Our (OUTLANDER) Trip of Scotland

It was one of the groups I follow on Facebook, where today, a friend mentioned that she was watching Outlander on Netflix (in Australia). Of course, everyone in the group gushed over the series (because it is a brilliant show and a great story). I went to post a link to the blog that I, obviously, would have written about all the Outlander locations in Scotland that we had visited.

If you haven’t watched the series I suggest you get on it, or read the books.

But I couldn’t find a link because there was no blog to be found. In fact, there was barely any mention of Scotland! It’s a good sign you know… It means we are too busy living life in Scotland to sit at the computer and write a blog. Well, we must have really loved Scotland, because prior to today there’s diddly squat about it.

But you know, I still can’t believe that I haven’t written a post about Scotland, let alone all the Outlander locations in Scotland (from the books or TV series) that we visited.

So here it is:

OUR TRIP INTO OUTLANDER COUNTRY

FIRST of all, let me say, this trip wasn’t a “let’s find as many Outlander places as we can” type trip. We knew we wanted to get into the more remote parts of Scotland. We also knew there were things we didn’t want to miss; Loch Ness for one, Culloden for another. We wanted to see both coastlines, and we wanted to see the Glenfinnan Viaduct. We also wanted to visit a few whiskey distilleries and we wanted to go to both Glasgow and Edinburgh. So with that, we planned our rough four-week itinerary of where we would go.

It was then that I started to do some research into what places were used in the Outlander TV series and books. The ones that were close-ish (say within an hours drive of our stops or our driving route) made it onto the must see list. The rest we will save for another time.

Doune Castle – Castle Leoch in Outlander TV Series

THE FIRST of the Outlander locations in Scotland that we visited was Doune Castle. We were driving close by on our way from Glasgow to Glenrothes. This was the setting for Castle Leoch in the TV series. It is my understanding that the book is actually based more on Castle Leod (which is the home of the current MacKenzie clan chief). Although Leod is now closer to where the Fraser clan was from than where the MacKenzie’s were in the 1740’s.

Oddly enough Doune Castle was also used in Monty Python’s Holy Grail.

Falkland, Fife – 1945 Inverness in Outlander TV Series

THE NEXT place we went to was Falkland. We went there on the same day as Castle Doune, on the way to Glenrothes.

Falkland town square was the location used for the modern day (1945) Inverness.

IT WAS quite a while before we encountered our next filming location. But never fear, I had read the books so I knew where to head.

Loch Ness – Location where Claire (in 1743) sees the “water monster” in the Outlander book.

Glenfinnan – Where the 1745 Jacobite uprising began (story surrounding Outlander)

Although Glenfinnan is not discussed in the Outlander books, it was a very important part of the Jacobite Uprising, which of course is the political backdrop to stories in both Outlander (Book 1) and Dragonfly in Amber (Book 2). In 1745 Bonnie Prince Charlie (Prince Charles Edward Stuart) raised his standard on the shores of Loch Shiel to rally the clansman to make his charge for the British throne. It is what began the ’45 Jacobite uprising, which ended in the bloody battle of Culloden (April 1746).

It is also quite close to the real town of Fort William. Now the actual prison of Fort William no longer exists, but the town is very much still a thriving metropolis.

And a bit of Harry Potter thrown in for good luck:

NOW WHILE we were at the Glenfinnan Monument and Loch Shiel, how could we not go to see a little bit of Harry Potter awesomeness. The Glenfinnan Viaduct is literally across the road. This is the bridge where the Hogwart’s Express nearly runs into Ron and Harry in the flying Ford Anglia (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets).

ArgeyDaughter was so very excited, and somewhat shocked, to see the viaduct. It was bigger than all of us imagined, and was a fierce sight in an already dominant landscape.

Culloden Moor – Ultimate battleground for the Jacobite Uprising.

Next came our visit to the Culloden Battlefield.

**Spoiler below for book and season 2 and 3 for Outlander)**

Now Culloden as a location doesn’t actually feature in the book or the TV series. Claire does visit (in the 1940s and 1960s) the battle ground in both season (and book) one and two. But you don’t actually read about the battle itself (except for in hindsight many years later). There is discussion that Season 3 of the Outlander TV series will actually feature the battle. We know the battle has been filmed. However, we won’t know for sure if it is being used as flashbacks, or whether it will be used as a whole battle scene as part of the chronological story, until it is aired (airing in August/September 2017).

There is, without a doubt, a lot of talk of the battle through the Outlander series’. We’d obviously learned a lot about Culloden from reading the books. We’d also done our own research, just out of interest, so we couldn’t wait to go there.

It is a sombre place, but one that was truly amazing. I don’t think I have ever been to a museum that dealt with its topic quite as elegantly as Culloden. And they had made it truly engaging for the children too.

I won’t talk anymore about the Culloden Battlefield and Museum, because it really does deserve its own entry. It was thoroughly extraordinary.

Culross Village, Fife – Cranesmuir Village in Outlander TV Series

SECOND TO LAST: Out of all the Outlander locations in Scotland, this was the biggest surprise.

We visited the village of Culross completely by fluke. Apparently this village is the best example of a 17th and 18th century village in Scotland. And I can thoroughly endorse this notion. Walking into Culross is like following Claire through the stones (although there was no JAMMF waiting on the other side – darn it!). There is a definite feeling of time travel going into the village. If it wasn’t for the people walking around and cars driving through the town (and the Cadbury Easter Egg Hunts advertising) we would have thought we were in the 17-1800s.

Culross was the filming location used of Cranesmuir (a village in the clan Mackenzie stronghold).

Blackness Castle – Fort William in Outlander TV Series

AND FINALLY, the place we all love to hate (second only to Wentworth), Blackness Castle, or as it is known in the TV series, Fort William.

It wasn’t that big to be honest. For a 15th Century castle that was used as a garrison and prison, it wasn’t as intimidating as I thought it would be. But, once inside it was rather daunting. I definitely wouldn’t have wanted to be a prisoner in there. On the southern edge of the Firth of Forth, it would have felt formidable.

Well I hope this little pictorial blog has been interesting. There are few more Outlander locations in Scotland, and almost any spot has some sort of connection to the Jacobite Uprising and political history from the time.

What We Did On Our Holiday

p.s. We also stayed very close to this gorgeous beach in Opinan, near Gairloch, which was featured a lot in the David Tennant and Billy Connolly flick What We Did On Our Holiday. 

And while we are promoting all things Outlander and indeed, Scotland, check out these cards on my etsy shop, available for immediate download.

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