This was to be the first day I had to walk after walking the day before. Up til now I'd had at least 3 days to recover before getting the boots back on, and to be perfectly honest I thought I really needed those days to recover.
I was stiff when I got up I was a little sore, my ankle was still swollen, my pack felt heavy and my hair was interesting. Oh well, at least I was getting a proper breakfast inside me. Toast, fruit, cereal and we all ordered the "West Highlander Breakfast", I'd like to report that the waiter responded with "there can be only one" but sadly, no, we had a polite response of "thanks". Disappointment is difficult to take at that time of the morning. Oh well.
First up we had to cross the river. Over the Bridge of Orchy if you will.
Everytime we walk mum likes to offer out little nuggets of knowledge, little helpful bits of wisdom. One of her favourites is still "it's always best to start with a hill". It goes against every grain of my being, it is exactly the opposite of what I want to do at seven thirty in the morning, hell, it goes against what I want to do at any time morning or afternoon. But after days of starting with a hill and days where the first hill didnt arrive until after lunch I have to agree with her, starting with a hill is better than waiting till later. Good thing since, we started with a hill.
This one has a pretty good cairn at the top that is in rememberance of a bloke about whom all I can remember is his surname is Fleming and he was good at escaping frim occupied countries. That seems a good reason to have a cairn at the summit of a pretty big hill to me.
This same hill now has another reasonable sized cairn too, not at the top but looking out to a pretty view towards Inveroran. A little cairn for Catriona.
A quick hop skip and jump down the other side and we were ready for the real challenge of the day. Rannoch Moor. Fifty square miles of wilderness and barren bog and moorland and one safe route through- the old Drove Road. It's not used now, except for hikers and climbers and boy is it tough on the feet- rocky, and cobbles and bouldery all the way to Glencoe.
It is one of the most stunning landscapes I've ever seen in Scotland, to see nothing that marked out human habitation as far as the eye could see in every direction except the very road we were walking on. It's a landscape that was at the same time exceptionally similar but strikingly different in every direction. It is amazing to be surrounded by the giant mountains and so them recede into the distance and new ones to loom into view.
But in the midst of the barren land the most lovely thing happened. We had stopped for elevenses at a bridge with other walkers. We got chatting and I explained to this one man walking on his own why we were all crazily hiking this route- I told him about Catriona, about Emma and about SANDS. And right there he handed me cash to add to the money we've raised. 10 miles from anywhere someone cared. Meet Tony, Tony is awesome.
Mostly though, It's nice to stop tramping on solid rock and find a place to lay your bag. Even if it is another mile uphill to dinner. The view is pretty good for dinner too...
...the view of dinner is pretty decent. Good job because tomorrow it's a long way to Fort William. And the finish.
