Day 6

Date: 06/08/09
Time: 21:30
Miles Travelled Today: 140
Location: Campsite in Applecross
Weather: Again. amazing all day

Today has been the first day that I have felt lonely on this trip. It hasn't helped that I am, once again, very tired thanks to the noisy neighbours not shutting up for a while, Ullapool harbour continuing to be noisy into the night and the rats with wings screaming in the campsite at about 5am. It took a coffee in the morning and another during lunch at The Torridon (best pub in Scotland 08-09 and I can see why) to get me through the day. I don't have a problem with my own company and don't mind being on my own at all, however a combination of the sight of lots of happy couples and families at each campsite I stop at together with the amazing sights that I am witnessing and wanting to share them with someone, has lead to a slight feeling on loneliness. It doesn't help that I am not one of those people who can randomly strike up conversations with people I don't know. I am rubbish at parties, I am not the man charming everyone, I am the one in the corner watching that man. In the end it was my decision to do this trip on my own so I have no one else to blame. Still, it would be nice to have someone to say 'look at that' and 'look at THAT' to on occasion.

I would have had plenty of opportunities to do that again today and Scotland continued to bombard me with beauty. Every turn in the road brings more sights to behold, this country is stuffed full of delights and, even with the amount I am travelling, I am only really scratching the surface. Talking about the travelling, today took me over the 1000 mile mark which is a lot in 6 days. It is not easy driving either (ignoring the first couple of days), this is full on, total concentration driving with a high proportion of single track roads, loose sheep, slow campervans, etc., not helped by constant distractions through every window. Looking back, I have made a mistake with my choice of transport. If you get nothing else from reading this blog, take the following two things:

1) Come to Scotland, I expect any part is lovely but the North coast is spectacular and the West coast is shaping up to be more of the same. Ignore the nay-sayers with their talk of rain and midges and the like; if you like scenary, mountains, lochs, coastline, beaches then you should be heading here immediately. Obviously if you like 30 deg C heat and a swimming pool by your villa, this perhaps isn't the place

2) Either bring a campervan with at least a toilet so you can take advantage of the opportunities to wild camp (turns out to be not so easy in a tent although it could just be me being a girl) or, if you like driving, bring a decent car (oh, how I long for my Lotus Elise) so you can enjoy the roads which, surprise surprise, are amazing. I have done neither, although faithful and dependable, my Almera is not an entertaining drive and I long for something that would extract the maximum out of the roads

There you go, you knew there was a reason you were reading this.

Due to the tiredness and the concentration required for the driving, I have decided to stay in Applecross tomorrow too and do some walking. It is a rather lovely little village on the coast with a beach, a few houses, a pub, a community hall, a campsite (which is cheap but, with only four showers, could result in queues) and not much else. Apart from the views of course which, true to form, are to die for. So, no driving at all tomorrow to give my brain and my car a rest and then probably onto Sky on Saturday. Unless I decide to stay here longer, who knows. The only thing it doesn't seem to have is WiFi so, by the time you read this, I will probably have left anyway. It feels odd to write a blog but not be able to post it until sometime after writing it but I am enjoying putting down what has happened during the day so as to aid my crappy memory when I get back home, if nothing else

Day 5

Date: 05/08/09
Time: 22:20
Miles Travelled Today: 88
Location: Campsite in Ullapool
Weather: Again. amazing all day but now raining

I have fallen completely in love with Scotland and am looking meaningfully at any houses that I pass that are for sale. I have run out of words to describe what I am seeing, I guess you are sick of seeing the words amazing, beautiful, etc. come up again and again but they are all I have.

After a much better nights sleep, I set off again this morning to be greeted by more lochs, more mountains, more moorland, more coastline, more more more. It is unstoppable, this wave of visual delights, unceasing, unrelenting. Another lovely beach was my venue for lunch followed by a short trek to a waterfall where I pretended I knew what I was doing with my camera and got all arty; I haven't looked at the resulting photos yet although I already know I have to learnt more about what to do with light, I keep getting overexposed photos. A longer trek to the 'Old Man of Hoy' was enjoyable but did result in a bit of a burnt neck. After more driving, I arrived at Ullapool where I had been advised a nice campsite was to be found. I must have missed the signs as I drove straight through and beyond, still searching. Eventually I turned around and managed to find it the second time. The campsite is ok, nothing special which is what I could say for Ullapool itself. On the plus side, I did manage to find a pub with free WiFi and so was able to upload a couple of posts plus the photos from the last few days. On the downside I am near to the noisy family from hell, it is now 10.30 and they are still loudly talking about crap and seem pretty drunk. This is the first problem I have had with other people on a campsite so far so I guess I should be thankful. Hopefully they will all pass out in a little while and STFU. I will let you know tomorrow...

Day 4

Date: 04/08/09
Time: 22:00
Miles Travelled Today: 65
Location: Campsite in Scourie
Weather: Amazing during the day before raining towards the end

Another night with little sleep left my very tired today. The scenary and the beauty, however, was unrelenting, just as I got over one view I would turn a corner and be presented with another. This included one of the most perfect beaches I have ever come across. It was in Talin and required a few hundred metre walk from the road. As you hopefully can see from the pictures, it was a sweep of sand framed by cliffs with crystal blue water (still unbelievably cold) and, best of all, only two other people on it. It was truely amazing. After a coffee and a sandwich at a lovely little restuarant in Tarbet, I continued on. However, I was still very tired and as soon as I saw the campsite in Scourie, I decided that I would stop despite it only being about 1.30. I was lucky enough to bag a pitch over looking a lovely bay with a small beach on one side; crystal blue waters again. I crashed out for a while, wiped out from the driving and the lack of sleep. Later on I had a little wander around and visited the local shop to stock up on rolls for the enusing BBQ. The weather had been lovely again all day but as the evening drew in, ominous looking rain clouds started appearing. I had just enough time to cook my burgers before having to dive into the tent to eat them as the rain fell. The shower didn't last very long however it was to be the pattern for the rest of the evening.

A highlight of the day was watching two seperate seals play in the bay; popping up, having a little look and swim around before disappearing down again; it was a privileged moment to experience. I tried to get a couple of photos but the light was rapidly disappearing and they didn't come out; I did get a couple of the sunset however.

I am experimenting with a new bed setup tonight: fake-thermarest with duvet and then sleeping bag on top, I am hoping that this will enable me to sleep better....

Photos

You may notice that the blog posts now have a photo slideshow at the bottom of each one, this is linked to a Picasa Web Album of photos that I have been taking.  Apart from some that I deleted straight away after taking them, these have not been edited or changed in any way, as you will tell as quite a few need it!  Over time I may go back and fix some and delete others but at the moment you are getting the raw unedited versions, for better or worse.

Oh, and I have finally found somewhere in Scotland with WiFi.  Its a pub, what a shame, I mean it would be rude to sit here without drinking anything...

Day 3

Date: 03/08/09
Time: 22:00
Miles Travelled Today: 140
Location: Campsite in Durness
Weather: Amazing all day

If it rains for the entire rest of the trip, it will still have been worth it for today, that's how good it has been.  

The day actually started with me a bit nervous. Last night the air bed epically failed and had mostly deflated before I tried going to sleep – its not that it ripped, just gradually let air out until it was useless. That necessitated a trip out of the tent and over to the car to get the fake-thermarest where I discovered, to my horror, that I had left the passenger door slightly ajar and the interior light was on It must have been on for hours.... Come the next day, I had no idea whether the car would start. I have jump leads with me and it wouldn't really have been a problem but it was faff I could do without. Luckily it started first time and I could relax. The weather today has been nothing short of amazing, particularly given the woeful forecasts we have been getting. Blue sky, bright sunshine and temperatures into the high 20s have meant that I, in typical British person on holiday fashion, have managed to get burnt. Only a bit on my leg but still – burnt! In Scotland! In this crappy summer!  

I have spent the day wandering from one beautiful place to the next. I started with watching seals, how about that as the first thing to find. Amusingly I was actually parked up looking at a lovely bit of coastline when an old man came up to me and started chatting. “Looking at the seals are you?” he said. “What seals?” was my less than impressive reply. In my defense, they are supurbly camoflaged but really I have no excuse. I then had some time watching them through my binoculars and zoom lense on my camera; a quick look at the ensuing photos this evening has indicated that my photo taking skills need a bit of, uh, polishing but perhaps one will come out ok. A lovely beach in Dunnet then followed where I was able to get the kite out for the first time. If anything, it was a bit too windy but it was great to finally have a fly. Then on around the coast, diverting onto small side roads if anything interesting seemed to be there. This included a walk to a derelict chapel right next to some massive wind turbines. The walk included a bridge over a lovely river, so lovely in fact that after I got back to the car, I made some sandwiches, packed my kettle and my gas burner and walked right back to it to have lunch. The countryside and coastline that I have driven and walked through today has been some of the most amazing I have ever seen, and I have seen a few/over the years. The scale, the emptiness, the sheer majesty of it all is beyond description and I fear that my photos will no do it justice. The end of the day was a little nerve wracking as I attempted to find a campsite for the night. After dismissing one, I then spent the next hour driving through extremely empty moorland getting increasingly worried. I did look at wild camping but any potential places already had someone on them, including what looked like the side of a cliff impressively. Eventually I decided to stop for some food and managed to find a parking place overlooking a loch. Out came the trusty burner and a few minutes later I was enjoying some pasta and salad with a view to die for. Apart from a few Germans who randomly stopped, got out, walked around a bit and then left again, I was on my own with perhaps one car every five minutes passing by. Lovely. However, it was soon time to leave again as it was starting to get late. After quite a bit more driving and at least one full campsite, I finally arrived at this one. It was cheap, has all the amenties you could need (except WiFi!) and is right next to not one but two lovely sandy beaches. What more could you ask for?

I have no idea whether the weather will continue tomorrow, I guess I will find out. I know that the scenary will continue though and that is the main thing.

Day 2

Date: 02/08/09
Time: 21:00
Miles Travelled Today: 255
Location: John o'Groats Campsite
Weather: Was sunny, now clouding over a bit

What a difference a day makes. Although the first day was fine, it was mostly motorway driving and then camping in the rain. It did let up long enough for me to cook dinner and then came back with a vengeance. I didn't get much sleep, I don't sleep that well anyhow and a combination of being on a roll mat, although it was that uncomfortable, the noise of the stream and the heavy rain storms was enough to ensure that I was awake or dozing most of the night. That did mean that I was up early and didn't have to queue for a shower though. Another bit of good news was that I managed to put the tent away, still not sure if I did exactly by the book but it fitted inside the bag and that is all that counts!

So, after packing up, I was on my way to John 'oGroats. The sat nav reckoned on about 4.5 hours which would get me in at about 2.30ish. To cut a long story short, the drive up was stunning, my god what a beautiful place Scotland is. I know you will have heard it before but believe me, it is all true. Lochs, rivers, mountains, heather, view galore, it is all here. It helped that my sat nav did it's usual thing of choosing random tiny roads to go down rather than sticking to A roads. Normally this is very annoying as it assumes you can do 60 mph down a tiny road which, unless you are suicidal, you can't However today it took me through some utterly beautiful scenery and so I forgave it. After stopping for supplies at Wick (I was strangely amazed to find Argos and Lidl, as well as Tescos etc, 20 miles from John o'Groats) I arrived at John o'Groats. The campsite is right on the coastline and my pitch is about 20m from the sea, perfect. The campsite itself is fine, not too expensive and all the facilities are there. After putting the tent up (which still worked after me packing it away) and having a bit of lunch, I went for a wander. JoG (can't be bother to keep writing it) is, predictably, a bit of a dump with a few tat shops, cafes and burger vans. Why is it that places like this tend to be either dumps or some horrible over touristy parody of themselves? The famous signpost is actually privately owned and you aren't allowed to photograph yourself, you have to pay for them to do it... After exploring the 'town', such that it is, I had a walk up the coastline a bit towards a white sandy beach that I had spotted. This was a good start to my exploration of Scottish beaches, nice white sand, very few people and lots of things to look at and try out my new toy, a Cannon 300D. I love this camera, it may be the low end model in the range but even after only a couple of weeks I can already see that it is far more capable that I am. I went on a very good one day course (http://www.photographymadesimple.co.uk/) to at least get an idea of what it can do – it was very helpful and I at least have some idea about what I am doing. I am looking at the photos on my little Aspire One at the end of the day and some of them seem ok so far – I am at least thinking about the photo composition and not just 'snapping'. I particularly like the 75-300mm zoom lense that I have, it makes a big difference.

So here I am, back in my tent after a BBQ and sitting enjoying the view an the sunshine. I am using my air mattress today and, as predicted, it only just fits in the tent, however the combination of that, pillows and duvet should mean that tonight is a little more comfortable than last night – we shall see if that means I get some sleep.  

I am tempted to stay here for another night but, after looking at the map and the distance I need to cover, have decided to move on tomorrow – not sure where but then the plan was always not to have a plan and see where I end up!

First Day

Date: 01/08/09
Time: 21:15
Miles travelled today: 380
Location: Beinglas Farm Campsite, just north of Loch Lomond
Weather: Throwing it down with no end in sight

So, here I am at the end of the first day of my trip. I have managed to get to the campsite that I was aiming for – one that had been recommended by a friend and it is quite nice and in a spectactular location just north of Loch Lomond, surrounded by steep hillsides complete with waterfalls, trees and general greenary. It also has a river running by the side of it on 2 sides and you need to cross a very rickety looking wooden bridge to get to it. Facilities look good although with only 3 male showers, there could be a bit of a queue tomorrow. The day went fine, I left a little later than planned and the trip to Merryhill to buy a popup tent and supplies was predictably hideous with lots of traffic and people. Why people find going to these types of places fun I will never understand. I um'ed and ah'ed about the size of tent to get but in the end went for a 2 man, something I am now slightly regretting. How exactly two men plus stuff is supposed to fit in here I am not quite sure, big it is not. However, the fact that I could put it up in a few seconds, plus a bit of time to peg it down, was highly appreciated in the rain. Putting it away tomorrow might be slightly less fun, I have only tried to put one of these away once and it took 2 hours and a phone call to my brother....

Due to the campsite being a bit soggy, I couldn't park the car next to the tent and so had to ferry all my stuff over in the rain – however I have a waterproof jacket, overtrousers and wellies so it wasn't that much of a problem. However, it does mean that I am using my roll mat and sleeping bag rather than air bed – in fact, I am wondering if the air bed is going to fit in here at all! Hopefully I will get to find out sometime soon.

So here I am, in my tent listening to the rain and hoping that I haven't put the tent up wrong/it is broken and so I get wet – seems ok so far.

The actual trip up was predictably dull as it was 90% motorway. The scenery around the Lake District was amazing and once I got to Loch Lomond it got a lot more interesting and beautiful. Tomorrow should be a lot more picturesque as I head up to John o'Groats and a campsite there. 

I would really like to have some dinner but it is throwing it down so I cannot cook. There is no porch in this tent so it is outside or nothing. I will wait for a while and, if it doesn't let up, I will head over to the camp restaurant/bar and see what they have. The midges have already made their presence felt and there was a brief panic as I couldn't find the Skin-so-Soft I had been promised would keep them at bay – luckily it was located and I am now dosed in the stuff; seems to be working. If nothing else I will have great skin by the time I get back!

That's it so far, a dullish day but necessary to get to John o'Groats in two days. I still have no idea when I will be able to actually post this as I doubt that there is much WiFi in Scotland, however I can but hope.

Until next time...