Pics from the bottom: Bridge of Orchy view; Rannoch Moor; Entry to Glen Coe
Day 42 - Sat 16th May. We had a disturbed night; being in the bunkhouse did not lend peace to our slumbers. In the bar, a group of young people arrived after 8pm absolutely sodden as it was raining and blowing hard outside. They had some refreshment, and then went out to pitch tents! In the conditions, this must have been a horrendous task, but half way through, it turned out that an 8 bunk room had become available in the bunkhouse, so they gave up and came indoors. In the meantime, John had gone to bed very tired, and I followed about 30 mins later, just as the group got themselves installed, very excited. There was lots of commotion, then they went off to the bar. Bunkhouses have noisy doors that slam a lot and people talk in the corridor and we were restless. I went to sleep solidly after 12 and John apparently woke up before 4 and didn't really sleep after that, so got up before 6am and got underway soon after. I dozed on till 7, then sorted the packs out for the fantastic people who are carrying them to the next destination and checked out.
The weather was cloudy but pretty dry and NO WIND, which made the walk very enjoyable. I climbed out of Brdge of Orchy with fine views back over the glen, then into a forest and out over a ridge. There was a lovely early morning view of the tranquil Loch Tullah before descending to the haven of the Inveroran Hotel. This little establishment sits alone in its glen, among some trees and looks very inviting, so I walked in and asked if I could have breakfast. John had missed out on his by leaving so early, but didn't seem to mind when I talked to him later in the day. After bacon and eggs, I joined other West Highland Way walkers on the Parliamentary Road, which was engineered by Thomas Telford as a better alternative to the Old Military Road. This rose up steadily to the bleak expanse of Rannoch Moor, which stretches away to the horizon, a buff-coloured morass of serious bog, pools, lochs and moss. As I walked, two runners probably in their 50s caught up to me - they were running from Tyndrum to Fort William that day - a distance of 54 miles! Then I was passed by an elderly gentleman doing only 35 miles, and later met a lady who was running from Orchy to Kings House and back - 26 miles - just for some Sunday amusement! It puts fitness into perspective, but John just commented "Each to his own.".
Topping a rise, the start of Glen Coe hove into view, looking as dark and forbidding as it can. This was the site of terrible Scottish defeats and massacres and seems to me always to be brooding and remembering. HOwever,it was grand scenery on a cloudy day like this. The main FOrt William road runs through the Glen, and the Way crosses it and drops down to King's House Hotel on its own little side road. I met John there and we had a coffee together. After our disturbed night, we were not in the best of form, so John set off to enjoy the scenery on his own. I chatted to the lady runner, then set of a bit later and had a nice time taking an easy pace and talking to people I passed in the way. One group greeted me saying, "Are you Doug Kennedy who's doing LEJOG with a guitar?" then "We saw your friend John being picked up by a taxi." I said that it was more likely a helicopter. They were a very friendly jolly group of Glaswegians and John had primed them of course.
The route climbed and climbed up 'The Devils Staircase' offering great views of the huge Glen Coe moutains and the start of Glen Etive, which is a much more open aspect containing the 15 mile Loch Etive. Then it went over the top of the ridge, where a whole new panorama of lochs and mountains opened up, and you could see rain showers tracking towards you from the distance. Very dramatic and constantly changing countryside which made the walk very enjoyable
Kinlochleven came into view a long way below, and once you passed the start of some huge hydroelectric water pipes, the descent started. This was a lot less severe than we'd anticipated, which was very helpful to John as his leg is still painful especially downhill. A patch of blue sky came across and I though this might be a change, but sadly it started raining soon after.
We stayed in separate rooms for the sake of getting a good nights sleep, but met for a very nice dinner and catch-up in John's hotel. The owner offered me the opportunity to play but my hotel had done the same and there was folk music on the PA, so I had agreed to play there. In the event, that was a mistake as my hotel just got noisier and I couldn't compete, so gave up after 5 songs - a first on this trip. However, slept well.
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