Outlander Lessons – Level 2 – Locations

We’ve decided to move the Outlander classes up to Mondays, so as to start off the week with something fun!

One of the very best things about the books are the descriptions of the places. I bet 9 out of 10 readers fell in love with Scotland through the books. Diana Gabaldon has a way of making each place her own, to describe it so vividly, it’s like we are actually there. Some places are fiction, such as Lallybroch, but some others are as real as you and me. And, luckily, we can actually go an visit them.

So in case you are planning a little Outlander Holiday, let me help you out just a little bit.

You should always start in Inverness, where it all began. From the Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Nis, meaning “Mouth of the River Ness”, Inverness is considered the capital of the Highlands of Scotland. You should wander through it’s streets, take a stroll down the River Ness and try to find Reverend Wakefield’s Manor House and Mrs Baird’s B&B.

Then, take a of the Loch Ness, where you might be able to catch a glimpse of Claire’s waterhorse.

If you are tired, you might as well stop for a bite and have a picnic near Urquhart Castle, just as Claire and Frank did on their ill fated honeymoon. You can the ruins of this castle.

And now it’s time to go back, go back in time that is. There’s no actual Craig Na Dun, but you can visit Clava Cairns and hope beyond hope that you can hear the stones scream.

If you like, you can spend some time in the beautiful town of , right in the midst of Fraser Clan lands. If I remember correctly, Jamie was born or baptized here.

Once here, you can visit the ruins of .

Or you might want to cross to the south bank of the River Beauly to see the site where once .

If you want to visit a castle that’s still standing, you should to , seat of Clan MacKenzie and the inspiration for Leoch. The castle is located near Strathpeffer in the east of Ross-shire in the Scottish Highlands. It is currently the seat of the Chief of the Clan Mackenzie, although the lands belonged to the Chief of the Clan MacLeod of Lewis until the 17th century.

If you are still up to it, head a bit to the South, to , where Jamie rescued Claire from evil Black Jack Randall.  Fort William (Scottish Gaelic: An Gearasdan literally “The Garrison”) is the second largest settlement in the highlands of Scotland and the largest town: only the city of Inverness is larger. The town grew up as a settlement next to a fort constructed to control the population after Oliver Cromwell’s invasion during the English Civil War, and then to suppress the Jacobite uprisings of the 18th century. The fort was named “Fort William”‘ after William of Orange, and the settlement that grew around it was called “Maryburgh”, after his wife. This settlement was later renamed “Gordonsburgh”, and then “Duncansburgh” before being renamed “Fort William”, this time after Prince William, Duke of Cumberland; known to some Scots as “Butcher Cumberland”. Given these origins, there have been various suggestions over the years to rename the town (for example, to “Invernevis”). These proposals have led to nothing yet.

Our last stop in the tour might make you tear up a bit. We are headed to . Where the battle was held, where Jamie and Claire said goodbye. Where Jamie’s fate was decided. You can visit the battlefield, see the moor, the clan stones and the cottage.

Here’s a map, so you can get your bearings…

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