Return to the Cape Wrath Trail

Having had, as I assume did others, all of my hiking plans ruined for 2020 by Covid, and also having abandoned my LEJOG hike at Carlisle, I find that the pull of the trail is getting ever stronger as the months pass. Whenever I picture myself getting back on the trail, it is invariably to the Cape Wrath Trail that my attention turns.

Camping alongside the River Oykel

Since my superb 2015 hike along the Pennine Way and the continuation from Kirk Yetholm the following year to Strathcarron during which I followed the first half of the Cape Wrath Trail, I have encountered many problems while hiking.

Loch Ailsh

In 2017, I was forced to pull out of the following section of the hike from Strathcarron to the Cape with illness. Although, I successfully completed the Coast to Coast walk and the South Downs Way the same year after recovering, the start of my Land's End to John O'Groats hike in 2018 ended in Hay on Wye after a catalogue of unfortunate incidents. This bad luck carried over into 2019 when I re-started the hike from Hay on Wye and I eventually finished this section in Carlisle, having walked around 400 miles on each section. 

Loch Ailsh

As I stated in a previous post, I have now decided that my LEJOG walk will become my 'England End to End' walk as I feel that the long delay and uncertainty surrounding the Covid virus, coupled with the many other delays, has compromised the integrity of the hike. Which brings me back to the Cape Wrath Trail.

Climbing above the Oykel River

I first encountered the hike in 1999 when Phil Hinchliffe, one of the authors of the first guidebook, 'North to the Cape' gave a talk for our local ramblers group. Having completed the first section across the tough, remote Knoydart peninsular, I pulled out of the hike feeling unwell.  This retreat has always rankled with me and I looked forward to finally reaching the Cape in 2017 as the finale of my hike from Derbyshire to Cape Wrath but was thwarted yet again around sixty miles from the end with a virus.

Approaching Conival 

With the current situation surrounding the Covid virus, firm plans are impossible to make but I am hoping to return to Fort William in Scotland in May 2021 to restart the Cape Wrath Trail from the beginning.

Looking down to Loch Assynt & Inchnadamph

My last encounter with the trail before retiring with illness in 2017 was a superb day of hiking from Oykel Bridge, having resumed the hike from Strathcarron. Thunderstorms were forecast for the afternoon so I set off from my campsite on the riverbank of the Oykel River opposite the hotel after a night disturbed by constant coughing where I had found sleep difficult. I set off at 5am and hiked in superb weather to Loch Ailsh where I was rewarded with a loch so flat and calm, the surrounding mountains and sky reflected a mirror image on the still water.

Looking back towards Conival 

There then followed a long uphill, trackless hike, towards a pass below the peak of Conival where I had stunning views down towards Loch Assynt and Inchnadamph. I camped alongside the River Traligill at Inchnadamph after a stunning day of hiking through the mountains of the North-West highlands. Here, I spent a really uncomfortable night coughing and shivering and it was this that convinced me I needed to call a halt to the hike, which was particularly galling as I was only around 60 miles from the Cape. These photos were taken on this last day from Oykel Bridge to Inchnadamph. 

LEJOG Memories - Looking back from lockdown

One thing I'm finding difficult about being in 'lockdown' at the moment is the 'memory' posts that automatically flash up on my Facebook profile reminding me what I was doing last year or three years ago etc. This morning, a memory popped up from last year reminding me that a year ago I was hiking around Morecambe Bay to Ulverston on my Land's End to John O'Groats walk. This was part of a slightly convoluted section between the Pennines and the Lake District that took in a large variety of scenery. It was also where I broke one of my hiking 'rules' by taking the train. As I sat in a pub on the seafront in Arnside, looking at the railway viaduct crossing the bay, I studied the map and realised that by taking the train for a short, one station hop over the estuary, I could omit a large loop around to Ulverston saving a least a days walking, possibly two. Ulverston wasn't really on my route as it meant heading south for a while but I had decided I wanted to do the whole of the Cumbria Way, which meant I needed to divert to get to the start. After a six minute train ride, I found myself in Grange over Sands and carried on to Ulverston where I picked up the start of the Cumbria Way, which proved a fitting climax to this section of my hike from Hay on Wye.

Arnside Tower

Leighton Hall

Sawley Abbey

Pendle Hill

View towards Pendle Hill

Gorple Reservoir

Hoad Monument Ulverston

Morecambe Bay

View towards the Lake District

Morecambe Bay 

Cartmel

Hornby Road, Forest of Bowland

Arnside Viaduct

Future Long Distance Hiking Plans

The next long hike I am planning is the third (and hopefully) final section of my Land's End to John O'Groats hike from Carlisle, where I finished in the spring. It was never my intention to split the hike into three parts, I had intended to walk it in one but circumstances dictated otherwise. This section will be approximately 470 miles, so will be the longest of the three sections. My route will roughly be as follows, Carlisle to Annan, mostly on country roads. From Annan, I will follow the Annan Trail to Moffat and if the conditions are good, up to the Devil's Beef Tub. From there, I will follow paths and trackless sections over hills to Biggar and Lanark where I will pick up the Clyde Walkway and Kelvin Way to Milngavie in Glasgow and the start of the West Highland Way to Drymen. From Drymen, my preferred route is the Rob Roy Way to Pitlochry and then through the Cairngorms to Inverness. From Inverness, I intend following the John O'Groats Trail along the coast to the finish. I have alternative routes from Drymen (WHW & GGW) and an inland alternative to the John O'Groats trail and weather will also play a part in my daily route decisions but this is the 'outline' route I have planned. I am hoping that this final section will avoid the problems that have delayed me on the previous two and hopefully, I won't have the need to visit any hospitals on this occasion.

LEJOG 2019 - Finale

The day after finishing the walk, as I explored Carlisle's interesting and attractive historical centre, I made a point of asking in the Tourist Information Centre exactly where the Cumbria Way terminated as I couldn't find a terminus marker. I had noticed Cumbria Way markers on the way to the Castle and thought that this would make a great terminus to the walk. My guidebook didn't mention a finish point, unlike the southern end in Ulverston, so I thought the castle would be a great end to not only the Cumbria Way, but also this section of my trek. There was no marker visible when I reached the Castle so I asked in the Tourist Information Centre in the square in the town centre only to be told that it finished outside by the market cross. 'But there are signs pointing to the castle' I said. 'Oh yes, I think one guidebook finishes there' said the bored looking woman behind the desk. So there it is. The long distance walk without a definite finishing point. One thing I was sure of, my long distance walk was over, at least for now.

*UPDATE: September 2020 - I have now decided that my LEJOG walk will finish in Carlisle and become my England End to End walk. For an explanation of my reasons for this check out this link

Carlisle Castle

Market Cross

The Citadel

Carlisle Cathedral