Day 6
Wednesday 17th May - River Tummel, hills & Loch Tummel
Quite an eventful day today. I got away as usual after a good night's sleep. The camp site was quite sheltered and not as cold as the previous ones. I decided to have another look for the cave and found it a bit further along the track. It is not a true cave but a rock overhang which has had walls, windows and a door built to form a room. There are fantastic views back to Loch Rannoch and east to Loch Tummel.
I then walked down through the woods and then through scrub hazel and heather until I reached the weir controlling the aqueduct. I crossed and walked down the path alongside to the power station. I had a break and then walked down the road trying to decide whether to head for Pitlochry direct (about 20km on the road) or head for the hills; the hills won. I went up through the forestry on a good track that was not shown on my map here I met a dump truck coming down from a mine. Including the twists and turns I must have walked about 5km to the mine workings but at least it put me close to Meall Tairneachan; from the track it was only 70 mt to the top.
I continued on through the mine and had lunch before ascending Farragon Hill. While having lunch I watched an eagle being persistently mobbed by a raven and while walking on there were quite a few mountain hares. From my second Corbett I had intended to head over the hill to Pitlochry but a hail storm persuaded me that a second minor road was a better route off. The down being that it dumped me on the shore of Loch Tummel still 10km short of Pitlochry and it was now 6pm. I had intended to have a lay in on the camp site but now I will have to get up early to be in town at 9am when the shops open so that I can collect my parcel, change and catch the bus to Newtonmore.
I could not have carried on though as my blister is bleeding, my knee is sore and my feet are red hot! Now I am lying in the tent listening to the rain and a very noisy pheasant. Altogether it has been another good walking day. Today has been the fourth day that I have walked all day without meeting another walker on the hill let alone another Challenger although I did see three people on Farragon Hill while I was having lunch, when I arrived at the top they had completely disappeared.
