Legs and Borders

Very good day of hiking and I managed to reach one of the last and biggest resupply points before reaching Cape Wrath, Ullapool. I had a bit later start as I thought I won't be finishing at Ullapool but as day progressed it seemed more and more likely. The terrain wasn't too difficult and the weather was exceptionally good. Halfway through the day I met Ivana, a middle-aged lady from Czechia, she was finishing her Cape Wrath Trail she started last year, she shared with me some tips and tricks for the trail ahead (she has done that section already) and told me about very upsetting incident that happened to her last year, she was hiking with another person, it was very rainy and after they split to tackle the trail differently they been both crossing a dangerous river in two different places, she got a message two days later from her friend that the guy has drowned while crossing the river, a horrible accident and memory to behold. It was Ivana's last day on Cape Wrath trail ...

Today was a bit of a mixed bag, weather and trail were all over the place there were some easy sections followed by hard ones but the scenery kept on getting better. It was cold and rainy since morning, first climb towards Sgurr a Chaorachain was quite tough and pathless, luckily I had to head towards the pass so it wasn't a big deal, descent was steep and muddy but once at the bottom and after doing an easy river crossing the trail followed a stone road, the weather was getting worse though and the wind was getting stronger. After two more small passes and an extremely muddy descent that reminded me of trails in New Zealand, I've arrived in Kinlochlewe, a town with a small grocery store I was hoping to buy some food in. Despite it being Sunday, the shop was opened from 12-5, it was decently stocked and I've bought a venison salami, pack of digestive biscuits, few butteries and a brie and red onion quiche. On my way out of town I've booked the hostel in Ullapool as I re...

A near perfect day on the trail, perfect weather, path was mostly straightforward and the views were spectacular. The trail was running next to two bothies or Scottish huts for hikers early in the morning, I had a peek in the first one and it kind of reminded me the hiker huts in New Zealand but a bit smaller and with less facilities, they were still much better than three walled huts on the Appalachian Trail. As I progressed down the path I've met Anja, an accountant from London who recently left her job to pursue her dream of travelling and self discovery, she has spend 15 months travelling through Asia and now was on a short hiking trip here, her plan was to hike PCT next year which I've completed four years ago, so we had plenty to talk about. Anja was finishing her walk in Morvich so I wished her good luck on her travels and carried on. At the Kintail Outdoor Centre I got offered a coffee and biscuits from a bunch of friendly horse riders who just finished their hike, I co...

Morning was very cold. Wind and rain were also omnipresent, I've put on my wet gear and carried on along the trail. The views were spectacular, heavy rain clouds gave the vast landscape a very gothic and unique look. I was sheltering myself from the wind using an umbrella I found yesterday lying somewhere in the bog, I thought I will have no use for it but it came in handy pretty much immediately. After five miles of struggle I've reached Cluanie Inn, everyone was asleep but the reception was opened so I snuck in to get some warmth into my trembling body, I had to rethink what to do next, the weather for the next week looked all doom and gloom with 10 degrees max temperatures and rain all over, I had to either abandon the trail completely or get a better gear that would keep me warm and dry in this conditions. I decided on the second option. While sitting in a bakery next door and waiting for the bus to Fort William, a couple from Oxford started chatting to me, they went to Heb...

Second day on Cape Wrath Trail and I got totally schooled by it. After a breakfast in Great Glen Hostel, I've packed and left for the trail. First part of the day was a rinse and repeat of yesterday, walking along logging roads and Loch Garry the difference was that I have not met anyone along the way. Around mile 35, the logging road suddenly disappeared along with, well any trail at all and I started my first challenging section of Cape Wrath Trail. It was running along the river bank the terrain was very marshy and uneven with long grasses and moss covering everything, few times I underestimated the depth of the boggy terrain and sunk my leg up to my thigh inside of it. Soon after came two river crossings followed by another pathless, boggy section after which the trail finally arrived at the country road. This comfortable trail only lasted for about a mile after which it turned into a muddy and wet ascent towards Spidean Malach after which it was following a beautiful valley in...

First and unexpectedly very pleasant day on Cape Wrath Trail, I was psyching myself up for a tough ride (which will come soon enough, I know it) but today was a pleasant hike along Loch Lochy and I even managed to find a decently priced hostel to top it all up. In the morning I went to Morrisons to resupply for the next three days as according to my research there was no shops until mile 65 of CWT. I had a breakfast at McDonalds where I also repackaged my food and I went to the starting point of CWT which was also a starting point of Glens Way and numerous other trails as Fort William was famously a gateway to the Highlands. The trail ran along the canal, I've seen a steam train being prepped for a ride which looked really cool, massive clouds of steam was spitting up in the air. Path was easy if ever so slightly too even which made my feet ache quite quickly. Landscape along the loch was getting more and more remote and wild, other than few timber cutting trucks and bicycles, ther...

Early start, I was trying to reach Ben Nevis as quickly as possible and see if the conditions will be good enough to climb it. Twelve miles leading to the peak were fairly easy, I've stumbled upon an injured lamb along the trail but I couldn't help it in any significant way, so I only positioned it in more comfortable way (it was lying on it's head) and hoped someone else will be able to help it. I've reached Ben Nevis Information Centre at 10am, had a snack here and started a 3 hour difficult climb up the mountain, there was a lot of other people doing it, which was encouraging. Path was steep and uneven, long and unrelenting. At around 1pm I finally reached the snow covered top, I've taken few pictures and after few minutes started the descent which took me two hours. I arrived back at the information centre just after 3pm. From here I headed towards Fort William to officially finish the West Highland Way section of the trail, and around 4pm I arrived at the end m...

Best views on the entire trail so far, if the day wasn't so cloudy it would be even better. The section up to Bridge of Orchy was running along an old cobblestone road and the hotel there was a great stop for a morning cup of coffee. From here trail was going up and meandering between various hills, you could truly feel that you are in the Highlands now. I've had my lunch at Kingshouse Hotel and carried on through the valley with a magnificent Stob Dearg peak to the left, it would be perfect if not a busy road running right through the middle of the valley. I've reached the Devil's Staircase leading to the highest point on the trail at about 2pm, after switchbacking for half an hour and reaching the top the view opened up to reveal a vast landscape of mountains with a path winding right through it, it might have been my favourite view so far. From here it took about three hours to reach Kinlochleven, I was planning to stop and camp beforehand but there wasn't any op...

The rain stopped in the morning and I could wrap everything up, midges made my departure that much faster, they were so tiny that they were almost impossible to notice until it was too late, I was gathering quite a collection of red dots on my legs and arms. Trail was running along the Loch Lomond in a very up and down fashion, for the first part of the day but once the lake was over it steadily progressed up the hills. I've completely missed the Drovers Pub, several people has recommended me to go there, it was located at Inverarnan. Instead, I had very nice sausage and mash at a restaurant in Beinglas just around the corner without realising the Drivers Pub was nearby. The weather was holding up quite well, at about 3pm I've reached the middle marker of the West Highland Way at Crianlarich Crossroads, and soon after there was a farm with first highland cows on the trail! There was plenty of swifts doing their aerial acrobatics and the atmosphere was serene over here. At about...

Today I've said goodby to the canal and the good weather it seems, my first night on West Highland Way is on Loch Lomond. Last ten miles leading to the starting point of WHW in Milngavie, were mostly alongside golf courses and pastures. I've resupplied at a local Marks & Spencers and started the hike alongside many other people, it was a very busy trail. I didn't realize that you can only camp in designated spots on Loch Lomond and so I went to look for an accomodation but unfortunately everything has been booked, I finally found a spot at one of the campsites, it was raining heavily at that point and midges has made their first appearance. Campsite was very noisy, there was all sort of sounds coming from the lake and the road nearby and I would probably have not much sleep tonight, I only hoped that the rain would stop tomorrow.

Today I felt like I was on a hamster wheel with the exact same landscape rolling around me. The day started really well, I've hiked remaining miles to Balerno where I had a coffee and a coronation chicken baguette at a Scottish version of Coop called "Scotmid Coop" which has been running in this country since 1859! The views up to that point were really nice. I had a chat with a local farmer who was checking on his cows in the morning, his daughter was hiking now as well, he was not looking forward to the next midges invasion in August. The path from Balerno to Edinburgh wasn't too bad either, a rubbery soft cycling track sheltered by the trees. Things changed on my way out of Edinburgh. I only stayed at the outskirts of the city enough time to resupply and have a toilet (I'm sorry Edinborough I'll be back, when I've got more time!). Trail from here on was running along the Union Canal, without a doubt the most boring section of the trail so far. It was a ...

After hiking along St Cuthbert's Way and Southern Upland Way, I've spend majority of the afternoon following the nameless trail alongside river Tweed, I didn't meet a single hiker only few loggers who completely ignored me as I was trespassing on their logging site but since there wasn't an alternative route I just went for it and it was all fine. I've seen some of my favourite sites so far today, especially in the afternoon, beautiful, gently rolling hills with grazing sheep and cattle, a row of old oak trees running alongside the trail some kind soul must have planted here over 100 years ago, I kind of wish they could be here to see what a cool place they have created. I've passed through a town called Peebles which might have been my favourite so far as well, I've ate here one is Scottish specialities a "lasagna pie" and it tasted really nice! I've also had several coffees and sausage rolls at Gregg's and hiked out well nourished and in ...

Second day of my Scottish National Trail adventure, I've caught up on my daily miles and I'm running on schedule as of now which is an amazing news! Terrain was definitely a helpful asset, trail was mostly flat and straightforward, I was passing (and snacking) though many little villages also weather was perfect, I'm crossing my fingers it will remain so for a long time. Halfway through the day I've meet a group of Americans from Vermont who didn't know how to call a taxi (typing in 0044 before the number was too much for them), I've helped them out and 5 minutes later three small taxis arrived to transport them to their hotel. To be fair after they helped me so much during my American ventures I got all the time for Americans now and will try to help them when I can. I've also met first person who is hiking Scottish National Trail as well, his name was Toby but he was a man of few words so we didn't talk much, hopefully I'll see him later on. In the...