Always an Adventure...
Marcel flew over for the Scottish equivalent of our adventurous holiday in NZ (North Island) a year and a half ago...plenty of classic challenges (suggested by both of us), that always seem too tempting to refuse :)
Day 1 - 20th Aug
We had half a day walking round Edinburgh, and climbed Arthur's Seat for views over the city. Heading west, we stopped for a short walk at Loch Lomond (never knew how long the sun would be out!) and our first night's campspot was on the beach at Appin peninsula, with great views towards Mull.
Day 2 - 21st Aug
Decided to hike up to a corrie above Kinlochleven the next day, so parked the car planning to be back for lunch...or maybe not. Once we reached the corrie (superb views over Loch Eilde Mor) and had a look at the map, Ben Nevis really didn't look that far away so we just kept going and climbed it from the South on a much less travelled path.
It turned into a bit of an epic day, with some steep ups and downs to get over towards the Nevis Range, but well worth it for a really great day's hiking...we had some beautiful views of Ben Nevis from the valley below, and from half-way up, but unfortunately the summit was in the clouds.
Picture of us is on the highest point in the UK at 4,406ft (1,344m)!
Ran down most of the tourist track to Fort William and hitched a couple of lifts back to Kinlochleven, where we found a nice campspot right beside the loch.
Day 3 - 22nd Aug
Drove north through Fort William and had a stop at Loch Arkaig for a walk to some waterfalls, then on via Glen Garry to Kyle of Lochalsh. Had a tourist stop at Eileen Donan castle (which I've always wanted to see since looking at a picture postcard of it years ago!) - such a great setting, must be beautiful with a good sunset! Crossing the bridge to Skye we found what seemed to be a good spot with superb views over the Isle of Rassay. Little did we know, the midges were about to attack :) Climbed up some random hill behind the tent after dinner, mainly to get away from the pests, then hid in the car for a while before racing to our sleeping bags.
Loch Arkaig; Eileen Donan Castle; "O'er the Sea to Skye"
Day 4 - 23rd Aug
Got totally abused by the midges in the morning, so we sprinted to the car and drove off with the windows down before returning to collect our gear! The weather looked a bit dodgy, so we decided to drive round the touristy bits first and save some hiking for when it cleared up. Luckily, the rain didn't last long.
Dunvegan Castle was interesting - the gardens and views were really pretty.
Driving north round the coast we had various stops - Uig, Staffin, and Kilt Rock, and saw some old crofthouses where the straw roofs are held down by rocks!
Climbing on the clifftops we had some brilliant views over Skye and its small neighbouring islands. Some famous Scottish sheep even posed to let Marcel take a picture :)
Day 5 - 24th Aug
You need a rope (and considerable climbing competency) to complete the Cuillin Ridge on Skye [note the use of alliteration] but seeing how far you can get without a rope is always worth the challenge :) We hiked up via Corrie Laggan, and couldn't see the other side of the loch for the mist :) Shame. Half an hour later, the views were amazing. 5 minutes after that, no views at all.
That was how the day continued, but at least we had some fantastic panoramic shots at various points throughout.
We met some guys with a rope attempting Sgurr Alisdair, but they didn't seem to have much experience. So we joined them (to share our great experience with them....and to 'borrow' their rope). A couple of tricky sections later, our friends from Aberdeen had renamed Marcel 'the mountain goat' and were very impressed by his ability to scale up, across or over all rock obstacles without any fear!
We took separate routes towards the Inaccessible Pinnacle - the others weren't so keen to follow Marcel's traverse route around a cliff edge with gaps and voids between footholds, which in the wet conditions looked 'slightly' dodgy to say the least (to be honest I wasn't that keen either, but those challenges always seem to get the better of me). We completed a fair section of the ridge without a rope, and (for the most part!) had a really fun time scrambling up, climbing down, bouldering and traversing along.
Only doubtful bits were when even the mountain goat was looking at some bits saying "hmm, I think it'll be okay" - I wondered a couple of times if I shouldn't have stuck with the others, and the rope :) Running down part of the "Great Chute" (massive scoria section) was good fun and then we headed back to Glenbrittle campsite for a well-earned shower :)
Skye was beautiful, but the thought of another night fighting the midges drove us back to the mainland, with another stop by Eileen Donan castle to see it lit up at night - spectacular (and good work with the camera too - no prizes for guessing who the photographer is for all these shots!)
Day 6 - 25th Aug HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCEL !!
Heading north from our campspot near Lochcarron towards Torridon, we had a few tourist/picture stops - Strome Castle, a kilt-making shop, and a scenic drive over to Applecross Bay.
Planning to do Liathach Ridge the next day (suggested by mum) we checked weather at Tourist Info, which said it was 90% chance of cloud-free munros that day, and only 10% the next. It was 2:30pm - plenty of time :) A steep climb took us up to the saddle and we headed East first, then walked West along the length of the ridge (8km, with plenty of ups and downs along the way!) We climbed each of the Pinnacles between the various mountains, and the 2 munros of course - Liathach (Spidean a' Choire Leith) and Mullach an Rathain. And no, I can't pronounce them either.
The ridge was spectacular - I really enjoyed the whole hike, 
one of my favourites in Scotland so far I think! After a very steep downhill back to the road we had a shower at the campsite and drove round to Diabeg, a really quaint and quiet bay west of Torridon. Had a tough time finding somewhere to eat for a birthday meal - nothing open in Torridon, and the pub we reached in Kinlochewe had just finished serving meals. We finally found a lodge still serving food in Achnasheen and enjoyed a well-earned dinner :)
Day 6 - 26th August
Woke up at this viewpoint in the morning - classic choice of campspot in the dark! Drove around via Loch Maree to Gairloch then back inland towards Inverness with a few stops for 'short' walks along the way - had a hunt to find Victoria Falls (which sounded a lot more impressive than they really were!), then stopped at Gairloch beach, Rogan Falls, and the Corrieshalloch Gorge. Also briefly in Dingwall and Strathpeffer before driving on to Loch Ness and saying hello to Nessie.
On to Aviemore and the campsite by Loch Morlich - a really nice spot which I didn't remember although I know we were there as a family when I was pretty young :)
Day 7 - 27th August
I had a nice run around Loch Morlich in the morning, then taking another of mum's suggestions (Liathach had been such a highlight we trusted her judgement!) we hiked up from Braemore Lodge to the Barns of Bynack on Bynack More. Over and up A'Choinneach then dropped down beside Loch A'an. True Scottish weather all day - rain showers, beautiful sunshine, galeforce winds, and nicely calm beside the loch.
When the mist cleared we had great views over the Cairngorms. The hiking is so different here: long walks leading in to rolling hills covered in heather, compared to steep, sharp and rugged rocky mountains on the West Coast. Both are spectacular in different ways.
Back via the Stepping Stones at the Fords of A'an, then drove round to Braemar, made pizzas, and enjoyed the comfort of a hot shower and a real bed :)
Day 8 - 28th August
A rest day?! Well, at least from walking. We took the bikes out for a nice circuit round by Linn of Dee, through Mar Lodge to the Punchbowl at the Quoich Water, through Invercauld Estate and round by Keiloch to the Old Brig O' Dee.
Didn't know what to do in the evening - we had so much time and didn't even have to worry about running away from any midges! More crossword puzzles to solve...
Day 9 - 29th August
The last day of our holidays :( We drove down to Kirkcaldy via St. Andrews and round the fishing villages in Fife. Stopped to walk around the golf course, castle and cathedral at St. Andrews, then in Crail, Pittenweem, Anstruther and Elie for a walk on the beach.
Home to KDY where mum had cooked us a legendary Scottish meal. Smoked salmon starter stuffed with prawns, then Haggis, Neeps & Tatties, followed by Blackberries, Blueberries & Strawberries served with Mackies Icecream - it was tremendous :) Dad addressed the haggis and Marcel dressed up for the occasion in Gavin's old kilt - looking good!
We tried to top it all off by heading back into Edinburgh for some salsa dancing at The Three Sisters (was supposed to have free salsa 10pm-12am) but it was all finished - at least we tried! Back to the flat for a couple of hours sleep before heading to the airport for 5am, then back to bed for me!
A perfect break exploring new parts of Scotland - lots of exercise, hundreds of pictures (literally), plus some crossword puzzles and icecream. Fun times...thanks for a great holiday Marcel!
See more pics!
Day 1 - 20th Aug
We had half a day walking round Edinburgh, and climbed Arthur's Seat for views over the city. Heading west, we stopped for a short walk at Loch Lomond (never knew how long the sun would be out!) and our first night's campspot was on the beach at Appin peninsula, with great views towards Mull.Day 2 - 21st Aug
Decided to hike up to a corrie above Kinlochleven the next day, so parked the car planning to be back for lunch...or maybe not. Once we reached the corrie (superb views over Loch Eilde Mor) and had a look at the map, Ben Nevis really didn't look that far away so we just kept going and climbed it from the South on a much less travelled path.
It turned into a bit of an epic day, with some steep ups and downs to get over towards the Nevis Range, but well worth it for a really great day's hiking...we had some beautiful views of Ben Nevis from the valley below, and from half-way up, but unfortunately the summit was in the clouds.Picture of us is on the highest point in the UK at 4,406ft (1,344m)!
Ran down most of the tourist track to Fort William and hitched a couple of lifts back to Kinlochleven, where we found a nice campspot right beside the loch.
Day 3 - 22nd Aug
Drove north through Fort William and had a stop at Loch Arkaig for a walk to some waterfalls, then on via Glen Garry to Kyle of Lochalsh. Had a tourist stop at Eileen Donan castle (which I've always wanted to see since looking at a picture postcard of it years ago!) - such a great setting, must be beautiful with a good sunset! Crossing the bridge to Skye we found what seemed to be a good spot with superb views over the Isle of Rassay. Little did we know, the midges were about to attack :) Climbed up some random hill behind the tent after dinner, mainly to get away from the pests, then hid in the car for a while before racing to our sleeping bags.
Loch Arkaig; Eileen Donan Castle; "O'er the Sea to Skye"
Day 4 - 23rd Aug
Got totally abused by the midges in the morning, so we sprinted to the car and drove off with the windows down before returning to collect our gear! The weather looked a bit dodgy, so we decided to drive round the touristy bits first and save some hiking for when it cleared up. Luckily, the rain didn't last long.
Dunvegan Castle was interesting - the gardens and views were really pretty.
Driving north round the coast we had various stops - Uig, Staffin, and Kilt Rock, and saw some old crofthouses where the straw roofs are held down by rocks!
Climbing on the clifftops we had some brilliant views over Skye and its small neighbouring islands. Some famous Scottish sheep even posed to let Marcel take a picture :)
Day 5 - 24th Aug
You need a rope (and considerable climbing competency) to complete the Cuillin Ridge on Skye [note the use of alliteration] but seeing how far you can get without a rope is always worth the challenge :) We hiked up via Corrie Laggan, and couldn't see the other side of the loch for the mist :) Shame. Half an hour later, the views were amazing. 5 minutes after that, no views at all.That was how the day continued, but at least we had some fantastic panoramic shots at various points throughout.
We met some guys with a rope attempting Sgurr Alisdair, but they didn't seem to have much experience. So we joined them (to share our great experience with them....and to 'borrow' their rope). A couple of tricky sections later, our friends from Aberdeen had renamed Marcel 'the mountain goat' and were very impressed by his ability to scale up, across or over all rock obstacles without any fear!
We took separate routes towards the Inaccessible Pinnacle - the others weren't so keen to follow Marcel's traverse route around a cliff edge with gaps and voids between footholds, which in the wet conditions looked 'slightly' dodgy to say the least (to be honest I wasn't that keen either, but those challenges always seem to get the better of me). We completed a fair section of the ridge without a rope, and (for the most part!) had a really fun time scrambling up, climbing down, bouldering and traversing along.
Only doubtful bits were when even the mountain goat was looking at some bits saying "hmm, I think it'll be okay" - I wondered a couple of times if I shouldn't have stuck with the others, and the rope :) Running down part of the "Great Chute" (massive scoria section) was good fun and then we headed back to Glenbrittle campsite for a well-earned shower :)
Skye was beautiful, but the thought of another night fighting the midges drove us back to the mainland, with another stop by Eileen Donan castle to see it lit up at night - spectacular (and good work with the camera too - no prizes for guessing who the photographer is for all these shots!)
Day 6 - 25th Aug HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCEL !!
Heading north from our campspot near Lochcarron towards Torridon, we had a few tourist/picture stops - Strome Castle, a kilt-making shop, and a scenic drive over to Applecross Bay.
Planning to do Liathach Ridge the next day (suggested by mum) we checked weather at Tourist Info, which said it was 90% chance of cloud-free munros that day, and only 10% the next. It was 2:30pm - plenty of time :) A steep climb took us up to the saddle and we headed East first, then walked West along the length of the ridge (8km, with plenty of ups and downs along the way!) We climbed each of the Pinnacles between the various mountains, and the 2 munros of course - Liathach (Spidean a' Choire Leith) and Mullach an Rathain. And no, I can't pronounce them either.
The ridge was spectacular - I really enjoyed the whole hike, 
one of my favourites in Scotland so far I think! After a very steep downhill back to the road we had a shower at the campsite and drove round to Diabeg, a really quaint and quiet bay west of Torridon. Had a tough time finding somewhere to eat for a birthday meal - nothing open in Torridon, and the pub we reached in Kinlochewe had just finished serving meals. We finally found a lodge still serving food in Achnasheen and enjoyed a well-earned dinner :)Day 6 - 26th August
Woke up at this viewpoint in the morning - classic choice of campspot in the dark! Drove around via Loch Maree to Gairloch then back inland towards Inverness with a few stops for 'short' walks along the way - had a hunt to find Victoria Falls (which sounded a lot more impressive than they really were!), then stopped at Gairloch beach, Rogan Falls, and the Corrieshalloch Gorge. Also briefly in Dingwall and Strathpeffer before driving on to Loch Ness and saying hello to Nessie.
On to Aviemore and the campsite by Loch Morlich - a really nice spot which I didn't remember although I know we were there as a family when I was pretty young :)
Day 7 - 27th August
I had a nice run around Loch Morlich in the morning, then taking another of mum's suggestions (Liathach had been such a highlight we trusted her judgement!) we hiked up from Braemore Lodge to the Barns of Bynack on Bynack More. Over and up A'Choinneach then dropped down beside Loch A'an. True Scottish weather all day - rain showers, beautiful sunshine, galeforce winds, and nicely calm beside the loch.
When the mist cleared we had great views over the Cairngorms. The hiking is so different here: long walks leading in to rolling hills covered in heather, compared to steep, sharp and rugged rocky mountains on the West Coast. Both are spectacular in different ways.
Back via the Stepping Stones at the Fords of A'an, then drove round to Braemar, made pizzas, and enjoyed the comfort of a hot shower and a real bed :)
Day 8 - 28th August
A rest day?! Well, at least from walking. We took the bikes out for a nice circuit round by Linn of Dee, through Mar Lodge to the Punchbowl at the Quoich Water, through Invercauld Estate and round by Keiloch to the Old Brig O' Dee.
Didn't know what to do in the evening - we had so much time and didn't even have to worry about running away from any midges! More crossword puzzles to solve...
Day 9 - 29th August
The last day of our holidays :( We drove down to Kirkcaldy via St. Andrews and round the fishing villages in Fife. Stopped to walk around the golf course, castle and cathedral at St. Andrews, then in Crail, Pittenweem, Anstruther and Elie for a walk on the beach.
Home to KDY where mum had cooked us a legendary Scottish meal. Smoked salmon starter stuffed with prawns, then Haggis, Neeps & Tatties, followed by Blackberries, Blueberries & Strawberries served with Mackies Icecream - it was tremendous :) Dad addressed the haggis and Marcel dressed up for the occasion in Gavin's old kilt - looking good!We tried to top it all off by heading back into Edinburgh for some salsa dancing at The Three Sisters (was supposed to have free salsa 10pm-12am) but it was all finished - at least we tried! Back to the flat for a couple of hours sleep before heading to the airport for 5am, then back to bed for me!
A perfect break exploring new parts of Scotland - lots of exercise, hundreds of pictures (literally), plus some crossword puzzles and icecream. Fun times...thanks for a great holiday Marcel!
Labels: the great outdoors
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posted by Mhairi
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