473pm Lael Forest Garden to Ullapool

Posted on November 27, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 9th July 2022]

I finish my lunch, shrug my backpack over my shoulders, and set off again. I think I’ve fallen in love with the A835. What a road!

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473am Lael Forest Garden to Ullapool

Posted on November 23, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 9th July 2022]

I stayed in a bed-without-breakfast place last night. So, this morning, I drove to a parking spot just outside Ullapool, brewed up some coffee in my van, ate my muesli, then jumped on my Scooty ebike and cycled back to the car park at Lael Forest Garden. The ride seemed longer than I anticipated – I’m still walking “off the map” – but luckly my bike’s battery held out.

Back in the car park, I chain my bike to a sign post, and look at a plan showing the forest trails.

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472 to Braemore Junction and Lael Forest Garden

Posted on November 15, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 8th July 2022]

Different weather today. Still plenty of clouds, but they are lighter, don’t drop any rain, and there are patches of sunshine moving across the landscape. I cycle back to the layby where I ended my walk yesterday, leave my bike in a ditch, and set off.

Nearby, a track leads off into a different branch of this same valley. Two “core path” signs tell me I can go this way to get to Lochluichart 18 miles away (never heard of it) or Kinlochewe 15 miles away.

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471 lay-by through Dundonnell Forest to lay-by

Posted on November 9, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 7th July 2022]

Today, I’m filled with a sense of urgency because I want to get to Ullapool before the end of this trip – and I discovered yesterday that Ullapool is much further away than I realised.

Its a dull sort of day, but at least it isn’t raining. I hide my bike in the bracken, and begin my plod along the A832

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470 Dundonnel to lay-by

Posted on October 16, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 6th July 2022]

The landscape is obscured by mist and the air is filled with a constant, miserable drizzle, interspersed with heavier downfalls of rain. A real change from the glorious sunshine of yesterday.

This morning, I filled the van with diesel from the self-service pumps in Laide. As I was driving out of the forecourt, I noticed a woman standing with her thumb out. She was wearing a flimsy jacket over shorts, open-toe sandals on her feet, and carried a large backpack. She was thoroughly drenched and shivering with cold. She had been waiting for the bus to take her to Ullapool, but it wasn’t running any more.

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469 Mungasdale to Dundonnell

Posted on October 15, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 5th July 2022]

I start from the spot I ended yesterday’s walk – a nondescript lay-by on a corner of the road, overlooking Gruinard Island, near a place called Mungasdale.

It’s a sunny morning, with virtually no wind. Gruinard Island looks lovely – a gently-rounded green hump of an island, treeless and enticingly tranquil, lying less than a mile away across the blue waters of Gruinard Bay. I wonder if anybody lives there?

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468 Laide to Mungasdale

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 4th July 2022]

I chain my e-bike behind a shed near the petrol station in Laide. Today, I’m walking eastwards along the A832. It’s a late start – nearly 2pm – before I get going.

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467 Laide to Mellon Udrigle

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on 3rd July 2022]

The little road to Mellon Udrigle is “unsuitable for coaches”, which suits me fine. I’ve parked my van at the end of the road and cycled back to the junction at Laide. The weather forecast promises a mix of sunshine and showers, and I set off in good spirits.

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466b Aultbea to Laide

Posted on October 2, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 2nd July 2022]

I hide my Scooty bike between a green box and a stone wall, and set off walking onwards from Aultbea to Laide.

First, I must cross a river – the Allt Beithe. A new modern bridge exists, but the old stone bridge is much more photogenic and still available for pedestrians to use. I stop on the other side and take a photo, looking back towards the now-closed hotel.

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466am Mellon Charles to Aultbea

Posted on September 12, 2022 by Ruth Livingstone

[This walk was completed on the 2nd July 2022]

I am staying in a B&B that doesn’t do breakfast. This seems a common phenomena in the remote northwest of Scotland, and rather difficult for guests, as there are no cafes around for miles in any direction. But I have my van, and I drive back to the viewpoint above Aultbea, park up, and make my own breakfast.

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