Monday, 9 May 2022

If A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words How About A Video

After an absolutely stunning day yesterday weatherwise, today was more of a typical Scottish day.


Both days were equally spectacular...and exhausting.  I'm thinking photo montages and videos will be my "go to" because by end of day I'm pooped -- in a good way.

So without further ado here are highlights of Day 1 & 2. It's looking like the rain will be with us for a while.








I'm off to bed...

Cheers ❤️


Sunday, 8 May 2022

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words.

Yes you've heard that saying before.  


It might seem like an easy way out of blogging but I am sooooooo tired that my words probably wouldn't make sense.

I will just say that our day -- from arrival in Glasgow, the beautiful accommodations, the wonderful people who are part of this adventure and the delicious food -- was perfect.

Despite being extremely sleep deprived we managed to get in lots of walking.  Glasgow is a beautiful city.  They are well into spring and the flowers, trees and shrubs are amazing.

We set off on the first leg of The West Highland Way tomorrow morning so I am off to bed.  Enjoy this video and the pictures.  😊❤️























Saturday, 7 May 2022

Let The Adventure Begin!




Despite a few logistical challenges, backed up traffic on the 401 and long security line-ups the trip from home to the airport went very smoothly.



Like the proverbial "village", my family and friends have been instrumental in making this trip possible.  You have all my love and gratitude for your support.

Once we got through security things went tickity boo.  They weren't kidding when they said get here early -- over 1 1/2 hrs in line. 😳

We met up with the rest of the LOLA group at our gate.  Most of the group we were meeting for the first time in person.  I think they are going to be fun.

Our plane is scheduled to arrive in Glasgow at 6:57 a.m. tomorrow.

We were fortunate to have a flight that had 100 empty seats leaving lots of room for people to spread out.  Mike and I had 3 seats to ourselves.  

Lots of elbow room.   

This post is short and sweet since there is not much action happening on the plane.
 
I have downloaded season 4 of The Crown -- I know, I know. What took me so long.                       


Here's a video of our day.  We will chat again from Glasgow once we settle in.  😊❤️





















Thursday, 5 May 2022

Finishing To Start Anew

 Wow!

When I said I was pressing pause I never expected it to be for 2 years.  What the F&*K!

My last post on this blog was May 12th, 2020 and here we are now May 4th, 2022.  Whoda thunk it.

I have to admit that leaving my "The West Highland Way The County Way" blog incomplete has left me feeling somewhat Sheldon-like.  You know?  When he hasn't been able to complete 3 "knock knock/Penny"s at the door.  No? You don't know?  It's a Big Bang Theory reference -- binge worthy in my opinion.

Anyway.......

I am not even going to go into the last 2 years.  It has been challenging to say the least and I know not just for me.  I have decided that it will only be eyes forward, positive outlook and make the most of each moment from this point on.  No more needs to be said.


Back to the blog...



IT IS A GO!!!! ( I am knocking on every piece of wood I can find as I type this)

Friday at 7:15 p.m. I am scheduled to board a flight to Glasgow, Scotland which will be the start of the real West Highland Way adventure with Live Out Loud Adventures Tours.  Accompanying me on this trek is my brother Michael.  

I have no words......

Well actually I do have words -- blogworthy ones hopefully.

I am hoping that you will follow along with  Michael and me on this...I don't even know what to call it.  Epic Adventure....that sounds good.

I will be posting while we are there and will put a link on my Facebook page and a link in my Instagram bio if you are interested.  If you are my "friend" I'm sorry cuz my feed will be full of each days events.  You can "unfriend' me if it gets too much for you,  😄

Just to give you a reminder of what the West Highland Way is all about I am putting a link below.  Click on it and it gives you a sense of the hike.





As far as completing what was the original purpose of this blog, I satisfied my nagging sense of "incompleteness" (is that a word? 🤔)  by combining it with a gear test hike with Michael.  We did it at the location that was to be my Day 7/8 on the virtual Way -- Macaulay Mountain Conservation Area. (The link below is to a video for the conservation area)






Here is the official itinerary.  

Day #7 – Kinlochleven to Fort William: Distance = 24km, Total Ascent = 735m

Our final day begins with a steep climb out of Kinlochleven, through the Great Pass of Lairigmor, and onwards through forest plantations. Occasional breaks in the trees provide splendid views of Ben Nevis. We’re now on the homestretch and Fort William awaits. The official end of the West Highland Way is in Gordon Square by a bronze sculpture of a weary hiker rubbing his feet. We’ll sit on the bench, rub our feet, and then … celebrate our achievements at a family-run hotel with an award-winning restaurant.

Ben Nevis: Distance = 5 ½ to 6 ½ hours, Total Ascent = 1,345m/4,413ft

Ben Nevis … the mountain with its head in the clouds … the mountain with “a wild heart, an adventurous spirit and a flair for drama”. With Ben Nevis right at our doorstep, bagging our first Munro will be a natural. For those with energy still remaining, we’ll wake up early and climb to the highest point in Scotland, and “bag” the first of hopefully many Munros - a mountain in Scotland with a height over 914m/3000ft of which there are 282!

So one adventure completed....now on to the next!

I hope you will join us. .❤️