LEJOG PHOTOGRAPHS: UPDATE 2

Well; That's that done then.

All the photos are now loaded onto the web album and you can find them HERE

Loading them on was great fun - I was re-living my walk loading each picture! I hope you enjoy them too.

Latest Sponsorhip Target Met!

The regulars amongst the congregation will have noticed the sneaky way I kept 'upping' the target for Sue Ryder Care.

At the outset I thought it would be jolly good if I could raise £1000. It became evident quite quickly that this was a bit pessimistic and so I raised it to £2,000. This was reached just before I set off to Cornwall to start the walk, so I had to estimate a realistic new target that could be met. I thought that as I would not be able to blog as often (not being able to have a phone signal) I was likely to lose readers but I still set myself a target that I thought was unrealistic - £3,500.

I was delighted when this target was met with about a week to to go on the walk, so I increased it to £4,000. There has been a fantastic response since completing the walk and yesterday we hit the latest target of £6,000.00

This is way beyond my hopes at the outset, so please accept my thanks for a wonderful effort. I have received a very nice letter of thanks from Sue Ryder for my efforts and so I would like to pass their thanks on to you all.

Other bloggers are to be thanked enormously for driving up the traffic to my site by including my site on their 'links' and encouraging others to donate. It seems that blogging has taken off in the outdoor world in the UK - there are now supposedly about 35 of us.

I shall be bumping into a few of them in a few weeks time in the Brecon Beacons, so maybe I can come back with some fresh ideas for the blog.

Gear Worn (Worn out gear?)

Sorry about the tardiness of these postings - have been a tad busy over the last few weeks.

So - Gear worn, eh?

Lets start at the bottom:

ON THE FEET:
Scarpa Nepal Boots: I broke these in over 200 miles prior to setting off from Land's End, so in the end the boots walked 1887 miles - and made it one piece! I usually have big problems when choosing footwear as I have very girly feet, with very slim heels. These boots are made very well and have a rubber rand right around the boot for water resilience and to protect the feet. I had a tiny blister round about Somerset (where exactly is your Somerset?) that lasted for about two days - otherwise no problems at all!

The sole unit still has some tread left, and so these boots will continue to provide me service later in the year. On one of the boots a small hole did appear at the bottom of the tongue / toe junction, so I filled this with superglue, which worked for a while until it popped out. However, they did okay. Had I noticed this fault at home then perhaps I would have taken it up with Scarpa, but frankly I did not have the time or the inclination for this on the walk.

Interestingly, when reading others' accounts of their LEJOGs - often shorter in length than mine - their boots seem to fall apart much more quickly, so these did pretty well. I did wear holes in the leather linings of the boots in strange places - but this did not affect the comfort in any way.
Verdict: 9.5/10 (missing 0.5 for the hole!)

Bridgedale thermal liner socks: These fit me better than the coolmax socks and the extra warmth is arguable. Liners are a vital part of foot health. All the sludgy skin that sloughs off when you are bog hopping for hours on end stays inside the liner and does not sludge up your expensive fluffy Merino wool outer socks. they also push the moisture into the outer sock keeping your tootsies drier. Wash these out every night, pop them back on in the tent to dry if needs be and they are dry in minutes. Having said that, I took four pairs as I did not want them wearing out too quickly. They weigh nothing.
Verdict: Excellent.

Smartwool Merino Wool Mountaineering socks: (The red/pink soled ones) I only carried one spare pair of these. They are amazingly good. I wore out five pairs on the walk (Heel lift in the boots wears out the heels quite quickly) I need thick sock as I have girly feet. They were always comfortable and would last four or five days between washes because of the liners.
Verdict: Excellent

Gaiters: Outdoor Research FlexTec: Very very light, totally breathable velcro front fastening. Keeps your socks clean and tidy and the gravel out of your boots. Not waterproof but that is not their purpose. Got through two pairs on the walk.
Verdict: Excellent. 9/10

Hotel shoes: Innov-8 Mudroc 290's: Good grippy sole unit for camping in wet grass, comfy in a nice grey/black colour scheme. The studs do wear out quite quickly though. Good for river crossings as they dry out very quickly slung from your pack. They do niff a bit though after a while - but sticking them in the washing machine sorted that out. Very presentable.
Verdict: 8/10 (not as light as my old Walsh PB's but a nicer colour)

LEGS:
Haglofs Powerstretch tights: What can I say? Spike Milligan once wrote; 'his legs hung from his underpants like two pieces of knotted string' - A fairly accurate description of my own legs. My tights were not worn through population centres; for this I wore my 'Hotel Trousers.' Tights are the perfect legware of choice in the hills - they can take foul weather for a considerable time as your legs dry them out when they get moderately wet. In foul weather, they are very comfy under your overtrousers. When splashed with mud, the mud brushes off easily so they always look presentable (apart from the pipe-cleaner look of the legs) They are warm in cold weather and keep you cool in hot weather as the sweat evaporating cools your legs.
Verdict: Performance: 10/10 Style: 6/10

Hotel Trousers: Patagonia Simple Guide Pants: Deluge DWR coating, softshell fabric and lots of zipped pockets. In black. Superb trousers. Comfortable, hard-wearing, and trim. Added advantage of an elasticated waist. I bought these deliberately on the tight side of comfy as I knew I would be losing a lot of weight. I wore these for about 25% of the walk itself.
Verdict: No faults at all - Excellent!

Overtrousers: Berhaus Paclite with full leg zips: Only worn infrequently when it was really shitty! Articulated design meant they were moderately comfortable and didn't drag too much, Elasticated waist with a drawstring a definite plus.
Verdict: 8/10 (only because I hate wearing them! (otherwise 9/10)

Pants (shorts, for the Americans amongst us): Two pairs - one capilene lightweight and one pair of windproof capilene (a nylon front over the capilene) for the windy cold wet days in tights. What can I say - pants are pants...

TRUNK
Shirts: Two taken : Icebreaker 260 merino wool: Absolutely brilliant. However they do stretch a bit when they are wet from sweat of rain, but they always go back to normal. My shirt of choice. It would be nice if a manufacturer could make a shirt with a collar out of the same stuff for hotel use... They just do not ever smell! I wore them for six days at a stretch in warm conditions and they were still pretty fresh!
Verdict: 10/10

Paramo Velez: This jacket is superb. Made superbly well. The zips never snag and a massive chest pocket - really useful. The only waterproof you ever need in the UK. Breathable, quiet and smart.
Verdict: 11/10 (Yes , really!)

PHD Minimus Down jacket: Weighs nothing and superbly warm and comfortable. Well worth carrying (No fleece carried for the cold evenings camping)

TNF Gilet: Worn under the Velez in shocking weather for extra warmth or in the hotel to tidy me up a little and to carry the PDA, keyboard, phone and cash out to restaurants. Millions of zipped pockets and weighs very little.
Verdict: 7/10 - It sagged a little after a lot of wear and started looking scruffy!

I won't bore you to death any more with gloves hats, buffs etc - they are a personal thing. They were all lightweight and did very well.

So - what kit would I change?

Nothing. Scouts Honour! It all looked after me brilliantly and squidged down into my rucksack and came out as good as new.

So there you have it.

The next posting will deal with my thoughts about the walk itself - so watch this space!

Kit Review

There will be those out there in the ether who will want to know how the kit coped with a long journey, so this posting is for you! This section covers gear carried. I will deal with gear worn in another post.

Kit is a very personal thing - some go for ultra lightweight solutions, then there are the lightweights and then the chaps who just stuff it in the sack because they want it and if it weighs a lot then no matter, they'll just carry it.

I am not sure where I fit in these categories.

Rucksack Choice:
I decided that it would be a jolly good idea to carry a light a load as possible, whilst not scrimping on the comfort. I deliberately chose a small capacity rucksack so that I could not fall into the trap of the third category, so went for an Osprey Atmos 53 litre pack. It weighs about 1.5 kg - so moderately light but not the lightest possible by a long way. I was particularly attracted to it as it was incredibly well made, thoughtfully designed with its pocket arrangements and came in grey and black - my colour scheme of choice! It has a very comfortable back system that ensures your back never gets wet and sweaty - a wonderful design.

Verdict: Under normal loads on the walk it performed really well and was very comfortable. However, when loaded up with six days of food, the hip belt wasn't up to it and so a lot of load was taken on the shoulders and the harness is not designed for it. However, this only happened on two or three occasions and so I stuffed a buff under the straps and it was comfortable. I would give the pack "Nine out of Ten - excellent!"

Tent Choice:
I went with a Stephensons Warmlite 2C tent; all up weight in its bag after seam-sealing at 1205 grams. (you needed to know about those 5 last grams, didn't you?) This was an inspired choice. I had not seen one before and my previous tent of 12 years was a Hilleberg Akto at 1570 grams. I loved my Akto, but there was not a lot of room in it with all the kit and I needed room to sit and blog. Wanda was an absolute star - outperforming the Akto in every respect - Bomb-proof stability, lots of room and 365 grams lighter.

Verdict: Excellent in every respect: Ten out of ten.

Sleeping Bag:
I chose a custom designed job from PHD. I went with a full length zip, quantum outer with a dri-shell coating 450 grams of 800+ fill power down, shoulder baffles. It weighed in at 970 grams in its stuff sac.

Verdict: Excellent - I needed the dri-shell coating as I was camping for long periods in Scotland and could not afford a damp bag. 10/10 - Excellent.

Mattress:
There are those out there who would scratch their heads at this item - and this is where i departed from the lightweight brigade: In the past I have owned a number of Thermarests - and have never ever found them comfortable. Now, on a walk of a week or so perhaps this is okay - but for a big one like this I decided I needed some comfort, as a succession of poor nights sleep would eventually have taken its toll and I needed as much quality rest as possible on this walk. I went with an Exped 7 Down mattress, weighing in at about 900 grams.

Verdict: Yes, very heavy, I know, but superbly comfortable. A little tricky to pump up in the tent, but well worth the effort. When the first mattress developed a problem (one of the internal walls split away from the outer cover, Lyon Equipment immediately arranged for a new one to be sent to me - superb customer service.) I have to give this bit of kit two ratings: Performance ;10/10, and weight; 5/10

Stove:
A Peak Ignition Titanium stove bought from Backpackinglight.co.uk. 116grams in its case. It has its own Pietzo igniter and it never missed a beat on the entire trip.

Verdict: There are lighter stoves on the market, but I wanted one with an igniter for ease of use and I wanted a gas cartridge stove for the same reason. Excellent: 10/10

Pots & pans:
Titanium cup and kettle: Both from MSR - Excellent.

Food: Real Expedition Food: Norwegian scoff at £5 a pop - Just boil water and add to the tough bag it comes in - First class - Excellent - had a huge variety of choice of meals and always tasty. You need to look forward to your evening meals and I always did. 10/10 again!

Walking Poles: Leki Titanium poles, no shock absorbers. I thought these were the lightest / strongest available at the time of purchase, until I met Colin Ibbotson who had an amazing pair of poles that I shall certainly hunt down! However the Poles never let me down , though did get jammed a few times - probably because I had not looked after them very well for a while, but they were fixable easily and survived the incredible Flow Country bogs where they were tested to the limit! Verdict: 8/10 (only because I know there are sexier ones around!)

Mind, Body and Soul

At Dunnet campsite I had weighed myself and found the result a little surprising - indeed it was wrong. Back home, on my own pretty accurate scales, I am still weighing in at 10 stone 11 lbs. I started out at 12 stone 8 lbs, so that's a total loss over the seventeen weeks of 25 lbs.

For the technically minded that's a 14% drop in body weight. There is not a scrap of fat left on me! The problem beer belly is no more - it is history! Lynnie says l resemble a pipe cleaner and is not happy with the result! I am currently eating like a horse - devouring lemon drizzle cake for breakfast, having huge lunches and massive suppers, yet it is still not going back on! I think this may be that my metabolic rate is still zooming along, so when it settles down I can get back to being the old chubby git on the sofa...

About a third of the way along my walk I noticed that my toes were singing to me - a soft sensation, a little like pins & needles. I had put this down to the constant walking and thought no more about it, but slackened the boots around the toe box just in case I was cramping them. They didn't get any worse, but they didn't stop tickling either. I also noticed that my feet were actually getting bigger - my Innov-8's hotel shoes were getting snugger and more cramped in length. I suppose this is not surprising considering the work they were doing.

Anyway, the toes are still singing, but more quietly now, but they are a happy reminder of the walk! I tried on my black brogues (I have Rick & Lindsey's wedding to attend this Saturday) and they were stupidly tight! All my suits hang from me like I have pinched them from a fat bloke. I shall look a sight, hobbling around in tight shoes and enormous clothes.

I have not had a huge amount of time to think back to the walk since returning home as I have thrown myself back into work - but first having to overcome whopping IT problems with transferring stuff from the old computer to the new. However I can honestly say that I am really enjoying being back and relish the work side of it. I have come home with the mind freshly laundered and all wrapped delicately in tissue paper. Each new work challenge is actually fun! It could not have had a longer wash cycle, so I feel mentally fresh, if physically tired.

Has this walk changed me in any way?

I think it has, in small ways that are difficult to quantify. I find myself more patient, willing to plug away at a problem until I sort it out, rather than leave it for later. One of the things I am sure you will have noticed during the walk itself is that now I really quite enjoy meeting new people. The 'Old Alan' would have been a lot more cagey with people he did not know - this new version leaps straight into conversations with complete strangers. I wonder how long that will last? I have been invited to a 'bloggers meet' in the Brecon Beacons in August and am very keen to meet this bunch of disparate souls! In the past I would have politely declined the invitation. So - New horizons are opening up for me and I am looking forward to having more fun because of it.

I have started actually liking salad! And more weirdly - Curry! I had always hated the smell of the stuff, but now I find the delicate flavours and perfumes far more attractive than I ever would have thought possible. As far as Lynnie is concerned this is a Major Breakthrough!

I suppose the biggest single thing that has come out of this adventure is that I have realised that I am only getting one chance at this 'Life' thing. I have returned home deciding to grab it with both hands, give it a big smacker and go for it with every possible opportunity.

Perhaps in the past life might have seemed a bit of a struggle, with obstacles at every turn and facing problem after problem. However I have decided that if you look for it, Life is all dressed up in a little black dress with nice perfume and looking gorgeous. My suggestion to you would be to grab her by the arm, nip upstairs with her and have a wonderful life.

I certainly intend to.

Home Again, Home Again

Well then

I am back on my settee (the settee is my friend) with a nice glass of James Bond's favourite white wine. I shall have to retrain this settee as it has been looked after by Lynnies little bottom for too long and all the lumpy bits are now in the wrong places (the settee's lumpy bits that is)

It is also being written on the new laptop. I have not yet got any email working on the old laptop so please accept my apologies for the lack of responses to any emails sent to me - as I can only get them on the PDA at the moment. (What's that? A man with three coats and three computers! Good grief...)

I will have a go at trying to post the last few days photographs onto the blog, but if I fail I will ask the incredibly wonderful Mr Hee to do them for me! I have yet to explore this 'Vista' stuff and it is all very new to me and for the life of me I cannot remember how I used to post piccies that you can click on to enlarge on to the blog. Good grief - I feel like a techie virgin all over again.

I returned home with amazing speed (leaving John O'Groats at 8:50am and arriving home at the Abbots by 5:00pm). Since then it has been a whirlwind of two nights down the Axe & Compass and a flying visit to Bath to see Rach (our daughter) and the 'Taste' extravaganza for two days. I have had a haircut at the posh joint in Bath that I visited fifteen weeks ago - that was organised for me, so I am afraid it will be another month or so before I can revisit Domenic in Cambridge.

I am settling into 'normal' life: I am in front of the telly watching Bryan Ferry take Wembley apart but have a list of jobs to do that include unblocking a bathroom sink. That can wait until tomorrow!

I have been asked quite a lot how it feels to be home - Well:

I was worried over the last week of the walk about this, but I have taken to it like a duck to water. Lynnie is a clever girl and has had my programme mapped out so that there has been no time to get morose, no time really to think back to the seventeen incredible weeks, no time in fact, to get back to the blog!

The fund-raising for Sue Ryder has been going amazingly well - I have not thanked you enough for your amazing efforts on this blog. As I write this we have raised over £5,000 and I am overwhelmed by your wonderful response.

I should also thank all my support on the walk itself. I have had people walk with me, put me up for the night (some for quite a few nights!) drive me back and forth to where we left the walk, feed and water me quite handsomely, wash my incredibly stinky socks. I have had people call me to cheer me up - to check I was alright when they hadn't heard from me for slightly too long. I have been texted, emailed and throughout I have felt a wonderful groundswell of care and support. I seldom ever felt completely alone (apart perhaps when wandering about in the cloud on Cross Fell in the boulder field).

I know the walk was a solo affair, but the camaraderie of fellow walkers and supporters has been quite amazing.

I won't single out anyone person in particular to thank on the blog; this has been quite evident on the 'live' part of the blog, but I owe you all a huge debt of gratitude.

DAY 119: Canisbay To John O'Groats and Duncansby Head

Wednesday 27th June 2007
Today: 5.4 miles
Total so far: 1687.0 miles
Percentage Completed: 100%

(Click map to enlarge)

The above figures give the bare facts: One thousand, six hundred and eighty seven miles walked and the Job 100% completed.

This morning I walk with Derek & Marian the few miles remaining and have my photograph taken by the very nice chap at John O'Groats with the famous signpost. I sign the book for End to Enders in the gift shop as the hotel is all shuttered up.

 

JOG signpost

I don't know what sort of book I was expecting to sign, but it was a standard Collins hard-back type exercise book just like you would find in a bothy. This is right, as anything more grand would add a layer of unnecessary silliness. It's the walk that is important and the reasons why you are walking. I search for Daryl from America's signature and also for Charlie's who I met on the Pennine Way but do not find them. A pity. Perhaps they are in the Hotel’s book?

The John O'Groats Hotel looks quite forlorn, but it has to be said: John O'Groats is so much better than the appalling 'Land's End Experience' and so it is a good place to linger.

Then we are off once more to the Real Finishing Point (the capitals are Very Important here!): Duncansby Head; the point furthest away from Land's End on Mainland Britain.

Duncansby Head: Furthest point away from Land’s End on Mainland Britain

It is a gentle walk and by the time we arrive, there a small party of well wishers there to support me: Pat & Julie (the wardens from JOG Youth Hostel and TGO Challengers), Val Machin and Janet (more TGO Challengers!) Lord Elpus and Miss Whiplash (aka Phil & Tini - Even More TGO Challengers!) and of course, Derek & Marian – also TGO Challengers!

The reception committee at Duncansby Head

We knock the top off a bottle of Champagne and the more beardy types finish off Derek's whisky as well (was I the only the one there with a beard? - ooh dear.)Photographs are taken in front of the lighthouse and I remove the Osprey sack for the last time on the walk.

I am asked how I feel. I am not sure. It has all gone to plan, because the plan was a good one. I suppose I have just been the chap who carried out a well made plan. Yes, it has been a long way. I have had fabulous weather on the whole. The scenery I have passed through has been top-drawer and some of the people I have met, unforgettable.

The support from fellow TGO Challengers, and others, along the entire length of my walk has been quite amazing - their generosity, help and moral support a breath of fresh air; human kindness and the occasional phone call to lift a flagging spirit at just the right moment, quite exceptional!

I shall leave this entry now and try to summarize a little more clearly after I return home, so do drop by to visit the blog - it is not over 'til this skinny old bird sings!

And - a last appeal:

If you have enjoyed my reading my struggles and tales and feel you would like to donate then do please visit the link at the top right of this page to my Sue Ryder Care page and donate as much as you can afford, as right now the Sue Ryder team is caring for a critically ill patient, supporting them and their family when all hope for life has been lost. They did a magnificent job for my father, Jeff Sloman and all his very large family!

You know you should; you know you want to. Do it for me, there's a poppet!

Thank you

Alan

DAY 118 Dunnet Campsite to Canisbay Youth Hostel

Today: 18.0 miles
Total so far: 1681.6 miles
Percentage Completed: 99.7%

 

(Click map to enlarge)

 

Dunnet Bay

 

I positively scampered the five miles to John O'Groats Youth Hostel (at Canisbay) and arrived half an hour before opening time. I chatted with a charming Japanese chap. 'Chatting' is a fairly loose description of events as we were communicating through his pocket translation machine. His English was as good as my Japanese - non existent.

 

He had travelled with his gorgeous bicycle from Japan to London, then Edinburgh, then Wick and tomorrow is to set off to cycle his journey of a lifetime to Land's End. This End to End thing obviously has quite a draw.

Dunnet Head & your humble scribe

In the hostel I bump into Bob & Nicola Lees and Val Machin & Janet, who had all decided to drop in on me! What wonderful people!

Dunnet Head cliffs

So we all set off to hook up with Derek & Marian along with Lord Elpus and Lady Whiplash who transported me in not inconsiderable style in their German War Machine.

A wonderful evening was had by all and I am now typing this up back in the hostel. Just a few miles left to do now tomorrow morning!

Orkney across the Pentland Firth

DAY 118: Lunchtime Report

DAY 118: Lunchtime Report!
The Castle Arms Hotel, Mey
From your new lean, mean lightweight correspondent.

A lunchtime report! Gadzooks!

The watchful reader will have noticed that there is a dearth of public houses in the north of Scotland, or if there is one, it is likely to be closed.

Not so with the Castle Arms Hotel, Mey.

I walked this morning up to Dunnet Head. Dunnet Head is a good spot. Not unlike the Lizard in it's unspoilt and wild qualities, and you have to make an effort to get there as it is off the main road. Skuas soared over the cliffs and the light was pin sharp over the Pentland Firth. The Orkneys were the other side of a deep blue sea with white horses dancing on the surface.

Derek & Marian were there to meet me: What I would have done without them in the north of Scotland I do not know. They have driven hundreds of miles, supporting me with my food parcels and moral support when I was feeling low, and keeping in touch to give me severe weather warnings when I was in the Flow Country. They have arranged accommodation and been all round wonderful company.

So we are sitting here with a Guinness or three, looking forward to a trio of sausages with mash and lashings of onion gravy. We have earned it, Derek has walked like a good'un this morning.

Going back to last night (you don't want this in chronological order do you?) I was walking up to the hotel when a couple sprang from the bushes and asked if I was Alan Sloman.

They were Francis & Margy and had spotted Wanda at the campsite (but had not spotted me inside having a snooze.) Francis has completed a couple of TGO Challenges (I recognised him from one of Jean Turner's Challenge Accounts) and has been following the blog since Cornwall. Such loyalty should always be rewarded, so we had a few pints of Guinness (Margy was driving) and had a splendid evening.

Francis had spotted a very rare flower just behind my tent and so I resolved to find it in the morning, which I singularly failed to do.

Francis & Margy at Dunnet Hotel

Did I mention that I had visited the wildlife centre at Dunnet Campsite? Well - inside amongst the splendid exhibits - there was a weighing machine. I know not why.

I stood on it and was amazed to find that I weigh 140 lbs. That's ten stone in real money. At the start of this walk I weighed in at a hefty 12 stone eight pounds.

I am wasting away!

Picture Update

Even more picture updates:

Day 114

Day 115

Day 116

Are we nearly there yet? Looks like it

;-)

DAY 117: Halkirk to Dunnet Bay Campsite

Monday 25th June 2007
Today: 12.5 miles
Total so far: 1663.6 miles
Percentage Completed: 98.7%

(Click map to enlarge)

After two days of longer than planned mileages, today was to be relatively straightforward and quick; just as well as the strong wind was from the north with very cold showers thrown in for good measure.

I was looking forward to a few beers at lunchtime at Castletown and walked the length of the Main Street only to find the hotel firmly closed and the cafe similarly afflicted. A bit of a hole, is Castletown! So I re-girded my loins and stomped off to Dunnet Campsite to flip Wanda for the last time on this trip! She is standing very prettily on nicely mown grass, with caravans and dormobiles for company.

Dunnet Bay is a beauty - it faces north west into the Pentland Firth and is a huge arc of white sand with magnificent dunes at the back of the beach. Whales and dolphins are frequent visitors to the bay, but they must be shy today, because I could not spot any through the visitors telescope at the newly refurbished Wildlife centre at the campsite (a splendid emporium that sells four different coffees and a host of other drinks from a very smart vending machine.)

Derek & Marian are up to visit and are staying in a smart gaff up the road near the Queen Mum's old place, where I shall be on Wednesday night too, celebrating the finish of this adventure.

Stu Savory has asked when I plan to finish: It looks like Wednesday. Where the finish is dictates the time - I shall finish my walk at Duncansby Head, the furthest point away from Land's End. I shall go to John O'Groats because I want to see if Charlie made it (who I met on the Pennine Way) and also to see Daryl's name in the finishing book. It is not supposed to be an inspirational spot so I shall have a beer or three in the hotel and move on. Hopefully I will have Derek, Marian, Lord Elpus and Miss Whiplash there as well so we can have a bit of a bash.

If anyone else wants to come along, then they are most welcome - the more the merrier.

So, a light supper is on the cards followed by a trip up the road to the pub at Dunnet. I musn't go too mad as I still have 28km to do tomorrow to the Youth Hostel at Carisbay.

DAY 116: Loch Leir to Halkirk

Sunday 24th June 2007
Today: 21.4 miles
Total so far: 1651.1 miles
Percentage Completed: 97.9%

(Click map to enlarge)

Even totally exhausted, I sleep badly, waking every hour or so in the near daylight nights of the far midsummer North. I do not have much fresh water, as the water collected looks very murky with a lot of bodies in it. Breakfast is in the soft drizzle and breeze - but I am thankful for the breeze as otherwise the pitch would be alive with midges.

I leave quite late, for a camping night, and struggle to find a rhythm along the 'forest' tracks (the forests have all been cut down and lain to rot to bring the bird life back to Caithness.)

I make the rails just before Altnabreac Station and meet two chaps who inspect the rails, who are waiting for their lift back to civilisation. When it comes, it is a Landrover adapted to run on train tracks! The perfect vehicle for around these parts.

They think I have a hell of a day ahead and I believe them as I have heard on my mobile from Derek and he advises me to get indoors as there are severe weather warnings all over northern Scotland.

I resolve to make for Halkirk; quite a bit ahead of schedule, but a chance to wash my boggy socks and have a bed where the mattress doesn't move when I turn over as it did last night.

The day, thankfully, is on forest tracks and minor roads and so I make good time, but still taking time to sit at the RSPB benches and admire the bird life. Waders and northern visitors make up the best part of the day - appropriate really, after the last couple of days.

Hills to the South of More Flow Country!

As I head north once more, the clouds lift and I can sense the sea air. Gulls become more frequent and after Westerdale the Flow Country reverts to agriculture once more, with highland cattle and cow-parsley for company on the lonely little road north to Halkirk. As I cross the level crossing and arrive at the village, a large sign proclaims quite proudly that Halkirk was “the first Scottish Planned Village".

Now I haven't seen all of Halkirk, it has to be said, but I do hope that the villages that followed learned from the mistakes made here. It appears to be a dismal little place laid out unsympathetically on a grid pattern. There’s not a lot of colour here.

But now, I am in the "Ulbster Arms Hotel" - surely a spelling mistake was made somewhere in the dim & distant past? The St Emillion is going down very well and the lamb was perfect.

A rather good end to a rather difficult two days.

DAY 115: Skelpick Burn to Loch Leir

Saturday 23rd June 2007
Today: 19.4 miles
Total so far: 1629.7 miles
Percentage Completed: 96.7%

(Click map to enlarge)

The observant amongst you will notice that for such a whopping mileage, the percentage of the walk completed has only risen marginally.

More Flow Country

This is because I have been doing some mathematics. Not a favourite subject amongst the readership I am sure, but one that needed addressing. As the walk has progressed some days have been longer than planned (finding a better route on a track, or avoiding a series of streams on a very wet day) and some shorter (not feeling very well, so taking a foul weather alternative route for the day.) These changes needed addressing in the final mileage - which started out at an estimated 1663 miles and now looks likely to be 1686 miles, so the percentage completed figure needed to be altered. And so it has been.

This means that I have 3.3% of the walk left to do! Ooh Er, Missus!

Well, as I pontificated yesterday, I thought today could be an 'interesting' day, and so it turned out to be.

The Flow Country can best be described underfoot as a lot of foam rubber floating on a bed of water. Actually, it is a classic blanket bog, fuelled fantastically by rain. And last night it rained all night and carried on raining today. I thank the Lord that it has been dry up here for a while or I do not think I would ever have made it today.

I packed a soggy tent quite early as I knew the day could be tricky and set off up the first rise. I say “rise” as “hill” would be far too grand a description.

The hole in the one boot became evident after the first ten minutes but it didn't matter as before a quarter of an hour had passed I had two bootfuls of peaty water.

I had chosen a route that in hindsight seems completely bonkers. I had drawn lines around the 'blue bog' on the OS maps and plotted a route between them - trackless through Caithness Blanket Bog... In total I only had seven miles of this - but what a seven miles! I will never, ever, forget them - not for the horror of the effort, but for the sheer wilderness experience it provided. Having said all that, there were cut drainage ditches I crossed throughout the seven miles, but heaven knows what it would have been like before the ditches were cut.

To the south of me, mini volcano-like hills reared from the moor and all around me the RSPB had been cutting down the ill-conceived forests planted by celebrity tax-dodgers (ooh! political!) to restore the Flow Country to its natural water-balance, leaving a landscape almost impossible to pitch a tent upon. The water courses were rare and the ground suitable for an easy pitch even more so. In the end I opted for a lake shore pitch, stamping the tent pegs well below view to get the faintest of purchases some 5km further on than planned, just to find somewhere to pitch Wanda.

Yet More Flow Country!

My companion tonight was a rowing boat moored alongside my tent. I was not sure if it would have been drier inside the boat or beneath my tent on the floating bog.

Pasta Bolognese for supper, followed by cheese and biscuits and some strong Colombian coffee. I slept, utterly exhausted.

DAY 114: Tongue to Skelpick Burn

Friday 22nd June 2007
Today: 18.0 miles
Total so far: 1610.3 miles
Percentage Completed: 96.4%

(Click map to enlarge)

Yesterday was a rest day, and Derek & Marian very kindly took Richard back to his hire car at Riconich so he could be back home in time for his Mum's Birthday.

I spent the morning washing socks, pants, etc etc and sending lots of photos to John Hee, who promptly posted them for me onto the blog. Mr Hee - You are a shiny star - it takes quite a bit of time and I really appreciate it.

Postcards to the family (I have lots) and shopping and all sorts of mundane stuff filled the rest of the day quite happily. I found some 'seaweed beer' (Kelpie) so bought a couple of bottles for Derek & I to try - interesting. I prefer the Fraoch (heather ale).

I moved the target on my Sue Ryder Care fund raising page to 4,500 pounds and I hope with less than a week to go now we can reach it - it has been a brilliant effort by you all - so if you haven't yet donated and feel you can, you can pop over to the page and help me. Thank you.

And so to today:

More Lovely Weather! (The capitals are important here!) I cannot believe my luck on this trip so far - I can count the rainy days on my fingers - no toes required!

Entering Flow Country

It was mainly a toddle along the single track 'A' road from Tongue to almost Bettyhill, then a lovely saunter up Strath Naver on a yellow road, to poke around brochs, Neolithic burial mounds and a Clearance Village. All quite delightful. Then up a little track for a while then bog hopping to the Skelpick Burn, where I am parked up on nice soft turf on a little ridge where amazingly I have a phone signal, so this can be posted!

Sweet and Sour Chicken for dinner with scones for pudding. Lovely!

Tomorrow could be an 'interesting' day as I am now entering the Flow Country and my route is designed around not walking in the 'blue bog' on the O.S Maps - trackless stuff for quite a large part of the day - so watch this space! I may be gone sometime…

Picture Update

John here. That man is at it again!

More picture updates:

Day 109

Day 109 - later

Day 110

Day 111

Day 112

Thats brings it all bang up to date as far as I can tell.

DAY 112: Strath More to Tongue

Wednesday 20th June 2007
Today: 14.0 miles
Total so far: 1592.3 miles
Percentage Completed: 95.3%

(Click map to enlarge)

Up in good order and away at a sensible time (8:15!) We re-cross the braided Strathmore River without mishap and start the steady climb up the flank of Ben Hope, aiming for the waterfall - an impressive double drop over the lip of the crags.

It is a much cooler day, with rolling clouds and a smart breeze which we are walking straight into. Ben Hope is completely smothered in cloud and any thoughts (however slight) of nipping up to the top without packs are very quickly scotched by the weather. (Phew!)

We walk on the compass due east up to the top of the rounded ridge taking a rest at a wonderful erratic with a cave on the leeward side with a ready made rock bench. More coats, hats, scarves and gloves are donned after a bit of a snack and we head off, just beneath the clouds on a wonderful moorland walk.

We take little rests on the numerous rocky outcrops to sit and admire the huge sweep of miles and miles of nothingness as the wind blusters and whistles; the clouds dropping further as we descend alongside Allt an Achaid Mhoir.

We play tag with a herd of about sixty deer on the Meadie Ridge to the south of us, just standing watching the compression spring of the herd stretch and bounce back into tight huddles. The moor is pathless and so we follow the wise deer tracks which help us down the river over the bluffs and gorges, keeping us safe until we make the Kinloch Estate bothy at Loch an Dherue.

Loch an Dherue & bothy

It is a little gem: Double glazed, with comfortable chairs and lots of space to spread out, we decide on a large lunch of Cod and Potato casserole with soup, coffee, bread and cheese, to use up the final bits and pieces of my six days of rations. The rucksac is positively tiny when I repack as two huge food bags of food have finally been consumed!

As we sit having lunch looking out over a peaceful scene of loch and Gneiss crags, the weather start to come in with a vengeance - the blustery rain splattering against our window.

It is going to be a very wet afternoon, but we cannot complain - the weather has been incredibly decent to me on this walk, and as John Donohoe once commented on the 'Challenge' Message Board, 'Scotland need a few showers to keep it fresh'.

It's good tracks and a minor road all the way to our B&B (Rhian Cottage - an excellent establishment) just short of Tongue, where we are to meet Derek & Marian again. The valley is surprisingly lush with full green long grass and cattle in large pastures, after the rough and tumble of the moorland and mountain scenery of the last six days.

I am looking forward to Tongue and a rest-day; for a shower, clean hair and a shave. Simple things!

Richard has been brilliant company, but leaves me here, to return to the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, to be a learned gentleman once more, rather than the Ragged Gentleman of the Road with just the one pair of trousers to his name.

Richard on Broch, near Ben Hope

DAY 111: Strath Dionard to Strath More

Tuesday 19th June 2007
Today: 13.5 miles
Total so far: 1578.3 miles
Percentage Completed: 94.5%

(Click map to enlarge)

We left the fisherman's hut after stewed apple & custard and lots of coffee and biscuits for breakfast - a solid start to the day.

Richard, Loch Dionard & Foinaven

Then it was a delightful amble up to Loch Dionard on the well made track. We chose the right hand side of the loch and slowly made or way round the rough ground, watching a fisherman being rowed by his ghillie up and down the lake as he tried fruitlessly for brown trout. We tried to work out how much the client was paying for his non-fishing day; coming up with a figure of £500 for a day including board and lodgings - it will be interesting to see how much it is in reality and what you could do with that money if fishing for a week!

We sat outside the bothy with the solar panels and electric sockets and had our first lunch of the day and then set off up the track to climb out of Strath Dionard. The views became more and more inspiring as we climbed, so we had a second lunch just before the top to lie there and take it all in. This was not a big day, so we thoroughly enjoyed loafing and listening to the bird calls.

Foinaven positively sparkled in the sunshine and we could see almost to Cape Wrath in the north west and over to Ben Hope to the north east.

The way down was straight forward. We passed a couple; the girl was talkative, the chap totally non-communicative; very strange. She explained that they were doing a 70 mile circular walk and she was having a great time. We don't know how he felt as he barely grunted an acknowledgement of our presence. Ho hum.

We made it safely down to the strath and at about our camp spot paddled across the river (well, Richard did!) to the quieter side (no sheep) to while away the evening finishing Richard's Laphroaig beneath the enormous bulk of Ben Hope.

Deer, Strath More

A great day.

Picture Update

Kylesku - Thur 14th June

John deputising for Alan who is carefully trying to ensure that all postcards home have a genuine beer stain on them!

And there's more updates here:


Day 101


Day 102


Day 103


Day 104


Day 105


Day 107

DAY 110: Kearvaig Bothy to Strath Dionard

Monday 18th June 2007
Today: 15.3 miles
Total so far: 1564.8 miles
Percentage Completed: 93.7%

SUB-TITLE: GENTLEMEN OF THE ROAD

(Click map to enlarge)

Richard & I today truly made it to the giddy heights of 'Gentlemen Of The Road.'

Our first 'touch' was the Her Majesty's Armed Forces. We met a troop of Army Sniper Instructors near Kearvaig and came away with an army ration pack for a day each - A wonderful horde of goodies!

The second 'touch' was another group of instructors on the ferry to Durness when we couldn't give the boatman the correct change and so they chipped in with the required forty pence. They would not accept the change when we had managed to find some between us!

The third 'touch' was making the Cape Wrath Hotel. Finding it closed, we asked the lady if we could have a couple of cans of beer from her. She nipped away and produced a can of beer and a can of coke, but asked us to consume it away from the premises, which we duly did. It was only when we were talking to a delightful roadman way further up the valley that we discovered that it was no longer a hotel; it was now in fact a private house!

Anyway, the rest of the afternoon was spent sauntering up Strath Dionard, to find an unlocked, perfect little fisherman's bothy - with a plentiful supply of fresh drinking water and a stove with a kettle and a plentiful supply of propane gas to cook our army rations with! 'Touch' Number Four!

Strath Dionard

Not only that but a full strength phone signal in the middle of no-where so I can post to the blog. Another 'Perfick' day for your Gentlemen of the Road!

The eagle-eyed amongst the congregation will have noted that a ferry was taken: We could not stand the thought that we were so close and yet so far from a pub... The fact that it was no longer a pub is neither here nor there.

DAY 109: Sandwood Bay to Kearvaig Bothy

Sunday 17th June 2007
Today: 12.5 miles
Total so far: 1549.5 miles
Percentage Completed: 92.8%

 

(Click map to enlarge)

 

 

Sandwood Bay

A wonderful nights sleep, if a bit blowy in the night but I slept like a baby until 8:45. Rich was good enough to let me lie there, knowing it wasn't a colossal day today. But it was a magnificent day.

Campsite, Sandwood Loch

It's trackless, virtually all the way to Cape Wrath, where you pick up the tiny little road that takes the trippers from the Kyle of Durness to the Cape.

Richard White, Sandwood Bay

You pick your own route through the crags and bogs, avoiding the sheer drops of the cliffs at the sea. There are a number of river crossings that in poor weather we could see could be quite a handful and the ground was for most part rough wet bog. But we were very fortunate, as the weather has been very kind to us over the last two weeks and so the going underfoot was almost crunchy at times and just very spongy at others. The hills are quite hard work and there are a few little gorges that take a bit of clambering in and out of, but we made it triumphantly to Cape Wrath.

Richard decided to snooze on the very edge of the northwestern-most tip of Mainland Britain and I sat a few paces back from the edge, taking it all in. At times the sun shimmered on the North Atlantic and a small tanker could be seen slowly making its way round the turning point. The birds on the stack in front of us were making a din, but that was the only noise that could be heard. It was totally peaceful. A fantastic spot, especially so if you compare it to the Hell of Land's End. More akin to Lizard Point, but with no people.

Richard, Cape Wrath

Photographs were taken and then we were off in the sunshine once more, to Kearvaig; another little piece of paradise. A wonderful white beach with towering sea stacks at each end and giant vertical cliffs and a welcoming MBA bothy.

 

Kearvaig

Kearvaig Beach

Not a huge day in terms of mileage, but a massive day for me, in terms of jaw dropping coastal scenery and another milestone nailed on the walk, with great company.

As I am reading the bothy book, I notice an entry from April this year from 'Old Gregorlach', wishing me luck on my way later in the year as I pass through Kearvaig! Wonderful!

Me - Cape Wrath