Well, what can I even say about this journey? It was my first hike in about 9 years, the first multi-day hike I've ever done and the very first time hiking or camping solo. I was inspired to do a solo hike after reading and watching videos about other women who had gotten into solo hiking. So I thought I'd go for it!

Video journal of my adventure:

I packed up what I could and found I really needed to buy a few items for my own safety and comfort. Fortunately, my husband has lots of gear from his pre-kids days otherwise it really would have been too expensive to go. On the night before my trip I went to get my boots out (previously very good) and realised that there was a crack in the heel. We tried to repair it as best we could, as I wouldn't have time to go buy new ones in the morning if I wanted to get to Diabaig early.

I woke up with difficulty at 6am and got myself a good breakfast of bolognese then I headed off at about 7. It was rapidly getting lighter as I drove out to Diabaig so I could start to see the outlines of Ben Eighe and the surrounding hills. They were quite spectacular!



I took a quick visit down to the pier at Lower Diabaig. I was last there about 20 years ago as a kid and have a lot of great memories of playing on the slipway, lying down head first on my skateboard and rolling into the cold water. There were also a couple of girls (sisters) our age that lived nearby and we played ALL day every day together. One day a man in trunks walked past us on the shore and just strolled into the water, up to his waist and then dove in for a swim. We were all in awe, as we had been trying to get in past our knees all week. We watched him until, all of a sudden, he started screaming and swearing, splashing frantically back to shore. We were horrified. It turns out he had come in contact with a man-o-war jellyfish and was stung all over. We later saw one about the size of a car tyre when out on the boat.


There was also the red telephone box right next to the house we stayed in during our visit, this is the telephone box that ended up being in the newspaper on our return home. My mother-in-law was trying to get a hold of my dad about an ad he had placed in the P&J and just happened to ring this phone, not knowing if it was anywhere near us. My dad ended up picking it up. Of course, once the P&J heard that my granny had managed to get a hold of dad all the way out in Daibaig (before mobile phones of course!) they wrote an article with the theme being that you can never escape your mother in law. This was then picked up by a morning talk show called Kilroy, who then paid for my parents and granny to be flown to London and put up in a hotel for a simple 3 minute clip on the show. It all got rather blown out of proportion with the story being that we were "on a family walk" when we heard the phone ring, which was not true in the slightest! Anyway, I was happy to see the spot where that happened and remember some of the little details of that trip.

I drove up to the starting point and found myself faffing around a little too much at the car. I was nervous! Making sure I had everything, I donned my walking boots and head off through the gate. After about 20 mins of following the path, it hit me, I AM DOING THIS! For those who are used to hiking and camping, it probably isn't a huge deal, but the fact I was actually out there, after all my preparation and forethought, was pretty mindblowing. Add to that the fact that I planned on staying out there the night ALONE and it was all very butterfly-inducing.

I carried on the narrow path, trying to get some kind of rhythm going with my walking poles and feeling like if anyone saw me they'd wonder what the hell I was even doing out here. My bag was pinching in places, which I stopped many times to adjust. As I made my way down the path I was looking out for Lochan Dubh which is an indicator that the bothy is just over the next hill. I reached a small pile of rocks and decided to sit down to investigate how far I was on the map. It had taken me an hour to get half way to the bothy. I headed onwards, feeling a little disappointed that it was taking me longer than I expected, but I did have a large heavy bag with me.



Finally, I came up to Lochan Dubh which surprisingly had waterlilles all over it. They looked very out of place! Carrying on I came on to the view of the bothy and the river. A welcome sight! I was ready for lunch and for a break from my bag. At this point I could see Redpoint in the distance and was fairly sure I would be heading on towards it after lunch.

Lochan Dubh

First view of the bothy down below

I checked inside the bothy but no one was around. I decided to stay outside because it was a bit creepy and dark in there and I wanted to enjoy the view. I made use of the "proper" toilet around the back of the building and enjoyed the view of the hills while having a pee!

Lunchtime!

After having some lunch and drying off my clothes, I headed off towards the bridge and Redpoint. After crossing the bridge, I turned left and followed the barely-there path along the river. It was a fair drop down and really gave me the creeps. It would be easy to slip or trip on some ferns and tumble. I was very careful but I did start wondering if there was a different route. The path is very boggy and involves climbing over some boulders too.

After passing through that terrifying stretch and reaching more open land, the path was extremely boggy the whole way. And not flat bog, but up and down, bouldery, rocky bog. I have to say that even though the journey was worth it as a whole, this was not an enjoyable walk. I couldn't enjoy the scenery as I had to keep my eyes on where my foot was going for each and every step. It took me 4 hours to cover the 5.5(ish)km to the beach. I really started to struggle mentally, especially when having to cross some very steep streams and rocky drops. This was something I hadn't fully considered about going solo - the only person to pep-talk you, is YOU.

Waterfall marked on OS map

Diabaig To Redpoint

Getting there!

By the time I reached the fence to the beach, I was truly knackered. The sole of my boot had now come off all the way to the ball of my foot and my ankles were aching and bending in from navigating the bogs. I was very very glad to have brought my husband's walking poles.

Diabaig To Redpoint

I climbed the fence and set about finding a spot in the dunes. It was now 4 o'clock and the weather was overcast but I hadn't had rain since before the bothy. I thought I better get my tent up now as I still had to walk back to the last river to get some clean water for dinner and breakfast use.

After setting up my tent next to a big cow pat in a sheltered spot in the dunes and gathering some water, I headed off for the small island connected during low tide. I had a print out of the tides and was glad that I had arrived in time to still reach it. I had grand plans to take off my boots and rinse my feet but the thought of even bending over to unlace them was too much! My footprints were the only ones on the beach which was really amazing to see. I also came across a dinner plate sized man-o-war jellyfish on the shore.

Diabaig To Redpoint

Diabaig To Redpoint

Diabaig To Redpoint

Diabaig To Redpoint

My tent in the distance on the dunes

Jellyfish

I gathered some mussels from the rocks around the island. They were very well hidden, completely covered by barnacles along with the rocks they were on. I cut my finger quite deeply while picking some but fortunately this, plus some blisters, were the only injuries suffered on this solo trip.

Back at my little camp, I began boiling my water to purify it and use in my dehydrated carbonara pasta I had brought. I decided to skip cleaning the barnacles off the outside of the mussels, in case I cut myself again. Those little blighters are very sharp and I actually couldn't feel the cut, but the bleeding was very heavy and only stopped once I bandaged it up.

I popped the mussels into a small amount of boiling water from dinner and steamed them. My little stove and windshield were working great and the water was boiling in no time at all. After ten minutes my mussels were ready and I tucked in. It was very satisfying eating something so fresh that I had gathered myself on this solo trip. They were delicious, although had lots of little "pearls" from being on a sandy beach.

Fresh Mussels

I felt like I was in my own little oasis after climbing through the boggy hills. Just me and the sheep and the ocean.



I decided the best way to avoid getting freaked out was to get ready for bed before last light at 7pm and chill out without the need to go outside again. I brushed my teeth as the sun set and decided to "woman-up" and take my trowel and toilet paper out for a walk. Another first for me

I settled into my sleeping bag with my new fleece and insulated jacket on and read with a torch as it got dark. Then, deciding not to let fear even have a chance to take hold, I snuggled down with a headphone in one ear and a soft earplug in the other. I could still hear the waves but the shuffles of sheep and other “things” didn’t disturb me. I was surprisingly unafraid of humans that night, which was really what I thought would be the thing that got to me the most – an axe murderer emerging from the hills!

I had a good sleep considering it was my first night alone, and the full moon meant I could see in my tent all night long. I dreamt of all kinds of things happening to me in my tent (a cat getting in?!) and I think I may have sleep talked while shouting at said cat, but with just the sheep around that wasn’t too embarrassing! I was completely warm all night, which is actually a first for me in a tent. I have finally nailed what I need in order to be warm at night.

In the morning I awoke, rested but sore. I peeked outside to make sure the cows had not come over from the other side of the beach for a visit and then set about making some breakfast.

I gave myself until 10 to get ready, figuring I’d need at least 7 hours to get back.

After a good breakfast I packed away everything and started on my way with a heavy feeling – how am I ever going to get back?!

One foot in front of the other I somehow reached Craig bothy. At several points I felt like I was going to puke from the thought of having to go through the whole walk back. Every step I took was painful and the bandage I had used to hold the flapping sole of my boot on was starting to rip.



Craig River

Step by step, I shuffled back along the path, finally reaching the bridge to the bothy. I collapsed in a heap at the bothy and decided to give myself a full hour to mentally and physically prepare for the last two-hour walk. By this point I was completely done, but kids, childcare and work commitments meant that staying at the bothy and extending my trip was not an option.

As I made my lunch I took my binoculars out, on the off chance that I could spot some deer on the hills. I had heard some males bellowing (if that’s what it’s called) earlier on the walk. As luck would have it, I finally spotted a stag up on the hillside which was fighting with another smaller looking stag. I watched them for almost a whole hour while devouring my beef hotpot meal (much better than dinner the night before!).

After my break, I was finally ready to tackle the last two hours of my walk. I tried my best to fix up my boot with what I had, and I shoved some chocolate in my mouth hoping that all those articles about how chocolate has mood boosting properties would prove themselves right at that moment. I really needed a mental lift.

Up the steep path to the lochan, and along the somewhat better path to Diabaig, I found myself getting closer and closer. About an hour from the car I met two groups of walkers on their way out to the bothy. Besides these guys, I hadn’t seen a single soul since I left the car.

Returning to Diabaig

Back at this point!

I MADE IT!

At about 5pm, I’m not even sure how, I arrived at the gate I had entered in on Saturday morning. I stopped for a quick photo before hobbling down the road to my car. Walking on the flat tarmac was really strange and I actually had to continue using my walking poles to get there.

I took off my backpack and just stood with my back in spasm for a few minutes. I had to cut the bandage off my boot (which had come apart again) in order to get my boot off. What a relief to be in the car, changed into my nice dry clothes and with my feet drying under the heater.

It was another two hours before I got home again and because it was getting dark, I didn’t take a break until I got home, in order to avoid facing the risk of deer in the dark. I actually saw five sets of deer on/by the road on my way out of Diabaig, which I was a great ending to my trip.

Red Deer Stags

I learned a lot about myself in regard to hiking on this trip. I realised that I like being out in the wilderness, but that long walks are not for me. Even with good boots, I would have far more preferred a shorter walk with time to explore, build a fire or forage some food, than spending my whole day walking. In saying that, I don’t regret doing it at all! It was a great experience and very empowering to do something like this all alone.

I've already found myself planning my next walks and camp, but I need to save for new boots before I can get back out there again. I can't wait and I think I've truly been bitten by the hillwalking bug!