Summer without the Motorhome

The Old man of Storr.

Just as the summer started the van went and blew its cylinder head, the problem I had getting anything done was unbelievable. I am not going to bore anyone with the details but apparently they believe this had happened twice to this engine before our ownership. Long and short of this is its now 600 mile away getting a reconditioned engine put in and once thats done I will be down to pick it up and drive it back, looking forward to being able to use it again.
The start of my 6 weeks of Summer hols and I decided to bag a couple of Munros, Mayar and Driesh could be done together. I had a walk from the car park at Glen Doll, up through the Corrie Fee Nature reserve and onto Mayar. Whilst I was up there I was lucky enough to spot a couple of White tailed Eagles, playing with a stick, one had it and the other was trying to get it. I watched them play and followed them for a while, got a little turned around and started to descend into the wrong glen, having realised this I managed to get back on course, i lost a good bit of time so decided to give Driesh a miss, I will go back before winter.
So without the camper I went out and got me a tent, a little low laying 2 man'er  a blowup sleeping mat and a gas stove, I retrieved the electric hookup from the van and got a socket converter, glamping of a sort.
I was hoping to go to Kinlochewe but this Caravan club site wont have tents so I went to Poolewe instead, I'v stayed there often. I had couple of days of longer walks the most memorable one being on the Bienn Eighe National Nature Reserve and a day of driving round doing easy caches.

Bienn Eighe

I really like it over at Wester Ross, the weather was great and the Poolewe Hotel has good ale if not good food, pub grub and chips with everything.

Back to Aberdeen for a few days before retuning to the west coast, Kintail then Isle of Skye. Stopped at Morvich CC site, a great place to stay and I will visit whenever possible, I wanted to do a bit of Munro bagging so had a go at Bienn Fhada, I had previously gained permission to place a geocache in the Kintail area so put it on top of this mountain. Had a great walk but again took a lot of time out taking photographs and fail in bagging a second hill close by. Next day off to Skye, stopped off at Kyle of Lochalsh, had fish and chips in the sun, lovely.
Skye, camping at the C&CC site I usually stay at, alternative days, long hill walks, with driving around exploring the Isle as before, for its size Skye is so diverse and interesting especially in it geology.
Highlights of this trip was getting up The Storr and find the sweet spot for capturing The Old Man. A boat trip to Loch Coruisk, the world famous loch painted by Turner and

written about by Sir Walter Scott, “Rarely human eye has known A scene so stern as that dread lake, With its dark ledge of barren stone...”, that was something special.

And I finally got to the top of one of the Cullin hills, always looking at them and wondering, how on earth do you get up those thing? With difficulty its almost shale.

View of the Black Cullins from the sea.

Also climbed The Storr itself, again would have loved to gone further and taken in another hill but time flew as I explored different views of The Old Man, the weather throughout was great. I enjoyed myself so much, so much so I was met at the campsite gate by one of the site managers "do you know you were supposed to leave today?", Hells bells I'd better ring the wife!

Wet week on Skye

The Cuillin ridge.

With some of the north west of Britain suffering drought, other areas basking in the mid 20's, I chose the part of the west coast of Scotland where it never seems to stop raining.

I started my summer holidays off with a stop in Poolewe, where I hoped to climb a hill called An Teallach, the weather report was for 100 mph winds on mountain tops, even keep on the lower slopes it was hard sometimes keeping my feet. In the end I had to contend with a couple of pints of ale named after said hill. I maybe should have known as I had a puncture on the way there, foreboding.

I took the coastal road south to Applecross, a mecca for some people, mostly motor bikers for the Alpine pass approach to it, or exit as it was for me. I stopped for a couple of night and I did see a least one sunny half days here.

Then onto Skye, 3 nights at Glen Brittle, site is a bit basic but I do love it there. Again waited almost a year to come and climb the Cuillin ridge and again the weather beat me back. I expect doing this solo would have been a little foolhardy given the poor visibility. I did spot another route up, in fact it would have been my decent, but it looked better doing it that way round. again I got half way up and was able to do a bit of a recon, next year or maybe even autumn. 

After that Loch Gershornish, a great cc&cclub site with new and improved facilities. I did a lot of driving around, small walks, a few geocaches. This was all to culminate in a walk along The Quiraing, again the weather was atrocious, I had only done about 1/4 of my intended walk, I got as far as The Prisoner, then turned back soaked, not quite ti the skin but I would have been by the halfway. Besides all that I could hardly see a thing, the odd dark shape loomed out at me now and again, but I was missing most of what the place had to offer.

Off somewhere else in the coming weeks, surely the weather must be better.

Wester Ross & Skye

Loch Coire Mhic Fhearchair

Enjoyed a few days solo over on the West coast, at Wester Ross and the Isle of Skye. First stop was Laide, a place I was at a few years ago before moving on to Poolewe. Love this part of Scotland and if your lucky enough to get good weather it can be almost tropical. I did what I found to be quite a challenging walk up through the Coire Dudh Mo to Loch Coire Mhic Fhearchair in the Torridon area, not the highest I’d been but so hard on the legs.

Then off to the Isle of Skye, first staying at the Glen Brittle campsite, a bit basic but in one of the most fantastic settings I have ever been in, I shall return. Then too the C&CC site at Loch Greshornish a place we stayed at last year and great for exploring the North of the Island.

The Cuillin Ridge.

I have now done all the geocaches in the Northern half of Skye, which involved several short walks the best just a little way into the Cuillins, next time I will try to go further as they took me to some of the most pretty little places.

Managed to get a bit of sea fishing in as well, not to any degree of success.

One thing I learnt this week, walking poles just seem to transfere blisters from the feet to the hands