Challenge Eve
Thursday 10th May
My husband Allan (known to some from last year's Challenge) had decided to come and walk the first half-day with me; since he does not enjoy camping, I web-sought an inexpensive B&B around Crinan, which turned out to be a generally highly-expensive village.
On the off-chance, I rang the sign-out hotel in Ardrishaig, to find the Grey Gull Inn being managed by one Murdo Macleod, a Gaelic-speaking schoolmate of Allan's elder brother: they had a Gaelic chat, and we were offered the room with the four-poster. Another old schoolmate of Allan's, now a minister in a Loch Fyneside parish, had organised help for me (of which more anon.), and he and his wife joined us there for dinner, the three men enjoying a great Gaelic gossip. I was delighted to find several other Challengers, including my old friends Howard and Doug from 2005, and was sorely tempted to swap in the morning to their route up the canal and into the forest. The above-mentioned Murdo helped me resist, by offering a lift to Crinan in the morning so that Allan would not have the problem of where to leave his car.
We also all watched BBC2's Gaelic broadcast that evening: an episode of the Tir is Teanga (Land and Language) hillwalking series where the meaning and history of Gaelic hill and place names are discussed, Allan having found himself "volunteered" as one of their guest walkers as a result of last year's Challenge. (It's an excellent series for hillgoers, by the way - and has English subtitles!)
