I got bored sitting at home so I decided to walk approximately 57 miles through the Cairngorms from Braemar to Pitlochry over the course of 4 days, visiting some bothies and climbing Ben Dearg en-route. I spent the first night in a bothy and the next 2 nights were spent wild camping by Old Bridge of Tilt next to Blair Atholl.
Day 1 (A Washout)
I begin on Friday morning and walk approx. 22 miles in horrible weather to Tarf Hotel, a very remote bothy behind Glen Tilt. It took me forever to get there and when I finally arrived I was completely soaked through.
The Skye Trail - a challenging unofficial route through the island aimed
at experienced hillwalkers - takes in some of the very best of the
island - and that means the UK's finest landscapes.
The route
follows much of the amazing Trotternish Ridge and later passes beneath
the very shadow of the Cuillin. Other sections follow remarkable but
little visited coastal cliffs, take in steep trails above high drops, or
pass through haunting deserted villages destroyed in the cruel
Clearances.
Date walked: 02/07/2016 Time taken: 7 days Distance: 128 km
I walked the Skye Trail for the second time, mainly for my friend, Jay's benefit as he didn't manage to attend in 2014.
Once again it was a backpacking hike following the official route described here on Walkhighlands except in reverse walking South to North (Broadford to Rubha Hunish). My plan was to break it up slightly once reaching Portree with a side trip to UIG. We would stay a night at Uig then take a bus north to the Museum of Island Life and walk to Duntulm then continue Skye Trail North to South, heading back to Portree. The reason for this was because I wanted to tackle the Trotternish Ridge from the North end because when I attempted it from the South end back in 2014 I couldn't work out the exact route to take.
The night before travelling to Skye we stayed overnight at Bught Park campsite in Inverness. The following day we travelled to Kyle of Lochalsh by train, jumping off at Plockton for about an hour en-route.
Once at Kyle we popped into the Co-op for supplies before walking over Skye Bridge to Kyleakin, where we caught a bus to the campsite located 3 miles from Broadford. We got pitched up at the campsite as the rain came down heavy, took shelter in an old Hen hut and enjoyed a few drinks and tunes before starting the big walk the following day.
It rained all week, we only got one dry night and that was at Uig, it was a pretty miserable trip this time due to the weather, the weather really does make all the difference. The heavy rain got too much for us and we gave up in the end after completing the first section of the Trotternnish ridge. We caught a bus from Staffin back to Portree and retreated to Torvaig campsite.
I did not make video footage of the trail but instead made some individual videos as below:
Walking over Skye bridge
Visiting Camasunary bothy
Visit to the Lookout bothy high above Rubha Hunish
The Southern Upland Way is a 212-mile coast-to-coast walk in Scotland
between Portpatrick in the west, and Cockburnspath in the east. The
route officially opened in 1984.
Part 1
Date walked: 17/06/2016 Time taken: 2 days Distance: 33.5 km Ascent: 884m
Since 2013 my friend, Mr Globetrotter and I have been completing the long distance trail
in small stages each year (backpacking and wild camping) and have now
passed the halfway mark.
We returned in June 2016 to continue from Beattock. The plan was to walk as far as Traquair (35 miles). I have decided that next year (2017) I'll pull my finger out and get the trail completed.
On
this occasion, we got dropped off at Beattock on Friday afternoon and
walked 10 miles to Over Phawhope bothy. We hoped to get the bothy to
ourselves but unfortunately, being a popular place it was occupied by a
large group who had arrived in three cars!! We were not very amused but
at the end of the day, bothy's are free shelters which are open to
everyone.
Anyhow, there was still some space out front for
camping. We made use of the old barn to shelter from the midges. We had
food in there, washed down by several Beers which had been carried all
the way from Beattock.
Part 2
In the morning, we had a quick look in the bothy before setting off on
the trail to St Mary's loch. There was a lot of road walking involved
then a couple of big hills and we finally made it to Loch of the Lowes,
situated beside St Mary's loch. There were already a few wild campers
dotted about the place but they were sound people and it was a great
atmosphere and it stayed dry.
On the Sunday the original plan was to walk the next stage to Traquair
but due to a slight hangover and a late start Plus the arrival of the
rain it was postponed.
A 67 mile circuit walk, starting and finishing at Braemar in the Cairngorms National Park.
I walked the Lairig Ghru from Braemar to Aviemore and returned to Braemar via Glen Feshie and Glen Geldie.
In the final video, I walk about 20 miles from the bothy at Glen Feshie back to Braemar via Glen Geldie and then along the River Dee to the Linn of Dee and back to Braemar. I arrive just in time for the bus.
A 67 mile circuit walk, starting and finishing at Braemar in the Cairngorms National Park.
I walked the Lairig Ghru from Braemar to Aviemore and returned to Braemar via Glen Feshie and Glen Geldie.
In video 2, I continue my 67 mile circuit walk. I walk from Loch an Eilein to the bothy at Glen Feshie where I spend the night wild camping beside the River Feshie.
A 67 mile circuit walk, starting and finishing at Braemar in the Cairngorms National Park.
I walked the Lairig Ghru from Braemar to Aviemore and returned to Braemar via Glen Feshie and Glen Geldie.
In
video 1, I spend the first night wild camping by the Luibeg burn before
walking the Lairig Ghru to Aviemore the following day. I then continue
to Loch an Eilein where I spend the second night wild camping at Loch
an Eilean.
The Great Trossachs Path stretches from the banks of Loch Lomond at Inversnaid to Callander, linking the West Highland Way with the Rob Roy Way. Designed for both walkers and off-road cyclists, this first section of the 48km route ends at Trossachs Pier on Loch Katrine.
We began our walk from Drymen and walked some of the West Highland Way as far as Inversnaid, spending Saturday night wild camping by Loch Lomond. It stayed dry for MOST of the day as we passed over Conic Hill, through Balmaha, and along the bonnie banks to Rowardennan.
From Inversnaid we made out way to Callander over the course of 2 days, camping at Loch Katrine and Callander. I only made video footage of some of the trip.
