Day 2 Edinburgh
Today I had my small group Outlander day tour, provided by Rabbies. It ran from 9:15am-6:00pm and I got to see a lot of the major filming locations! Another great bonus is I got to meet other fellow solo travelers and bond over our love of the books and TV series.
The first stop was the Queensferry. There were three bridges at this overlook and I learned that Queensferry is named for
Queen Margaret, later St. Margaret, who wanted to create a pilgrimage. So she established a ferry in the 1100s that ran through the 1960s. Then a road bridge was built in 1964.
However, the first bridge was built 70 years before as a rail bridge for trains in 1890. At that time it was the 2nd highest structure in the world short of the Eiffel tower.
Next up was the first Outlander film stop, known to fans as Lallybroch! Its official name is Midhope Castle and it is located on a working farm.
If you look carefully at some of the pictures you can see a blue structure and some scaffolding. This is in preparation for filming Season 7 Outlander. (Brianna and Roger will be living there--if you know, you know.)
On the archway you can see the original marriage stone from 1587. The man's initials are on the outside (A.B.) and the woman's initials are on the inside (D.M.).
In the woods outside of the castle is where they filmed Jamie hiding in the cave and where Fergus' hand was cut off.
Next up was Blackness Castle! For historical context: Oliver Cromwell attacked this castle in the 1650s to defeat Scotland.
This castle is depicted as Fort William in the TV series. It is where Claire was attacked by Jack Randall and Jamie (& Dougal, Angus, and friends) saved her through the window. You can see me on the rocks where Dougal and Jamie take down the redcoat and demand to know where the Englishwoman is being held! This is also where they filmed Jamie getting flogged as a youth and it is where Brianna and Roger visit in the 1960s.
Our guide did a great reenactment of The Reckoning Season 1 Ep 9 where Jamie and his crew rescue Claire. He showed us the TV magic that was needed to put it all together!
We then headed for a brief stop in Culross, portrayed as Crainsmur in the show. We saw the house that was used to portray Geillis Duncan's home and the square where they filmed the boy who was pinned to the pillory by the ear. This was a beautiful town with lovely gardens, an abbey, and right on the coast!
The next stop was Linlithgow. This is used as Wentworth prison on the TV series. It is also the birth place of James V and Mary Queen of Scots. Unfortunately, the castle was not open due to refurbishments, but it was a beautiful stop and we were able to walk around the grounds and the loch before stopping for lunch.
The final stop on the tour was the town of Faulkland. On the TV series this town is portrayed as Inverness. The square here is where Claire sees as the ghost of a Highland man (most fans think it is Jamie!). It is also where she looks through the glass window and considers the blue vase (one of the opening scenes in the book and TV series).
While here we also visited the palace. The gardens here were stunning, I felt like I was in the Secret Garden. It is also home to the oldest tennis court in the U.K. which dates back to Mary Queen of Scots.
Then we arrived back in Edinburgh! It was a day well spent and I had so much fun! One of my fellow solo travelers and I (a teacher from Louisiana) decided to explore Dean's Village, a gorgeous neighborhood centered around a river a waterfall in the western part of Edinburgh. We capped the evening off with a delicious sushi dinner.
