Go with the Flow

After my solo breakfast from the dining room of the Garvault House, I said my goodbyes to the young Work-Away couple David and Veronica. The Swiss chef Olli who had kindly collected me from the train was away to Inverness and David/Veronica had been left to look after the place for the day.

After some pictures of the isolated hotel and environs, I stepped onto the moor. The weather was dry, but very overcast and the wee hill of Ben Griam Mor hiding in the cloud behind the house. Any distant views of Klibreck or Armine fading into murky greyness. A pair of stags bellowed at each other across the hillside above.

I trudged upwards carrying a house on my back and disappeared into the grey. After the summit I descended out of the cloud to the north and squelched across very wet heathery bog. The Allt in the low point between the two hills was much bigger than expected so required a wade.

I nodded at the obvious Iron Age hillfort remains on Ben Griam Beag but was more focused on getting out of the rain and cloud. I followed a vague shoulder to the north and soon enough the massive forestry plantation appeared from the gloom.

I selected a firebreak, climbed the deer fence and weaved my way through slop to find the track marked on the map. Passed a cluster of well-preserved shielings, evidence of a past life. Startled a group of red deer grazing in one of the clearings and they scarpered, I had been only 20m away.

Then followed the tracks connecting various plantations, the rain became more persistent. Eventually the track petered out and it was another fence climb onto the moor. The next 2km was hard-going and felt quite risky. Mrs AB knew my planned route but not the exact path (no path) so I knew I was pushing it. Sucking bogs, waist high tussocks, random lochan mosaics made it a challenge. And the horizontal rain.

Finally I spotted the next forest and the bothy - sanctuary. More scarpering deer, another deer fence and a final hurdle- a deep dark peaty river to wade. And relax.

Thank goodness for the bothy woodpile. Sawed up some logs and then spent the evening drying out my gear. Peaceful night.