Gadling Blogger Snaps Photo Of Nessie (Not Really)

by Sean McLachlan on


On my recent trip to Scotland, I took this shocking photo of a strange creature out in the water. Is it Nessie?

Well, no, it isn’t. I won’t tell you what it is, except that the truth is hidden in one of the answers to the poll below. Vote for your most likely candidate and I’ll post the SHOCKING TRUTH ABOUT MY NESSIE PHOTO a week from now.

Sorry for shouting, I got carried away.

While I didn’t photograph the Loch Ness Monster (or did I?), a certain George Edwards did. The Inverness Courier published his photo last week and it’s been making the rounds on the Internet. It shows a fuzzy lump in the water that could be a species unknown to science or simply a fuzzy lump in the water.

Mr. Edwards says he saw the dark gray shape “slowly moving up the loch towards Urquhart Castle.” He watched it for at least five minutes but for some reason only took one photo. Edwards claims to have sent the image off to some experts in the U.S. military to have it analyzed.

Proof that Nessie exists? Maybe. Maybe not. The fact that Edwards runs Loch Ness Cruises makes me a wee bit suspicious that this is a publicity stunt. Even the popular monster hunting site Crypto Mundo cast some doubts on the story, asking why there’s no wake from a supposedly moving object and why a lifelong Nessie hunter only snapped a single photograph.

Whatever the truth behind Edwards’ photo, you’ll learn the SHOCKING TRUTH ABOUT MY NESSIE PHOTO next week.

Sorry, got carried away again.

UPDATE: The correct answer wins by a slim margin! Yes, this was a seal coming up for air. He’s poking his nose out of the water and looks remarkably like a shark, which is why 22 Gadling readers were fooled into thinking it was one. I’m a bit curious as to the six people who thought I swiped a “real” Nessie photo from the Internet. Are there so many blurry photos of the beastie out there that they all begin to look the same?

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Visiting Orkney: The Practicalities

by Sean McLachlan on


A week in Orkney was not enough. These 70+ islands just north of Scotland have a rich history and vibrant natural life. In a week my family and I explored stone circles, spotted seals on the beach, climbed cliffs to see nesting birds, and walked on uninhabited islands. Despite a very full seven days, we saw less than a tenth of the Orkney Islands and I have a feeling less than one percent of what they have to offer. If you’re looking for something a bit different for your next vacation, try Orkney. Here are a few tips to make your trip easier.

Getting there
Regular flights service Kirkwall airport from Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Inverness. There’s also a long ferry from Aberdeen if you want to bring a car along. The ferry is no cheaper than the flight and takes several hours from Aberdeen as opposed to just one, so if you aren’t bringing a car, it’s probably best to go by air.

Getting around
This can be a bit tricky. There’s a public bus service but it’s a bit limited and isn’t timed with the ferry service. The ferries are better. They serve all the inhabited islands and are reasonably priced. Most are car ferries so you can bring your vehicle along. You have to be careful with the ferry times, however, as the last ferry often leaves pretty early.
Considering renting a car to get you to the more out-of-the-way attractions, but be careful if you aren’t accustomed to driving on the left.

%Gallery-161806%Where to stay
Most people stay in Kirkwall or Stromness, the two largest towns on the Orkney Mainland. Kirkwall has more ferries to other islands, but my wife and I felt that Stromness had more atmosphere with its old stone houses and thriving art scene. Not that Kirkwall is hurting for art. We stayed just around the corner from The Reel, a great cafe/pub/music venue that hosts three or more concerts of traditional Scottish music a week.
Both towns have plenty of hotels B&Bs, and short-term apartment rentals. We got a two-bedroom apartment in central Kirkwall from Kirkwall Apartments for £550 ($856). We prefer to get an apartment because it feels more homey and relaxed than a B&B, we can cook our own meals to save money, and it comes out to about the same cost. I haven’t checked out other short-term letting agents so I have no basis for comparison, but I was satisfied with our place. It was clean, central, and Kirkwall Apartments had good customer service.
If you have a car and want to be out on your own, a little digging online will bring up many country cottages for rent. There are also B&Bs on some of the more remote islands. This is something I’m tempted to try the next time I go. Yes, there will definitely be a next time!

What to see
This series has gone over some of the highlights. There are plenty more attractions on the various islands. Check out the Visit Orkney website for more information.

Background reading
Reading up on a place before going always enriches the experience. A good place to start is with the “Orkneyinga Saga,” a Viking saga telling the history of the islands with plenty of battles, intrigue, and even a few Christian miracles. For more modern work, check out Orkney’s star author George Mackay Brown, who wrote numerous stories and poems about his beloved islands. Orkney also has numerous contemporary authors and poets, such as Pamela Beasant, who draw their inspiration from Orkney’s rich history and evocative landscape.
For some online reading, don’t miss Orkneyjar, an amazing website by the news editor of the Orcadian newspaper. The site offers a seemingly endless treasure trove of knowledge about Orkney’s nature, history and folklore.

Where to go from here?
Once you’re this far north, why not keep going? It’s a short hop on a plane to the Shetland Islands, an even more remote chain of Scottish islands. There are plenty of natural and archaeological wonders up there. You can also take a ferry, but it takes several hours over rough seas and goes by night, so you don’t get to see much. The plane sounds like a better option.
If you have a hankering for remote islands chains, there are also the Faroe Islands, about halfway between Scotland and Iceland. One marine biologist described them as, “Orkney on steroids.” Sounds good to me!

Don’t miss the rest of my series “Exploring Orkney: Scotland’s Rugged Northern Isles.”

10 Colorful Cities From Around The World

by Jessica Festa on

When many people think of cities, they picture concrete, skyscrapers, road work and steel. The truth is, however, there are many cities around the world with a more vibrant and colorful atmosphere. In fact, some of these places are so creative and beautiful, they are a work of art in themselves.

Deep blue structures reside next to loud pink and sunflower yellow houses, as hot orange and rich spring purple buildings sit across the street. Being able to see this fusion of colors in one place is reason enough to visit each of these unique cities.

For a more visual idea of colorful cities around the world, check out the gallery. Have a favorite colorful destination of your own? Tell us in the comments.

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[Images via Big Stock]

Journaling App Works Like Magic, Given The Chance

by Chris Owen on

HipGeo is a convenient journaling app that enables travelers to keep track of what they saw and where they saw it. Users then share their travels and use what other people share to enhance their own travel experiences. In a new release, HipGeo instantly transforms all those elements into virtual journals that can then be automatically shared a variety of ways.

“If Tumblr and Foursquare had a baby, it would look like the new HipGeo,” HipGeo’s Rich Rygg told CNET when we first reported on HipGeo back in January.

The latest release enhances social network and private sharing experiences by grouping together disparate mobile photos, videos and text into a location and storytelling stream, automatically.

We put HipGeo to the test on a recent trip through Scotland, Ireland and Wales and found the new version so easy to use it was difficult. In areas where we had no cell signal, we thought the new version of HipGeo was not working at all. But at those locations, HipGeo stores information, much like a digital camera, then uploads it later.Called “background mode,” when out of your home country with data services turned off to avoid charges, or when Wi-Fi is not available, HipGeo automatically saves entries. Later, when back home or when a signal is available, HipGeo posts those entries automatically.

When the trip is over, users can go back and fill in photos, journal details and more when a location has no information listed. HipGeo tracks everywhere users go, automatically. Adding media to the stream is up to the traveler.

Intrigued? A good way to get started with HipGeo is to post photos from a recent vacation or adventure then watch as HipGeo works its magic.

Note to HipGeo: in the next release, train the app to pick my best photos, automatically record descriptive phrasing I might say while at the location and send a text link to my friends who are not traveling, just to rub it in.

[Image- Chris Owen]

Your Kindness When Flying Is Appreciated, Believe Me

by Chris Owen on

When we think of flying, thoughts often turn to pricing, legroom and luggage fees among other contemporary issues. Back in the good old days of air travel, it was more about the fun of flying, brand loyalty and what might be served for lunch. But guess what? We have the power to turn back the clock to a happier time in the air with some common courtesy.

On a recent international flight, I happened to be talking to the passenger sitting right behind me in coach before takeoff. Everyone was getting settled in, arranging their cramped space, putting books, iPads, headphones, snacks and other items within easy reach.

When I mentioned that I had work to do and would probably not sleep or recline, that passenger behind me joyously proclaimed, “Oh thank God!” He went on to say how much he appreciated the thought and noted, “That’s just common flight courtesy.” Others chimed in, agreeing with him.

I really did not think much about it at the time. But in reflection, that few inches the seat goes back really does not make all that much difference when I do try to sleep on a flight. It’s not like reclining turns the narrow coach seat into a Lazy Boy with heated massage capability anyway. But not reclining can mean so much to the person behind us that loses the space.We may not be able to bring back in-flight meals on domestic coach flights or bigger seats to go along with cut-rate fares. But looking at the business of flying in a slightly different way can make all the difference in the world.


[Photo- Chris Owen]