Saturday 3rd September 2022
Last night it rained heavily. Fortunately it was the rain that had been forecast for us today and so, with it moving through earlier than expected, we had a largely dry day excepting for the last few minutes.
We drove to Benderloch and, after getting sandwiches from the famous “pink shop” (which is a village store not a gay shop but is painted pink), we started walking.
We got onto the cycle path National Cycle Network Route 78 which goes to Fort William. The path is next to or close to the main A828 road. The road is not that busy or at least it was not on a Saturday morning. Even so the tarmac of the cycle track was preferable. There was not a much of interest all the way to Dallachullish where we crossed Loch Creran and very soon we were in an almost trance-like state. Soon after starting I was drawn to a roadside stall. We have seen plenty of roadside “eggs for sale” stands with honesty boxes. However, this was a stand selling fresh oysters which were in a cool box complete with an honesty box for payment.
We were woken from our walking reverie by a voice with an American accent calling out. Looking back we could see a woman in a recumbent trike coming along behind. She was well set-up with flashing lights which I think is really important for recumbents. As she passed she called, “Two more to follow.” A few minutes later, a second cyclist appeared riding a traditional cycle and she said, “Hello” in an American accent as she cycled past. There was no sign of the third member of their party. We continued on and I had forgotten that there were three cyclists and so, when another female cyclist went past, I said, “Haven’t you gone past us once already?” to which she replied in perfect American that she was the third of their party. A few moments later she stopped and came back to chat to us. She had seen my “Just Coasting” sign on my rucksack and was keen to learn more. Even though she (Anne Doyle, annedoylebiking.com) was some considerable time behind her colleagues, she chose to walk with us for a few minutes and we chatted about our respective trips and discussed walking and cycling particularly as we age. That was pleasant interlude.
A short distance across the Dallachullish Bridge and we turned left to follow around the rather square Appin Peninsula. This road was a single-track road with passing places but there were relatively few vehicles. As we walked we got glimpses of the sea and a slightly confusing mixture of headlands and islands that interlock so that they look like a continuous band of land.
A four-wheel drive of the sort that looks like a golf buggy came towards us and we stepped out of the way but it stopped right by us and the male driver of similar age to us asked about our walk around the coast. I asked how he knew about and he said he had passed us in a different vehicle some way back and he had noticed my “Just Coasting” sign. We had the usual exchanges and then I remarked that he and his wife did not sound local. He came from Woburn but his wife was an Edinburgher. We said we were from Aylesbury and he related how he used to go to the Friar’s Music Club which was very much “the club” for up and coming musicians (David Bowie, Genesis et al) in the 1970s when we lived there.
We then walked around the little peninsula that projects from Port Appin. It has a large natural arch at the far end which is not marked on my old the OS map but is on more recent versions – perhaps the earlier surveyors didn’t spot it. We sat nearby and had lunch.
Shortly after resuming after lunch the rain started rather sporadically so we donned waterproofs and then sheltered in a shop in Port Appin. In Port Appin we were bombarded with interest by a car load of Americans who seemed in awe of our efforts and we bumped into them three or four times in the short walk through Port Appin.
Then we had an easy walk along the road and then along a cycle track over the Jubilee footbridge over a river estuary and to Castle Stalker (which is a popular subject for photographs and paintings) and then up to the A828 and our car.
Just Coasting 