.............not all those that wander are lost..............

TGOC 2013 - Days 4, 5 + 6

Day 4 (Monday) past the Blackwater Reservoir towards Loch Treig

Short visit to Co-op in Kinlochleven then followed the path up towards Blackwater Reservoir.

Oh Dear! First mud, stones and water - then the terrible peaty messes from the Trail bikes! Took hours!

Lost the path completely at the Dam wall where the old pipe line was. Then again across the moorland - very wet and boggy and again totally trashed by motorbikes! Finally made it to Loch Chiarain Bothy. Met Mick and Pete just leaving but I decided to eat and then pitch my tent. Wind a problem even in the shelter of the house wall. Didn't fancy sleeping IN the bothy - too spooky! and cold! 

Squally sleety showers shook the tent all night.

Now a long way to go tomorrow but I can spread the deficit across a few days and that should work ok as long as the track conditions improve.....

Ha! Ha!


{Still raining......}

{Along the path...}

{Fortunately I didn't have to use this broken bridge...}

{One of the retaining walls for the Dam}

{At the main Dam wall where I shouldn't have been!}

{At last - the Bothy comes into view...}
Day 5 (Tuesday) all behind schedule now but still on route plan...

Flap! Flap! Flap! - the tent, not me! Despite shelter from building the wind rattled around all night but the good heavy stones on each peg worked a treat!

Packed up, ate breakfast in the bothy, and set off only to find the same trashed boggy ground with lost path in places. Got down to Loch Treig but I was relieved I didn't attempt it last night.

Pleasurable (!) walking at last, on a dusty landrover track. First I saw a train above me then later another below me! Met two other walkers (not TGOC) who told me Corrour Station didn't open on Tuesdays so I didn't bother going to check it out.

Blue sky at last and Loch Ossian looked amazing but the camera wasn't working properly - seems to be wet!

Followed an ever deteriorating track up to Peter's Rock and turned South onto the Road to the Isles. I had thought about camping at Old Corrour Lodge. It's a very impressive ruin but all too wet and exposed. Be lovely during a dry spell with great views.

Another couple of sandal crossings made slow progress. Met Roger Boston going the other way - he'd already pitched but it looked too exposed for me. Decided to keep descending towards the road but didn't find anywhere to camp.

Finally with light fading around 10 pm just short of Bridge of Gour found a little layby with a SEPA hut in it. Bit lumpy but quite quiet and pleasant. Cuppa soup was all I could manage to eat. Amazing amount of water bouncing along the river from the power station.


{This could be a photo of Loch Ossian...}

{Beside the SEPA hut}
Day 6 (Wednesday) North side of Loch Rannoch

A day of walking the road to Kinloch Rannoch. Plenty of possible campsites along the way for future reference.

I ate a huge late lunch at 'Treats' coffee shop. Sad to see the Dunalastair Hotel all closed up. In the shop the assistant was very helpful and phoned ahead to the 'Gardens' B & B for a room for me. Time to have a night of comfort! 

More plodding to the B & B but a whole suite (bedroom, bathroom, sitting room) was such luxury! Lovely bath in rather peaty water....Washed more or less everything and hung up tent fly and lofted sleeping bag.

Need to get up early to pack it all up again! Then, a series of texts from Louise, she has dropped out with an asthma attack but is planning to meet me anyway in Braemar and walk to Montrose.

I had already decided to avoid my planned route after Blair Atholl and go up Glen Tilt instead. That gets me to Braemar without any fuss for Saturday. 

Makes sense not to attempt Jock's Road with sore legs. The bruise on my thigh is growing bigger every day and is still painful. Both knees are tender. Isn't Ibuprofen wonderful stuff!


{View from the B & B window - camera still a bit damp}

2 comments:

Alan Sloman said...

Those trials bike riders are on the Scottish Six Days Trial - which has seed funding from the Scottish Government!

Every year these morons tear up the area around Ft William for miles around.

In future I am going to give the area a wide berth, I hate seeing what these ignorant bastards have done.

Did you know you were only about half a mile from a wonderful B&B at Bridge of Gaur when you camped at the SEPA hut?

Laura said...

Definitely not walking that area again!

Yes! I stayed there before - but it was late and I had walked far enough!