Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Climbing and Homeward Journey

Scotland Holiday

Saturday 6th July 2019

Saturday was the start of our homeward journey.  The weather was looking best for Fort William area rather than lake district.  We decided to have another climbing session at the Polldubh Crags in Glen Nevis.  We packed the car up and set off for Glen Nevis.

We were surprised to see that there were no other climbers out when we arrived.  We started off at a buttress called Pinnacle Ridge.  We chose a route called Pinnacle Ridge Graded S, 50m over 2 pitches.  It was a nice climb and I felt pleased with my efforts over the difficult sections.

Back down to our stuff we headed on up to Styx Buttress which was he next area over to a route we did before called The Gutter.

We chose to climb a route called Right Wall Graded VD, 50m over 2 pitches.  It was easier than the previous route and I enjoyed the route very much.  Unfortunately I think we got the downwards route slightly wrong and so we had to set up a pull through abseil to get us down.  We got back to our stuff around 14:30 so we decided it was time to give up.  Unfortunately I left my camera in the car so was not able to take any photos.

Back at the car we had a bit of lunch and then got on our way. We had only got half an hour down the road and we found we were sitting in traffic because of an accident, after about an hour we were on our way again.  We stopped for some dinner at services before getting to the travelodge around 21:30.

Sunday 7th July 2019
We set off around 10am and headed for High Force Waterfall.  We parked up and had a walk up to High Force and down to Low Force waterfalls.

We got back to the pub for 13:00 to have a roast for dinner.  We had to wait quite a long time for it to arrive but when it did it was very nice when it finally did.

After dinner we set off on the next leg of our journey.  We were staying with my Aunt and Uncle near Nottingham.  We arrived a bit before 18:00 and were pleased to be getting out of the car.  It was nice to see them as it had been a while.

Monday 8th July 2019
This morning we had the final bit of the journey left to go.  We set off around 9 and finally got home but 14:30 with a couple of stops on the way.  We then had the awful task of unpacking the car!!  That evening we drove up to collect Radish from his holiday.  He had had a good time and enjoyed having garden to run around in.  It was nice to have him home though!

We had a lovely holiday but it is always nice to be home.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Treasures of the Earth

Scotland Holiday

Friday 5th July 2019

Today the rain is set in for all day.  This end of the holiday we are both completely shattered.  We had a relaxed morning and then after lunch we went to a local museum in Corpach called Treasures of the Earth. It has a unique collection of crystals, gemstones and fossils.  There were even some fossils from our neck of the woods at Lyme Regis and Portland.  It was a nice little museum and ideal for a wet lazy day.

Unfortunately today we also have had to pack everything up as we are leaving tomorrow.  We have reattached and packed the roof box just the rest to pack tomorrow. The weather is looking ok for here tomorrow so we are aiming to pack the car and then head back into Glen Nevis for some climbing and head to the Travelodge near Carlisle later in the day when hopefully it will be quieter on the roads.  The schools around here broke up for the summer on Thursday so we think it may be busy.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Ice Climbing and Grey Mares Tail Waterfall

Scotland Holiday

Thursday 4th July 2019

This morning we were booked in at 10am for an hour of ice climbing instruction.  It was an interesting session and great to have a go, I found it quite tricky to get the hang of making sure my feet were firmly planted in the ice.

After our climbing session we decided to go for a little walk to Grey Mares Tail Force.  A local company offer Via Ferrata sessions that partly go up the river and waterfall so we used their handholds and staples to get closer to the waterfall.

Back at the apartment we dumped the car and walked down into Fort William.  We had a bit of shopping to do and thought we would find somewhere to have some lunch.

When we got back we unpacked the car and had a relaxing few hours before we had arranged to go out this evening to ring handbells with one of the Tulloch ringers and another chap who lived near by.  It was a good evening and nice to ring with some different people.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - An Steall Waterfall

Scotland Holiday

Wednesday 3rd July 2019

After a lie in this morning we had a relaxed morning at the apartment and after lunch we headed back out to Glen Nevis but this time to walk out to a waterfall An Steall.

We parked up and set off up the valley path following the river.  On the way up we had some lovely views back down the valley.

It didn't take long to get to the waterfall.  

We carried on walking up the valley a bit and found another waterfall that we felt was much nicer but not touristed!!

From here we turned round and headed back to the car.  It was a lovely little walk for the afternoon.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Climbing Polldubh Crags, Glen Nevis

Scotland Holiday

Tuesday 2nd July 2019

The weather today was going to remain dry so we decided to give climbing another go.  We went back to Polldubh Crags in Glen Nevis where we had been rained off the other day.  

We drove out to find that there were already a lot of climbers out there so it was a bit more difficult finding somewhere appropriate to leave the car.  Once parked we set off up the path for a route called The Gutter on Pine Wall Crag.  A great 3 pitch 65m route that was a great start to the day.

After finding our way down back to our stuff we decided to find a couple of rocks to sit on to have our lunch before another climb.  Once we were ready to climb again we had 2 options for where to go next.  Unfortunately the one nearest to us had some climbers on so we decided to head to the other crag Little Buttress.  It took us a little while to identify where the climb went but when we had we kitted up and got going.  The route was 55m in 2 pitches called Spike Wall. It was a nice climb but a little lacking in places for gear in a few sections.

Back at the bottom we packed up and headed back to the car as were were going out ringing in the evening.

On the way back to the apartment we called by Morrisons for a couple of pizzas for dinner, then a quick shower and eat before we had to go out again.  We went to the ringing practice at the Tulloch ringing centre.  There were 8 ringers there and we are joining a couple of them at someones house to ring handbells on Thursday.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Kerrera Island

Scotland Holiday

Monday 1st July 2019

Today we decided to go out  to Kerrera island and walk round the coast.  It was due to rain first thing in the morning but dry up by late morning.  

On the way to the ferry we called via Oban lifeboat station so I could get a fag badge - unfortunately there was no one there so I couldn't get one!

We go to the ferry in good time and waited in the car as it was raining!  As the ferry approached we pulled on out over trousers and anoraks and went to wait for the ferry.  We were glad for the waterproofs as we would have got very wet!

When we got onto Kerrera we left the other passengers behind and headed off on our walk.  Within an hour the rain had stopped but it was still windy and a bit chilly.  We kept our waterproofs on for the time being.  

We followed the track to one of the bays on the North sided of the island.  From here we were supposed to follow a path round the coastline.  Tim had a look in his bag for the instructions only to find he had all the pages except the one that described the first half of the walk!  We followed some sheep tracks and made it up a bit! 

We followed the coastline round to the West side of the island and visited a couple of little caves on the way.  We stopped in a sheltered spot on one of the beaches for some lunch.  Not long after lunch we found we were onto the page of instructions we had!  About halfway round our walk the sun had come out and it had really warmed up enough to remove our waterproofs!

After a section of boggyness we were back on the track and heading to Gylen Castle and then the tea room.  We stopped so Tim could have a cream tea!  

We then completed the rest of the walk following the track back to the ferry.  We didn't have to wait long for the ferry back to the car on the mainland.  

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Climbing Ice Factor

Scotland Holiday

Sunday 30th June 2019

Today was a wet day with no sign of it clearing up.  We decided to go to Ice Factor where there is indoor climbing.  We spent most of the day there and ate in the cafe.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Climbing Polldubh Crags, Glen Nevis

Scotland Holiday

Saturday 29th June 2019

Today we decided to give climbing a go as it seemed like a dry start to the day.  Rain was forecast later on.

We packed our climbing stuff for trad climbing and set off for the rock.  We planned to climb in the Glen Nevis valley at Polldubh Crags.  We parked up and navigated our way up to the rock.  We found Repton first so did one of the climbs up it.  30m long it was a pleasant climb with a few challenging bits.  

We found our way back off the top and decided to head further up the hill to find the next crag and somewhere for lunch.

We sat down for some lunch and it started to drizzle.  It didn't seem to be stopping but we thought we would give it about 10 mins to see what was going to happen.  After about 7 mins thunder started so we made that the cue to depart hastily!  By the time we got back to the car we were drenched and the lightning had started too!

Back at the apartment we get dry and changed and finished our lunch and then had a walk into Fort William.  This evening we went the Brewers Fayre for some dinner.  

Tomorrow looks foul so we are planning to go indoor climbing at Ice Factor.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Paddling Loch Garry

Scotland Holiday

Friday 28th June 2019

Today's choice of activity was paddling.  We planned to go to Loch Cuaich.  We drove out to it to find that it was mostly empty of water!!

We drove round to look at where we could park up and put the kayak in but we both felt rather uninspired and thought we would find a different loch with preferably more water in it to go and have a paddle.  

On our way out to Loch Cuaich we had passed Loch Garry that had looked calm.  We went back to it and found somewhere to launch from.

We sat and had some lunch then inflated the kayak and got ready to go.  We did a 6 1/2 mile paddle around the loch and back to the beach where we started.  We were aware that the weather is changing over the next week and will be colder and windier so paddling might not be possible.  We gave the kayak plenty of time to dry so we wouldn't need to get it out again.

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Paddling Loch Sheil

Scotland Holiday

Thursday 27th June 2019

We both had a long lie in and a relaxed morning around the apartment as we were both shattered from yesterdays walk.  It was a lovely day so after some lunch we decided to go out for a paddle. 

We had looked at access to Loch Sheil so decided to give it a try there.  A hotel was happy for kayakers to leave their car in their car park and launch from the bottom of their lawn where there is a little beach area.

We set off up the loch and after just over 2 miles we pulled up on  beach to stretch our legs.

When we set off again we crossed the loch to come back down the other side.  In all we padded about 5 miles which we both felt was quite adequate after yesterdays efforts!!

Given it was such a lovely day there was no option but to have another BBQ for dinner!!

Holiday - Scotland 2019 - Ben Nevis

Scotland Holiday

Wednesday 26th June 2019

We woke up to a clear, perfect morning for tackling Ben Nevis.  The route Tim chose took us up over Carn Dearg Meadhonach and Carn Mor Dearg round the Carn Mor Dearg Arete and up onto Ben Nevis. We had packed our rucksacks the night before and just had to get ready and make ourselves some lunch.

We got to the carpark and set off walking just before 8am.  We set off up the track through the woods.  Out the top of the trees we could see the mountains we were heading for. 

Half way up the first mountain the loch on the way down from Ben Nevis came into view.

Finally we got up and over Carn Dearg Meadhonach and then onto Carn Mor Dearg.  We had a lovely view of the north face of Ben Nevis  and the Carn Mor Dearg Arete that we had to go across next.

Scrambling across the arete was interesting and exposed in places.  I would not want to go across it in wet conditions!  

At the end of the arete we stopped by a cairne to have some lunch before the final push!

The last bit up on to Ben Nevis was just scrambling up over a large boulder field and took some time and effort.  Eventually we got to the top and joined the masses that had taken the tourist path up!  We walked to the trig point past the old observatory.

After a stop on the top we set off for the tourist path to set off down to the loch we had been able to see on the way up the other mountain.  As we were going down there were plenty of people still making their way up!  We passed a nice waterfall on the way, which was nice to cool us down.

Once down to the loch we turned off the path and the masses!  From the loch we headed over the peat bog trying to find a path that was apparently somewhere there!!  

We eventually found it when we were most of the way down!

After walking for by then nearly 12 miles it was nice to see the bridge where we crossed back onto the path back through the woods and back to the car.  

Back at the apartment I was absolutely shattered, I think I will sleep well tonight!!