HIGH 5: Outlander Special
Visit these sites and go back in time just like Claire Randall in the hit TV series based on Diana Gabaldon's novels.
Culloden, near Inverness
A must for any Outlander fan is a visit to Culloden Battlefield where the final bloody conflict of the Jacobite Rising took place in 1746. The government forces defeated the Jacobite army and suppressed once and for all Bonnie Prince Charlie’s ambition to reclaim the throne for the Stuarts.
Here you can get a feel for what Jamie and his men faced on that fateful day and pay homage to the real burial stone for Clan Fraser, which Claire visits in the second series.
A little further down the road you’ll find the Clava Cairns, which is thought to be the inspiration for the fictitious stone circle Craigh na Dun. www.visitinvernesslochness.com
Castle Leod, Strathpeffer
In the Outlander series, the fictional home of the chief of the Mackenzie chief is Castle Leoch. In real life it is Castle Leod, which is said to have inspired the TV version.
Clan Mackenzie chiefs have lived at Castle Leod for over 500 years and it is currently the home of the Earl of Cromartie, and his family. The Mackenzies and Castle Leod were heavily involved in the Jacobite Rising of 1745 as well as other major episodes of Highland history.
The castle is open to the public at certain times of the year and is a popular wedding venue. www.castleleod.org.uk
Tulloch Ghru, Aviemore
This picturesque area of woodland approximately two miles south of Aviemore is not as well known as neighbouring Rothiemurchus. In fact, you may have difficulty finding it on a map!
But it was the backdrop in the very first episode of Outlander for the scene in which Claire first meets Jamie and his clan, not long after passing through the stones and being rescued from Black jack Randall.
Dedicated fans of the hit TV show however, do manage to find their way to this remote spot (near the Hilton Coylumbridge Hotel) so they can see firsthand the beautiful landscape in which the couple first met. Tulloch Ghru also features heavily in the original opening credits.
Highland Folk Museum, Newtonmore
The living museum takes visitors back in time with its recreation of a Highland township from the 1700s. The replica was used as a filming location for the Outlander series in 2014. Since then the Highland Folk Museum holds an annual Outlander Day, where fans are given an insight into what daily life was like for Jamie and Claire. But you don’t have to wait for the yearly celebration to get your Outlander fix – the museum is worth a visit throughout the season. www.highlifehighland.com
Wardlaw Mausoleum, Kirkhill
Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat (aka the Old Fox) is portrayed by actor Clive Russell in the second series of Outlander. In the TV series he is Jamie’s grandfather but in real life he was a jacobite captured by the red coats at Culloden and beheaded for high treason at the Tower of London.
It has long been debating whether his headless body was returned to his family crypt at Wardlaw Mausoleum in Kirkhill, although recent investigations would suggest he is not resting at the burial site near Beauly.
However, the mausoleum is still worth a visit for Outlander fans interested in knowing more about the Frasers of Lovat. In fact, the actors who play Roger Wakefield (Richard Rankin) and Brianna Randall Fraser (Sophie Skelton) in the TV series visited the crypt in 2016 to learn about the history that inspires their fictional world. www.wardlawmausoleum.com
