Day 77: Ewich House to Inveroran (13.3 miles)

I set off at 10:45 after chatting with the owner and waiting for worst of rain to pass.

Apparently Strathfillan has the wettest weather in the UK - it rains 280 days of the year and has 4 times more rain than Edinburgh. The rain took a little while to pass through but was more of a drizzle so I risked not wearing my waterproof trousers. This was a good call in the end - apart from a very brief squall the rain passed over and a spent most of the day looking forward to sunshine, with heavy clouds behind me.

The moss and ferns love it here - and so do the midges apparently but the breeze and my movement was enough to keep them at bey and they were no bother at all during the day.

A grey wagtail was feeding by the Fillan and I passed many impressive cascades and a slightly un-nerving underpass to the A82 where it looked like the river had over-topped its banks during the night.

Passing through fields and the ruins of the Fillan Priory the vegetation changed to heather and I came to the lake of the lost sword of Robert the Bruce … or so says the legend.

I stopped for coffee and cake at Tyndrum at 12:30 amd picked up supplies for the next 2 days wild camping. This meant the backpack would be at its heaviest - but I have to say my body seems to have got used to the weight and it wasn’t a problem.

The path gradually ascended towards the col - sharing the pass with both the railway and the A82. The views of the mountains starting to clear of the mist was breath-taking - this was country I really love. I stopped for some lunch at 13:30 looking up the Coire Caillan and admiring the braided river. Views of the Benn Doran at 1076 m opened up as I walked down the caillan valley and admired the route of the railway - it must be an awesome journey.

To my delight I then saw a pair of hooded crows - I had forgotten they occur in Scotland. With rain sweeping down Glen Orchy I wondered whether my luck was down but amazingly I stayed just ahead of the rain-laden cloud and pretty much stayed in sunshine the whole way.

I passed through the Bridge of Orchy by 16:00 and started heading up towards the shoulder of Mam Carraig. Although there was an alternative route around to Inveroran by a side road, the guidebook promised some great views - it wasn’t exaggerating. Arriving at the cairn at 16:45 I was exhilarated by the view of the mountain range ahead of me - glorious even though the cloud was starting to settle on the tops.

A rough track led down to the Inveroran and 40 beyond that came to an approved wild camping spot by the river, and sand martins flying around. With the breeze keeping the midges away and surrounded by these beautiful mountains I was so pleased - topped off by Maria calling me for a catch up.