Day 80 - Loch Choire to Kinbrace

3 July
Distance: 18.5 miles
No. of people seen out walking since Saturday: 0

As I woke up this morning I turned to look out of the window of the bothy, which was right next to my head. It was a fine sight: the calm loch reflecting the surrounding hills and an absolutely clear blue sky.

Having the room to manoeuvre and not having to pack the tent away we were away earlier than our usual 7.30, following the grassy track along the side of the loch.

Three miles later we passed by Loch Choire Lodge and for the next four hours we followed its unsurfaced access road. At 11 miles long it's far enough that apparently the Royal Mail is excused from making daily deliveries to the house.

The track could have been tedious from the outset, going on for so long, but for the first half we had the clear views to admire. We also had the interludes of a couple in a car, driving from the lodge to a nearby loch to fish, who stopped for a chat (branding us as mad, but that's a common occurence), then a while later we had an air show put on by some Tornados and a Typhoon.

Such things could not sustain us for the entire distance. The sky had clouded over by the second half of the track and it was depressing to think that we still had a couple of hours of the same surface and similar views to go. Harry Potter helped both of us through the final hour.

By the walk in to Kinbrace we were wondering if 'last half mile' syndrome has become 'last half week' syndrome as both of us were struggling. We did of course make it, and pretty early in the day too (just 3pm), which gives us a good rest ready for another pathless yomp tomorrow.

I'm not entirely happy with where we're camped tonight. The lie of the land means that we couldn't reasonably get out of view of some of the houses in Kinbrace even though we're a good distance away. Hopefully no-one minds a tent sitting up across the other side of the river plateau and we will of course be off first thing in the morning to tackle the rather wet looking Knockfin Heights.