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.
Words Along My Way 