Fort Augustus to Fort William Day 20 notes Route Great Glen way missed sign, good detour,, Loch Lochy, Invergarry, Commando Monument, Spean Bridge, A82 to Fort William, 48 miles, total 1758 miles. Accommodation .Lochy Holiday Park, Camaghael, Fort William, free Sort of chill out day today Set off about 10 am, Destined for Fort William, Iain Merlijn and family set of just before me, Stopped at Loch at Fort Augustus, Big crowd Canal Jam as bridge was stuck, Mike and Peter from Southampton and Hull John o groats to lands end Wrong route up great glen Invergarry Hotel £2.50 for soda water and £2 to fill bottle with tap water Fort William at 5.30 pm still red hot, camp full, let me in though, World Mountain biking week end Adam and Andrew next tent helped with phone and sponsored me Midge Attack Great day cycling despite wrong route 9/10 I woke up in the morning to the glow of a Cascadian sunrise. I had an early morning photo shoot with Iain, Merlijn and kids and then made the short trip up to Fort Augustus. The village is in the historic and scenic highland region of Scotland is situated between Inverness and Fort William. Although the town only boasts a modest population of around 400 people, it is very popular and busy with many tourists. Iain’s clan set off just before me, their destination was Fort William the same as me. Now if you thought that carrying 40lbs of luggage on the back of your bike was difficult enough, what about this young family carrying loads more luggage than me, plus three young kids to boot, I mean as well, you shouldn’t really boot kids. It is truly amazing how they managed, I was bewildered as I watched them cycling off, towing the energetic young ones behind them. They mentioned that they would have to nip into Fort Augustus for a few supplies before they themselves make haste for Fort William. When I made the short jaunt to Ft Augustus, the bridge had broken down. This had caused a major traffic jam on the canal. A fleet of boats and barges of all shapes and sizes were queuing patiently whilst waiting for the bridge to start operating, some more patiently than others I hasten to add? This is where I met Mike and Peter, they are two amicable middle aged guys from Southampton and Hull respectively; the duo had also come to witness the lock in operation as they took a break from there own cycling journey. They are another cycling pair that was cycling from John O Groats to Lands End together. Fort Augustus is a main stopping point for many Le Joggers (Lands end to John O Groats). We exchanged a few jokes and some knowledgeable football stories. “How will Everton do this season without David Moyes was one question fired at me” by Peter. “It will be tough but if Everton suit Martinez’s more attacking football approach it should be a good season , Moyes has been a great servant to Everton, but we won’t win anything with or without him, it will be very interesting to see how he fits in at United that’s for sure” I replied. Many more stars from yesteryear and today came up in our intriguing conversations. Football is a sport I could talk about all day; I think the same sentiment with Mike and Peter. A lad born in my own village of Calverton, Tom Cairney actually plays for Hull City; hence Mike was very interested, as Hull had just got promoted to the premiership and was the team he supports. Peter was also astonished when he saw Iain’s clan cycle off up the Caledonian Canal towpath. I told them the story about the clan and Bill Douglas. I was treated to a coffee then I set off again down by the canal after a few more photos. I left Fort Augustus by way of the Caledonian Canal after about an hour; more boats had joined the ever increasing fleet as it was still out of bounds. It was not long until I got to another forest path and many more steep long climbs, I accidently missed a vital turning, which was shown by a small thistle on a stick throughout the large forest, I continued steeper and steeper wondering where the thistle signs had all gone. I carried on cycling upwards and then upwards and then upwards, you get it; I did not want to go back down and check my tracks just in case I maybe right, though I felt sure I was wrong, once is definitely enough with this bloody monster. The benefits to your body on cycling these hilly terrains builds your fitness levels up by helping your body learn to use oxygen more efficiently. Also, the process of climbing the hill on a bike uses different muscle groups as you shift about on the bike to maintain maximum power. The climb allows me to work extra hard, and the descent allows me to recover; this provides a perfect exercise workout with each hill. After continuous climbs you actually learn how to cope with them, they don’t usually seem as daunting as they first appeared, this one was an exception however, mind you it was only a few days ago I was reduced to walking up a lot lesser inclines. Still cycling and evidently as high as I could possibly go, the summit had been reached, I could almost see Australia from here, not only that, Suddenly the path came to an abrupt dead end; no sudden back drop down the other side, just a dead end. I was at this summit and apparently no place to go but backtrack. But what a boob this was, the views were magnificent, so the camera come out yet again, with no option but to turn around and go back I saw the thistle marker which was semi hidden under some low hanging cables. My eyes would have been focused on the low hanging cables, so this is how I missed the sign (my excuse anyway). I followed the path for another few miles. It had taken me a good hour up to the peak on a red hot day, I was grateful I had ample water supply, as I was constantly quaffing the H20. Eventually I arrived back got onto the main road and then arrived at the nice looking Invergarry Hotel. I now did now need to replenish my water supplies; I had made a couple of mistakes earlier on in my ride where I ended up cycling dry, Hornsea for example. So especially in this heat I wanted to keep topped up, stupid not to. I was informed by the hotel staff that a soda water was going to cost me £2.50 and it would have also cost me £2 to refill each of my water bottles with just normal tap water, a total of £6.50. Shudder to think what a pint of beer would be. So as it may have been cheaper to buy champagne possibly, I went and topped up at a nearby spring. That was lucky it was literally yards away from the Hotel. This I did a lot on my ride. The fresh filtered water as it meandered down the mountains was like nectar to me. I was a little dubious on the first couple of occasions, but once you get the taste of fresh cold filtered water you soon realise there is no harm, actually better than all the chemicals you receive from drinking tap water. In Scotland I had the choice of thousands of watering holes all free. I would fill up with fresh water almost every time, and throw the remains away that were in my bottles. It can soon lose the sparkle when the sun beams down on it, so no need to drink warm water when it’s on free flow. I stopped at a lovely Tea shop, ‘The Thistle stop’ again this was a little pricey, but treated myself to a scone and cup of tea anyway. A Anti cyclist road worker gave me some directions for Fort William; he was in the car park of the Thistle Stop when I entered. He went into a tirade how much they are spending on cycle routes whilst the main roads were in bad repair, he has a valid point, but also the cycle paths are not that easy either, but for safety reasons to myself I did not go into a heated discussion. I then found my next campsite at Fort William. I was fortunate to be allowed to camp on the Lochy Holiday Park campsite as it was advertised as being full. The reason it was full was because it was the world mountain bike championship week end which takes place on Ben Nevis. This is where I met two great Geordie lads Adam and Andrew on this campsite that lies in the shadow of Ben Nevis, Fort William is the outdoor capital of the UK and the main town in Lochaber. It is a dramatic setting on the shore of Loch Linnhe under the mighty hulk of Britain’s highest mountain. The centre hosts the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships every June. A gondola takes visitors including Adam and Andrew 2,000 ft up the mountain for some amazing views and access to the ski slopes. The campsite was full to bursting point; I managed to find a little spot near the hedge so that not encroaching too much on anyone else’s pitch. Adam and Andrew were the next pitch to me, there were so many bikers and spectators an estimated 25,000 were attending the weekend’s events and I think most of them were on this campsite. I received more generous donations from the two great Geordie lads. They helped me with my phone and my facebook as I am useless with anything like that. It is here at Fort William where I had my first meeting with Culicoides Impunctatus commonly known as the Highland Midge. These carnivorous little creatures are just as evil as folk had warned me. Apparently it is only the pregnant female ones that bite you; this in order to feed her developing fertilized eggs. I was getting more and more annoyed, even more annoyed than a frustrated dragon trying to blow out a candle. To be honest, to me, they all seemed to be pregnant females, and it is waste of time squatting one, because I found every time I did, a thousand more would come to the funeral. I wondered if the lady at the campsite shop had sold me a midge magnet instead of a fridge magnet, the item I had asked for, they evil mini monsters were relentless. It’s amazing how fast a tent can go up when these blighters are around. The biting midges are the smallest of the flies that bite humans in Scotland. Mosquitoes, Clegs and Blackflies will also bite man, but in large areas of Scotland the most troublesome flies are the midges. I learned that these critters cluster near water, peat bogs and shrubs, away from the direct sunlight and strong wind. As well as just eating me they also enjoy calm, damp, overcast days and even light rain. The bites are distracting and annoying, and there are tales of people being driven to madness by their unremitting attacks. Luckily for me I was already mad. I do know this now though, the next time I visit Scotland I will certainly be taking some Avon Skin So Soft, which acts as a midge repellent.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 10:04:04 +0000
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