The Distracted Wanderer

Should you be planning a trip to Scotland and are thinking of heading to the Speyside area with the intent of wandering through some of the country's best whisky distilleries, make your trip even more special with a stay at the beautiful Blervie House located smack in the middle of the world-famous Malt Whisky Trail . The third-sunniest region of the UK (named for the River Spey that runs through it), the Speyside region is home to over half of Scotland's distilleries - 50 in total! This breathtaking area sits in a fertile valley of crystal clear rivers and pastoral, secluded glens - ideally sandwiched between the rugged Highlands to the west, the lush farmlands of Aberdeenshire to the east and north of Cairngorms National Park , the largest of the UK's National Parks. Located approximately about 40 minutes from Inverness Airport down a very long driveway (!) three miles south of Forres, Blervie House is a Historic Scotland listed Country House Estate set in 272 ...

UPDATE: In July of 2020, the Cranwell Resort & Spa reopened as Wyndhurst Manor & Club (the original name of its iconic manor) following its purchase by the Hyatt Corporation and its Miraval spa subsidiary for over $20 million in 2017. The photos contained in this post were taken before that purchase was made and some of the information - such as that on the spa - is no longer applicable. Long before Lenox, Massachusetts became the resort town and destination of tourists from all over the world that it is today, Catharine Sedgwick, one of America’s first important women writers, put pen to paper and declared it to be "a bare and ugly little village, dismally bleak and uncouth, reached only after six miles of steep and rough driving." Over time, though, her sentiments changed quite drastically and on November 1st, 1824 she wrote: "As I stand at the window and gaze on the hills that stretch before me in every variety of height and position, the sun sends hi...