1997 - Kinlochewe to Ullapool
The first day always tends to be the most difficult - the rucksack is at its heaviest and, in my case at least, I am not as fit as I ought to be! Luckily the first few miles of our route followed this gentle path beside Loch Maree.
These beautiful and remote lochs are many miles from the nearest roads. Our path took us across the narrow causeway between the lochs and then over the hills beyond.
An idyllic wild pitch in the heart of the mountains.
We had hoped to find a convenient bridge over this river but the nearest was 7 or 8 miles away!
This pleasant pitch was near marshy ground and we suffered badly from the midges. Not only do they irritate but they get into everything, particularly the food and drink. Even the staunchest vegetarians would have to forego their principles if they are to cook and eat on a pitch such as this!
Later in the evening, we considered it had been well worth enduring the midges to enjoy this unforgettable scene.
Our route meant that somehow we had to cross these sea lochs because our destination, Ullapool, lay at the far side of the second of these inlets.
A local fisherman took us across the first of the sea lochs for a very modest sum. The only access to his village across the loch was either by boat or along a 5 mile clifftop footpath.
This was the start of the clifftop path. The weather suddenly changed as we reached this point and continued to deluge for the next 24 hours.
This small campsite and bothy (at a remote hamlet called Badralloch) provided welcome shelter from the heavy rain that night.
Our route came over the hillside opposite down to the second of the sea lochs. Although there is a regular passenger ferry across this loch, we had a very long wait in the heavy rain until one came.
At Ullapool the weather cleared again and we were able to enjoy the magnificent view from the campsite. The ship leaving the loch is one of the car ferries heading for the Western Isles.
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