Scotland: Oban

We stayed overnight in the southern coastal town of Oban after hiking around Ben Nevis. While there wasn't much to see in Oban itself, we found a scenic area nearby where we hiked along the coast.

(Above) The boys often make funny faces when we ask them to smile for photos.

(Above) A rare shot of Lucas looking into the camera with a partial smile.

(Above) Aside from eating and sleeping, we didn't spend any time in Oban, but the waterfront was pleasant. 

(Above) We randomly came across this island structure as we were headed towards Oban.

Scotland: Ben Nevis

At 4,409 feet above sea level, Ben Nevis is the highest peak in the UK. While we didn't hike Ben Nevis itself, we hiked on some trails at the surrounding national park. 

(Above) Our first hike, which was recommended as "kid friendly" by one of the park attendants, took us to an overlook of Fort William. It wasn't quite the scenic nature hike we thought we were going to get because it took us to an overlook of an industrial area and had power lines travers the trail at one point. But we found some better hikes later on. Both Jack and Lucas surprised us on this hike -- Jack walked the entire way and Lucas walked most of it. In the picture of us on the bench, the boys look pretty tired though. This was a big improvement from our hike in the Swiss Alps in spring 2011, where Jack and Lucas had to be carried almost the entire way. 

(Above) We found this waterfall and creek in the park and let the boys participate in their favorite activity -- throwing rocks in the water -- for a while. They enjoyed going barefoot in the water. 

After our hike to the overlook, we went deeper into the park and found some stunning views.

(Above) Steall Falls

(Above) A wire bridge near Steall Falls

(Above) On our way out of the park, we came across this bag piper playing his instrument at a pull-off.

Scotland: Highlands

After spending a day exploring Loch Ness, we drove southward through the highlands towards Oban. Some of the sights, like the ones below, were magnificent. Not far from Ben Nevis, the highest peak on the British Isles, was a monument to fallen UK commandos. 

(Above) The Commando Memorial in the Scottish Highlands.

(Above) Finally got the boys to look at the camera at the same time. 

(Above) We drove past several lochs as we moved south from Loch Ness towards Oban. I can't remember the name of this lake.

(Above) We went on a short hike at a rest stop along the way. The area reminded us of Upstate New York. 

Scotland: Loch Ness

On our second day in Scotland, we drove to Loch Ness, where we toured the most famous site on the lake, the ruins of Urquhart Castle.

(Above) Getting the two of these boys to look at the camera and smile simultaneously for more than a split second is a near impossible feat. I took like six shots of them here and still didn't catch them smiling, but at least they were both looking at the camera for this one.

(Above) It was mostly foggy the day we drove around Loch Ness, which made things less picturesque that we'd hoped, but perhaps brought out the mysterious mood of the lake. We also stopped at another popular tourist attraction, the Loch Ness Monster Centre and Exhibition.

(Above) This was a railroad crossing at a scenic rest stop along the way from Edinburgh to Loch Ness.