Thursday 29th May
Ug…
I have barely slept a wink. Worrying about my ankle, worrying about my options and what time I might get to Fort William. One thing I had failed to consider when I originally booked this trip and then benched it. I didn’t have any accommodation in Fort William sorted, and all the major hotels and bunkhouses were now full. The hotel I stayed in back in Milngavie 74 days ago (it’s possible my sense of time has slightly warped….) has a room but that means getting to Fort William in time to catch a train back. I check the train times and the last train of the day goes at 5:38pm. OK, to quote Matt Damon as Mark Watney
I reckon I can probably walk at 2mph at the moment at a reasonable limp. It’s a 16 mile leg tomorrow so figure that is 8 hours of walking less any breaks. I want to get to Fort William with time to spare to get my train so my plan was to be walking by 6am! I decide this at approx 3am….yeah sleep didn’t really happen. I book the hotel room and pay extra to allow me to cancel it if I need too if this plan goes to pot.
Around 5:30am I start getting myself sorted doing my best to be as quiet as I can and not disturb those camping around me. Outside it is raining. Sorry my grammar was wrong there. Outside it is RAINING… that’s better. I can hear and feel the rain pounding the outside of my tent and as I am sleeping in a wooded glade the rain is collecting into heavy globules and and blatting down on my flysheet with what feels like considerable force! I scoff down some food, mainly my last granola and a salami stick. I can’t even be bothered to try and get the stove going outside the tent to get some coffee on which is in direct contradiction to my daily required caffeine function/addiction.
I dig out my first aid kit. Contained therein I know there is a support bandage that has sat there for probably a decade, taken on every trip I have been on and never used, it sits there it’s purpose in life unfulfilled. I pop open the plastic wrapping and if this bandage had a voice I imagine it would say “It’s my time to shine!” I strap up my ankle, pop some more drugs and proceed to get dressed. I wrangle on my waterproofs inside the tent not really caring how wet I am getting everything. This should be my last day so it doesn’t really matter how clean the inside of my tent is! Trail runners on I break out into the rain, and it is every bit as nasty as it sounded, pack my tent up and set out on my way.
The climb out of Kinlochleven isn’t too bad. It’s a relatively steady climb up and ultimately connects onto the old military road to Fort William. My ankle is very stiff but seems to be ok on the uphill and I am encouraged by my progress. . . . and then my headphones break. They are absolutely sodden in the continuous downpour and have decided to just peace out. So today I have a further 15 miles to walk with just the thoughts in my head to keep me company….mother of god it’s worse than I thought!
The path continues to trend upwards and the weather somehow continues to get worse. I pass a couple of wild campsites with tents set up and resolutely zipped up! Eventually after what feels like miles, I pass over a small summit and the path starts to fall away gently in front of me. I managed to capture a picture in between squalls as I make my way down.
Doing down is definitely worse that going up, I can feel the pressure on my shin and ankle each left step down. Thank god I have walking poles! I time my use to put weight on them with every left step to help take some of that strain off. Just down the hill (and just visible in the middle of the picture. I would have taken another photo up close but my phone isn’t rated to the kind of water pressures found in the Mariana Trench of rain) is Tigh-na-sleubhaich. I’ll be honest I have NO idea how to say that and my apologies to any Scottish readers but this old cottage is very atmospheric sitting in the misty Glen. I believe it was an old Drovers stop but don’t quote me on that.
After several more miles and a couple of forded brooks at a pace that would have the average garden snail muttering under its breath that was far too sedate I get to the bottom of this long downhill. I need a break so find a rock to perch on and finish off the last of the flapjacks in my back and a chocolate bar. I really am not taking care of my fueling today. I am very much in a “this sucks and I need to get on with it” mentality. The path starts to turn north and in the distance I can see acres of forestry land which consumes the path. I apologise for the lack of photos on this step, it’s so wet that my phones touch screen is failing to recognise fingers swipes and touches. I try and dry it with my microfleece but it makes no difference what so ever.
The trail seems to skirt most of the forested areas, snaking it’s way down through a clear section before starting up a long sustained climb. I actually don’t mind this as going up is easier than coming down at the moment. It eventually comes out on a forestry road at the top and I am excited to see down in the distance the edges of Fort William…all the way down this hill….down this long long hill….arse. At this point I am starting to be passed by those that must have got on their way after my early start. Everyone is very friendly, a few stop to ask if I am ok and I explain my ankle. Most depart with a “take it easy and good luck!”. At this point I realise I am going to make it to fort william with plenty of time to spare to get the last train and now I am eager to make sure I have a ticket booked on it. I find a sheltered spot at the side of the path and dig out my sleeping top, almost the last bit of dry clothing I have. I wipe my phone as dry as I can and also my hand and manage after a couple of attempts to get into my phone and use it enough to book a train ticket! Result, everything is coming up Milhouse! Several miles of gentle ambling later the trail comes out on the road from the foot of Ben Nevis to Fort William. Only a couple of miles to go! At the end of this lane is the original ending to the west highland way noted with a trail symbol shaped sign.
The rain has started to finally abate and I snap a quick selfie before that last push to the new finish. The last couple of hundred metres before reaching the pedestrianised area of Fort William are along the A82 and it is incredibly busy with traffic, a jarring welcome back to urban civilisation. Thankfully it is over quickly and I get to the the main high street in Fort William which is thankfully open to pedestrian traffic only. I pass gift shops, whisky shops (which I may or may not pause in front of), pubs and restaurants before finally reaching the end and the fabled “Sore feet” statue. I get a couple of “well dones” from some fellow walkers who passed me earlier and have finished and are walking back into town. I tag the finish marker and plonk myself down very unceremoniously by the statue. A very kind local offers to take my picture and I grab my lucky Highland Coo out to join me.
West Highland Way – completed it mate.
I could end the blog here and thank you for joining me along the way and hope you enjoyed the journey type thing but I actually arrived at the statue almost exactly at 2pm so I have 3 1/2 hours to fill before catching my train back to Milngavie.
So…for those of you still here I grabbed my stuff and walked down the high street to a pizzeria I had noted on my way though, walked in and found a table. I ordered the largest meatiest pizza they had on the menu and a large glass of fanta before stripping out of my sodden waterproofs and take my seat. I phone MrsDodge and DaughterDodge to share the news I have finished and to send them the photo at the statue, congratulations are shouted and exclamations of pride made. In the background I hear my dog bark, obviously excited that something good has happened but having no idea what it is!
The pizza arrives and is devoured in the kind of times usually used to measure particle decay in supercolliders. It is gone faster than the light carrying the information can carry it to nearby patrons. Somewhere at CERN a gravitational wave detector blinks a curious anomaly from the Scotland area, scientists scratch their head and assume it is duff data. I have no idea if it was hunger or genuine pizza quality but it tastes like one of the best pizzas I have ever had. Ooo they have a desert menu too! I wonder how quickly I can eat a tiramasu
I still have a couple of hours to kill so wander off to a local supermarket to buy some food for the train later and a can of deodorant to make myself more tolerable to other train users! Then I head towards a charming little independent cinema I passed on the high street which looked like it had a cafe at the front. It is immediately obvious that several other hikers have had the same idea and I smile and nod a hello at some I recognise from the day. I order the largest coffee they are legally able to serve and sit myself down on a bench and charge my phone up. The coffee is delicious and I start to feel human again. After 6 days of nurturing battery life I feel the irresistible draw to connect to the online world and find out what I have missed the last few days….not on news sites…no I like my mental health thank you very much. But catching up with friends and sharing news of my finish. I guiltily remember that I was supposed to be blogging the trip and start to write a few notes down. The coffee is finished and I notice that they also serve drinks here. I try a couple of the local beers with the dark porter being my favourite!
Time passes by at a slow pace as I ease my way back into civilization but eventually it is time to walk down to the train station. I had carried in the very bottom of my pack a clean dry top and a change of underwear in a waterproof food bag to change into for the train trip. I use the bathroom to change and spritz myself in the deodorant before walking the short trip down to the station.
The platform feels like it is quite full however many board a train heading off to one of the coastal communities and by the time my train pulls in and everyone boards it is only maybe a third full. I stow my bag and settle down for the 4 hour trip to Milngavie station.
The train ride is….well…there is no other word for it…spectacular! If you walk the West Highland Way (and despite my injury towards the end I strongly encourage you to do so) I thoroughly recommend getting the train back to Glasgow or Milngavie whichever you are bound for. The train heads north of out Fort William before working its way through a river lined gorge and bursting out in harmonious isolation onto a remote track that takes you through the heart of the Highlands.
Passing Loch and Ben we work our way around and south, stopping at Corrour one of the most isolated stations in the country. There is a remote hotel there accessibly only on this train and some guests wave goodbye to the staff and board before we head on our way.
It is truly one of the best railway journies in the UK.
Eventually I make it back to Milngavie and have the 500m walk back to my hotel and car. I grab my overnight bag with clean clothes and wash kit, check in and collapse in my room! One invigorating shower later I decide to sort out my gear so I don’t have to do it in the morning. I open my pack and pull out a sodden tent and other walking paraphernalia before finding my food bag and opening it…..and finding six uneaten bags of porridge….
The next day was a 450 mile drive home, which I won’t go into detail of. It was fine, much coffee was drunk, podcasts listened to and I arrived home in the evening to hugs from Wife and Daughter and slobbered excitement from the dog and settled back into post trail home life.
I am going to finish this series with a final shill. The West Highland Way is a wonderful trail. And even with a lot of limping I had an amazing time. The views along the way are spectacular, the scenery ever changing and the weather unpredictable! Everyone I met was extraordinarily friendly, from fellow hikers to locals I bumped into and without exception every single establishment I went into the kindness and hospitality of the Scots was 1st class. As you are on a walking website I can assume that you have an interest in long distance trails and I would urge you to add the West Highland Way to your bucket list. I will do a follow up post at some point with the gear that I took with me if you are interested.
So that’s it folks. My West Highland Way. Thank you for getting this far! I haven’t written anything that wasn’t a JIRA ticket or SQL for the last 20 years so I hope you have enjoyed my meandering description of the journey!
Wherever you are in the world I wish you Happy trails!
Thanks,
Dodge
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