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West Highland Way Day 8

Kinlochleven to Fort William  15 miles  1388 feet of elevation  We woke up early and SO well rested at the West Highland Lodge. And it was cold outside! Our first truly cold day! Honestly, today we had the Scottish weather I had prepared us for! We made coffee and tea in the kitchen and took …

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West Highland Way Day 7

Glencoe Mountain Resort to Kinlochleven  10 miles 1624 ft Did I say yesterday that we’d perhaps begun to get a little overconfident about finishing our last couple of days on the West Highland Way?  Maybe it was that I thought we’d mostly faced the variety of challenges that might arise on our hike that I …

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West Highland Way Day 6

Bridge of Orchy to Glencoe Mountain Resort 12 miles 1700 feet of elevation Any day that starts with coffee in a comfy bed staring out the window at the mountains is a dream day in my book.  Then later in the dining room at the Bridge of Orchy Hotel, the host gave us a table …

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West Highland Way Day 5

Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy 7 miles 383 ft of elevation I was determined to stay in these little Hobbit huts on this trip as they are adorable and cozy. And I would 100% stay in them again. (We are staying in something similar again in a couple of nights.) But it is noteworthy that …

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West Highland Way Day 4

Inverarnan to Tyndrum 12 miles 2313 feet Today was one of those days that could convert even the most confirmed city girl into a lover of hiking. The sun came out and stayed out. The paths were smooth. The views of the surrounding hills were gorgeous. It was an absolutely perfect day! Of course I …

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West Highland Way Day 3

Rowardennan to Inverarnan  14.5 miles 1430 feet of elevation  Day 3 started with a line for toast and coffee, a trip to the shed outside to put our bags for the transfer service and the most unreal blue sky over our heads.  Really. I haven’t seen a sky that clear in the UK in a …

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West Highland Way Day 2

Drymen to Rowardennan  15 miles 2204 ft of elevation  Breakfast started at 8am in The Drymen Inn, which we did good to make, even though we’d been drinking coffee in our room since 6:30am. It was just that we found it difficult to move from our beds.  But it wasn’t raining when we woke up …

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West Highland Way Day 1

Milngavie to Drymen 12 miles Elevation: 1358 ft  I fell asleep to the sound of rain coming down hard on the pavement. When I woke up it was still steadily coming down. I swirled a little instant coffee into some hot water and crawled back into bed with my mug.  I studied the maps and …

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Return to Scotland

I didn’t originally plan to hike the 95 mile long West Highland Way this year.  It’s one of those trips that evolved out of email exchanges and fellow hikers’ hopes and dreams. When a friend told me last Christmas that they wanted to do a through-hike in Scotland this year, I remembered that when I …

Snowdrops in Bristol

Searching for Snowdrops

Searching for Snowdrops… the little flower that heralds the beginning of the end of winter. Every year I wait anxiously for my first glimpse of the first perennials that remind me that the days are getting longer now. After two years of living in Bristol, I know where to look for them to start blooming. …

Snowdonia, Snowdon, Wales, United Kingdom Hiking

Snapshots of Snowdonia

Easter Holidays in Snowdonia National Park Probably one of the best memories of the year was the four nights Taido, Simon and I spent over the Easter Holidays last spring in Snowdonia. Snowdonia is in Northern Wales. I’ve mentioned that we can hop over the Bristol Channel and go hiking in Wales in just over …

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Rota Vicentina: Arrifana to Carrapateira

Day 3 on the Rota Vicentina The Fisherman’s Trail Arrifana to Carrapateira 20 km/12.4 miles   You can find all of the Rota Vicentina posts here.  Day 3 started with some happy faces because we had a beautiful breakfast at the Utopia Guest House and another day of sunshine! We walked a while to get …