I’ve been wondering all day how I’d start the post. Would I talk about the weather at the start, the things that upset me, the things that made me happy. It got to about 8:15pm and I decided I’d walked enough for the day and it was time to set up camp. I looked to my left and saw a pitch (there were in fact so many spots to pick from) and pitched up. It was so easy. It’s also pretty perfect. I’ve got stunning views and I’m not worried about anything. I thought, that’s how this post needs to start.

This has been a really satisfying day. My feet ache but don’t hurt. So far I don’t have any blisters which is good for me. I’ve got another 20 or so miles under my belt. I feel like I’ve really earned this pitch.

I’m about to treat myself to a hot chocolate but I need to find some water first. There’s plenty coming down from the mountains around me so this shouldn’t be too difficult.

A bit of a Shap day

I really enjoy the sound of rain on the tent. I dont like what it means in terms of increased effort in pretty much everything, but I love the feeling of being warm and dry, while just on the other side of a bit of material, it’s all quite grim. It feels like you’re cheating nature.

Well that’s what I woke up to today at about 5am. People are saying that it wasn’t forecast and I’m going to just take their word for that because I didn’t check. What I did then check though was the forecast for the day, and it showed that there was only a 10% chance of rain with a bit of sunshine later on. Now, I know I said I was going to have an early start but it seemed daft to try and pack everything up in the pouring rain when I just had to be patient and I’d have a much easier task.

So I lay on my bed and waited for it to pass. And it did. By 9am there was still a bit of drizzle but not too bad at all so I managed to pack everything away without too much getting wet. In fact the worst issue I had with water was spilling some from my water reservoir onto the mattress which was annoying. By this point I’d actually forgotten about the forecast so assumed it’d be a bit overcast and damp for the whole day. So I put my waterproofs on, put the cover on my rucksack, clipped my umbrella to my belt, and wandered onto the trail to finally reach the end of Loch Lomond.

I’ll jump ahead a little in the day here to explain why it was a Shap day. The conditions reminded me of day 5 of my coast to coast walk. That day had bad rain overnight but I’d decided to start late because the forecast was for it to stop quite early. And that day had worked out just as well as this one and actually turned out very fine. Today I’ve been gradually shedding layers as the sun has come out and it’s got warmer and warmer.

Having the right clothes on at the right time is really important. I’m not brilliant at doing that. This afternoon I found I was getting really hot and the waterproof layer really needed to go. For reasons still unknown I pushed on, thinking I’d just take it off at my next break. This is so stupid as the benefit of having on the right kit easily outweighs the time it takes to stop. Once the layer was removed things were so much better and easier. The weather is so nice I’ve spend about half the walk today in a T-shirt.

I did have a low moment

Just after I left my camp I was just walking around the last of the Loch and I could see remnants of, I suppose technically wild camps, but really little parties by the water. There were only a few of them I suppose but litter had been left behind and one still had a smoking fire with a fold up chair dumped in it. It really got me down. I don’t understand why some people can be so selfish. I either need to work out how not to care or work out how I can help make it stop. It really did affect me.

But soon it was over

About a mile or so into the walk, still mulling over what could be done, and having imaginary arguments in my head with various people from governments to the kids themselves, I walked past a cafe. One bacon roll later, plus using the toilet to put my contact lenses in, I was happy again. Turns out I’m quite simple after all.

My vision is really pretty good and I don’t need any glasses to function, things are just a little blurry. But I’m so glad that I decided to bring some contact lenses for this trip. Just adding the crispness to my vision makes the views so much nicer and rewarding. Makes me glad to be out here. So many thanks to the nice lady at Boots for sorting out my new prescription. I’m definitely in your debt.

The hills are getting higher

But the paths are getting lower.

Or maybe it’s all just relative. The paths are certainly getting easier to walk on. Generally now they’re quite wide and not tricky like some of the ones around Loch Lomond. I found it an absolute pleasure to walk on these and just admiring the views. There are sections of long steady climbs, one quite steep one I recollect heading through a working forest, but I just took my time and I find it’s easy to keep energy levels high. The views are always worth it.

In the back of my mind I was a little concerned on progress because I had again set off late, but the beauty of Scotland at this time of year is that the sun set is getting later and later. It’s now after 8:30pm so I reminded myself that I had plenty of time and just to enjoy the walk. That almost worked too well when I realised I was making great progress, felt good, everything was fine, the path was fun, so maybe I’d press on and try to reach Fort William a day early. Luckily that thought didn’t last long because that would have been stupid.

I met a few people today that I’ve seen on other days. I’m guessing they’re trying to do the walk in a similar time to me. There’s a young couple who I keep on bumping into who I like. They don’t speak much English but they seem to start late in the day as well so it gives me confidence that I’m not being totally reckless. I saw them again at about 7pm while we were waking in this particular nice part of the path so I assumed they’ve camped around here as well but they may have stopped a few miles short of me.

There was another guy I met earlier who was sitting next to a sign. He said, “I don’t know if this is good or bad news, but this sign is the half way point”. We decided it was good news.

I like meeting people on the trail but I’m never with them for long. Maybe just a minute or even a few seconds but everyone is very friendly. I certainly don’t feel lonely even though for 99% of the time I am physically on my own.

I found a path

Whenever I’ve driven to Fort William I’ve often spotted a path next to a railway line to the right of the road. I remember thinking when I first saw it that it’d be nice to walk on that path.

I thought I’d seen the path about midday today but then the path I was on swapped onto the other side of the road so I figured the path I’d seen wasn’t part of the West Highland way at all. Then, much later in the day, probably around 7pm I saw it, and it was part of the walk after all. Don’t judge me but it made me really happy.

The views round here were just stunning as well. The path, with a few exceptions, is mainly quite low but is surrounded by these magnificent hills and mountains. Some with snow on their peaks. I think the weather helped but it really was a marvellous place.

Except for a couple of other walkers I momentarily saw, I pretty much had it to myself.

I may return

I know I’m not even finished yet but I think I’d like to come back and do the walk again. But this time with shorter days, hotels, someone to look after the bags, and Jenny for company. I think that’d be nice. I feel quite selfish keeping this place to myself.

Obviously it’d be nice if we had the same weather. I really thought my luck was out this morning, and then 12 hours later I’m under clear skies amongst some fabulous views. I can also see in the distance the lights of the cars on the A82 rushing to be somewhere while I’m here relaxing. How lucky am I.