Thursday, we met for breakfast and introduced Laurel to Janis and Erika. We enjoyed eggs, pastries, and juices to hold us over for another day and another golf course. Ken and the ‘chariot’ arrived early, and Laurel joined us for the trip to Royal Dornoch. Of course, on the way, in Janis’ search for the ever-elusive red kite, Ken drove us down narrow Ness Rd., right through the Fortrose & Rosemarkie Golf Club to Chanonry Point, a lovely firth-side setting where red kites are often spotted. Although we did not see any kites on our quick stop, we snapped a few photos of the active lighthouse along the stone beachfront and of Laurel walking on the long wall out to the water.
An hour and a half later we pulled up to the Royal Dornoch Golf Club. We were dropped off, and the plan was: Laurel would visit Glenmorangie and work remotely while we played golf. She enjoyed her visit to Glenmorangie and our driver Ken, insisted she visit Dunrobin Castle as well.
We have read that Royal Dornoch is ranked as one of the top 10 golf courses in the world! History tells us it was designed by Old Tom Morris, and that it was the course Donald Ross grew up playing. We were a little surprised upon arrival to see the plain clubhouse, with a pro-shop and locker rooms that were a little out of date.
The overall first impression wasn’t as good as any of the other courses we had played, but we did get a nice goodie bag with a yardage book and bag tag from the starter. As usual, we organized trolleys, one motorized cart, and were assigned a caddy, Iver. He tried very hard to assist each of us with every single shot, even when we asked him to refrain. Oh well.
The course was very nice, seaside and beautiful. The temperature was pleasant and the breeze was stiff. The course goes out for nine holes and turns back from the farthest point out. There were fun par 3’s, and treacherous, fast greens. There certainly were memorable holes – including #16 which climbs back up the hill, and the par-5 #18 that sets you up for a possible birdie finish. A highlight was seeing Laurel and our driver greet us on the final hole, a par-5 – and we took a couple more photos before departing back to Nairn.
On the way home, Ken had a surprise for us. He turned down a single lane dirt path that only 4 x 4’s should be on – one I would never have taken my own van down. We had no idea where he was taking us and if we would have gotten stuck, the Scottish Auto Association tow truck would have never found us – even if there would have been a cell phone signal. Eventually, we arrived at the Tollie Red Kite Natural Reserve Visitor Centre. We were the only ones in the small parking lot, and although closed, there were instructions on the door to let yourselves in! Inside, there were large viewing windows and numerous information boards, and even an area for schoolchildren to enjoy.
Too bad we were not there for the regular daily feeding – the red kites apparently fly in close for all to see. But it was a treat to do something this random, and gutty for Ken to take a chance with his nice van on this rough and narrow road. Nice try once again!
We returned to our Nairn hotel, and Janis, Erika, Val, Laurel and I made the short walk down the hill to the Golf View Hotel for a first-class dinner at the Condé Nast recommended restaurant. While awaiting our dinner reservation, we strolled along the waterfront walkway and enjoyed the expansive views in the gloaming. We then headed back up to the restaurant for quite the meal! We savored their specialty selections of beef and chicken and a fish soup starter as we took in the gorgeous setting with the sunset backdrop.
Val and I reminisced on our six rounds of golf thus far and looked forward to our 3rd-to-last round at Castle Stuart tomorrow and a visit to the Culloden battlefield. After another fun evening chatting with Laurel, we were able to catch up on some sleep.
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