The Ecstasy of Wilderness: June 2009

I embarked on my 2nd 6-day walk this easter holiday...this time...Scotland! The West Highland Way was the first official long-distance footpath in Scotland, and has been sensitively waymarked with its symbol - a white thistle within a hexagon. Ever since, it has become a pilgrimage for mountain lovers who are keen to travel simply on foot into the heart of the Scottish Highlands. Indeed!....but actually I had to admit I got quite sick of mountains after 6 days of seeing mountains!

Early in the morning, I caught the train from Newcastle to Milngavie, changing at Edinburgh and Glasgow. Lots of hassle, but there was no other direct train. Finally, the long distance walk began! There was a very special feeling when I crossed under the big sign - "WEST HIGHLAND WAY". It was a bit of pride (that I was going to do the whole Way), and lots of anticipation and excitement.

The first 10km of the Way provided easy walking along gentle paths through amenity parks and woodland leading me quickly out of the suburbs into genuine countryside. My first impression of the way was that it was an easy but boring one, just because it was still very close to civilisation. I realised that my expectations had grown as I completed more hikes. Some scenery which had impressed me previously seemed boring now. The path was very well-marked, hence it was quite impossible to get lost. :) Very good, at least I could immerse myself in the scenery totally without having to worry at every junction.

I passed Craigallian Loch with its surprise views of the rugged Campsie Fells, before I arrived on an indistinct ridge overlooking Blane Valley. From here there were distant views to the Highlands tantalising me with the splendour of the hills that were to come. A superb descent across open grassland drained by tiny streams took me round the pretty wooded knoll of Dumgoyach to the valley bottom.

Next the Way followed the bed of a disused railway...Straight and level...a little boring too. Finally it passed the pretty sandstone hamlet of Gartness before turning into Drymen - a large and bustling village where I had been 2 months ago. The first day of walk was over. Simple, straightforward. Only took 4.5hours. Great sunny weather.

I would be spending my 1st night at a friend's house/B&B - David and Frances Lander. They apparently forgot I was arriving that day. Haa!!! But it was a good surprise/shock! Then it was catching up with people I've met not too long ago, helping out in the gardens a bit, and watching movie in the cosy living room. I was very exhausted that day, not sure why, but a good night sleep should help. Blisters developing....Hiaz...

After a good night sleep, it was time to set off for the 2nd day of walk in Edale. We pushed on despite all the aching or injuries from the previous day's walk. After a filling breakfast at the Youth Hostel, we were lucky to get a staff at the hostel to drive us to the centre of Edale village where we could start our walk.

The weather was not a very pleasant one that day. Cloudy, windy. It was worse...much worse at the top of the mountain: very foggy, extremely strong wind. The tough ascend began. The route was not clear as it was covered with thick snow. We climbed based on following footsteps left by previous walkers, and intuition/ compass. The climb was very exhaustive. Icy, slippery. We had to be very careful every step we took. It was quite dangerous at some areas too. Furthermore, we all got wet from the snow. My gaiters could not help me this time. Water went into my shoes too. It was a bad start for all of us.

The steep climb along the snow thickly covered 'tracks' led up onto the plateau of Kinder Scout, climbing to a height of 620m. There was supposed to be an awe-inspiring landscape of wild moorland, jagged rocks and deep cloughs from the top. However, it was very foggy, and nothing can be seen from above. Ah Neh was in front leading while we followed. The walk along the plateau was frightening. Morale was very low by then. Everyone was quiet. We just kept walking. In my mind, I was kind of regretting...why did we climb all the way up in the first place?
It was freezing cold (definitely below freezing point), especially from the terrible wind which was blowing us towards the direction of the cliff edge. It was scary. While we walked, our bodies were bent so that there was smaller surface area / less wind resistance.

There were several small rivers we crossed along the route. Ah Neh and Lawrence helped me and Faith a lot with the climbing. There were some difficulties doing it myself as I'm shorter! I was very thankful that I did not come alone for this walk. Half way through the walk, we realised that time was running out. It would get dark in a few hours time. And the worst part was....we were only less than half done! We had not expected the progress to be so slow that day. The snow, steep climb and terrible weather had slowed us down completely! In the midst of the extreme weather conditions, we paused to do some planning and map-reading. We decided to take a short-cut back to Edale. But there was a big fear. The contours at the initial part of the descend were very close, meaning...it was going to be extremely steep. Steep descend was always frightening, especially in this weather and the slippery icy rocks. But we considered all alternatives, and decided that taking this route was the only choice left as we had to get back before night fell. We were very worried...

We found our way to the top of the deep cleft of Grindsbrook Clough punctuated by rocky ravines. The steep descend began. It was just beside a waterfall. It was almost a vertical descend at the initial stage...grabbing any rocks we could just to prevent slipping and fallling down the 'cliff'. It was very scary to look downw the steep 'cliff'. So, without thinking too much, we continued the descend, helping one another whenever necessary. After an hour of scrambling, we reached the bottom. The fog cleared up after we reached below a certain height, and the beautiful view of the river/ valley emerged before our eyes. Relief returned. At least we knew we were back to safe ground, and the rest of the route back to Edale should be straight forward. Finally! We had taken a total of 7 plus hours, and had only covered 7.8km! Unbelievable slow, but it just proved how difficult the terrain was.

While waiting for the train, we changed into dryer clothes and slippers, and had dinner at an inn. It was quite hilarious to be wearing slippers outdoors during the winter. Freezing but alright! After what we had been through that day, we couldn't be bothered about image and the cold.

It was victory for everyone of us. I'm sure we were all very proud of our accomplishment that day. It was amazing how we did it, especially the steep descend beside the waterfall towards the end. Extremely dangerous! I've to say that I'm impressed by the positive attitude we displayed these 2 days despite the difficulty of the climb, extreme weather conditions and the old knee injury that Lawrence had. Everyone had been helpful and considerate not to utter any complaints which would have discouraged and brought our morale down further. We knew it was tough yet we pushed on. Great job, Brotherhood Ramblers! Proud of all of us! :) It's only through tough times when we get to know one another better.