P in the wild

Tyndrum to Kingshouse.

Well, most of the way there.

I woke up on day 5 to my eyes and nose both leaking down my face. I honestly thought I’d caught a cold and was waiting for the lack of energy to kick in.

As soon as it did I knew I’d have to either stay and rest a few days or give up and go home.

Until then all I could do was walk.

I’d hoped for a long day on day 5. The itinerary I was following was for 7 days, and the Walk Highlands app was showing me one for 8 days, which meant I had to combine 2 days into 1.

I stocked up at the Green Welly Stop with vitamin tablets, sports drinks and a sandwich.

The walking was fairly easy, apart from the water dripping down my face.

I had a run-in with some sheep,

and then overtook a witch who told me I’d feel better by lunch time, and she was right!

By then I’d taken a hay-fever tablet I’d brought with me as a just-in-case, and it solidified the leaks and it all became easier to deal with. It was still annoying, but at least I knew what it was and that I could continue.

My mood improved instantly when I got to Bridge of Orchy,

because I saw my first ever wild deer.

I wish the photos didn’t have so many man-made structures in them, and that they looked more wild,

but they’re still the best photos of wild deer I’ve ever taken.

Better than the hikers in front of me as well since they didn’t see any deer.

I had a pleasant stop at Inveroran. I’d already got everything I needed, so this was just topping up my sugar levels and resting my legs for a few minutes.

I got to talking to someone else wearing a sun hoodie, clearly a man of excellent taste, and we shared updates on our blisters.

I let him carry on ahead of me. Maybe I would catch him up?

I did catch him up. His blisters were getting the better of him. We continued the conversation.

I had not come to talk to anyone, and certainly not to make any friends, and yet this was a nice change for me.

I had made small-talk with a few people before on the trail, it was hard not to when you would see them again and again each day, but this at this point we were sore and talking took our minds off the aches and pains.

We had both set out to have a big day that day. It turned out my new hiking buddy even wanted to finish the route on the same day as me, so it made sense to stick together.

We passed the Dutch couple we had previously spoken to, they had made camp beside the trail because they had had enough walking that day.

It seemed like a good idea, but we carried on.

Then we passed the Czech lads that we had previously spoken to, who had made camp beside the trail.

We were starting to agree with them.

I hadn’t come to Scotland to camp out in the wild, I can do that at home, but my new hiking friend had come from Germany, where it’s even more illegal than in the UK, so he was keen.

We found a raised section just off the path with a few places to pitch a tent. It was a bit windy so there would be no bugs to annoy us.

As you can see in the photo, our spot was just off the path. In Wales, where I normally go camping, this would be a big no. If you do wildcamp, which you’re not supposed to, you must be stealthy and not let anyone know you were there. Pitch up as it gets dark and leave before it’s light sort of thing.

But it’s different in Scotland. They have a Right to Roam that the rest of us don’t have.

A group of Scottish hikers even greeted us with a song in the morning.

I was initially hesitant about setting up camp on the side of the path with a stranger I had met only a few hours before, but I’m glad I did.

This was my favourite camp site of the whole week.

Tyndrum to wild camp: 23km