My last trip included father-youngest-son bonding with Max. This time, it’s father-daughter, as Hayley is keen to try camping, dreaming of the John Muir Trail. The plan is a few days of coastal walking round John O’Groats, returning south via […]
Day 323: Lybster to Whaligoe Read More »
Altnabreac railway station … … a place girded round by peat-black lochs and dismal bogs and overshadowed by dark, anonymous plantations of doomed conifers, where nothing of any note has happened these past 70 years save for intense despondent brooding.
Day 322: Berriedale to Lybster Read More »
Skipping the section from Berriedale to Whaligoe due to the snow puts John o’Groats within my reach. Sunny weather is forecast, so what better way to finish the hiking year? My pronunciation of Keiss has improved from yesterday as the
Day 287: Keiss to John o’Groats Read More »
More snow is forecast, so I’ll take the bus north to the village of Keiss and walk back to town. Ice cracks under my boots as I cross the River Wick to the bus stop. The bus driver corrects my
Day 286: Wick to Keiss Read More »
A 7 am knock at my door. In the absence of a dining room, the owner wheels in a cooked breakfast trolley. Is he wearing pyjamas? “I don’t get this at home.” My book for this trip is Between the
Day 285: Whaligoe to Wick Read More »
It’s a beautiful morning, the sun shining on the fresh overnight snow. Despite the forecast of a clear day, an early snow flurry adds to my load. Hardy fishermen work on their boats. The John o’Groats Trail follows the shore
Day 284: Helmsdale to Berriedale Read More »
Snow fell during the night. Time-travellers leave no footprints. Crossing the golf course at Brora, fresh snow crunching under my boots, I’m giddy among childhood echoes. I choose the beach rather than a narrow icy strip between a stone wall
Day 283: Brora to Helmsdale Read More »
Limited by Sunday public transport options, I have a leisurely short walk today, leaving plenty of time to chat over breakfast with John, the Airbnb owner. He worked for 30 years on a boat safety crew for the rigs, retrieving
Day 282: Golspie to Brora Read More »
I’m the only person stepping down from the early morning Wick train onto a wet platform at Tain. Arctic showers are forecast to sweep across the Highlands, and light rain is already falling so it’s on with the waterproofs. There’s
Day 281: Tain to Golspie Read More »