Day 7 - Thursday 12th May
Dalwhinnie - Allt na Cuilce
(22km / 400m ascent)
A fairly late start with a decent breakfast under our belts and refreshed supplies - a nice bottle of Tallisker - and we were bimbling up the aqueduct in the morning sunshine. We peeled off to Loch Cuaich for our first stop. For some reason I wasn't firing on all four today, so I took my time over the stop and had a few glasses of water. Walking along the loch I still felt well below par and so we stopped for a very early lunch as soon as we had left the loch behind, alongside Feith na Braclaich.
I made this an even longer stop with a couple of brews, a favourite 'cuppa soup' and lots of home made dried fruit (strawberries, bananas, pears, apples and plums). I figured that perhaps I was over-trained and needed to step back a little and get some vitamin C, fluids and a kip into this knackered old frame.
An hour & a half later and I was up-for-it again, and so Phil & I set off up to the bogs of the watershed - and what bogs they were too! Phil prodded the ground in front of him with his poles, took a swing back and launched himself across a particularly black wide bit to see his poles plunge in up their handles with him following them! Up to his goolies in black sloppy peat! I was desperate to get my camera out of its pocket and case, but he would not stay there for me. What sort of a mate is that?
Once over the watershed, the little valley nurturing Allt na Feinnich was lovely. It reminded me of the White Peak valleys back in England. We bounced from bank to bank across the gurgling splash and then came across something I had only heard about - a large muddy shallow hollow used by stags to roll about in. I couldn't imagine the wife being too impressed if I was to appear covered in mud and slop telling that I loved her on a Friday night after the pub!
Next came a bit of a mistake - we noticed that a path came up from Bhran cottage into the valley, so we hauled ourselves up the hillside and slogged our way alongside the deer fence at the top of the wood to meet it, through tussocky boggy moorland. Why? There was a lovely little stream down below with green grass on each bank... Ho Hum...
Anyway, we made it to Bhran Cottage, nipped over the bridge and found a spot to have a lie down and giggle over our crass navigation / lack of hill sense. It was still sunny and warm so we ambled off south east, passing a whole lot of guys in camouflage with rifles who were taking pot shots at targets towards the direction of Gaick. I was glad we were taking a different route.
Before too long on our rather pedestrian ramble we were hailed by the Reverend with two rather older hangers on - Gus McKinnon & Norrie Wood. So that meant we now had four ULA-P2s and four Aktos between us. We strolled up the valley and Phil & I decided to stop at our destination while the others carried on walking into the evening.
I had to admit to having done enough today, so we decided that perhaps a little training was in order with the Tallisker, which I am sure steadied my hands for the shot below of sunset looking down towards Glen Tromie. The clouds did their magic again tonight with one huge black cloud that came down over our tents that then slowly lifted and melted into nothing. Just before retiring we found a small animal trap which had caught a weasel in it. I just hope the keeper thought it was necessary.
