Apparently, two weeks wandering around Scotland and Ireland weren’t enough. I also had to turn the whole ridiculous adventure into its own little corner of the internet. Plain text below.

[Click here for the unnecessarily elaborate, mildly interactive version of this drivel.]

Unedited picture dump HERE.

Scotland, Ireland, and Another Perfectly Reasonable Way to Spend Two Weeks

October 2026

There are worse ways to spend a couple of weeks than wandering around Scotland and Ireland with your favorite person. I suppose there are cheaper ways, too, but I’ve never been particularly interested in investigating those.

Tanya and I had been looking forward to this adventure for quite some time. Two countries, a collection of castles, mountains, lakes, historic towns, some incredible scenery, and hopefully a few opportunities to eat and drink things we couldn’t pronounce.

And, naturally, a little geocaching. Okay, possibly more than a little.

Scotland: Castles, Highlands, and Our First Victim

We started in Edinburgh, a city that looks like someone took a medieval fairy tale, added a few pubs, and decided nobody should ever have to walk on level ground again.

It’s a spectacular place. The architecture, the history, the narrow streets, the castle towering above everything. I could have spent days simply wandering around looking at buildings.

We had Donald showing us around, which is one of the things Tanya and I have come to appreciate about traveling this way. Having someone who knows a place, its history, and all the things you wouldn’t necessarily discover on your own makes an enormous difference. Speaking of enormous differences, you should have seen Donald’s pants bulge.

Edinburgh Castle was particularly memorable. We explored centuries of history, and enjoyed the sort of views that make you stop every few minutes to take another photograph that looks suspiciously similar to the previous one. Of course, I was also looking at the geocaching map. This surprises absolutely nobody.

Eventually we headed north toward Inverness, which would become our base for exploring the Highlands.

And this is where we met Gary. Poor Gary. He thought he had signed up to show two Americans the beautiful Scottish countryside. What he didn’t know was that one of them had a GPS-related personality disorder.

Loch Ness, Castles, and the Road to Skye

The Highlands are extraordinary.

It’s difficult to describe how beautiful this part of Scotland is without sounding like someone writing advertising copy for the Scottish tourism board. Mountains, enormous stretches of open countryside, lakes, ancient stone structures, and scenery that seems to change every few minutes. We explored Loch Ness, including a boat trip and a visit to Urquhart Castle. Standing among the ruins overlooking that enormous body of water, it’s easy to understand why people have been telling stories about this place for centuries.

We did not see Nessie. I’m not saying she doesn’t exist. I’m just saying she apparently had other plans.

One of our intended adventures was a trip to the Isle of Skye. Unfortunately, Scotland’s weather had opinions about our itinerary. Between the weather and traffic, our plans had to change. We didn’t get the Skye experience we’d hoped for, but we did make it to Eilean Donan Castle, which is one of those places that looks almost too Scottish to be real.

And somewhere along the way, I had identified a geocache called Highlander’s Home.

Naturally, I wanted to find it. This particular adventure involved some truly impressive wind. The sort of wind that makes walking feel like a negotiation between you and the atmosphere.

It also involved an Australian fellow named Mick. Because apparently traveling halfway around the world and meeting people who share your ridiculous hobbies is just something that happens in my life. We survived the weather, enjoyed the adventure, and eventually found ourselves eating an absolutely fantastic beef stew in a castle dining hall.

That stew deserves special recognition. I have eaten beef stew before. I thought I understood beef stew. Apparently, I had been eating inferior beef stew for most of my life. After returning home, I immediately started investigating how to reproduce it. That’s how good it was.

Gary Learns About Geocaching

One of the recurring themes of this vacation was introducing perfectly respectable people to geocaching. Gary was no exception. At some point, he became acquainted with the concept that I might ask him to stop the vehicle because there was a plastic container hidden somewhere nearby.

To his credit, he was a great sport. On one of our outings, we worked our way around a circular route, stopping for some particularly interesting caches. Tanya was patient enough to wait in the car during some of my little expeditions.

I’ve been married to this woman for 22 years. She knows exactly what she signed up for.

Actually, that’s not true. I don’t think either of us had any idea what we were signing up for. But so far, so good.

Ben More: A Perfectly Terrible Idea

Now we arrive at what might have been my favorite geocaching adventure of the entire trip.

Scotland has an active geocache hidden in the year 2000. For those who don’t participate in this particular form of recreational insanity, finding caches hidden in that first year of geocaching is a special treat.

There aren’t many left, and I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of time traveling around the world looking for them. This one required a hike on Ben More.

About four miles.

In Scotland.

In October.

What could possibly go wrong?

Gary got me to the trailhead, and off I went.

There were sheep. Lots of sheep.

There were beautiful views, at least during the brief moments when the weather allowed me to see them.

There was rain.

There was hail.

There was wind.

Oh, was there wind.

At one point, the weather became so ridiculous that I found myself crouched behind boulders, curled into something resembling the fetal position, trying to get out of the wind.

I had voluntarily traveled thousands of miles to do this.

I paid money for the privilege.

And I was having an absolutely wonderful time.

There is something about these adventures that is difficult to explain to people who don’t understand them. The physical discomfort, the uncertainty, the absurdity of the entire situation.

All of that becomes part of the memory.

Especially when the adventure ends successfully.

I reached ground zero, found the cache, and added another year-2000 treasure to my collection.

The return hike took me down along a waterfall, adding another beautiful chapter to an already unforgettable day.

And the entire ridiculous adventure happened on the eve of my 52nd birthday.

I cannot think of a much better birthday present to give myself.

A sensible person might have preferred a nice dinner and a comfortable chair.

I’ve never been accused of being particularly sensible.

Goodbye Scotland, Hello Ireland

Eventually it was time to say goodbye to Scotland and make our way to Ireland.

Our first stop was Dublin. Dublin has a completely different personality from the Scottish Highlands, but it was every bit as enjoyable in its own way.

We spent a couple of days exploring the city, wandering the streets, admiring the architecture, enjoying the atmosphere, and discovering some of its history. And yes, there were geocaches.

Some of them took us to monuments, statues, and interesting corners of the city we might otherwise have walked right past.

That’s one of the things I continue to love about this silly hobby. Even after all these years, it regularly introduces me to places I didn’t know existed.

We explored parks and historical landmarks, including the colorful Oscar Wilde statue, and encountered the usual collection of puzzles and EarthCaches that turn ordinary sightseeing into a scavenger hunt.

For me, that’s a pretty great way to experience a new city.

Bray Head and Another Piece of Geocaching History

While we were in the Dublin area, I had another important item on my imaginary list.

A visit to Bray.

And another very old geocache.

This particular one is among the oldest in Europe, which naturally made it something I wanted to experience while we were nearby.

The outing took us a couple of hours and included additional geocaches, some beautiful coastal scenery, and a walk up toward the enormous cross overlooking the area.

Bray Head was spectacular.

The combination of the Irish coastline, the sea, the hills, and the views made the whole excursion worthwhile even without the geocaching.

Although obviously I was delighted that there was geocaching.

We also worked through a puzzle involving information on signs along the route. At one point, a fossil named Oldhamia became an unexpectedly important part of the day’s mathematical entertainment.

Because that’s what normal people do on vacation.

They count letters in the names of ancient fossils to find hidden containers.

I found the cache, and we enjoyed another memorable little adventure.

Killarney and Our New Friend Tony

From Dublin, we continued west toward Killarney.

This was another part of the trip where having a private guide made all the difference.

Enter Tony.

Another unsuspecting gentleman about to learn far more about geocaching than he ever intended. And to Tony’s intense delight, Tanya and I knew who the Rubber Bandits were, local Irish music lengends. We all laughed about that plenty on the way to riding a horse.

Killarney and the surrounding countryside are absolutely gorgeous. Green hills, winding roads, lakes, rugged coastlines, charming towns, and landscapes that seem almost impossibly Irish.

We explored the Ring of Kerry and spent several days discovering the region. The scenery was remarkable, and the ability to change our plans as we went made the experience even better.

Tony was terrific. And before long, he too had been introduced to the idea that we might need to pull over because my phone indicated there was something hidden nearby. I don’t know how many professional tour guides Tanya and I have converted into amateur geocachers over the years, but the number continues to grow.

Perhaps this is my true contribution to society. I guarantee my conversion rate is much better in other countries than those Jesus people.

Not the thousands of caches I’ve found.

Not the miles I’ve walked.

Just convincing innocent people around the world to look under rocks.

The Weather Gets Another Vote

One of the things we’d hoped to experience was the Cliffs of Moher.

Those enormous cliffs had been high on our list, and we were looking forward to seeing them.

Unfortunately, Ireland’s weather decided otherwise.

We had a day of particularly terrible conditions, and our plans for the cliffs were abandoned.

Disappointing? Sure.

But one thing I’ve learned from all our traveling is that the best adventures don’t always follow the original itinerary.

Sometimes you change direction.

Sometimes the weather wins.

Sometimes you discover something even better because the thing you planned didn’t happen.

And sometimes you just go find a pub.

All perfectly acceptable outcomes.

The Things That Stay With You

Looking back on these two weeks, it’s difficult to choose a favorite part.

Was it Edinburgh and its incredible history?

The Scottish Highlands and those dramatic landscapes?

Standing beside ancient castles?

The absurd hike on Ben More, when I briefly considered whether the wind might carry me into another country?

The Irish coastline?

The old geocaches?

The food?

The people?

Probably all of it.

But what I remember most is how much fun Tanya and I continue to have doing this together.

We’ve been fortunate enough to travel to some extraordinary places over the years. And somehow, rather than running out of places we want to see, our list just keeps getting longer.

We met wonderful people. We learned things. We laughed. We ate some incredible meals. We changed plans when the weather demanded it. We found little pieces of history, both the kind written about in books and the kind hidden in the woods by people with strange hobbies.

And we came home with another collection of memories that will make us smile for years.

I also came home with a serious desire to learn how to make Irish and Scottish beef stew properly.

So there’s that.

I’ve often said there are no wrong turns when there is no destination.

This trip certainly reinforced that philosophy.

Although, to be fair, we did have destinations.

I just kept adding coordinates to them.

Scotland and Ireland, October 2026.

Another adventure with my favorite traveling companion.

And another reminder that I am one ridiculously fortunate guy.