DAY 13: TARFSIDE TO NORTH WATER BRIDGE DAY 13, WEDNESDAY. RIGHT-CLICK TO ENLARGE IN NEW WINDOW Distance: 27.0 km Ascent:     150 m LOUISE & BARRY AT ST DROSTAN'S TWEEDLEDUM & TWEEDLEDEE: EMMA'S PICTURE GRAHAM ON THE SNIPER'S BRIDGE EMMA, SNIPER'S BRIDGE LEAVE THE ROAD HERE FOR THE BLUE DOOR WALK GRAHAM & EMMA ON THE BLUE DOOR WALK: RIGHT-CLICK TO ENLARGE EMMA ASTRIDE THE NORTH ESK C/O THE AMERICAN AIRFORCE EMMA'S PICTURE: LIGHTWEIGHT SHELTERS. L-R: IAN, LOUISE, EMMA, ME, EST ..read more

  DAY TEN, SUNDAY AFTERNOON: BRAEMAR - GELDER SHIEL In the midst of a complicated discussion with my B&B landlady about access rights to her business my phone pinged. It was Emma. I'd obviously missed her first message of an hour ago and this second had me in a flat panic.  "Are you standing me up?" It was now ten thirty and I'd been totally engrossed in my conversation with my landlady.  I'd arranged to meet Em at nine thirty at the cafe. Christ, this was not the best start to my day! Rewinding a little to last night, our evening had gone along really well and I'd decided t ..read more

  DAY SIX, WEDNESDAY: BRIDGE OF GAUR TO TOMANBUIDHE After returning home and reading other Challengers' accounts of their walks, it seems I picked a good night to be indoors, pampered, and generally spoiled rotten. There was quite a storm on Tuesday night of which I was blissfully unaware tucked up in fresh cotton sheets lying in a wonderfully comfortable bed. I do recall a bit of thrashing on the Velux roof light in the bathroom but gave it no heed at the time as I slipped into beautiful oblivion. There was a big ragged sky as I set off at Bed and Breakfast hours, with heavy showers all ..read more

  When I decide, finally, that it's time to get out of bed and start to pack things away, I know I'm in for a wrestling match with my beautiful bag. It's a monster and it has to pack down into its little stuff sack. Three rounds with Mick McManus later, I start the fourth with Jackie Pallo, sorting out my mattress. By now the tent seems cavernous with just an assortment of dry-bags, map cases, wallets, food bags and all manner of stuff that I don't recall ever having seen before. Before long I'm dressed, booted and picking up the pack. It's a quarter past seven so probably a little early ..read more

The west of Scotland is magnificent - steep sided mountains soaring straight from the sea to dizzying heights. The weather changes from warm sunshine to horizontal sluicing rain in minutes with a dazzling array of lighting effects.  For a Challenger walking from the west coast this magnificent scenery has its downsides. Starting from sea level means you're exerting considerably more energy climbing, whether you're sliding on your belly over the bealachs or stretching for the summits. The changeable weather means you've to carry all manner of clothing to suit every whim of Heather the Wea ..read more

  You're somewhere in the Scottish Highlands, miles from anywhere. It's MAMBA country: Miles And Miles of Bugger All. It's three o'clock and it's been pissing down all day, with a buffeting cold wind coming right at you. Earlier, you managed a surprise dunking in the raging torrent that had barely warranted a second glance when you planned your route. Even your shreddies are soaking. A glance at the map reveals it's at least another couple of hours of sploshing uphill against this stream that identifies as a path until you reach your campsite, that at the time you had thought could be a b ..read more

PHIL, AKA LORD ELPUS: CLICK TO ENLARGE As you will have noticed from the TGO Challenge Countdown Clock to the right, there are not many days now - just twenty as I type this on the laptop - before I hoist my pack and leave Acharacle on the west coast for a two week walk across Scotland to the east coast.  Whenever I wrote that in the past on this blog, it always induced a frisson of excitement, wondering what each day would bring, wondering how the weather would affect each day, and wondering who I would bump into enroute. For the last twenty or so years I would invariably ..read more

Here we go then - the last section is two days to the coast, leaving the hills behind and strolling through the glorious Angus countryside on my way to one of my favourite finishing points, Lunan Bay. DAY 13 (19.5KM) & DAY 14 (17.4KM): CLICK TO ENLARGE DAY THIRTEEN: TO BRECHIN I've walked this route three years ago in 2018 with Phil & Andy and you can find a few reasons in that post for the route selection. You'll also notice that my walking companions this year are far more photogenic than the old lags I was saddled with then! Even though the day is only a tad over twelve ..read more

Oddly, Lindsay & I were not the last away this morning and were soon strolling alongside Loch Callater in warm sunshine. Before too long some younger and fitter types flew past us as we made our way past the huge bowl of Coire Loch Kander and around and into the morraines at the head of Glen Callater.  A decent rest is taken, with plenty of rehydration and the water bottles filled to the brim. This next section is always hard work and today will be tougher than normal because of the heat. Over the years I must have been this way three or four times and have invariably missed the cro ..read more

  Yesterday afternoon hadn't gone exactly to plan, which was how I found myself in the Co-op mid morning on Sunday (today is Sunday) buying stuff for the next leg of the Challenge - from Braemar to Brechin over three days. After a cake lunch at the Hazelnut Patisserie I had, for once in my life, headed straight to the hotel rather than slip into the Fife arms for a quick one and staying for more. I blame Phil. Now he was absent I slipped effortlessly past temptation.  With laundry performed and the room trashed with steaming washing, I lay back on the bed watching Wales vs Denmark on ..read more