Wandering Around Talking To Rainbows

I realised recently that since I renewed my Historic Scotland membership back in July I have visited a grand total of one site. So I decided that now that Spring appears to have sprung (...well theoretically, I was wearing a chunky scarf and mittens on my adventure yesterday) I should get out there and make my card pay for itself. Having done Urquhart Castle during my first summer here, I decided to head for the other big local attraction that my card gets me into. I planned to go on my day off last week, but I was woken that morning by torrential rain so that didn't happen.

However, last week's day off dawned dry and bright so I put on my comfy shoes and headed off to catch the bus out to Ardersier. Fort George is a mile up the road from Ardersier and when I googlemapped the route I made the hilarious discovery that if you're in Google Streetview you can go for a wander round the fort from the comfort of your armchair. (This is particularly random because, as I discovered when I visited, Fort George is still an active army base. Part of one of the barracks is set up to show what barrack conditions would have been like in various historical periods, but the rest of the building is occupied by...actual squaddies. Oh and the flags were up on the shooting range so various slightly concerning noises were echoing over the place as I wandered round.)

It's a fascinating and slightly disquieting experience visiting the fort if you're acquainted with its history. (It was built as a response to the Jacobite uprisings of the 1700s and although it has never seen 'a shot fired in anger' its very modernness and intact state is a reminder of how relatively recently the Highlands were under military occupation.)


So I ventured onto the Ardersier bus and headed off. When we reached what appeared to be the main street on the village I asked the bus driver if that was the best place to get off for the Fort and he told me to stay on until the next stop, which turned out to be the random turning circle at the end of the village (no actual bus stop but you can get on and off there if you're 'in the know'!). But the best bit was that I'd intended to just follow the road up to the fort and the bus driver pointed out a really nice footpath along the beach to me. It's a raised pathway following the coast along from the village to the fort, mostly used by dog walkers but there's a wee sheltered picnic spot/benches if you know where to look.


It's only about a mile from the end of the village to the fort but it manages to disguise itself quite well from a distance.

Even close up you don't really get a sense of the scale.

It's quite close to the ground and subtle about its presence. It doesn't really do the upfront shock and awe of medieval castles.

It does amuse me that heavy-duty studded doors are still de rigeur for these kind of places.

Once through the first line of defences you reach the Ravelin and its guardhouse - which is now the visitor centre and full of the usual kitch tourist stuff you'd expect.

But its from the Ravelin that you start to get a sense of how big the place is with its drawbridge

And massive moat! The door you can see at the end of the moat allows it to be flooded with water if the fort comes under attack, though in a slight design flaw, it only works at high tide as the water comes from the Moray Firth that you can see in the distance...



It's really only when you look back over where you've been that you realise the actual scale of the place.

You'd never know from the outside about the rows of barracks and stores

Or the three storie Governor's House (now a museum).


The provisions store is huge. (There's something decidedly odd about walking past an Scots-Asian army officer in full dress regalia, kilt swinging in counterpoint to his carefully measured steps, carrying a costa takeaway cup and nodding politely to you in greeting as you pass.)


Really, they were serious about their stores.

The fort has its own church.

With a tiny bell...shelter I guess? The working parts of the fort are mostly kept entirely seperate to those open to tourists, but the places that are still in use are a little disconcerting. The church is still in use by the military staff of the base - there are memorials and campaign flags from 21st century conflicts among the older ones - and one of the barracks is set up to show what barracks life would have been like at various periods in history. It's fascinating but weird knowing that just through the wall current squaddies have their own rather less cramped quarters.

Really it was when I peaked out through the defences that the fort seemed the most impressive.


Weirdly, for a fort that was specifically designed for a landward attack, the place looks most impressive from the sea. The closest it got to actual action was when the beaches were used to rehearse the Normandy landings during WW2. Mostly people looking out to sea from here are looking out for foundered fishing vessels or beached dolphins.

And finally looking back towards the village from the coastal path as I walked back to get the bus.