Cape Wrath Trail (Part 3)

 

Back to the West Coast! After the blast of last year hiking along this route, and the endless winter, we were really exited at the prospect to go back to where we left last year: Ullapool!

 

It took a while to get there: after work train to Inverness on Friday, sleep there and get the 8.10am bus in the morning. Got to Ullapool at 09.30 am, dropped at Tesco to get the sandwiches for the day (the ones we prepared got forgotten in the bridge), and finally at 10am, in blazing sunshine, we set off. We really couldn't wait to get started. 

Clean boots as we wait for the train, how log will they last?

Waiting for the bus

Ullapool to Oykel Bridge – 33.5k and 550m up

Saturday 11 June 2024

The first day was tough as it was long, and the shoulders were definitely not ready for the big and heavy rucksack, but it was all on a land rover track, bumpy at times but really mostly on the flat side. The start was actually paved, then half way through Loch Achall it turned in a well maintained track. The views were not spectacular we we knew the Cape Wrath trail would not disappoint. It was 27 degrees and we may as well have been in Spain. I was just immensely glad to be up there (not a soul around) as I could imagine how busy everywhere else would have been.

We stopped for a little break by the loch. We knew it would have been a long day and we couldn't waste much time stopping but the loch was just too pretty to pass by.

Barely 1h into the walk and shoulders not happy

We kept going Eastward, past the first loch and reached a private Lodge, after which the climb would start. We saw a bench and had a piece of cake to charge us up. We then kept going up, then on the top turned towards North East and started to see next Loch: Loch an Daimh. It was so hot that we stopped by its bank for lunch, falafel wrap for me and cheese with oatcakes for Paul (needless to say the cheese was nicely melted...).

Shortly after we passed by the Knockdamph Bothy, we didn't stop to check it out but it looked in a very pretty position. The track kept going on forever.

At 4pm we reached the Duag Bridge and the Old School, and sat in the shade of the trees but the river. I promise I could have slept there, it was so perfect and serene, and me I was already dead! We met a few people that day: a few bikepackers, a walker who looked on a mission, and a couple of middle aged men with whom we had a chat. They were short of water by then, but the purification pills we had needed 1h to work so they just drank water from the river, thankfully to no side effect!

The bothy

We drank 2l each

Am I really on the Cape Wrath trail??? I remembered it a bit more wet...

Lunch break by the loch

By then, based on our guide book, we thought we were basically done and it shouldn't have been more than 4k...it was way longer than that and a total drag! We were in a kind of forest so we couldn't see how far was to go, the heath was killing us, let alone my shoulders and pretty much everything else in my body (I still think the few months spent in the gym definitely helped cope with the weight). Finally, at 6pm, as a mirage, and when all hope were lost, we saw the Oykel Bridge hotel!! We have passed by a couple of times and it was always closed, so we treated ourselves to a room and started the routine: stretching, wash clothes and ourselves, drank 1l of water with electrolytes and a well deserved dinner. I got some vegan cottage pie and a pint of beer and they both went down very well!

I quite like staying in the hotel. The couple of hikers we met before were there too, as well as another man and the rest were mostly there for fishing. We missed the Northern Lights the night before so we made a point to leave the curtains open and have a look every now and then but no luck. Still, we both slept like logs with our destroyed bodies. 

Are we really done for the day??

Legs up

Oykel Bridge to Inchnadamph – 32.5k and 700m up

Sunday 12 June 2024

We woke up a bit ruined but not in such a bad state as the night before...there was hope! The sky was still sunny and it was hot, but we knew it wouldn't last long.

Breakfast was at 8am and it was a buffet one so we didn't waste much time there as we knew it would have been another 30+k day (the guidebook said 30k but we knew it could have been anything...). We got sorted at at almost 9am we said goodbye to this cozy hotel walked back to the bridge, passed it and got on another land rover track for the next 8km. The track was paralleling the river Oykel, which was pretty enough, but it was just a bit boring...

Here we met 2 fierce Labradors guarding the cattle...you have biscuits??

We passed through a 1km “corridor” to join the upper track and that was a bit of a mess but we finally re-emerged, filled with pine pollen, on another track, this one used by forestry machines (it was Sunday so there was nobody). All the landscape around here looked sad and ecologically dead, we were starting to wonder when the good views would really start.

I guess pine pollen is better than bog

To entertain ourselves we were playing a game of “who see wildlife gets 2 points for each animal”. Paul asked “ what about a Unicorn?” “That would be a total win”. Guess what I saw???

Despite the abundant breakfast we started to feel peckish and stopped in the most depressing place for a piece of cake (we got a packed lunch from the hotel): it was a clearing with caravan for the workers and big diggers, at least I could place my rucksack there without bending... Little did we know that as soon as we turned the corner the good views really started and would stay for us until the end of our little adventure!

Past another private lodge, the good track started to deteriorate. We were still by the river and stopped there for lunch, which was the most amazing roll (although small), with cheese, tomato and lettuce. I should have got 4 of them!! The wind started to pick up and it was not Tenerife anymore, time to put on the arm warmers!

Off we went again, and this time the rough stuff was waiting for us. Bog, pathless, improvise the route. I found that way more enjoyable than the endless path of before!

We kept going on the right side of the river, then started climbing until when we realised we should have descended to the river, cross it and just climb up to the Bialach. Plenty of frogs (and ticks...), but apart from them and the cuckoo whose song accompanied us for all the way, we didn't see anything, not even a deer!

The climb for steep but fast and we soon reached the pass and its sublime views on the other side. The weather was definitely turning and it felt a bit stormy but we had to stop to relax a bit and take in all that was in front of us. 

We finally set off again, on a thin and steep path. It was only 5km to destination but it went on forever. As we were descending we could hear thunders and a few drops started to fall. It was not too bad but we really wanted to reach the safer grounds below! Finally at 5.30pm we reached Inchnadamph and went to the small shop of the Explorer Lodge to get some food and check the weather forecasts in Internet. They were not too promising for the next few days but the priority then (it really started to piss down heavily) was to reach our hut where we would have spent 2 nights (the original plan was to take a day to climb Ben More of Assynt). We didn't have many expectations but it exceeded them all (as always, expect nothing...). It was perfect and had all we needed!

Stretching = pain

Up to Glas Bheinn bealach - 18k walk out and back
Monday 13 June 2024

Today is when we changed the plans. The weather looked kind of ok, but the forecasts kept changing and there would not be any bailout for the next 3 days. We were way to ruined to climb up Ben More, but given the visibility was good we decided to play safe. We would walk ½ of the next day stage up to the Bialach, see what was on the other side and turn back. I'm so glad we did that as it was really worth it. We even saw an eagle, and it turns out that the deer were around, but outside our hut instead on the high grounds. With mixes feelings we decided that the day after we would get back home. Paul had 5 blisters in his foot and there was no way they would have got better by walking more. We decided that we have seen the best of the trail anyway and we would not get much more, and we may enjoy a few days cycling in the Trossachs instead. Let's go where the sun is!

 

Bye bye West Coast, will we be back one day?