This was the first proper, here's what I got it for, E-bike to save my decrepit legs for the climbing and to keep up with hubby who is a club cyclist and saw this as a training run. Boy was I grateful for it. What a doddle this turned out to be, for me anyway.
Car park to bike dump - 1 hr 40 minutes
Walking 2 hills - 2 hr 45 minutes
Cycle back to car - 1 hr 30 minutes
Stayed the night before at the delightful wee campsite in Lochcarron. Showers, loos, water and EHU with great views. Would recommend.
Up at 7 for a leisurely breakfast before driving to start at Attadale Estate car park. The cycle in was full of steep as hell hills. No problem for me on the e-bike and kudos to hubby for being not too far behind me under his own steam. I'm a reasonable biker though don't like the technical stuff however this bike made everything so much easier and my confidence increased even on the steep downhills. I dutifully waited for hubby at the top of each hill, relishing the role reversal.
- Decent track
- The slog begins for hubby at the first hill
- Alarmed at the sight of the impending hill even with an e-bike
- Close up of the hill
- Here comes Hubby
- The pain is real
We stopped off at the bothy for a wee look-see. Very palatial with a flushing toilet (fill cistern with water from the burn) and a dining table that was posher than ours at home.
- Room 1 at the bothy
- A flushing loo and a sink too
- Very posh dining table
- From the outside
Rather than leave the bikes here we cycled on to the loch and left them at the convenient signpost pointing up the hill. Someone was already in front of us but we never saw who.
Passed a couple of guys heading north on the Cape Wrath Trail and one heading south.
Started the trudge upwards on yet another pathless hill. Unfortunately the clag was sitting at about 750m and it never cleared. There were a couple of steep bits on Lurg Mhor but nae view at the top. Didn't hang around and retraced our steps and on to the Cheesecake.
- Atop Lurg Mhor
- A wee rest out the wind
- Almost back at the bikes
The wind was pretty strong and in the clag I was starting to feel like Frodo climbing Mount Doom. There's not a lot of me so I was getting blown all over the place making progress somewhat arduous. Probably just as well the clag was down as it looked scarily steep over the edge of this one. Again, didn't hang about and retraced our steps again rather than do the loop - didn't seem much point without a nice view. This was definitely the right choice and we got back to the bikes at 1.30pm, meeting a lady who was walking in and up to wild camp and climb in the morning (when the weather was better).
Hubby set off whilst I took my time changing back into my bike shorts. Soon caught him up and we whizzed merrily along. Well I did.
- The long and winding road
- Nice bridge
We were soon back at the van and couldn't quite believe we'd bagged these two, remotest of Munros in just over 6 hours. Yes I might have been cheating for the purists among you but hubby did this all under his own steam.
160 & 161 for me and we celebrated by consuming an entire fruit cake from the shop in Lochcarron washed down with a cuppa.
The campsite was full for Saturday night but the Strathcarron Hotel lets campervans (and tents) park up for a night for £5 per person with access to toilets and even a shower - which was a bit of a novelty walking through the public bar with my towel and soap. But a more hospitable landlady you'll be hard pushed to find. She was so welcoming and helpful and couldn't do enough for us. We had a bar meal and a couple of drinkies and the most peaceful of nights. What a find!
