I'll start by finishing yesterday's entry, because it didn't tell the whole story. From Kyle of Lochalsh I caught a bus to Portree, on the Isle of Skye. As soon as I boarded and crossed onto the Isle, God decided to take a gigantic leak all over the immediate area. It wasn't a forceful leak, but it was substantial, constant, and lasted the entire bus ride. Turns out my plan to wing it when I got to Portree was rather ill-advised. Should I find some trees outside the city and camp? Should I stay in town and try to find the hostel we passed? I split the difference and camped in some trees beside a park, hoping I wouldn't get arrested.
I did not, and awoke today feeling pretty great. I popped out of my tent at 8, struck camp, and was on the road to Staffin by 8:30. I was struck by the rugged beauty surrounding me (seriously, it's stunning) and marched along, eye on the prize--Storr, one of the highest mountains in northern Skye. I wanted to climb that sucker, so I hopped a fence into an open field to change my angle of approach, preparing for my ascent--and instantly regretted it. Turns out Scottish ground can hold a lot of water, and I was stopped as the ground under my feet sunk and I found myself standing in a puddle up to my ankles. Well aware of the dangers of walking long distances with wet feet, I turned around. A few kilometres later I found the footpath leading up to the foot of the Storr's cliffs, and I started to climb. However, I was carrying a lot of gear (20 or 30 pounds), the climb was steep, and I wasn't sure how much longer I had to Staffin. So about 2/3 of the way up I left the trail and set out cross-country to meet the road again. This turned out rather better than my last attempt, and I had a great time trekking across the moors. The road was fairly uneventful until Staffin, the town (actually a collection of 6 or 7 towns) where, again, I figured I would get some food and wing it. Unfortunately, every place I passed was closed on Sundays, and every copse was in the middle of a sheep pasture. i spent a couple hours hiking a couple miles along the road and then pacing a smaller bit trying to make up my mind. There was some panic and some fear that I had doomed myself to a week of hell, but in the end I just decided and it's fine. So after a good 10 hours on my feet, I ready to call it quits... until tomorrow.
THINGS I LEARNED
- Waterproof is wonderful.
- The side of the road is a perfectly acceptable place to camp.
- Sometimes the important thing is to just make a decision.
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