Hamish, Hamish, Where for art thou, Hamish?

We’ve been on a quest since we began our adventure here in Scotland.  Mum’s looking for Hamish.  Aye, it’s true! She’s mad for Hamish.  An Angus won’t do! Nor a Ferdinand!  No Harry either!  Only a Hamish will do!  He’s a big brute. Ginger, of course – masses of long , curly, somewhat unkempt ginger hair!  His breath is nay sae sweet and his teeth are no the best but he’s a vegetarian and strong for his age! Aye, Hamish is a fine strapping beastie!  And Mum is just mad fer Hamish!  

Stop! Stop the car! She screams.  Hubby’s cousin jams on the brakes and all our seat belts lock!  What? What’s the matter, Maggie?  She jumps out of the car and runs to the fence and looks across the field, disappointment crosses her face… He’s not here, she says.  I thought I saw him but it’s not him!  And back in the car and off we go again!  I’m sure we’ll find him…we’ve been told he’s here – it’s just a matter of time.  Yes, she says, but we walked all that way without seeing him and now we’re driving to Skye and still no sign of him! Hubby’s cousin reassures her – nae bother, Maggie, I know where to find him.  

Off we go, across the bridge to Skye.  Magnificent scenery! Fantastic weather. Crazy roads. So much green!  Magnificent scenery!  Quaint wee villages.  Wonderful smells from the fish and chip shop in Portree where we stay for the night.  But no sign of Hamish.

It’s not until we leave Skye and are heading back to Inverness that Hubby’s cousin shouts out – over there, Maggie!  There he is!  Your Hamish!  But again, no, it’s nae Hamish.  It’s only Angus!  And there’s nothing special about him – plenty of those types at home, she says. If I wanted an Angus I could get one easily back home.  No. I want Hamish.  Okay, nae bother.   Off we go again  – and after many false sightings – someone suddenly shouts out, there! There’s Hamish!  And he’s right close too!  

Mum’s face breaks out into a glorious smile and then a huge grin – Aye!  That’s him!  That’s my Hamish!  And she’s out of the car in flash!  She yells at me to follow – and hands me her camera – take our photo!  And, beaming with happiness, she reaches across the fence and puts a tentative hand on his ginger head and gives his hair a muddle – mindful of his horns as he tosses his mangy huge head and blows a snort out of his nose in greeting!  Mum rips some grass from our side of the fence – because of course, the grass is always greener on the other side – and Hamish greedily grabs the grass from her hands as I snap photos of their greeting! 

Hamish, the great Ginger Heilan Coo, has at last been found!  Mum is a happy woman!  The rest of us breathe a sigh of relief, as we rub our sore shoulders from the seat belts; we can finally stop scouring the hillsides looking for Hamish, the great shaggy Heilan Coo!

Snake-like Animals and legless lizards…

Well that’s it!  We’re done!  Completed our walk along the West Highland way!  The sights we’ve seen, the people we’ve met, the food we’ve eaten, the beds we’ve slept in, the pictures we’ve taken and the memories we’ve made!  Absolutely priceless!  And not one snake-like animal – Adder, nor slow-worm – which is neither a worm nor a snake but a legless lizard – did we see! Thankfully!  We did manage to see a few deer, some wild goats, a couple of caged guineau pigs, seals, wee horses, rabbits, birds, cattle and three Heiland Coos!

We’ve rambled and scrambled, slipped and tripped, traipsed and traversed and clambered and climbed – we’ve walked slowly and surely.  We’ve had aches and pains and niggles and twitches but all in all we’ve managed it well! We completed our walk in 9 days – 94 miles or 154  kms – from Milngavie to Drymen to Balmaha to Inveraran to Tyndrum to Inveroran to Kingshouse to Kinlochleven and finally to Fort William! It’s been an adventure – another journey to remember!  

As we hobbled slowly up the High Street to find our wee hiker with the sore feet statue and take the obligatory photo of accomplishment beside it – I feel tired – I was going to say we feel tired but I can’t speak for Mum or hubby – I’m certain that if hubby had his way we’d be heading along the Great Glen Way to Inverness by now! No, I’m tired and my feet ache.  I know I walked a lot farther in Spain but this was so different!  There were less stops, less heat, less walkers, more rocks, more hills, more midgies – well there were no midgies in Spain actually! – did I mention less heat? Less sun, more rain, more wind – did I mention more hills?  The paths were harder – did I mention the rocks? And the gates! So many gates!  And sheep! Did I mention the midgies? Well, you get the picture!  It was vastly different from the Camino but in some ways much more…it was physically harder, I think, so I am feeling bigger sense of accomplishment!

To say that I am proud of my mother would be an understatement!  She may have been joking when she first said she would join us – and I may have bullied her into it a wee bit – but I was quite certain that she could do it and do it she did! She never complained – not one tiny bit! She smiled and laughed more than she frowned. She definitely felt tired at times but she pushed through and many a day started off faster than hubby and I!  The woman is an inspiration to say the least!  I have been bragging about her the entire way – and everyone we meet could hardly believe that she was 73 and walking the West Highland Way – those who have not yet walked it have said they may well do so now!  

We are off to begin the next portion of our adventure in Scotland – a road trip!  We will go to the Isle of Skye with Hubby’s cousin and wife and then to Inverness to pick up our rental – which is now, thankfully an automatic – and from there we will drive wherever the mood takes us! It should be entertaining if nothing else especially since Hubby will now do all the driving while Mum and I…um…nagivate…oh, no! I mean Navigate!  Yes.  That’s right we’ll be telling him where to go and how to get there! 

So, stay tuned…it might be quite the ride!  Cheers for now – talk at you later!

Tyndrum, Whisky and new friends

Okay…so, here’s the rest of the story about Tyndrum, hubby and whisky.  One of hubby’s cousins has some really good friends who live in Tyndrum.  They own a thriving business called The Green Welly Stop.  It’s a gas station with a convenience store, restaurant, souvenir shop, outdoor store, candy store and Whisky Galore – honestly, just about everything Scottish you’ve ever wanted can be found in The Green Welly Stop! Oh and it’s a popular motorbike and truck stop too. Now, when we arrived at Tyndrum, since we were early, we wandered on over – Mum, had a rather queer expression on her face when she saw the shop’s logo – a giant green Welly – for those who don’t know what a Welly is, it’s a rubber boot – a Wellington.  She was trying not to laugh – and sputtered out that she thought I’d been calling it The Green Willy so when she saw the logo – well….imagination took off before realization dawned!

Anyway, through hubby’s cousin, I had someone become FaceBook Friends with Fiona, who with her family and husband Ed happen to own this very successful business but I had never met her at all in person.  I loved her sense of humour on Facebook and enjoyed her posts, so I very uncharacteristically decide to take a chance and contacted Fiona days before we left home to find out just how close the Green Welly was to our B&B.  She replied “about 400m”.  I laughed and told her that we would be there on August 28 and would love to be able to pop in and say hi – having absolutely no idea how busy the Green Welly is – Fiona instantly messaged back asking me to cancel our B&B and stay with her and Ed, her husband and partner.  I explained that although we appreciated the offer, we’d already booked and paid.  She then invited us to at least go to their place for dinner – I accepted happily.  

Dinner with Fiona and Ed was one of the best nights so far on this journey!  Fiona even made a special vegetarian pasta dish for hubby!  But it was after dinner that made Hubby’s entire vacation!  Ed brought out the whisky – er, excuse me, Whiskies – and set about giving hubby a private whisky tasting session of some of the most amazing Whiskies ever! Mum and I watched – and occasionally I sniffed – as hubby – like a boy in a toy store – grinned through the entire evening and learned how to properly pronounce many many many Whiskies (for instance, Glenmorangie – if there’s no orange in it then you’ve got it wrong, man!).  At some point during the evening it was proposed that Ed drive up on his motorbike to Inveroran (our next stop) the next afternoon, pick up Hubby and take him back to Tyndrum to complete the Whisky Tasting session and then Fiona would drive the three of them back to Inveroran and have dinner with us that night at our hotel! Hubby was a bit apprehensive about the motorbike part of the idea but because of the Whisky part, he was game.  So, we said our goodnights and teetered off back down the road to our B&B for the night with promises to keep in touch the next day.

We left Tyndrum the next morning around 930 am – abut slower than usual because of the late night but we made pretty good time!  When we got to The Bridge of Orchy, I messaged Fiona our whereabouts, warned her of some traffic construction we’d seen while walking and told her that although we’d love to see them again and treat them to dinner – I didn’t want to inconvenience them in anyway – but she messaged back saying that as soon as Ed was free he’d be up to get hubby – I figured we’d be another couple of hours.  When hubby found out that it was indeed still a go – I could see him chomping at the bit…so I told him to go on ahead, check into our room and get cleaned up and ready for Ed!  Well, no sooner did the words leave my mouth but he was off – and out of sight – in seconds! Mum and I took our time and sauntered in much earlier than I had anticipated – found hubby all showered and changed and waiting. While we were sitting in the bar cooling down after our walk – Ed walked in and announced “Taxi service!” He’d driven up in the car not the motorbike because of time constraints – hubby was somewhat  relieved at not riding on the back of a motorbike!  Nadia, the owner of the hotel came up and gave Ed a big hug of welcome, telling us how wonderful he and Fiona are – real pillars of the community!  So with that endorsement off the boys went – we hoped Fiona would manage to get them back in time for 7pm dinner! Mum and I enjoyed our rest with nothing to do but sit back and rest our very tired feet! Oh joy!

Fiona did indeed manage to drag the men away from the whisky and made it back in time for what became yet another good meal – with lots of laughs and stories from the day along with a taste of a special Scottish favorite – Tunnock’s tea cake – similar to our Marshallow Puff cookies but with a softer, creamier filling and milk chocolate – really quite delicious!  Hubby was feeling well pleased with himself – Ed assured me they’d only tasted 3 Whiskies that afternoon but judging by the smug pleased look on hubby’s face and the fact that the first thing he’s said and done when he returned was to hug Mum and tell her how happy he was that she was with us and how much he loved her – not once but three times! So,  I’d say that was maybe a slight understatement on Ed’s part – but I forgive him because well, hey, how often does one get to taste the very finest Scotland has to offer with the benefit of such a knowledgeable and interesting man as Ed?  Priceless.  Absolutely priceless.

More than halfway done…

Sorry about not posting for a few days but Internet has been sketchy and honestly?  I’ve been too tired to try and form a sentence never mind a while blog!  Let me see where I left off…I believe we had arrived in Rowardennan and Mum and I had decided to send our packs ahead, right?  Okay then…

First of all – that was the best decision we have made so far!  We set off on Friday morning from Rowardennan to Beinglas Farm at Inverarnan feeling pretty great and incredibly light!  We scampered up the hill from Rowardennan thinking this will be awesome!  We were making great time!  Amazing time!  We were sweating from moving so fast!  We’ll make Beinglas in less than 10 hours – maybe even in 8 hours!  Uh-huh!  And then the clambering and scrambling began – and I really mean clambering and scrambling!  Over boulders and rocks and stairs and hills and…oh boy I’m getting tired just remembering it!  When the Scots tell you that this will be the hardest part – they truly mean it!  It was amazing and beautiful but the path was narrow and steep and winding and covered in rocks and mud.  Did I mention that it was narrow and steep and covered in rocks and mud?  But it was beautiful! At one point we came across a sign that pointed toward Rob Roy’s Cave – well we had to see that, right?  Well, to be quite honest, there should have been a dire warning about not going to see it as it was quite treacherous and even the spry young svelt Lithowanian girl had a tough time getting over the boulders and rocks and only managed to see the sign above the cave stating that it was Rob Roy’s Cave!  She helped hubby up onto the nearest boulder and cautioned him about getting too close to the edge.  Meanwhile, my mama who thinks she’s still a spry young thing herself, decides it might be a great idea to go around the cliff along the bottom edge below where hubby and the Lithowanian girl are standing.  I stood, shaking my head, thinking “what on earth are you doing, old woman?” I tried yelling to caution her to put down her camera and walking sticks – she was trying to climb with hands full, never a good idea! Before I could get out all words…yup!  She slipped!  I went Oh! And she was laughing so hard she couldn’t right herself! She was fine and didn’t get any better view than hubby!  She did a few precarious jumps and slips along the way that day but no injuries at all – most of the time I have to remind myself that she’s 73!  However, by the end of the day – I’m pretty sure she was feeling every single inch of her age as was I – even hubby had to admit that was, how did he put it? Challenging.  Very challenging.  But oh so beautiful.  I was worried that we would need to call ahead and let them know that we would be later than 6pm but we made it in less than 10 hours at around 530pm!  But we could barely raise our legs to walk!  The B&B owner, June, was very friendly and helpful despite being extremely busy! She even made arrangements for our packs to be forwarded every single stage! And Mum and I had our first Haggis, neeps and mashed tatties smothered in gravy! Mmmyum!  I was a bit worried that indigestion would keep us awake but – nae bother! *Grin*  

Next day – Sunday – we set off, slowly…oh so slowly…towards Tyndrum.  21.25 km.  It was definitely an easier walk but Mum and I were still stiff from the day before – we stopped at Derryderoch cottage and decided to slather on some Ibuprofen ointment on our lower backs and hips! Ah…not long after, things loosened up and the walk was easier.  We reached the fork in the road where we were hoping to go into Crianlarich for a bite of lunch because we did not get a packed lunch – bit of a mistake on our part because it would have added 3 km onto our already long walk – needless to say, Mum and I refused , telling hubby that we had leftover toast and jam from breakfast, an apple, 2 oranges and a banana and 2 bags of chips (crisps) and some biscuits! Good enough! Let’s keep on!  We actually made really good time and got into Tyndrum before 4pm!  We decided – okay – hubby decided – that we would walk down the road a bit to get a drink at the Inn since our B&B would not accept us until 4pm!  We found the Green Welly Stop too – but more about that in the next post! By the time we got back to our B&B, it was 4:10pm – as we walked up to the front door it began to pour!! Huge drops of rain – so we huddled together under the tiny awning  and, as instructed by the sign that said to ring the bell and wait, I rang the bell – of which there were two, a big grey one and a small brass one – I chose to ring the big grey one, it made a lovely loud ring  – and then waited.  And waited. Mother, very grumpily demanded that I ring again. I patiently reminded her that it did say to ring the bell and wait….mother said, well I would have ring it again!  Okay…so I rang it again.  And again waited…finally after 12 minutes I decided to call the number listed – and we heard the phone ring quite loudly inside the house and then a man answered – I explained who we were and that we had a booking – he asked if I’d ring the bell – I said twice – he said, which bell – I said the big grey one and he said oh well he hadn’t heard it and would be down shortly – and mother loudly said we’re standing here in the pouring rain – he’d better hurry up!  My, my, my.  Hubby started to laugh – guess you’re tired huh?  Ya think? However, that was the beginning of very good night and one of the best so far – apart from Balmaha when I met my half-brother John and his family!  

To say it’s been hard would be an understatement – but it’s been fantastic as well!  And the grin on hubby’s face has been pretty much non-stop! I’m pretty sure Mum is really proud of herself – as we are – the scenery is beautiful and the people we meet are interesting and there’s still a few miles – and a few more stories – to go!  

Talk at you later.  Cheers!

Never Trust a Scotsman!

Never trust a Scotsman! I know, I know – I can already hear the uproar from my Scottish relatives – but it’s true!  All week we’ve been told “Och, Aye!  It’s just a wee flat walk, an easy 7 mile! No bother a tall!”  A wee flat walk my arse!  The first day was 19 km – not too bad but really hot and long – it would have been bad enough on its own but add in the full pack and yeah it was a struggle.  And then yesterday’s “wee walk” from Drymen to Balmaha was 12 kms but included Conic Hill – with an incline of 361 m and lots of up up up – but beautiful views.  Today, as we started off from our B&B in Balmaha – we were told “Och, it’s nae bother – fairly flat with a few wee ups and downs but easier than Conic Hill”.  Right.  Okay, another 12 km relatively flat no steep ups – we got this.  We did the 12 km yesterday in 4 hours – a bit slow – we could probably do today’s 12 km a bit faster given that there’s no Conic Hill.  Right?  Definitely not right!  It took us 5 1/2 hours and was definitely not flat!  There was so much up and up and then down and down and then up and up with stairs and so on!  Thankfully it was not a hot day and we even had a bit of rain and a nice steady breeze.  It didn’t help that Mum got a bit nauseous and ill and ad to stop to be sick but I have to say that I am super impressed with and so very proud!  She is doing incredibly well – despite the upset tummy – and, as predicted, I am bringing up the rear!  But having said that, we both realize that we’re too slow.  Tomorrow our walk is double the length of today’s, as is the following day’s walk!  The only problem is that neither Mum not I can walk any faster if there are hills!  Mum’s lungs can’t accommodate the incline and I can’t seem to lift my darn left leg high even for the steps!  Not only that but we’ve been told that the last quarter of tomorrow’s walk is the “hardest part with lots of scrambling over logs and rocks and if you can do that you can do all of it”.  So, given how tough we found today and how slow we walked the 12km – mum and I have decided to send our packs ahead and not carry anything but the most important for weather changes! Even Hubby is going to lighten his pack and take only the essentials!  Hopefully we can make it to our next B&B in under 1o hours! 

I did have an ah-ha moment today.  The two young women we met yesterday at our B&B walked the same path we did today but without packs.  We left well before them but they quickly caught up to us and one of the gals asked to try out packs to see if she could do it – she picked up mine and said “yeah that’s nae too bad, I could carry that” and then she lifted Mum’s and said “oh, this one’s a bit heavier!” And then picked up hubby’s and said “oh right that’s a good bit heavier yeah? But still not bad”.  The other gal picked up Mum’s pack and said “oh my that’s heavy! I couldn’t do that! I’m just so impressed with you!  You’re amazing!”  Which all made me feel like a real moaner and complainer especially when I picked up Mum’s pack and realized it was, in deed, heavier than mine!  I’m not going to complain anymore….honest.  Really.  Well, I’ll try anyway…

Back to the lying Scots….you simply can’t believe a word they say!  About anything.  Ever.  The weather, the midgies, the distances (one map says one thing and another says something else altogether), the degree of difficulty for the stages of the walk and I’m certain there are other things but it may take too long and I’m pretty tired so g’night all and stay tuned about how fast or slow we manage things tomorrow.  Cheers.

A Fine Start

We are here in Scotland…its been a fine start!  The weather has been amazing…sunny, warm with just a light breeze to keep us from sweltering.  I could start by telling you all that Mum got “tipsy” on the flight over – apparently NOT her fault that the steward gave her not one but two bottles (one glass size each) of red wine, just in case he said, and she HAD to drink them both because she didn’t want to waste them!  If you know Mum at all then you probably also know that she rarely drinks but will occasionally have a glass of red wine and that half a glass usually makes her silly so you can imagine what’s she was like with two full glasses of red wine on a fairly empty stomach – I could tell you ..but I said I wouldn’t….oh well…it won’t be the last time I did something I said I wouldn’t, especially when it’s really funny!  Between hubby, who is a bit of a dawdler in airports who gets easily sidetracked, especially when there is whisky involved, and Mum’s escapades with wine, and dropping things (a samosa went flying under the table followed by a spoon) and having her ink pen burst on her (that was messy) followed by “misplacing” her comb, lip balm and SD memory card for her camera, I feel like I’m looking two 3-year-old who keep getting into things they shouldn’t! It’s so bad that I’ve taken to drinking only soda and black current just so I can stay ahead of them and make sure they’re doing what they ought to be doing!  …. Okay, maybe that’s a tad bit of an exaggeration, but it’s not that far off!

We did have a rather git of a taxi driver from Glasgow to Milngavie….he was not happy to be picking up tourists with a foreign mobile phone number (he’d gotten the number wrong and tried to blame it on the gal who set up the taxi ride butvhaving retread the email, the number was correct on our end and wrong on his end, meaning he reversed two numbers but wouldn’t take responsibility) and wanted to charge me for the call! He complained about cold , wet, weather and had a pissy attitude that only changed once he learned that both Mum and I were born here!  However, he did get us to our starting point safely so I guess that’s all that matters! Welcome to Scotland. When are you leaving?

Our accommodations so far though have been lovely and easy to find.  The walk today from Milngavie (apparently pronounced Mil guy) to Drymen (pronounced Drimm en) was 19 kms, fairly flat but it was hot and muggy which made it seem hotter than it most likely was and add to that carrying a 7 or 8 kg pack for the first time in Mum’s case to a long time in mine!  But we did it!  Mind you by the time we got to our B&B for the night, our hips, shoulders and banks were fairly screaming at us!  First stop? Pharmacy for 400 mg tablets of Ibuprofen!  Then dinner and a drink…laundry…bed. Hubby and Mum are both sound asleep while I am sitting here ready about tomorrow’s walk – only 10.5 km but with a moderate/stiff gadients on Conic Hill (1184 ft/361m) and with weather similar to today’s – but to not do Conic Hill and bypass it by walking along the paved highway would mean missing out on some amazing scenery! Yeah, but it’s a stiff gradient…yeah, but it’s only 10.5 km!  Well, I do have 400 mg tabs of ibuprofen so why not?  Let’s just hope there are no snake-like animals (Adders) or legless lizards (slow worm) and no red wine for you know who!  

Talk at ya later! Cheers!

Are we ready?

Tomorrow’s the day! Are we ready? In the past two days I have finally packed…and unpacked…and packed again…and unpacked…and packed, again.  Then panic set in…where’s this? Where’s that? It was here, I know it was! Wasn’t it? I know I saw it, didn’t I? Hubby got home from work last night and asks me if I got the duct tape and bubble wrap….the what? Why? Oh…um…no, I completely forgot.  Wait, did you actually ask me to buy that because last I heard you were supposed to have done that on your days off?  I’m quite certain Mum will back me up….snicker, hah! She’ll probably back hubby up!  Crap! I honestly don’t remember being asked to pick that stuff up.  Hubby wants to wrap his and mum’s walking sticks for the flight…mine on the other hand, fold up into a foot long bag of their own and fit neatly into my pack.   Gotta admit, I feel a bit smug on that one.  Okay, so today I have to pick up duct tape, bubble wrap and a head lamp because apparently I misplaced mine…darn and it was a good head lamp! I’m pretty sure hubby has it in his hiking box down in the truck but he says, without looking I might add, that no it’s not.  There’s something else I need to get today too but I can’t quite remember what it is….oh, and Mum and I are attending a baby shower this afternoon too – the newest member of our family, baby Aurora, my Great-niece and Mum’s newest Great-Grand-Daughter – is only 12 days old.  Kind of nice to have something other than packing and unpacking and packing to do but…I have to remember to pick up that stuff and that other thing that I can’t quite….

I have a confession to make.  For the past few months I have been telling – advising – Mum that she has to get out and break in her boots and carry her pack so it’s not all a shock to her body all at once….but, yesterday was the first time in over a year that I actually picked up my packed backpack and strapped it onto my back!  But, you know, it felt great!  I was surprised but hubby laughed and said I’d been in training for the last 7 1/2 months!  I have? He grinned, yeah, carrying baby Ellie!  I guess that’s true!  I carried Ellie to the other side of Edith Lake and back when Mum and I and Ellie went to visit my Dad’s memorial plaque a few weeks ago.  And when I babysit her (which was fairly frequently when Nic and Coley played Slo-pitch), I often carry her in my arms when she gets sleepy and wants a nap.  I guess Grandma duties have been good for me in more ways than I thought! So thank you, Ellie Bear, for helping make me stronger!   I know that I am definitely in better shape than I was when I left for Spain last year, but not as good as when I returned…my legs don’t feel quite as strong and I have a wee tire around my belly.  I hope that the first couple of days walking will ease me in gently so that by the time we reach the Devil’s Staircase (more on that in future posts), I should be okay.  I hope.  Now, if I can just get my head around the pronunciation of some of the villages we will be staying in….hmmm, and what was it I am supposed to pick up today?  Something…..some things….

Talk at ya later.  Cheers.

Underwear vs long johns

So, what do you call long undergarments you wear beneath your clothes to keep warm?  Personally I call them “Long Johns”.  Mum, on the other hand calls them “Underwear”.  Now, here’s the thing….I call underwear, well, you know, underwear.  Like, underpants, bras, briefs, panties…you know, underwear!  Now, this may seem like a silly thing to debate but when one is shopping with Mum for Scotland, it’s very confusing.  I asked her what she still needed and she said, “underwear” and I asked, “regular or lightweight?” And she said “oh definitely lightweight”… So I sent her to the underwear department and she’s there for a long time. When I finally go look for her, she’s looking irritated and the sales clerk is really looking confused.  When I ask what’s wrong, she says there’s no underwear here.  Okay, um…we’re surrounded by underwear but I look at the clerk and start laughing, shake my head and shrug as if to say “seniors!” And I ask Mum what size and she tells me and then I ask what color and she says black.  Black? Umm..aren’t your pants light coloured? Yeah. Um, okay…but you want black underwear? Yeah.  So I show her a few different styles and she looks at me like I’m nuts.  Then she starts laughing.  Not underpants, she says, underwear…long ones to keep warm.  Penny drops! Now who’s the senior?  You mean “long johns”? No. She says, I mean long underwear…and so it goes… The debate goes back and forth….So what would you call them?  Underwear or long johns?  All I know is that for a few hours I had a headache but she did eventually find long underwear.   Yup, Scotland is going to be fun.  Oh and apparently, a couple of days ago it was 30c in the Highlands….might not need those long things afterall😏.

More to come…hang on, it’s gonna be quite the ride!

Cheers.

There’s what?

Yippee! We got the Info Pack in the mail from Gemini Walks in Scotland – http://www.geminiwalks.com –  outlining our accommodations, maps, and guide book about the West Highland Way as well as various other goodies.  Now, I am one of those people who will sit and read every single piece of literature line by line, cover to cover because, well, you can’t be too careful and who needs unwanted surprises, right? Yeah, well, I kinda wish I hadn’t read quite so much.  Two things I found out that I’d be better off not knowing, honestly. 

The first thing is the elevation gains and losses toward the end of our walk…scary.  I’m pretty sure Mum was having second thoughts after she saw the diagram showing the elevations and her jaw literally dropped….and she slowly looked at me and said “We have to hike that?” Yeah, not to worry, I’m intimadated by the diagram too but in reality it’s not as bad as it looks…well, okay, maybe it is….it’s definitely longer than, say, the Abby Grind and we are breaking it up a bit more by doing it over 9 days rather than the average of 6 days…that should help.  I hope.  Hubby of course just laughed and said that some of our training hikes were steeper. Well, maybe some of his training hikes!   I reminded Mum that we do have the option of sending our packs ahead to our next night’s accommodation and that made her smile, a bit.  I think now she knows why I have been hard on her regarding what to pack and what to leave behind.  I mean, you don’t need three pairs of pants – you only need one to wear and one to change into while doing laundry. Same with socks and shirts and undies. I’m pretty sure I will be pulling more out of her pack before we leave.

Now, if you know me at all then you will know that I have a rather strong phobia when it comes to….snakes.  Hate them.  Even the thought of them make me feel ill.  The sight of them can make me vomit.  I cannot even look at a picture of a snake.  I certainly can’t even touch a picture of a snake.  So when walking, don’t tell me if a snake slithers along in front of you, just calmly advise me to stop and rest a minute while the vile creature slithers out of sight.  Do not. Ever. Try to show me a snake. Ever. Not a dead one.  Definitely not a live one. Ever.  No joke.  Mum on the hand will pick the things up, alive or dead and move them out of the way…ugh!!! So, here I was calmly reading the guide book and I get to a paragraph that literally took my breath away.  I quote..”The only snake-like animals” … let me pause right there….take a moment …. “Snake-like animals”?  Snake-like?  Animals?  Um…okay…”The only snake-like animals you might see are the”….oh my GOD….”are the adder”…okay…stop right there.  Snake-like animals.  Correct me if l’m wrong.  Isn’t an adder a snake? Not snake-like but actually a snake?  And not just a snake but a poisonous snake?  Nothing snake-like about that! Nothing.  It is a flipping snake!!!! Okay…breathe.  Okay.  Continue.  “are the adder and the ‘slow worm'” Shudder.  Um…slow-worm? Apparently it’s “neither a snake nor a worm but a legless lizard”.  Let that sink in a bit.  A legless lizard.  Ummm…okay, a snake is pretty much a legless lizard…isn’t it?  I mean, honestly who wrote this stuff?   Snake-like animals and legless lizards and slow-worms?? And then it continues, “adders are poisonous but normally not dangerous” …..poisonous but not dangerous? I’m having a huge anxiety attack.  My breathing has increased, my pupils have dilated and I have broken out into a cold, cold sweat.  But “should you meet one, leave it alone and watch carefully from a distance”.  Seriously?  Should I meet one, you can bloody well guarantee I’ll be leaving it alone!! “An adder has an obvious zig-zag pattern and moves faster”.  Faster than what? A slow-worm that is neither  a snake nor a worm but a legless lizard? Or faster than say, oh I don’t know…me? Running in the opposite direction after having tossed my pack at the slithering ugly snake-like animal?? Seriously! Was that paragraph meant to reassure me?  To make matters worse, I failed to notice the picture at the bottom of the page.  The picture my thumb was resting on.  Yeah. The picture of the ugly disgusting snake-like, legless lizard that’s neither a snake nor a worm.  Crap!   I practically threw the book across the room at Mum and hubby who, by the way, both laughed hysterically while I managed to read them the paragraph.  All I can say is..I’d much rather deal with midgies than any snake-like animals!!  I’m still kinda of sickly panicked about that whole aspect.  I’m trying hard to move on but I keep going back to that paragraph.  I feel a bit hysterical myself but certainly not with laughter.  Ugh.  Shudder.  Ew….shudder. Ugh. Please, please, please, do not let there be any sightings of any snake-like animals of any kind.  None. Zip. Zero. Nada.  Please.  

We’ve got less than two weeks to go.  Packing is almost done.  Reservations and plans are just about complete.  I feel confident.  Knock on wood.  Just…no more info about snakes or snake-like animals.  Let’s just move on.  Better get us out hiking with our loaded packs in the next two weeks…well, Mum and I at any rate. Hubby has been out hiking every day he’s had off and is currently hiking and camping along the Hudson’s Bay Heritage Trail with a pack that probably weighs about 50 lbs.  The man is looking lean and fit.  I really need to get cracking but with less than two weeks to go I think I’m about as fit as I’m likely to get!  Oh well….Look out Scotland….and all it’s creatures…here we come!

Talk at you again soon.  Cheers.

A New Trek…The West Highland Way, Scotland – 2016

 

So….Scotland!  West Highland Way.  208 km of trekking in the West Highlands of Scotland. Beautiful scenery. Heather. Castles. Ruins. Rain. Fog. Wind. Midgies. Haggis. Black pudding. Scottish breakfasts. Backpacks. Hiking boots. Sore feet. Hubby. Whisky – mustn’t forget the Whisky –  And a bonus walking companion – Mum.  Yup, I said mum…as in my 73-year-old mother, mum.  The woman who can run circles around anyone half her age.  The woman who regularly walks +20,ooo steps a day. I have no worries about her walking with us – my worry is more, can I keep up with her? She’s got the energy of someone half her age and I’ve recently been told that she is the “spice in life” – yup, Mama-Spice, that’s her for sure!  Between her and hubby, I think its safe to say that once again I will be bringing up the rear! So expect lots of backside photos of hubby and Mama-Spice!

So….I’ve spent the last 5 1/2 months researching and planning and, if you’ve been reading my blogs, then you know how much I just love the research and planning stage of a trip!  We will leave Vancouver on August 22nd and arrive back home again on September 15th. 24 days in total.  Mum and hubby have mostly left it up to me to decide what we do and how we do it, except that it must include walking the West Highland Way from Milngavie to Fort William, 208 km, over 9 days.  The rest of the vacation must also include some visits with relatives in Perth, Inverness, Dingwall and Aberdeen. Mum wants a traditional High Tea in Edinburgh.  Hubby also wants to go to Skye and Islay and as many Whisky Distilleries as possible! Every now and then he chirps up with yet another suggestion.  He’s got me crisscrossing and zigzagging all over the country! I feel exhausted just thinking about it but….No worries…I got this covered!  I’m a pro at planning now, right?….uh huh!

Enter Julie Deans from Gemini Walks, a tour company based in Falkirk, Scotland.  Julie has been a gem!  Full of information and facts and ideas!  With just a few short emails back and forth, we managed to book accommodations for the entire walk which we will do over the first 9 days with one extra at the end in Fort William to rest and relax – or hike Ben Nevis. Julie even managed to book us into mostly triple rooms or family suites in order to save Mum some money since traveling as a single practically doubles every thing!  Feels a bit like our last two weeks in Spain with our walking buddy Scott!  I also got in touch with hubby’s cousin, Dave, a wonderful man with a heart of gold who helped arrange things post-walk for us!  He and his lovely wife, Elaine, will join us for the last couple of days of our walk and then spirit us off to Skye for some sight-seeing before making sure we get to Inverness where I will pick up our rental car and drive us around Scotland for the rest of our vacation.  Yes, I get to drive.  Not hubby.  Not Mum. Me. Why? Because I rented a manual transmission – hey, it was cheaper than an automatic by almost half!  And anyway, maybe I haven’t mentioned this before, but hubby is an absolute nightmare of a driver especially when it comes to shifting gears in that he forgets to actually shift the gears!  And anyway I drive a manual every day so all I’ll  need to get used to is driving on the wrong side of the road and shifting with my left arm!  No problem! Should be easy…just…okay, don’t talk to me while I’m driving, please…just shush! Shush, I said!  Really, honestly, I need to concentrate!  What? I missed the exit in the roundabout?  Well, fine, I’ll just keep rounding about!  No problem…um…we could be in this roundabout all day…just…oh joy!  Maybe I should try to change that booking…I better give that some further thought…

I think it’s safe to say that things are under control…well, mostly.  We’ve pretty much decided that between Skye and Islay and Aberdeen and Braemar and Perth, we will kind of wing it and go with the flow and drive here and there and see and stay where we want, when we want.  If we like a village, we might stay.  If we see a castle ruin, we might stop.  If we see relatives, great.  If not, well…sorry.  Mostly this trip is about sharing an adventure with Mum.  It’s about doing another long distance walk. It’s about pushing our limits and expanding our boundaries.  It’s about enjoying ourselves. It’s about being okay with whatever happens along the way…and it’s about having FUN.  Life’s too short.  Enjoy it.    Love it.  Live it. Breathe.

Cheers.