We left Dundee just before the rain came, and decided, even though the weather was a bit rough, to take the scenic route to Dufftown, right through the heart of the Cairngorms.
It’s always a treat to drive that route through Braemar and then up and over towards Tomintoul, and even with not so perfect weather, the views were just wonderful. We really passionately LOVE that route. We did strike lucky with a short gap in the rain as we were on one of the scenic B roads leading toward Corgarff Castle. Keith wasted no time and got his drone out and we played around with some scenic shots as I drove and he followed with the camera.
Luck was on our side once more as we pulled up onto our next campsite, Parkmore cottages and campsite, on the outskirts of Dufftown, as the rain dried up and we managed a set up in the dry.
The campsite is about 1.5 miles from the small village of Dufftown, but has lovely views over the hills and what we can only describe as the best campsite showers we’ve come across in 13 years. They were super clean, huge wet rooms, super strength water pressure and best of all… not a push button in sight, so we could control the heat. Great for me as I like mine piping hot, whereas Keefy enjoys his a touch cooler.
Once the euphoria of a WONDERFUL campsite shower had died down, we cooked a hearty chilli on the capac and had an extraordinarily peaceful and chilled evening.
Sunday dawned wet again, but the BBC forecast remained optimistic, so we followed suit. Today, we had booked tickets for the Whiskey line, a heritage railway line that runs 10 miles between Dufftown and Keith. (Yes Keefy dined out on the fact his name was indeed the destination. ALL DAY!)
This line dates from the late 1800s and claims to be the most northerly heritage railway in the UK. We do like a train journey so we had been looking forward to this for some time.
We decided to cycle into Dufftown as the walk was on unpaved roads, the e bike came in handy as there were a few slopes here and there, a gentle reminder that we were a long way from Norfolk!
Dufftown is known as the Whiskey capital of the world- it has 7 or 8 distilleries in the village, and it’s a small village! There is also a COOP, a corner shop, one pub, with two shut down by the looks of things, a couple of cafes (shut on Sunday) and a whiskey shop. We fancy returning for the highland games one year.
We tried a local beer and a dram in the pub, the Whiskey Capital, {(great name hey?!) and then made our way to the station via the whiskey shop, where we picked up a couple of miniatures to wash down out packed lunch.
There is ample bike parking at the station and the staff and volunteers were very friendly.
Our train departed on time (dog friendly in Standard Class) and meandered through the countryside at a lovely leisurely pace, passing numerous distilleries en route- Glenfiddich and Balvenie to name the two most famous.
We had a 20 min turnaround wait at Keith- plenty of time to take pics of our Keith with every Keith sign we could find, before settling back into the carriage for the journey back.
It was such a pleasant afternoon and we would really recommend it.
These heritage lines suffered so much during COVID and they rely so much on tourism. The tickets cost £15 pp return and it honestly was such a pleasant trip. So if you are in the area, it’s well worth a stop. Also, keep an eye on their website as they’ve just finished renovation a pullman carriage which is now known as the ‘DRAM TRAM’- a beautifully restored Whiskey tasting room. At the moment is only taken out for group bookings, but apparently will be used during the spirit of speyside festival. It was such a beautiful carriage and we really enjoyed being show round it by the manager following our journey.
From here we had a quick pic stop at the nearby Glenfiddich distillery and also Balvenie Castle, which fell out of use in 1308 following an attack by Robert the Bruce.
Sadly it wasnt open, but next time we’re up we will try to visit the inside.
From here we made a short journey back to the campsite, where a slow cooker Chicken provencal was awaiting us, along with some noisy neighbours unfortunately. However they did stop their noise at 9pm the designated shut off time for noise on this particular campsite.
We’d really enjoyed our time at Parkmore Dufftown campsite and will absolutely return, if not just for those wonderful showers!
Definitely one to stop at if you like whiskey and or trains!
Until next time Lx
