MY WALKING WORLD David Preston |
Knoydart
- Backpacking from Inverie to Glenfinnan 18/05/10 to 20/05/10 |
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One of my favourite places
is the Knoydart in Scotland. This peninsula in the West
Highlands opposite the Isle of Skye is cut of from the UK
mainland roads network, Frequently described as "Europe's last
wilderness" the area is home to a great variety of birds
and mammals, Golden Eagles and Sea Eagles inhabit the
area together with deer and many other wild creatures. The
starting point for the walk is the small village of Inverie
which is home to Britain's remotest pub the Old Forge well
worth a visit for the real ales, excellent food and folk
music. There is also a tearoom, shop, village hall and
accommodation including a camp site and bunkhouse. I arrived
at 1100hrs on the morning ferry from Mallaig and being early
in day I was unable to sample the Old Forge.
My plan was to walk across
the Knoydart and eventually arrive at the main road in the
village of Glenfinnian, a distance of just under 30 miles,
being alone I decided not to climb any of the surrounding
mountains, I just wanted to follow the track and enjoy the
superb scenery and the peace and tranquility of the area. The
first days walk would take me from Inverie to Sourlies where
there is a bothy but I intended to camp, the distance was
around 9 miles, the second day would take me another 9 miles
over to Strathan where I would camp. The final day would take
me to Glenfinnian and the main road where I would catch a
train back to Mallaig. Being a mature person, or to put more
accurately a pensioner weight was crucial as I occasionally
suffer from a back (disc) problem. Therefore I weighed
everything down to the last gram to ensure I was carrying as
little as possible. I normally use a Vango Sprite 200 which is
just right for me but weighs around 2600 grams but with the
idea of weight saving I bought myself a new small tent
the - Gelert Solo which weighs 1500grams - £26.00 and found it
good value for money- if I was a younger man I would be buying
a Terra Nova or a Hilliberg but at my age £300 is not
sensible, anyway the grandchildren can have the Solo when I
have finished with it, so its not wasted, it would cost me that
for a nights bed and breakfast. More about the tent at the
bottom of the page. |
Mallaig Backpackers Hostel
After my stay here I can
recommend it, clean accommodation and friendly staff
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The Ferry to Inverie
Bruce Watts Sea Cruises
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Knoydart in the distance |
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The Ferry leaving Inverie with passengers bound for Mallaig |
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The sign post in
Inverie |
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This sign says
it all to me, Take care, be sensible and be properly equipped and I am
proud to say I crossed the Knoydart.
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The Old Forge Inverie
Britain's remotest pub |
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The view across
the Loch from Inverie |
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Looking back to Inverie |
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The
gateway to paradise |
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Looking
back to the sea |
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Looking ahead to the Monument erected by Lord Brockett |
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Looking ahead, the track straight ahead goes to Mam Barisdale, the
track I will be taking cuts off towards the valley on the
right |
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Crossing over the Inverie River footbridge |
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Bridge over the
Inverie River
Looking up
Gleann Meadail
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Looking back to the bridge over the River |
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Heading up to the pass
Mam Meadail |
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On the pass looking down
to the valley with the River Carnach flowing down |
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The ruins at Carnoch with Loch
Nevis in the distance |
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The Carnoch ruins and Mam Meadail pass behind
I had just descended from the pass |
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The bridge over the River Carnach
There is a warning sign stating
this bridge is unsafe so I crossed carefully |
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Looking along the shore of Loch
Nevis |
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My tent the Gelert Solo |
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Using my walking pole and one of the guy ropes to make a small porch |
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My
campsite at Sourlies Bothy looking out over Loch Nevis |
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Looking back at Sourlies Bothy after I set off the next morning
There was a small stream coming
down the hill behind the Bothy - Walkers were using this as a water
supply - I boiled mine well just in case
Low cloud today |
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The route ahead after leaving Sourlies Bothy
The pass is out of sight and over the
ridge
Bealach an Lagain Duibh
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The bridge over the Finiskaig River |
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Looking back
along the Finiskaig River |
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The highest point
Bealach an Lagain Duibh - its all downhill on the other side to
Strathan |
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A '
Chuil Bothy in the distance on the edge of the forest |
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Looking back at Upper Glendessary - a lone walker is ascending the
hillside |
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Heading for Strathan down Glen Dessarry |
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Myself in Glen Dessarry |
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Strathan ahead - the white cottage appears to be a holiday cottage -
well kept but no-one living there |
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My
tent on the banks of the River Dessarry |
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The
track leaving Strathan My
path led off through the trees on the left |
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The
path follows the river up the Gleann Cuirnean |
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The
track climbs high above the river gorge |
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The pass
Bealach Chaoainn in the distance shrouded in mist |
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The cairn on the
pass
Bealach Chaoainn |
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That's
a weight of my back for a short while |
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The
route ahead - heading for Corryhully Bothy |
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Corryhully Bothy - It even has a slot electricity meter |
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A
decent sit down - its amazing how you miss a good seat with a back
rest |
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The way ahead |
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Glenfinnan
Viaduct - famous from the Harry Potter films |
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Amazing - You learn something every day |
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Near
the end of the walk
Low
cloud still around |
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On the
station at Glenfinnan waiting for the train to Mallaig
The end of the walk and what a
fantastic experience
I enjoyed it so much I would
like to come back sometime in the future and do it all again |
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This was a fantastic
experience and something I wish I had done many years ago, I put a lot
of planning into this walk and everything went according to plan. I
got a great deal of satisfaction from crossing this remote area of the Knoydart on my own, although I did meet other walkers on my trip,
probably about a dozen. To explore this remote area is a privilege and
I am looking forward to a return visit.
The only thing I would probably do
differently would be to take a slightly larger tent, The Gelert Solo
weighs around 1600 grams and it performed well, remained dry inside
and I would use it again for overnight trips, the only drawback was
its low internal height and I found it impossible for instance to
perform a simple task such as changing my shirt in the tent ready for
sleeping, you have to get out of the tent to do this and if its
raining it rather defeats the object of trying to keep dry. The Gelert
Solo was well made, kept me dry and was excellent value for money. If
you replaced the tent pegs with Titanium you could reduce the weight
even more, however these pegs cost more than the tent. But I still
intend to invest in some lightweight pegs. My other tent the Vango TSB
Micro 200 which weighs 2600 grams might benefit from the lighter pegs as
this has the headroom that I need.
I carried enough food and water
and a full list of my equipment is below for anyone who may be
interested, I do not claim to be an expert on this type of backpacking
and I am gaining experience all the time. The only thing I am certain
of is I enjoyed the experience immensely. The weather plays a
significant part in a walk like this and I experienced good weather
most of the time with a little drizzle during day three and some
overnight rain.
All the route was on the
Ordnance Survey Explorer 398 at a scale of 1:25000 however I printed
of the whole route using Streetmap and I found this invaluable Equipment List |
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Item |
Weight in grams |
Item |
Weight in grams |
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Walkabout Rucksac 35 litre |
1650 |
Gloves Berghaus light |
60 |
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Solo tent with standard 16 pegs |
1650 |
Baseball hat |
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Sleeping bag |
1700 |
Warm hat - Lowe Alpine |
75 |
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Silk liner |
150 |
Towel, soap,razor |
200 |
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Pan, stove, cutlery, mug |
600 |
First aid kit |
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Sleeping mat |
450 |
Head torch Petzl |
50 |
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Rab Cagoule |
775 |
Headtorch Aldi |
75 |
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Fleece |
650 |
Camera Nikon Coolpix 5600 |
250 |
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Lightweight waterproof trousers |
220 |
Batteries spare, suncream |
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Zip off trousers - worn |
400 |
GPS |
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Ron Hills track suit bottoms |
250 |
Maps |
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Survival bag |
250 |
Flask |
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Gaiters lightweight |
150 |
Sigg bottle |
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Rab fleece Black - worn |
300 |
Compass |
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Walking shirt Khaki |
250 |
Phone |
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2 pairs walking socks |
200 |
Food for 3 days |
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A few useful
links |
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