20 Jul 07 Fort William
We have arrived in Fort William after an overnight ride on the ScotRail sleeper train. That journey was one of the most surreal I’ve had… Strange squeaking, squealing and banging sounds broke up the night, making it difficult to get any sleep in the pitch black 4×6 foot cabin. I had visions we were riding in a tow trailer over fields of dead bodies. Creepy.
Surprisingly there is no mobile network in this town, the second largest we will visit along the walk, and I doubt there will be until Inverness. It’s unusual not to see people yapping on their phones or typing away their text messages. Fort William is tiny though - we’ve walked through it six times already and haven’t yet checked into the B&B! Weather is great though and we are after a shower we’ll go for a few hours walking in the Glen Nevis forested valley.
Tomorrow we walk to north Spean Bridge.
19 Jul 07 A hungry man smells meat far.
The title of this post comes from this page of Scottish phrases. I like to think I can smell meat far, too, so the phrase fits as good as any!
In a few hours we will be on a sleeper train to Fort William and will walk swarmed by midges up to Inverness. The Great Glen Way walk will take nine days for us, though more adventurous people might do it in 3-5 days.
I will endeavour to shoot a photographic diary of the trip and post the tales here on the blog afterwards. I expect we will see many kilts worn properly with a sporran. In fact I may be tempted to purchase a caseload of sporrans for all the men I know. So the question is, what will you use your sporran for?
14 Jul 07 New mode of transport
Last week I bought a lovely bicycle, and however tempted I was to go with the ‘Princess’ bike with the front wicker basket, I chose this more practical ride made for city commuters. This London summer has so far been dogged by outbursts of rain, but I’ve managed to avoid the bad weather and have been riding regularly. I still need to get lights for front and back for night visibility, and Matt strongly suggets I get a helmet too. Where will I find a subtle helmet that doesn’t appear to be made for either Tour de France riders or for use at the roller derby?
To be cautious I have tried to ease into the experience of riding in major traffic, especially as I need to learn how to properly ride in the left side of the road. If I’m unsure of what to do I just cross through junctions as a pedestrian and start pedaling again when I’m comfortable. In reality I have adjusted quite well and have no trouble cycling to and from home via Commercial Road, even with its multiple unexpected obstacles including impatient motorcyclists who weave round cars at high speeds, and of course the mad lorry drivers! Cyclists share the bus lanes here so there’s more room for safe travel.
Traveling across Tower Bridge on a cycle is especially lovely, though the two-way skinny lanes make crossing a bit squeezy and I have possibly already felt the brush of a side-mirror on my arm. Drivers do seem to be aware and courteous of the numerous cyclists in the roads though, which is good.
Now we just need some sunny days so I can take leisurely 20-mile rides west to Richmond…
GET FED: