A wet, wild & windy week with walks (and a marathon!)

Well, you wait long enough for one blog post, then you get one as long as this!

Last week brought some actual proper walks and excursions for the first time in a long time - it was an exciting week!

It started on Sunday 10th May with a wee adventure down to Hermitage Castle, which is situated in the very deep south of the beautiful Scottish Borders. It is a crazy castle - bleak, imposing, impressive!

 

 

Monday brought the birthday of my wee brother Ross and an outing on the Fife Coastal Path with mum and dad. The original plan had been to conquer Ben Cruachan, but the forecast was not good at all and we decided it would be wise to save this mountain for another day!

A low level walk was in order but we still didn't manage to escape May's shocking weather. We decided to walk from South Queensferry to Aberdour, then take the train back. We parked the car and walked across the Forth Road Bridge. It was a tad windy!

 

After a wee wrong turn in North Queensferry (my fault - but it handily led us to Helen Place!) we started on the Fife Coastal Path. We hadn't got all that far when all of a sudden the heavens opened and we got completely soaked. We tried to shelter as best we could under shrubbery but it was rather challenging to avoid the downpour. When we started walking again (it had perhaps eased slightly) we decided to call it a day at Inverkeithing. We were all soaked, and the weather was so changeable it looked as though there was more rain to come.

 

 

On the way into Inverkeithing the heavens opened once more and this time there was nowhere to shelter. Safe to say we were fair drookit when we reached the Royal Burgh! Soup and pies were in order, and ironically we managed an alfresco lunch in the middle of Inverkeithing as it was sunny again!

We then took the train back to South Queensferry and walked back to the car. On the way we passed 'Rosshill', and also a house called 'Cruachan' which just seemed too appropriate for a day we could have been soaked up Ben Cruachan! It was a nice day out - just a real shame about the weather.

 

I had been looking forward to the weekend for months and finally it was here. It started on Thursday evening with an engagement party for my wee bro Colin and his fiance Emma. It was the perfect way to start this long-anticipated weekend.

Friday saw 8 of us travel north to Durness for the Cape Wrath Challenge. This event has had a special place in our hearts since 2008, the first year we took part as a family (without Ross though!) and enjoyed amazing weather in this unfamiliar (to me) yet stunning part of Scotland.

This year Colin, Ross and Emma were entering a 3-person team for the marathon, and big bro Andrew was running the full marathon. His first marathon - could he have picked a more challenging location?!

The drive north was beautiful but very wet. I was nervous that the weekend would be a washout, however by the time we reached Durness the rain had let off slightly. The winds however were - wild! Just like the last time I'd been in Durness (Dave & I's campervan adventure last September) we found a spot on the campsite and made camp whilst the wild winds blew. It certainly makes pitching a tent more interesting!

 

Evening stroll to Smoo Cave

 

As part of the official support team, Dave and I made porridge for the athletes on Saturday morning, and were relieved that conditions were dry (for now) although no less windy.

Morning view from the tent

Unfortunately the call had been made that the Cape was not accessible by ferry. Therefore the alternative 'landside' route would have to be undertaken. There were definite pros and cons of this decision - it was outwith anyone's control anyway.


Andrew started the marathon at 9am. I was immediately worried when he passed us shaking his head in the first few hundred yards. Cold? Achilles problem that had flared up during training? Nerves? My own nerves were pretty shot by now!

 

But he was off. And we'd see him (hopefully!) later.

At 10am the 3-person event began. Normally the team members would start at different locations but due to the alternative route there was a mass start. It certainly made it easier to take photos!

The support team (including mum and dad) spent the next couple of hours running around trying to take as many photos of our runners as possible, as well as cheering them on and trying to stay dry! We managed most of those!

 

Emma provided a great start for team 'Yes We Cannes', storming to second place for the first leg of the team event. It wasn't long before Ross (closely followed by Colin) appeared on the horizon, on their way to complete 11 miles each. By the time I'd run to the finish to catch them (thankfully there was a wee shortcut - uphill - for the spectators to cut out the long sweeping final hill the runners had to do), Colin had overtaken Ross. I think sibling rivalry had pushed them harder!

 

 

 

We'd have to wait to find out if they'd done enough to win the team event but it certainly seemed like they had a great chance.

Mum, Dad and Ross drove out to find Andrew, and reported back that he was at the 19 mile mark and 'moving okay'. After a bit of faffing we finally got ourselves into shape as cheerleaders and banner-wavers for Andy reaching the 25 mile mark.

 

Reaching the 25 mile mark...and approaching the end

When he reached the top of the final hill, the final hail storm battered him (and us all!) and the banner was no more. The photos are blurry but that just adds to the feeling that it was wet - which it really was!

Hail storm!

Andy impressed us all with his sprint finish after 26.2 miles and was ready to pose for photos not long after. A truly amazing effort - well done bro!

Sprint finish pain!

 

We then found out that team Yes We Cannes had won the 3-person team event, fantastic!

By 3pm we were on the road south. We had decided to break up the journey at Newtonmore, and stayed at the beautiful Coig na Shee B&B (where I stayed nearly 2 years ago whilst walking the East Highland Way). A great meal at the Letterbox Restaurant and plenty of wine ensured good nights sleep all round (could have also been thanks to all that fresh air and exercise too!).

After a delicious breakfast on Sunday morning everyone - except Dave and I - hit the road south, with planes to catch and dogs to collect and work to be done. Dave and I had intended to take advantage of being north to climb a Munro, but just like at the start of the week, it was not meant to be.

We visited the Frank Bruce Sculpture Park at Kincraig (I had enjoyed stumbling upon this on the East Highland Way and knew Dave would appreciate the sculptures), and Ruthven Barracks.

 

 

 

 

We then walked up to Dun da-Lamh Pictish Fort near Laggan (again, a highlight during my EHW walk) which took us a couple of hours and was about as strenuous as we could cope with after the weekend's festivities!

 

 

In the space of a week I travelled from the very south of Scotland, 5 miles from the border, to the very north west of Scotland's mainland at Durness. Two beautiful parts of a beautiful country, and everything in between is nae too bad either :)

An exciting, fulfilling and adventurous week. And hopefully one that has given me a bit of motivation that I've perhaps been lacking recently - sometimes that comfort zone is just too comfortable! This was a week where cobwebs were blown away (literally) and fresh air was just what the doctor ordered. Two Munro's were not conquered, but there will be better weather ahead (right?) and better opportunities. The family time at Durness was special and the achievements were legendary.