West Highland Way - Day 6

Inveroran to Glencoe - 9 miles

I woke in the dark, to the sound of the river, and I mentally prepared myself for the invasion and attack of mutant midges, I wasn't disappointed. Once I finished packing, I had to return the heavier stuff to the storage area by the Hotel which should have taken about 20 minutes to return. It took me more than double that as the sun decided to make an appearance with class and elegance from a stunning angle by the loch and mountains. Pictures don't always show the depth, magnitude, and sheer brilliance of mother nature; my aim was to capture the moment from every angle in second detail: target achieved/ mission accomplished and me very happy. The first section was through a small forest with the sun peeking through the gaps however once at the top the views changed, and the sun made a nice appearance. After few pictures stops I've decided to follow my little tradition of something I started calling 'Stunning Breaks' aka: sit, eat, toe stretch, take pictures and stare in admiration at the stunning view for at least 40 minutes. This break lasted for about 6.4 minutes due to the bloodsuckers ...they were crawling through my sunglasses into my ear and under my watch ... basically, I was being nibbled on by mutant monsters. Luckily, I had time to eat my own nibbles so I wasn't grumpy, and when the clouds slowly disappeared my smile made a grand appearance and my pace reduced to a crawl so I could appreciate everything fully. The views continued to be beautiful but once I passed a small forest and got to the other side of Rannoch Moor the view changed again to something more, let's call it a photographer's dream. I remember seeing a picture of a walker heading towards this snow-covered mountain in the distance on this very straight road, it's a very 'trekker' kind of picture that I wanted for myself, of myself. Being a solo trekker has its advantages and disadvantages.... this was one of them .... so I did the next best thing: I sat on a spot, had my 'Stunning Break' and waited for a victim to pass me so I could ask them to take a picture 😊. It only took 40 minutes of admiring and waving to 3 small groups before the very kind trail runner offered to assist me with my predicament. Patience pays off sometimes and now I have my own trekking picture just the way I wanted. Camila passed me just by Ba bridge which is exactly the halfway point but there was no way I was going to rush this day, especially as it was only about 9 miles. A friend told me about the harsh conditions Heather (the plant) can survive and it was a wonder to see this with my own eyes. I collected my first sample on this Moor to press and keep in my little guidebook, cheesy moment over. The trail was extremely easy just never ending and with the views around me I was happy with that small fact, it was very uplifting to be there on a lovely sunny day. I also managed to pick up a walking buddy from Glasgow and we had a blast sharing stories of our adventures/packing mistakes and helped each other with non-selfie pictures. Once I reached my limit for non-food related activities, aka hunger, we said our goodbyes and I settled on a lovely spot looking over some more mountains and moorland. It was here, close to the end of my break, where I received a call from the baggage transfer company who told me they can't leave my bags in the pre-arranged location but will need to leave them somewhere else. Initially, I didn't take it well but once I got over my surprise and realised, I'll be staying at a campsite with a shower, which originally was full 😊 YEAY moment; so, I settled down and continued to enjoy the day. It was a lovely surprise to find Camila at the campsite enjoying a cup of coffee. Once she heard what happened she managed to 'convince' the manager to let her stay for the night as well. After setup, we were very eager to get to the top of the nearby mountain the fastest way possible :) aka a chairlift. To say we were lucky was a massive understatement: sun, clear skies, and a gentle breeze (not necessarily at the top) made it a superb experience. After we walked to the top of the nearby mountain and took the necessary pics, we parted ways to enjoy the scenery at our own pace. I had 3 massive breaks in a span of 2 hours overlooking different sides before returning to ground level for the very important washing, showering, and dinner activities. I was told that the storm was heading our way which as it turned out was a particularly good thing: all my washing dried within a few hours due to the wind 😊. As always, we couldn't hang around to chat except through our tents (great for social distancing) due to the local mutant mafia, but these early nights were a brilliant way to get us to bed early and get the necessary sleep and rest we needed. It didn't take long for the storm to arrive, and the night was one to remember for sure.