Day 43 Loch Venachar to Inversnaid

Day 43 Loch Venachar to Inversnaid 

Kilometers: 19

The Glasgowans at my campsite had a very good time last night; me not so much. I think they were up until around 2.30 - 3 am, playing music the whole time. They had thought they'd be alone at the campsite and I didn't want to ruin their evening. Thankfully I liked the music! I woke up about 2 hours after they went to bed and couldn't sleep, so I got up, packed my things and went on my way. The morning was cloudy but the sun soon came out and it turned into another lovely day ☀️ 

   

After about 11 kilometers I reached Loch Katrine, a bit tired after my not so great night.

I found a cafe! At lunchtime! It was at the southern end of Loch Katrine and as I was sitting there someone asked if I was going on the steamship? Steamship?? Apparently there's a steamship that runs along most of the lake, 11 kilometers, walking would be 21 kilometers and so far today I hadn't seen a single place to camp.

What to do? On a LEJOG you're supposed to walk every step of the way, but with all the problems I've had so far it's too late for that. Besides, after a great day yesterday, today has been a bit difficult for the knee. I decided to take the steamship. I'll never come back here again, this is my only chance.

   The Sir Walter Scott.

What a lovely boat ride! The views were stunning and the steam engine was quiet, making the trip very pleasant.

   Beautiful views for an hour.

After leaving the steamship I joined the Great Trossachs path towards Inversnaid. At first it felt so nice to be on a trail instead of a road, but it wasn't long before my knee started protesting, so the next chance I got I took a trail down to the road. Of course there was a locked gate, but I assumed it's to keep people out, not in, so I climbed over it (I'm getting very good at climbing locked gates!). It was now getting very hot and I had to walk as much as possible in the shade of the few trees along the road. 

   A world on a rock.

   There's a reason I don't like them.

I had reservations for a tent at Inversnaid Bunkhouse but managed to get a bed in a dorm instead. There are four of us in here, the others are doing the West Highland Way, which I will be on tomorrow .

There's no place to cook your own food so I had dinner at the restaurant. They cooked a special meal for me, chicken salad with fries, and made sure to check what I couldn't eat. And it was soo good! Another WHW hiker joined me at my table and it was very nice to have someone to talk to again! He's the first hiker I'v met so fat who knows what The Great Outdoors Challenge is, he's even done it a couple of times. 

   Moonrise just as I was going to bed.

I'm finding this walk increasingly lonesome, thankfully the Challenge is coming up soon!

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

Day 42 Callander to Loch Venachar

Day  42 Callander to Loch Venachar

Kilometers: 11

My room at the Frederick House Hotel was very nice and quiet, but I didn't sleep well, I don't know why.

The morning started very nicely, when a complete stranger paid for my breakfast, £15! The hotel is very close to Tiso, a great sports and outdoors shop, so I went there to buy a gas canister. Then back to the hotel to get my backpack and check out. I took the Fort William bus to Callander where I started my walk towards Oban. And for some reason I only had to pay half price, £9 instead of £18! 

When I arrived in Callander it was time for lunch, so I stopped at a cafe and then it was finally time to start walking. 

An old cemetery in Callander. The little building is a guard house, to deter people from stealing newly buried corpses.

The day started out cloudy but after a while the sun came out and it turned into a very nice day. 

   Gorse

Loch Lomond and the Trossachs is one of the places in Scotland where wild camping is regulated. In the most popular areas you either have to camp at a campground or wild camp in one of the few places where it is allowed. And to do that you need a permit. Ony route there wasn't much to choose from, I had to either stop at the first campground or continue until I'd passed the regulated zone. I chose the first campground, not very far from Callander, but since I started late I think it was perfect. Also, today would be the first time I pitched my new tent (a Durston x-mid 2 solid for those of you who want to know), so I was glad to have a little extra time.

   First pitch, not too bad!

   Dinner!

   My view tonight 

My neighbors are 6 men from Glasgow, very nice but I don't understand a word they say. One of them came up to me and started talking and I was just going to ask him to repeat what he said when I realized he was offering me the use of their kayak! I didn't take him up on it, Loch Venachar is a reservoir with a dam at one end, not going there. Besides, the water is extremely cold!

I saw quite a few midges tonight, but they're still the non biting kind (males?). But it's too early!

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

Travel Day

Travel Day

After two weeks at home I'm back in Edinburgh for a night. Early this morning my husband took me to the airport where I got on the first plane to Stockholm Arlanda Airport, where I met my sister for fika. It's been ages since we last met and I really enjoyed it! 

Second flight of the day, Stockholm Arlanda to Edinburgh.

I usually pack my backpack in an Ikea Frakta bag, I also usually tape it shut. When I removed the tape at Edinburgh airport today it tore open. I'm so glad I had taped it! To be fair this was the third time I used the bag and considering the price I'm not surprised.

   Edinburgh skyline.

I took the tram from the airport and went straight to Tiso to buy a gas canister, but I was 8 minutes late, they just closed. My hotel is close by, so I'll do it in the morning. It means I'll have to take a later bus, but I'm not walking far tomorrow so it will be fine.

Meanwhile I have a nice room with lots of space for all my stuff 😀

One day I want to walk up Arthur's Seat, the hill in the photo.

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

Rest days

Rest days

In Malham I injured my right knee and found it very difficult to keep walking. My husband suggested I go back home for a rest, so here I am. The day after I came home I went to see my chiropractor, who said that my knee was swollen and that I should rest properly before I go out for walks again. I haven't done any walking in almost two weeks now and a couple of night ago was the first night I didn't have any cramps in my legs or ankles. I usually get cramps on longer walks, but it's never been this bad before. Usually it's just one night, not a week.

Our neighbors visit daily.

Anyway, I've now bought plane tickets back to Edinburgh. I will turn my LEJOG into a flip-flop, that is it will not be sequential. My physiotherapist said that going home again for a rest in June would be good for me. This means that when I arrive to Scotland I will start my middle Scotland section and walk for a couple of weeks, then go home for another rest and finish with northern England, southern Scotland and northern Scotland later, trying to make sure best I can that I walk the whole thing, just not in order. I guess I'll have to accept the fact that I'm not twenty years old anymore! 

The reason for the flip-flop is that early May I'm due to start The Great Outdoors Challenge, a yearly event where approximately 400 people plan their routes own routes starting on the Scottish west coast and finishing on the east coast two weeks later. My route takes me from Oban to Montrose on a mostly very easy route. When I arrive in Edinburgh I'll walk to my Oban start and after finishing in Montrose I'll continue north from there.

Link to the Challenge site

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

 

Horton in Ribblesdale to Edinburgh

Horton in Ribblesdale to Edinburgh

I woke up to a cloudy day, with rain off and on. At the hostel last night I shared a room with Kirsty, an ultra runner from Scotland and Antoine, a Three Peaks challenger from France. Kirsty and I went to the Crown pub, very nice. While I was there I tried to buy train tickets to Edinburgh, but it just didn't work. Tree times the app reserved money on my bank account but I didn't get the tickets. I know I'll get the money back eventually  but it's a bit annoying! Just after 8 pm (on a Friday night) I tried to call the train company, but of course there was no reply. Instead, I tried to WhatsApp them and they replied! Apparently, if there is no ticket office and no ticket machine I can pay on the train. So much better service than Sweden! I chose between Edinburgh and London as my hub for going back home, but decided on Edinburgh. London is so big and going to and from the airport takes longer. Besides, I just spent a couple of days there before starting my LEJOG.

I got to the train station in plenty of time which was lucky. The train I had planned on taking was very delayed, it wasn't even possible to buy tickets for it today, but luckily I was in time for the earlier one. In Leeds I changed to a train to York, where I changed for the final train to Edinburgh. The journey from Horton-in-Ribblesdale to Edinburgh took around six hours. 

Many trains have special areas for bikes and on many of them you can also reserve your space beforehand. Also better than Sweden! 

The day has been cloudy and quite dark, but shortly before I arrived to Edinburgh the sun came out. When I arrived I first took the tram to the airport to see if I could fly out today. There was however no one that could help me and I didn't want to wait for three hours until check-in for the next plane to Stockholm, so I took the tram back to Edinburgh. My first stop was FOPP, where I bought a couple of Blu-rays/DVDs, then to my hotel. I only after I knew I couldn't fly out today and the prices were a bit steep, or maybe they're always steep in Edinburgh, I don't know. Anyway, I booked at the Old Waverly on Princes Street, a very nice surprise. Apart from the elevator! As I was walking towards it the doors were closing, so I stretched out my hand to keep it open. The door hit my hand very hard, it immediately swelled up and I've still got a large bruise a week later. 

After leaving my backpack, the DVDs and Blu-rays and everything I didn't need in my new room (very nice room, just wish I had a walk-in shower, since the knee will be a problem with the bathtub) I went for a walk along Princes Street.

You can't go to Edinburgh without posting photos of the castle!

I spent a long time at Waterstones looking for a couple of books, but they didn't have them, so I walked back to my hotel. On the way I saw a MacDonalds and realized I was very hungry! My plan had been to make one of my hiking dinners, for which I only need boiling water, but my feet led me to the MacDonalds with one of the best views in the UK, maybe even the world? I had a view of Princes Street Gardens, the old town and the Scott Monument.

Sir Walter Scott Monument.

The evening was spent repacking my backpack and (new) shoulder bag, where I packed anything fragile or necessary, and went to bed ready to fly home tomorrow.

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig och skriva om du vill vara anonym eller inte, så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

Day 41 Malham to Horton in Ribblesdale

Day 41 Malham to Horton in Ribblesdale

Kilometers: 

Last night was a bit difficult with pain in my back, hips and right knee, which is also stiff and a bit difficult to bend. If I wasn't on a tight schedule I'd stay here another day, but that would mean that I probably wouldn't get to Scotland in time for my TGOC start. I've had a feeling for some time that my body is too old for this, I need more time to rest and recuperate.

I wanted to take a bus or taxi up to Malham Cove (the stairs I came down yesterday), but there is no bus going north from here and no taxi service, and I don't think I could have made it all the way to Horton-in-Ribblesdale, my goal for today. So, I took the bus to Skipton where I got on the train to Horton. I left my backpack at the hostel and went for a walk. I wanted to see how my knee was really doing, so I set off for Pen-y-Ghent.

   Pen-y-Ghent from the train station.

This is how far I got. It's hard to see in the photo, but it's very high. My knee hurt and I was thinking "I wouldn't do that at home, so why should I do it here, and with a bad knee?" 

Walking back towards Horton in the distance.

   The eluding Pen-y-Ghent

Now I'm sitting on my bed wondering what to do and what my options are. My husband suggested I go home and return when my knee is better. I have some serious thinking to do tonight!

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig och skriva om du vill vara anonym eller inte, så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9

Day 40 Malham - Rest day

Day 40 Malham - Rest day

Kilometers: 10

Rainy and windy day! In the morning it was just cloudy. I had decided to take a walk to Gordale Scar and Janet's Foss. It was supposed to start raining around lunch time, but I was so tired this morning that I got a bit of a late start.

   Still the same river as yesterday!

Entering the land of Janet, queen of the fairies.

   Janet's cave

I can understand why people thought fairies lived here, it looked truly magical!

   Janet's Foss 

   At the top.

Entering Gordale Scar. It was created when a rock system collapsed a very long time ago.

   The end of the trail

See the man who tries to continue? I don't know how he did, I had just decided to visit Malham Cove on the way back, so I left before it started to rain too much. It wasn't too far and I'd read that it was so beautiful.

Malham Cove from above. See that rock ledge across the top? It looks so nice and flat, I couldn't understand why people were walking so slowly. When I got there it wasn't flat at all, it was a huge field of differently sized rocks, both large and small, and it was a bit difficult to cross. I'm so glad I had my poles! And that wasn't the end of it. Walking up had been easy but going down was hard. There was a very long staircase where the steps were of different height and width/depth. For a couple of days now I've had some slight knee pain off and on, probably from all the walking. Going down the stairs was difficult! I was very careful, stepping down mostly with my right leg first. That's the knee I hurt two years ago when I fell and damaged the meniscus. But the left knee is a bit painful as well. Let's see how it feels tomorrow!

   And Malham Cove from below 

   I found a clapper bridge 

I ended up walking 10 kilometers and lots of up and down on my planned rest day, so my legs are still just as tired as yesterday 😂

Om du vill stötta min insamling utan att ange adress osv, så kan du swisha mig och skriva om du vill vara anonym eller inte, så betalar jag in motsvarande summa i pund.

My fundraiser, Rare Cancers research ❤️

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/ullas-giving-page-9