Day 4 - Wed. 23 May 2012
Roybridge - Fort Augustus
53km - 1042hm - 5h
I spent a long time yesterday thinking about how to proceed and finally decide to take the train that runs through Roybridge to Fort William at 9.30am and back to Roybridge at 12 noon to start today's leg of the journey. Loch Ness to start. It should work, although I'm also prepared for the stretch up to the climb to the Corrieyairack Pass I only have a GPS track, but no route description. It's part of the three-day Ben Nevis Loop, but at least a few kilometres are marked on the map as a path and you never know. The Corrieyairack shouldn't be a problem, because the path over it is an old military road, one of General Wade's military roads, built in 1731 at the time of the Jacobite uprisings.
What the hell, I've got a tent and there's a bothy at the start of the Corrieyairack climb.
I leave my luggage at the campsite and drive to the railway station, which is very close by. The train to Fort William takes about 20 minutes. It's the same line I travelled on to Bridge of Orchy. The line runs from Orchy through Rannoch Moor, past Loch Treig and then westwards via Roybridge to Fort William, so it takes a wide berth around all the mountains I've crossed in the last few days.
The railway station in Fort William is right on the main shopping street. Here I get my methylatet spirit and wonder if there's nowhere safe from some things.
There is a bike shop right on the main road that makes a professional impression. They say that the tyre casing is patched from the inside with a piece of old casing and that the mechanic specialises in this.
I use the time to have my Scottish breakfast next door, this time the luxury version with grilled tomato and grilled mushrooms.
My bike is finished. However, it wasn't repaired as advertised, but a self-adhesive patch from Park-Tools was put on it. It wouldn't be a permanent solution, but would hold for the rest of the route, I was promised. Hm, well, Fort William is Scotland's capital for MTB downhill and has a World Cup course, so the guys will probably have a clue. I hope so.
Back on the train to Roybridge, loaded up my luggage and picked up my GPS from the friendly owners of the campsite (unfortunately the charging obviously didn't work), had a quick chat with them about the planned route and set off at around 1pm.
Weather: very hot.
Up to the General's Road, the route climbs the whole of Glen Roy, the first 14 kilometres comfortably on a single-track tar road, first through a sparse wood, then pastureland with sheep and lambs.
In Glen Roy there is the phenomenon of Parallel Roads. I didn't know about them beforehand and only photographed them by chance. On the slopes of the valley you can more or less recognise three parallel lines that look like roads from a distance. In fact, these are three narrow terraces that indicate the shoreline of a former lake that existed 13,500 years ago at the end of the Ice Age. The Swiss researcher Louis Agassiz came to this conclusion in 1840, substantiating the then new glacial theory, i.e. that there were ice ages at all.
At the end of the gravel track I pass the Luib Chonnal bothy.
At the end of the path there is a plain where cattle graze (a bit of a prairie), on the left before the forest you can see a barn and behind the forest it should go left up to the pass. But first I have to cross the trackless, boggy plain on foot, which is more tedious and time-consuming than expected and reminds me of Glen Nevis, especially because of the beloved bog ditches.
I take a break at the closed barn. Then I continue on a well-maintained gravel track to the Melgarve Bothy directly on General Wade's Military Road. There I meet two hikers who offer me a cup of tea. They ask me if I have met other hikers on the way, which I confirm and that they will probably need another two hours to get here. They have arranged to meet here to walk over the Corrieyairack together. They tell me that a book in the bothy records that three weeks ago the worst blizzard in 40 years raged on the Corrieyairack, hard to imagine with the glorious weather today.
Shortly before 6 pm I reach the Camping. It is also very well maintained, with a large meadow, good sanitary facilities and even washing machines. There is also a hostel in the village.
Before I set up the tent, I drive into town for my reward pint. The Lock Inn is located directly at the 5 barrages, which Loch Ness and the Caledonian Canal connect.
The pub is super quaint and packed. As I don't exactly smell of roses, I treat myself to a pint outside and, as the menu is full of promising fish dishes, I decide to treat myself to something tasty after setting up my tent and having a shower.
So first back to the campsite. A road cyclist is camped next to me who is doing a crossing of England, starting in London and finishing in Durness. Until 5 days ago he had been cycling in the rain all the time. Tomorrow he wants to take the direct route along Loch Ness via Inverness to Ullapool, which I won't reach for another 6 days as I'm taking a detour via Skye, Torridon and Fisherfield.
I return to the pub shortly after 9, it's less busy now, but the kitchen has just closed. Grmpfsh.
Well then: Uisge beatha. Lagavulin 16 yrs. Just the right stuff to bring monsters to life.
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