Cavell Guest House Inverness

... would have been better on a clear day... and I'm pretty sure I was driving away from it, so would have been better going the other way. Anyway... Climb numero deux was over at Loch Lomond, on the quieter east side. By the time I rocked up I fully expected it to be packed, but it wasn't at all, maybe 20 odd cars there, brilliant. I had lunch ...

... phones through to the AA and books a transporter to take me back to take me back to Nottingham (East Leake).

Tow truck 1, turns up at 11:50 to take me on the first leg of the journey home from Fort William to Stirling. This takes approx 3 hours and I get dropped at Stirling service station where I am supposed to be met by the next tow truck. It takes about an hour for the next truck to turn up. Which was arranged for 14:30

... will go out of their way to help a stranger.

Things that made me smile today:

The multitude of frogs and toads enjoying the wet ground
The two couples who gave me sponsorship at Inversnaid
Feral goats at Inversnaid - the book is not wrong about their smell!
All the lovely people I met at the youth hostel
The drying room - it was extremely hot and all my kit is now properly dry!

Today's route is short - only 12 miles through Glen Falloch and past the Falls of Falloch to Inverarnan. It's pouring though and the walk quickly turns into a bit of a trudge!

There are numerous legends concerning Robert the Bruce and Rob Roy attached to sites across this Highland region. Today is no exception - in the local woods just outside Tyndrum is a pool that Robert the Bruce allegedly threw his sword into while fleeing a battle and the battle site, Dal ...

Liz & Alec, who gave me a lift last night, turn out to be heading back to Kingshouse this morning so offer me a lift straight back to the start of my walk through the winding valley of Glencoe. The sky is already looking ominously dark so it's on with the waterproofs and I batten down the hatches with my rucksack cover before venturing out across Rannoch Moor.

The rain starts almost as soon as I hit the moor. It's relentless and the headwind ...

... me on the road just seconds before I get there. Aargh! It's an hour to the next one so I plod back to the bar. It turns out one lovely couple are staying down in Glencoe and offer me a lift. This is a very kind offer as the youth hostel in Glencoe is actually two miles from the bus stop and I take it up immediately!

Entering my room at the hostel, I hear "hello again". It's Helen, an Australian teacher, who I met at the youth hostel in Inverness ...

... s reading:) Anyways, I was feeling like death yesterday, so I decided to hang around. I headed down with a couple guys and had some hangover bacon and eggs for breaky and just relaxed for the rest of the day. Today I have done a lot of walking. Walked down to the Ness Islands again and then up to an old cemetery on a hill. Hill walking is my favorite, not! I was thinking of heading out to catch a movie tonight. I am going through TV/Movie ...

... and had to be washed. The bathroom was bearable, but some things in there are gross. Too late to find out that it wasn't starred at all! We find Tesco's and get a good shop for the rest of the week (at least we have a freezer this time.) My back hurts a lot when I walk still and I take drugs every 4 hours to keep the spasms down to a minimum. June 8th - After a very rough back night we are up and ready to ...

... too long... I would weigh 300 pounds eating all of this "bad" food. I was going to do Laundry this afternoon as I am out of clean underwear. Its too nice and sunny to be inside, so instead I stopped at Marks & Spencer and bought some new ones. They were on sale for 2 for 1 today! I will be good for a couple of days now (after turning them inside out!) Needing some exercise after the ...

... We took many pictures of the castle, which was framed by the beautiful mountains in the backdrop & the never ending Loch Ness. At about 1530hrs, we went for our scenic cruise ride over the Loch Ness. The ride itself was only 30 mins but cost 8 quid! Definitely a cut throat price!! Dusk was setting in while we were on the cruise, so we had a magnificent view of the sunset & the lighted castle from afar. Sadly for me, I didn't catch a glimpse of the famous Loch Ness monster ...