It was a late start to the day after a wet and windy night. it was a new year, 2015. Who would have thought I'd still be in Scotland during the winter something I really wanted to avoid. Not having ever experienced harsh weather fronts on the south coast I was in a less than perfect location with what little kit I was carrying and clothing I was wearing. While slowly emptying the contents of one of my freeze dried breakfast rations I found myself once again hoping for better weather. I wasn't after much just dry weather, it could drop to -10 and I'd be happy.
Feeling the warmth of the nutritious freeze dried oats warming me inside I packed up and before heading off I switched on my phone to check to see if I had any texts and to check in with followers of the challenge. The first message I received was from iain, he'd left the comfort of his home in Lochaline to come see me, tarp, sleeping bag, food and nipper packed into his car. He wanted to experience the conditions of the trek first hand. Knowing iain, no matter how much he insisted, would not last a night in the wild I found myself looking forward to seeing him squirm and moan as he settled into trek life way out from his comfort zone. I just hoped he'd get to experience the hardships I'd endured regularly to help him appreciate what was involved with hiking the coast. I immediately replied and arranged to meet up further along the road before going into the wild at the end of the road.
I then set off on the short hike, a mere couple of miles to the end of the road I was camped next to. Arriving at the designated meeting place I took off my pack and waited. A set of black gates were now blocking my progress, an electronic keypad requiring a code. It was a couple of hours before I saw the familiar headlights of the black vw.
Pulling up alongside me I could see iain really wasn't prepared for a night in the rain, with temperatures dropping potentially to freezing in fact the kit he'd brought with him was totally unsuitable and certainly impossible to carry into the wilderness. Looking around nearby I was unable to find a clearing big enough to make camp for the three of us. This was going to be a big problem now and feeling responsible for both iain and nipper alternative shelter needed to be found.
I was reluctant to climb into his car but with no other options presenting themselves to me I suggested we find somewhere back along the road. I'd seen a cave in the cliffs near to oban caravan park and thought that maybe that would be sufficient to shelter us all from the weather.
As we headed back along the road iain suggested we stopped at the caravan park praying to god for a place to stay as we passed.
Pulling up outside the reception iain left the car and knocked on the door while I sat planning ahead and trying to determine how I could make my guests feel more comfortable. When iain returned he had a big smile on his face. Explaining how he'd managed to wangle a caravan after mentioning the trek to the owners judy and Kevin, who'd been following my progress on Facebook, I couldn't help be feel that accepting would in some way be cheating. Although deep down I really didn't want to accept I felt obliged to ensure the safety of the two adventurers and accepted the kind offer of the luxury shelter. The trek had now become a joke and, although I didn't mention anything, I felt extremely disappointed in myself for failing the challenge I had set. What made it worse was that I knew my limits and I would have rather died than to flaunt the simple rules I'd set down before leaving Southampton. Despite my personal feelings though I needed to ensure the safety of both iain and nipper and seeing the look of excitement on iains face I had to accept my failure.
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