Thursday 9th March 2023

We awoke to -6℃ but no fresh snow. We had the cars clear of ice quite quickly and none of the doors were frozen shut as they were yesterday. We could hardly believe our luck that with such unseasonable weather for March we have a second day of clear blue skies, bright sunshine and no precipitation in prospect.

We left one car at Laide which is four miles short of our destination but this means if we are too tired we can stop at Laide, or we can shuffle the cars to the end if we are feeling up to it.

We drove back to Mellon Charles and left the car in a lay-by for the Scottish Water pumping station or whatever it is. We had actually walked a little beyond this yesterday having parked in a small bay opposite a house at the top of the hill but this lay-by was much bigger and seemed a better option. We started out along the road for about a mile to the road end just past the Perfume Studio Café and followed a track up the hillside.

When planning our walk, I had had considerable anxiety about the next couple of miles of our route; I could only find records of two people who had walked this route and neither made much comment about it or suggested whether it was either easy or difficult. There is no path on the OS map but it seemed fairly obvious how to get from the end of the track, cross-country to the deserted village of Slaggan and Slaggan Beach. The snow and extreme cold had merely added to my worries. I am well aware that Jill and I are getting on a bit and don’t have quite the reserves of energy and strength that we had when we were younger. Moreover, surviving a fall or injury in the highlands is far from certain when the weather is so extreme.

We started walking along the high ground from the track end. The snow was thicker than at sea level but the ground was frozen and the going was firm. Initially we were following recent footprints but soon after the end of the track, these did an obvious about-turn and we had to find our own way across the open moorland. On a high point near to us, I noticed a small, rather trivial cairn which I imagined had been put there by a casual visitor; it was little more than a few stones piled up. When I came across another trivial cairn a little further on, the penny dropped. Some kind soul has marked the route with cairns. It did not look recent but cairns don’t have date stamps.

We continued following the cairns with growing confidence and could believe there might actually have been a path beneath the snow. At the end of the ridge, the cairns ceased but there appeared to be a possible path descending roughly where I had planned go.

The remains of the buildings of Slaggan were visible and, rather than head down closer to the sea as I had planned, we headed towards the ruins as directly as we could. We knew we had a river and fence to cross to reach the track most people use to access Slaggan from Achgarve. It was pleasing to find our line of approach brought us directly to some stepping stones over the river and on the opposite bank was a rather old, rustic gate through the fence.

The last residents of the village left in the 1940s. We joined the last few yards of the three mile track that comes over the moors from Achgarve and serviced the village which took us to the beach. It was deserted as it is most days of the year but it is a lovely location.

There were the tracks of a motorbike on the old road to Slaggan but the rider had only come as far as the bay and returned.

We turned right to follow a path along the coast. Although it was covered in snow, we could make out a line to follow most of the time.

Here, north of the protection of the Outer Hebrides, even on a quiet day the Atlantic swell brings big waves crashing onto the rocks. As always, the most dramatic waves crash in while you are getting your camera out.

Soon we were aware that we were not the first to pass this way. There was a consistent line of animal tracks following the same path as us. At first we were unsure who the “culprit” might be but then in deeper snow we could make out the the unmistakable mark of a tail dragged through the snow. These were fresh otter tracks. Further along we found otter slides where it had slid down the snow.; and it you doubt that as otter behaviour see “A Ring of Bright Water”.

The coast is magnificent with architectural rock formations at every turn. The cliffs are not high and so you get a good view of the waves crashing in.

Also of interest there are several raised beaches. These are stony beaches which gained a few metres of elevation when the weight of the ice of the last ice age was released by the thaw (well it is a bit more complicated than that).

We were not making very fast progress by virtue of the nature of the terrain which meant that when we reached Greenstone Point at 12.30 we had only walked 6 ½ miles in 3 ½ hours. Though, on reflection, almost 2 mph over that terrain was probably quite good. We found a sheltered rock in full sunshine and settled in for lunch but cooled off fast and so it was quite brief stop.

Beyond Greenstone Point the ground is more rocky and the path was more difficult to follow, though even here we were seeing the otter tracks from time to time.

As we rounded the inlet of Camas an Lochain I could hear a slapping sound that I did not recognise. Then I spotted the cause.

There was a whole colony of seals hauled up on the flat rocks there and were basking in the sun. Either of their own volition or because they detected us, albeit we were a long way away, the seals started to head for the sea and the slapping sound was their bodies and flippers on the wet slab rock. On the more inclined slippery rocks the seals just slid down.

Two more miles brought us to the road end at Opinan (the second one). Now we had a road walk of about 4 miles to the car at Laide and then another 4½ miles on to Little Gruinard Bay. It was easy walking after all the rough walking of the morning.

We took a break at the first place we could find to sit and had some coffee and fruit cake.

We arrived at the car at Laide at 3.45 and drove back to retrieve the Volvo from Mellon Charles, and drove both cars round Little Gruinard Bay to leave one at the end of the walk before returning to Laide to resume the walk which was 4 ½ miles along the A road. We finished the walk at about 17.45. The temperature was dropping markedly and we were both chilling off but it had been a memorable day. 

Tuesday 7th March 2023

The weather forecast for today was fairly grim with snow showers throughout the day that would give several centimetres of snow and it would be cold. Last night Jill and I discussed what to do. The weather forecast for Wednesday and Thursday is, by contrast, for full sun and no precipitation. In the interests of safety, we decided not to take the exposed, largely pathless walk from Rubha Reid Lighthouse to Cove today but do Wednesday’s walk, which is entirely road, instead. So, as explained in the introduction to Day 258, the narrative is following the geographical sequence hence the actual dates are out of order.

This morning we awoke to find the cars loaded with snow and more was falling. This did not look good. Even with a road walk we have to get the cars the beginning and end. After breakfast the snow eased off. The main road was covered in snow with no evidence of gritting but vehicles were moving through. We started the drive along the minor road  to Cove but it was well covered with just a couple of wheel tracks disappearing into the distance. We kept going and the the further away from Poolewe we got, the thinner the snow became. By the time we got to the walkers’ car park at Midtown there really was nothing to worry about. 

We started the walk back to Poolewe and we walked in the tyre tracks or on the frozen snow between, which actually provided quite a good grip. Intermittently we had good views and even bright sunshine. When waves of snow moved in it became very gloomy. It was only 4.5 miles into Poolewe and since the cottage we are staying was on route we had decided to call in for coffee in comfort and then review how much further we could get.

We drove the Volvo, 2WD, back to collect the Subaru, 4WD, with some trepidation because, since we walked that way not long before, another snow shower had obliterated all the tyre tracks. We made it safely and about-turned with both cars to head round at least as far as Aultbea for starters. Back at the main road, I was dismayed to see another snow-fall had covered the “A” road from verge to verge with some rather white tyre tracks in each direction. We stopped for a quick conflab and decided to press on for as far as we felt it was safe to do so.

Pretty much the whole way to Aultbea the main road was packed snow but the gradients are well graded and so we managed it without any real problems. The main road has to climb to about 300ft which probably explains the persistence of the snow. We turned off at Aultbea where the road was clear of snow, as indeed it was all the way to Mellon Charles. I had intended parking outside the Perfume Studio which is near to the end of the metalled road and not yet open this year so had an empty car park. However the entrance was quite steep and I was worried that I might not be able to get back up it if there was further snow as forecast so turned round and parked about half a mile back nearer Mellon Charles where I could safely get the Subaru off the road. We then drove back to Poolewe and to our surprise the main road was now clear of snow  though we were not sure whether it had been gritted or there had just been a slight temperature rise. We parked the Volvo at the cottage and had our lunch indoors in the warm. Then at about 1pm we started walking to Mellon Charles. 

We left the village and passed Inverewe Gardens which are not open at this time of the year. The gardens are famed for growing plants that should not survive this far north but do so due to the influence of the Gulf Stream; today it certainly did not feel warm at all.

Fortunately in the snow in winter there is very little traffic and so we could walk in the cleared road quite safely. As we were leaving, a snow plough came through but it was only clearing the accumulated snow at the verge, not gritting as well. The walk was punctuated by snow showers but in between we had some stunning views of sea and mountain for which even an iPhone cannot do justice. Even the same view changed character as snow clouds rolled through the two pictures below were taken just six minutes apart.

As we came over the hill to Aultbea we got extensive views of Loch Ewe and the very obvious NATO refuelling terminal on the shore. Loch Ewe is a deep water loch and has a narrow mouth which was closed with a removable barrage and net when the loch was used as a “marshalling yard” for ships waiting to join convoys and make the dangerous journey across the North Atlantic to the Russian Arctic ports in WWII.

We called in to the village shop in Aultbea for some bread. It really is a very good shop; much better than the shop in Poolewe.  There is a museum in the village recording the story Russian Arctic Convoys and how it affected life in the locality. We were treated to another couple of snow and hail showers before we reached the car but we really didn’t care. We had had a much better day than we were anticipating and snow and hail don’t make you wet like rain does.

Wednesday 8th March 2023

Yes, I have jumped a day to Wednesday. We did not have a day off on Tuesday but the weather conditions meant it would have been foolhardy, if not impossible, to have done this largely pathless, headland walk yesterday. So we decided the only safe and possible course of action was to swap the two days’ walks. We aim always to start each walk from where we finished the previous one even if it means we don’t do the nicest walks on the nicest days and this is only the third time on the whole venture that circumstances have necessitated doing walks out of geographical sequence. The narrative, however, is much easier to understand if it follows the coast hence I have numbered this Day 258.

Fortunately our swap paid off and although there was more snow last night and temperatures plummeted, we woke to clear blue skies, white mountains and the promise of a cracking walk. But it was, oh, so cold! The roads were covered in snow and ice (where were the gritting lorries?) but traffic was moving slowly through the village on the A road outside the cottage.

Before we could go anywhere, we had to get the cars free of snow and ice which took nearly half an hour. We had to use the hairdryer and an extension lead to free the locks and seals on the Volvo simply to be able to open the doors.

Then we had to drive up the minor road to Midtown to leave the Volvo. It was quite a nerve-wracking drive on a single track road frozen with snow and ice. We made it safely and left the car in the walkers’ car park then started the drive back to Melvaig in the Subaru. There was still quite a lot of snow on the main road. Do they not grit roads up here?

We made it to Melvaig and the car park at the end of the public road by about 10 am. We had already decided that there was no question of trying to drive even the Subaru along the narrow road to the lighthouse with some steep hills and sharp bends; we would re-walk the three miles to the lighthouse. On Monday there had been a few trucks using the lighthouse road to access some road repairs and the masts on Maol Breac above Camas Mòr. Jill had suggested that, since we had already walked to the lighthouse, we could reasonably try thumbing a lift today if any truck came by. It was immediately obvious that none would.

Ours were the only human footprints on the road to the lighthouse but there were prints of sheep, deer, rabbits and possibly a stoat or weasel. We reached the lighthouse in a bare hour which was pretty good. Now we had to find the path to Camas Mòr. We knew a path of sort exists, indeed several variants exist.

Light snow is good for picking out the line of a path but deeper snow just obscures everything; sometimes the snow just lies along a band of heather creating a line that has nothing to do with any path. Today it was a mixture. We definitely found a path but occasionally we lost it and sometimes we really did not want to risk following the narrow ways that curved round steep gullies so we would then clamber higher up the hillside to keep ourselves safe. Though there was a covering of snow and it was still sub-zero, the ground itself was not yet frozen hard and we frequently fell through the thin crust into the bog beneath. The only saving grace was that the snow then cleaned the mud off our boots. Camas Mòr is a beach divided by a rocky promontory. The first beach is really pretty but also pretty inaccessible, the second beach is easier to get down to but we really didn’t have time for much sightseeing. The mile and a half from the lighthouse had taken an hour and a quarter and was really hard work. The path then comes to an old shieling.

One of the buildings has been used as a bothy for many years but all reports had said it was in a terrible state with a plastic sheet over the roof. I am pleased to report that the bothy has had a make-over.  It has a new roof, the walls have been repaired and perspex windows installed. There is a sleeping platform overhead and a couple of benches below. It is well stocked with a few essentials such as some fire wood and matches, candles and so on. We went in and sat and had a late coffee and a sandwich in comfort and relative warmth. 

As usual I was anxious about the distance we still had to go over uncertain terrain and our slow rate of progress and so I insisted we did not spend more time at the bothy. We had decided we would follow the track that runs SSE from the bothy and then take a track NE which would return us to the coast.

This meant that the route-finding ought to be easier than finding our way across a marshy area in difficult conditions. Having said that, it was actually the conditions underfoot which were challenging us with slippery, icy patches hidden under the light covering of snow on a track of loose rocks, boggy areas and tussocky vegetation. The track had been waterlogged and now with the layer of ice, inevitably we repeatedly went through and got pretty wet; it was simply not compatible with setting a decent pace.

The day was crystal clear with fantastic views of the Assynt mountains. Earlier we had had views across to Harris and Lewis.

We could see in the distance the track that that went off between a couple of lochs and back to the coast. We could not actually find exactly where the track branched off from the track we were on. In the end we just stepped over the fence and made a line for the track we could see. We knew we were about right when we found the remains of an old stone wall. Once we reached the visible track it was reasonably plain sailing. The two lochs are separated by a combined stepping stones and weir. The water level in the loch on the north being a couple of feet lower than the loch to the south. One other reason for following this route rather than following round the cliff tops, was that the outflow from the loch on the north side can be difficult to cross and one coast walker, Ruth Livingstone, had to turn back at that point.

Further on there was a boggy section where we could not make out the track but we  followed the the general line and picked it up again as we passed Lochan Clais an Fhraoich. Then it was quite easy down to shore at Sgeir Mhòr. There is a post here which seems to mark where a path may follow the coast to Camas Mòr.

We stopped at a bench by the USS William Welch memorial and had the rest of our coffee and sandwiches. It was almost comfortably warm out of the wind with the winter sun streaming down on us.

The information board also serves as a memorial to those lost when the USS William Welch, a “Liberty Ship” was driven onto the rocks in a terrible storm in February 1944 with the loss of 48 or more of the ship’s company of about sixty. Tribute is paid to the crofters who rescued as many men as they could and revived them with their meagre rations. The remains of a lifeboat endure on the beach there.

I had thought there would be a good path from the memorial on the basis that people must visit it fairly often. If such exists, we did not find it at all or very often. The last mile or so to the car park at the road end was quite hard work possibly because we chose to follow a slightly more elevated route.

We turned east along the coast and followed a rudimentary path as best we could. I had created a route based on the best available information I could obtain and loaded it on my handheld GPS and mobile phone app. I relied on that route quite heavily. At one point Jill declared she was not following my preferred route and took a safer line up Druim Glac nan Curran and then asked what the cairn was doing there if it was not marking a path so I explained she had just climbed to the top. So we tracked back down again following deer tracks around the rocks and vegetation as best we could. I am sure that if there had been no snow and ice we would have found a more direct route and followed it safely. However, in a remote part of Scotland with temperatures due to tumble fast in the late afternoon we were not inclined to take any risks. On the plus side we seemed to have a 4G phone signal on the EE network pretty much the whole time. 

From the car park we had four miles of road walking back to the car. We were surprised that the road was now completely clear and so the walking was easy though we were really quite tired and it felt like a long four miles. We were back at the car by about 5pm by which time it was already -2ºC.

Monday 6th March 2023

Despite hoping that the weather forecast might be wrong, we awoke to squalls of sleet beating against the windows of the cottage. Fortunately no snow was actually laying and so we set off from Poolewe and left one car at Gairloch on our way back to the A382 junction.

We started walking back up the A382. For the first 1½ miles there is no pavement or verge to speak of and so I had my Hi-Viz bib on. There was not much traffic but, in common with most rural Scottish roads, what traffic there was came fast. By the Highland Lodge Hotel a pavement then continues all the way through Gairloch. Now the snow started to drive in off the sea and the view we had disappeared.

Gairloch is a long, strung-out village alongside the bay. There are two sandy beaches which would be very inviting – but not today. We called in at the Morrison’s Daily for a paper and some bread which was already on its use-by date but no more was due in, we were told. We had left the car just a few yards further on by the community centre. The plan was to see how bad the weather was before deciding how far in the direction of Rubha Reid to risk leaving the car for the second part of today’s walk. 

First we had to drive back to retrieve the other car which took just a few minutes. However, on the return to Gairloch there was a little snow storm and within minutes the dual track A road was white from verge to verge with no evidence that there had been any gritting. This did not bode well. At Gairloch itself the road was clear again and so we continued driving along the peninsula in the direction of the lighthouse. To my relief, the further we went, the less snow there was on on the verges and hillside. The original public road used to end at Melvaig  and the track beyond serviced the lighthouse. Now the track has been metalled all the way but it is very narrow with a couple of steep tortuous sections. Before starting on this road I pulled over in the small car park at Melvaig and had a conflab with Jill; she was in favour of continuing to the lighthouse and so we did. We left the Subaru at the little car park just before the lighthouse, leaving that car because it has 4WD just in case we had to drive back in heavy snow.

By the time we got back to the Community Centre in Gairloch, it was about 11.00 and so we made use of the facilities, had a quick coffee and set off.

The weather was very changeable; one minute we might have sunshine and the next sleet or snow was driving against us. The coast road is very quiet and intermittently we had good views over the sea. I could make out Raasay and Skye between the bands of cloud rolling across.

We had originally planned to walk the beach at Sand and then take the track over the hill but as we were approaching another squall blew in and so we opted for the simpler route following the road.

We passed the campsite at Sands which brought back memories. In about 1966 when I was just a teenager we had a family holiday in Scotland touring and camping under canvas. We camped at Sands and a storm blew in and snapped the ridgepole of the main tent. This resulted in us striking camp in the evening and my father driving us to Inverness as fast as possible to refuel at a garage that remained open until 11pm. He then drove through the night and we descended on a hotel somewhere in a rather bedraggled state for a very early breakfast. Obviously today the campsite was deserted.

We continued on our way with hoods up and draw-cords pulled. We were keeping warm enough but only just; driven snow and hail is very harsh on the face.

We came to Melvaig, the end of the formal road and there is an old bus shelter there. I am not sure if there are ever any public buses but perhaps the school bus picks up children here. It now houses a defibrillator. It also has one of those inadequate sloping, perch benches. We were not complaining as it was now 2.15pm and we were ready for a rest and some lunch. It felt curiously warm in the shelter especially when the sun came out and warmth seemed to filter through the age-opacified perspex walls.

After a quick lunch we set off again with only about three miles to go. There was a steep climb at the very start of the road from Melvaig and we both wondered if we had made the right decision about going on to the lighthouse today as any overnight snow would make returning there by car tomorrow impossible.

The weather was generally better along this part of the walk. No snow had managed to lay and so the hillside and the verges and road were clear. We could look out to sea and watch banks of snow clouds moving rapidly up Loch Gairloch.

We had good near views and enjoyed watching the weather patterns in the distance.

Eventually the lighthouse came into view and we were back at the car.

It was not much of a day for wildlife and, after not seeing an otter yesterday, it was very sad that, when we saw one today. it was a dead otter cub at the side of the road. There was hardly any traffic on the road so it seemed very bad luck for it to have been hit and killed.

I was just remarking to Jill that, unsurprisingly, our car was the sole occupant of the carpark  when another car turned up and a woman got out with a young puppy and set off to exercise it. It seemed like a long drive to bring a puppy when there was no scope for letting it off the lead there.

We had deliberately gone further than planned today to give us a better chance of completing tomorrow’s walk when the we are expecting more snow and even lower temperatures. Had we not walked from Opinan yesterday, we would have finished today back at North Erradale but by getting to the lighthouse had put us 7 ½ miles ahead of that.

We thought driving back would be a piece of cake. In fact some snow showers had sneaked in behind us and from Melvaig back to Gairloch there was more and more snow but fortunately the road was still drivable.

Sunday 5th March 2023

We decided we would like to get a two-week walking session in during March and so, after a spell of dog-sitting, we have come back up to north-west Scotland. Unfortunately, between booking our accommodation and coming away, the weather forecast is for a return to winter for the next few days with a yellow warning for snow and ice and the threat of communities being cut off. This it seems was not a good time to go to far-flung places in Scotland.

We drove up today and it was a really nice day, the roads were quiet and so we arrived at Poolewe by 4pm. Though it was unplanned, Jill was keen to start walking today just in case we have to curtail some of our walking in the next few days due to adverse weather.

We left one car at the junction of the road from Redpoint and the A832 and then drove on to Opinan which was as far as we got on our last session. It was 4.45pm when we started walking and sunset was at 6.02 and so with six miles to go it was inevitable that we would be finishing in the dark.

There was no wind and it did not feel cold. Opinon is not so much a village as a collection of dwellings in roughly the same area. Even so there are two simple “tin tabernacle” style churches. There was hardly any traffic and so we could walk quite fast and enjoy the views over Loch Gairloch as the sun was descending in the western skies.

The walk was not very demanding but was quite pretty.

As we approached Shieldaig House, Jill thought she had spotted an otter, though on further peering through the dusk we could see there were two of them and with rather seal-like heads.

We donned Hi-Viz bibs and put on headlamps and it started to rain for the last couple of miles and so we arrived back at the car a bit damp. By the time we had retrieved the other car from Opinan and got back to Poolewe, it was 7.30pm and so we had to hurry to get unpacked and supper underway.

Having done what would have been the first 6 miles of tomorrow’s walk today, tomorrow we will try and walk all the way to the lighthouse at Rubha Reid which will be almost entirely road. After that, who knows? It will depend on the weather.

Tuesday 7th February 2023

Observant readers may notice that this day is out of sequence. One of the dangers of walking in February in the Highlands is that the weather cannot be be relied upon, except to be unreliable. We should have done this walk on Wednesday but a big storm is moving in  tomorrow with steady wind speeds of 30mph plus with gusts of 50-65mph and heavy rain expected by midday. We decided it would be unwise to to take a walk very much on the wild side in such conditions and so we have swapped the days around and tomorrow we will have a walk on roads and tracks which should be safer.

We drove to Torridon and left one car there and then drove on to Inveralligin and parked the car. The forecast had suggested it would be dry and clear. It wasn’t; when we set off the cloud was down and there was a steady drizzle; on the good side, there was no wind.

We had a five mile road walk to the road end but it was a very hilly walk. There is on old path closer to the coast around the rocky headland between Alligin Shuas and Lower Diabeg but various reports suggest that this is not an easy route and would have a vertical descent at the far end aided by an old rope left in position. This seemed like a walk for good conditions in summer and so we took the road route.

By the time we reached the road end at Lower Diabeg, the drizzle had stopped and the cloud was lifting. From the road end we took the path to Craig Bothy.

This path is about 2 ½ miles to the bothy over the moors. It has been restored in recent times. It is clear to follow but was loaded with surface water following the recent rain.

As the path approaches the bothy, it turns toward the coast and descends steeply to the bothy itself.

The bothy is a former Youth Hostel but was given over to the Mountain Bothy Association when the hostel could not be maintained. The bothy probably sees many day walkers but few staying overnight. It is good condition compared to many bothies and windows are even double glazed. The furnishings are getting rather tatty and it is a bit in need of a good clean up.

We paused at the bothy to have coffee and a sandwich but it was such a nice day it seemed a shame to be inside. The bridge over the Craig River has recently been replaced and some of the old timber has been repurposed as walking boards for the boggy areas near the bridge.

After crossing the bridge, the path immediately turns to follow the river almost to the sea. The path has often been reported to be difficult to locate and hard to follow. Being in the winter the vegetation was much reduced and we had no difficulty finding the path though it is not an easy path to follow with big boulders to negotiate. In the summer with bracken chest-high, I am sure it would be very challenging.

The path then turns to follow the coast. Previous coast walkers have described this section of the path as being much more difficult than the section from Lower Diabeg to Craig Bothy. As that had been so waterlogged, Jill was a bit concerned as to how well she would cope with the next few miles. In fact we found it quite easy to find and follow but it is certainly boggy in places and you cannot really keep much of an even pace.

There are four significant burns to cross. Each is quite fast-flowing with water tumbling over big boulders but can be negotiated by stepping-stoning over boulders and remaining dry shod. Having said that out boots were thoroughly soaked just from the boggy sections.

The path has a number of almost parallel ways where walkers have tried to select drier or easier ways through.

The day had become really pleasant with relatively warm February sun. The wind had increased from dead calm to a mild breeze but we felt fortunate to be doing such a stunning walk on such a nice day.

As we approached the Fishing Station at Red Point the path became better and easier to walk. Red Point beach looked glorious and so we got onto the beach and walked its length before turning up to Red Point Farm.

The track through the farm was extremely muddy and turned out to be the muckiest part of the whole walk. Fortunately there were a lot of large deep puddles on the track to the road end where we sloshed off the worst of the mud.

Just beyond the farm we reached tarmac. We had arranged with Donald McDonald, the taxi driver from Torridon, to collect us from Red Point but we had said we would walk on along the road until he met us which he did just as we were approaching Opinan.

We had nearly an hour’s drive back to Torridon during which time we talked about the local area. Donald also explained the commotion I had seen at the jetty opposite our cottage yesterday morning. In the high winds the most important fishing boat at Shieldaig had broken free from its mooring and had been washed onto the shore and the men were getting it back into the loch and tied up to the jetty more securely.

The evening light was stunning and we had some wonderful views from the taxi.

Wednesday 8th February 2023

Note that the date of this walk is Wednesday 8th not Tuesday 7th. Due to the extreme weather forecast for Wednesday, we decided it was too risky, if not simply impossible, to try walking from Inveralligin to Red Point as planned on our original schedule. We would have been walking into the storm along an exposed coastal section with a number of steep water courses to cross. So we swapped the planned walks round and did that walk yesterday in good weather and are tackling the section from Shieldaig to Inveralligin today. This is only the second time we have not been able to complete the sections of the walk in strict geographical sequence, (crossing Knoydart being the other), and for ease of following our route, I have continued to number the days in geographical sequence.

Last night was extremely noisy with the wind whistling around the cottage and rattling anything that could be rattled; even the double-glazed windows were noticeably moving. Jill had spent most of the night very concerned that she simply wouldn’t be able to walk into the gale and was obviously nervous as we got ready to leave. We had decided to set off as soon as it was light enough to see anything because, though the wind would be gusting 50-65 mph all day, the rain was not forecast to arrive until lunchtime. Walking in high winds is bad enough but high speed rain is simply painful and almost impossible to walk in.

We got out of the front door and had only about 200 yards to reach the main road but those 200 yards were heading directly into the wind and we seriously wondered if we could get that far; we hauled ourselves across the cattle grid because we could not manage the gate in the wind.

At the main A896, we turned through about 300 degrees and the wind was in our backs, forward progress was now inevitable but totally uncontrollable and almost unstoppable. We had our high-vis gear on and red lights on our backs but it was difficult to walk along the edge of the road because the wind just moved us at will. We did get onto the verge when traffic passed just to ensure we would not be blown in front of a vehicle. This did not bode well for a thirteen mile walk. Wind, of course, does not show up well in photographs but we watched with interest as spindrift was whipped up off the loch. Upper Loch Torridon is quite shallow and quite a long way from the open sea and so does not generate big waves which tends to lull one into a false sense of security.

For a few hundred yards we were sheltered by a stand of silver birch alongside the road but as we got beyond that we were hit by the full force of the wind again. You could hear the gusts coming and brace yourself in readiness but I still got blown off balance at one point down onto the grass verge.

Just over three miles into the walk, I had planned we would walk through the Ben Damph Estate. This is probably along the old road and the map showed it was through woodland and somewhat lower than the main road.

We struggled on and when we got to the estate road the change was dramatic. All of a sudden we were in control of our destiny and, although it was still windy, we could actually talk to each other (not that we make habit of that, of course).

For the next three miles or so we had a lovely walk through the estate. It is a beautiful walk along a dry track and I would recommend it to anyone.

We were delighted to see that they have undertaken a long term project trying to eradicate the rhododendrons from the estate though sadly there were a lot of young saplings springing up. Maybe it is a two-stage process of clearing the dense shrubs then returning to eradicate the more manageable regrowth.

Eventually we came down to the Torridon Hotel and walked out through their front drive to the road. The Torridon Hotel was a former shooting lodge owned by Earl Lovelace which brought me home because I spent my working life in East Horsley where the Earl Lovelace had a residence called Horsley Towers. His wife Ada was an eminent mathematician and worked on Charles Babbage’s proposed mechanical computer. Emerging from the estate we were back in the wind but it was noticeably less strong than first thing this morning. Apparently Shieldaig is exceptionally windy whereas Torridon at the top of the loch gets more shelter.

From reaching the road we had a couple of miles to go to Torridon village or, more precisely, the General Store and Café. Our taxi driver yesterday had told us about it and how good it is (he helps out there from time to time). We reached the café at about 11.15.  It was good to get out of the  wind and sit comfortably and tuck into bacon and egg baps. I said that that we had been recommended to the cafe by Donald McDonald, to which the proprietor said “Which one?” It seemed incredible that in such a small community duplicate names was a problem. We did not stay too long because we knew rain was on its way.

We turned the head of Loch Torridon and started along the coast road on the north shore. There is a memorial stone here, the inscription you can read for yourself. It is interesting to think that 110 years ago the Torridon Estate could muster 100 able-bodied men to make a journey of (on today’s roads) over two hundred miles. One just hopes that the body was well-embalmed.

We were soon back in the full force of the wind. After a mile the “new” road climbs away from the loch side. We continued along the what I assume was the old road which goes through the grounds of Torridon House. It was a pleasant walk and we had some shelter through the trees.

Beyond the the slightly over-converted church a narrow, but well-surfaced path continues along the loch side. However, any shelter we once had was gone and we found it hard to keep on the path, indeed Jill got blown off her feet into the heather beside the path.

At Rechullin a tarmac road begins. Rechullin seems to consist mainly of modern cottages but also has a very small, 9-hole golf course.

We buffeted our way along the road to Inveralligin where we had left the car yesterday morning.

There is little doubt that we could not have done the Inveralligin to Redpoint walk in today’s weather conditions and so swapping days had clearly been the right thing to do. We drove back through Torridon and felt an urgent call to stop at the café for tea and cake. We were pleased to find Donald, our taxi-driver, enjoying a mug of tea there and he asked after our day’s walk. When we left the café, the rain had started in earnest and when we got back to Shieldaig the rain was thrashing down and the wind so strong we could hardly make it from the car to the cottage.

Monday 6th February 2023

Today’s walk is in theory quite simple; just 20 miles along the coast road. Last night it blew a hooley and when we got up there was still a ferocious wind and the loch was very lively. I looked out the window and could see men working at a boat which at one point put off from the jetty but returned. I think they were just trying to achieve a better mooring. The men were getting drenched not by rain for it was dry but by spray blown off the loch.

We left the cottage to drive to Sands with some trepidation. When we arrived the wind was still very, very strong but it was from the south and so it was blowing us in the right direction. I guess it was warm for early February but the wind chill meant we were fully togged up and Jill had double gloves.

We had quite good views across the Inner Sound to Raasay which was picked out by the occasional sunshine. In the sound we saw a submarine obviously on the surface. It did seem to be making very slow progress. Perhaps they were checking us out as we were wondering whether they were one of ours or one of Putin’s.

With such a long walk we had plenty of time to ponder on the nature an history of the Applecross Peninsula. The road through Bealach na Ba to Applecross was only built in the middle of the 19th century but was probably not much used for goods due to the extreme climbs which, in the days before tar macadam, would have been very difficult for wheeled vehicles. All the communities on the coast of the Applecross peninsula must have been serviced by sea, though the population was probably big enough to support enough trades for the peninsula to have a high degree of self sufficiency.

The road we are walking was completed in two phases but before that there presumably was nothing more than a rough track which could be used by land rovers and, historically, donkeys and ponies. The formal road from Shieldaig to Kenmore was only completed and opened by Princess Margaret in 1970. The connecting section from Applecross to Kenmore was not finished until 1976 (the year Jill and I married), a year after we first drove over to Applecross in the elderly Austin 1100 we bought (for £90) for the summer vac. 

We passed a craft workshop and café which was closed but the track to the entrance provided a slightly sheltered wee stop.

We rounded the northernmost point of the peninsula at a settlement called Fearnmore, really nothing more than a few houses. Houses are few and far between. Many are holiday lets and there are a small number of B&Bs. Being a full time resident must be a bit on the lonely side. Just past a house which was being renovated, we found a bank with some rocks where it felt sufficiently sheltered to be able to sit for a quick coffee.

Having turned the corner out of Fearnmore, we were suddenly walking into the full force of the wind and our progress slowed dramatically. Fortunately there were many places where the lie of the land or a stand of trees provided some shelter.

Cliff heard a bicycle bell and we turned to see a couple of cyclists coming up the hill behind us. They passed us by with an exchange of greetings but as they were getting off to push their bikes up the steeper hills so we soon caught up with them and stopped for a chat – they each had a single pannier so were travelling light; they had cycled over the pass to Applecross yesterday though we hadn’t seen them and were cycling on to Shieldaig today. We told them about our walk and the chap told us about the Craig bothy. They obviously knew the local area though we don’t know if they lived locally or were regular visitors.

Traffic on the road is quite sparse and so we were surprised that we had two Tesco delivery vans pass us going in the same direction; that can’t be very efficient. 

We warmed up on the hilly sections but rapidly cooled off at other times. It was very difficult to find anywhere sheltered to eat our lunch.

In the end, shortly before 2pm we settled on a couple of boulders by the roadside near a cutting that slightly reduced the force of the wind but, having eaten our sandwiches, we didn’t stop for crisps or cake as we were chilling off very quickly. After lunch we had about six miles to go.

We had an informal target of 4pm because we needed to get some provisions from the village shop and we also had to drive back and retrieve the car which was a 40 mile round trip that would take an hour and a half. Where the coast road joins the A896 there is a plaque commemorating the opening of that section of the coast road.

We did indeed make it back to the cottage by 3.50pm and so we had time to go to the shop and have a cuppa before setting off for the car.

Sunday 5th February 2023

Today we just had a fifteen minute drive to Tornapress where we left the car and started our walk up the Applecross road.

Overnight the rain had all gone but the temperature had dropped and there was a stiff breeze from the south. As we drove to Tornapress we were treated to a most dramatic sunrise.

We started walking at 08.20. We were passed by three or four vehicles heading to the Port of Kishorn and then we saw no vehicles for a long time. We amused ourselves guessing how many cars we might see going over the pass on a cold, February Sunday morning. Jill’s best guess of “single figures” turned out to be about right.

The road climbs steadily and views of Kishorn Harbour and the dry dock open up. It is, apparently, one of the biggest dry docks in Europe and was constructed in the mid 1970s to support the North Sea oil industry and employed 3000 workers during its construction. It wasn’t here when Jill and I came over in 1975.

The mountains had a very light sprinkling of snow. The road had been gritted and so we were not anticipating any problems. We took a few photos but it was too cold to stop for long. There were a number of red deer grazing on the moors beside the road. At this time of the year they are very well camouflaged.

As we approached the hairpin bends, two cars drove past us coming downhill. They were clearly young people in trendy white fast cars (an Audi and a Merc). A short while later a black Merc drove up the pass at top speed but obviously turned around at the car park at the top because a few minutes later he was screaming down the road again. (We counted him a single car passing us).

As we approached Bealach na Ba the wind was strong and very cold. The puddles had all frozen over. It was too cold and exposed to stop for coffee and so we started down the other side immediately. We did find a sheltered place to sit on a rock a few minutes later but we only paused for the bare minimum to have a quick, hot drink of coffee and eat our shortbread.

The descent was easy with a new range of views opening up and the temperature increasing as we lost altitude.

We were both feeling the need for warmth and a sit down and so we agreed we would try the Applecross Inn. Fortunately it was serving food and, as we were there shortly after midday, had a free table and so we stopped for coffee, soup and bread. For a Sunday in early February the hotel was remarkably busy and we might not have been in luck if we had arrived an hour later; booking definitely advisable.

Emerging from the hotel half an hour later we had full sun, a light breeze and all felt well with the world. Now we had about five miles to walk to Sands, a little bay further along the coast. The coast road is a relatively recent construction. It was opened in 1976 by Princess Anne. When Jill and I came to Applecross in 1975 the Bealach na Ba was the only way in and out.

As a highlight to our day, just as we were approaching the car park, we spotted a golden eagle flying just above us; that is always special.

We reached the car by 14:30 and so we had our sandwiches before driving back over Bealach na Ba to collect the other car from Tornapress.

Saturday 4th February 2023

Yesterday we added in an extra four miles so that today’s walk would be shorter to allow plenty of time to set up tomorrow’s walk. Also today the weather was destined to turn very wet mid-morning and so we were keen to get most our walk done before the rain arrived.

We drove to Leacanashie and left the car in the walkers’ little car park and set off down the road to Ardnaseakan. It is only about a mile. There the road ends and an estate track leads toward Reraig.

The track is easy-going with nice views over Loch Reraig. As we passed, there was a workboat coming into the bay to, what looks like, a concrete platform of some sort. There was a white van or truck on the boat which clearly was not going to be offloaded onto the platform. I was confused and none the wiser for watching it for a while.

Having since studied the photographs we took I think the vehicle is a small oil tanker and that they were delivering oil to the platform for whatever reason.

We continued along the main track, over the bridge over Reraig Burn and then followed the track along the north side of the burn through a deer fence until it re-crosses the burn via a concrete bridge.

Shortly after the bridge a narrow path forks off the main track and disappears into the trees. There is a finger post but it was located so far off the main track that it is obscured by the trees. I actually walked past it at first and we had to go back to find it.

The path crosses back over Reraig Burn and then climbs gently through forest.

To our surprise, along the edge of the path are concrete posts inscribed with the word “Water”.  Clearly some sort of water main must have been running beneath our feet; but why? There are only two buildings in Reraig and so they cannot need a water pipeline and the village of Achintraid at the north end is tiny and all the properties could be supplied by a small private water supply. Even odder; at the highest point there is no sign of a reservoir or obvious water source.

We crossed Allt Reibeg on stepping stones twice before leaving the burn to cross Blar nan Clachan Mora.

At the highest point we suddenly had views of the dry dock at Kishorn. It really does look a very big concern. We were getting the full force of the wind up here and it was difficult to walk without getting blown sideways.

We had an easy descent to Achintraid and it was a relief to get out of the wind. The rain had still not reached us and so we sat on a convenient bench overlooking Loch Kishorn to have some coffee and shortbread.

There now remained just a couple of miles to the café at Tornapress where we had left the car. There are “No Parking” and “Patrons Only” signs around the car park but since the café is closed at this time of the year, I had knocked on the door of the house next to it and sought permission to park which was granted. It seemed more sense than parking on the verge. The rain started just before we got back to car but fortunately not enough to get us very wet.

Having finished our walk by about 11.30 we now have plenty of time to drive back to get the other car from Leacanashie, call in at Lochcarron for a paper and petrol and then drive over Bealach na Ba (The Cattle Pass) to Sands, a small beach four miles beyond Applecross where we will leave a car for the end of tomorrow’s walk.

When we arrived at Tornapress, Jill immediately said that she was certain they had moved the warning road sign to the other side of the road from where it had been in 1975; she had a clear mental image of our previous visit forty-eight years ago. Needless to say, since getting home, Jill has found a photo I took then and confirms that the road sign did indeed used to be on the other side of the road. The photo also shows that in those days the road was much narrower than it is now and there was no sign for the “Alternative Low Level Route” as it was not completed until 1976.

The drive over was interesting because the rain really had arrived; it was tipping down as we drove the road which climbs to 2000 feet. The cloud was right down and so we had no views at all including of the road ahead. At least there was no snow and ice.

We sat in the car and had lunch overlooking the wide bay just beyond Applecross and then drove to Sands which is an MOD site. We left a car in the car park there and drove on around the coast road back to Shieldaig. It was still tipping with rain but later in the afternoon it did clear for a couple of hours and so we took a stroll down the Shieldaig Peninsula. 

The walk down or round the peninsula is “there and back” walk. A path goes past the village school which is said to have had £3m spent on upgrading it. It looked a nice little school and had a greenhouse and a fully enclosed sports area. There are 16 children of which 6 are in the nursery and one full time teacher.

Below is a selection of views of our walk on the peninsula.