oven. Well – that was dinner sorted out! A very reasonably priced and tasty fresh pizza (around £6 each) for each of us, and of course it would be rude not to have a cider or two! Another evening stroll, and a chat to other campers, it was a really relaxing few days.
All too soon it was the day we were going home, and although we didn’t move the Bongo once pitched up at either site, there is so much to do nearby that we really didn’t feel the need to move. We had enjoyed miles of walking, and other than a bit of drizzle the morning we were moving from Dingwall to Moffat (there had been torrential thunder storms the night previous!) the weather had been very kind to us. We packed up that last morning, working well together now as a team – we’re seasoned campervanners now! – and elected to use the box again for the awning as it had a bit of condensation in from the cold night just gone. All squared away, we walked to the Green Frog for one last breakfast, before heading the long way home via Dumfries and the beautiful Nith Valley, on to Kilmarnock and from there a short trip on the A71 and A78 takes us home. We covered over 650 miles this trip, Ali Bongo performing faultlessly. The awning was proving very popular with Lorraine, providing a space outside of the van to sit, and shade from the sun. It doubles the space we have with the van, and although we didn’t move once pitched it is easily possible, thanks to the driveaway strip connecting awning to van.
It hadn’t been the holiday I had planned – exploring Speyside and the surrounding area from Aberlour – but we both felt genuinely relaxed and recharged, and it had felt like a longer holiday than it actually was with the two destinations. Lorraine, I think, prefers this to touring where you are on the move every day. Especially when you are near amenities like in both towns we stayed at. I probably prefer the touring aspects of Bongo Life more, cramming as much into a trip as possible. But, I must admit to really enjoying this trip, and it just feels wonderful to be able to get out and visit these places. We live in a wonderfully varied country, and there really is something for everyone. Our choices of destination may not be everyones’ cup of tea, and walking and eating out are not exactly the most exciting passtimes! But as a form of relaxation, this break was exactly what we both needed, and proved stress free.
Now, after unpacking, the van gets it’s obligatory wash and polish, replenishing the supplies and airing the bedding, preparing for our next Bongo Adventure!
With a week-long trip planned for October, and the much-anticipated Scottish Bongo Weekend coming in September, there are still loads of adventures to be had this year!
Happy trails, folks!!
Ali Bongo's adventures 