1st - 5th February

1st February day 332

it was a perfect sunny day the birds were singing and the sun was out. Leaving campbeltown i followed the harbour round looking out at davaar island. Compared to the rocky shoreline I'd been following this was easy and took very little concentration.

I followed the road to its end where i picked up a footpath which took me on to a very well preserved gunnery emplacement consisting of four battery placements. Exploring the site i noticed man holes that had been concreted up indicating some kind of entrance or ventilation shafts in the mound behind the gunnery emplacement. I couldn't help but wonder if there was maybe a hidden bunker beneath possibly a munitions dump or store.

Once I'd scoured around looking for a way in but come up with nothing i headed down to the beach to make my way on to peninver.

2nd February  day 333

It was another lovely morning and I'd almost forgotten what it had been like during the cold winter days that had just passed. Leaving peninver i hiked along the beach until i reached a river. Unable to cross i followed the river back up until i found a bridge. Now across i was able to head back to the coast and followed the shore clambering over rocks and boulders, crossing bays in search of adventure and exploration.

Seeing a small cave up in the cliffs and feeling like a little time out i decided to take the opportunity for some cave exploration. You never can tell what a cave is going to be like until you enter it and have a good look. Stood at the mouth of the cave and seeing that it went a fair way back i put my head torch on and went in.

As caves go this one was nice and dry inside, a large opening in the ceiling allowed light to penetrate the darkest reaches and i could imagine thatat some point it had possibly been occupied.  I wasn't sure but feeling that i had a bit of time to spare i decided to roit around to see if i could see any signs. My search wasn't at all fruitless in fact it turned up some interesting relics. An old what appeared to be world war two mit, some remains of some old crockery, a belt and what looked like an old smokers pipe made from porcelain. I'd made quite the discovery, probably not earth shattering but fascinating none the less.

Having spent a good half an hour in the cave i decided it was probably time to once again make haste. I carried on along the stony beach passing at the base of a castle, which castle i had no idea and because of where it was i decided not to investigate. I carried on around the beach to a head land and then scrambled over more rocks. The journey was proving to be quite demanding.

I kept going and began to feel that once again i was treading  where no one had been,  well certainly not in a long time. The route wasn't particularly difficult especially with the tide out revealing easy to traverse rocky shores.

To my right i had beautiful views of arran with its snow dusted mountains. Along the way stopping in various caves. It wasn't long ago i was complaining about the lack of exploration and now i found myself ducking into  caves every few hundred yards with very little time to properly indulge myself.

The sun was beginning to set when i eventually found myself walking across what can only be described as the perfect beach looking across at Carradale. The only thing that stood between me and my destination was a wide yet shallow river. A long sweeping sandy beach beckoning me. Not wanting to put my bare feet into the cold water i decided to look for a footbridge or some stepping stones. Feeling sure I'd find another way across i went off to search.

It didn't take long before i came upon a sign post pointing the way to some old stepping stones and what i thought would be a quick and dry way across.  How wrong i was. Hopping from one large stone to the next i managed to get halfway across before the rocks became too slippery to grip to. Loosing my footing i fell immediately jumping back onto the last dry stone to reevaluate the crossing. It was now surprisingly obvious I'd have to remove my boots and socks and wade over to the other river bank.

The water, knee deep and freezing cold was flowing quickly. The river bed was uneven and the submerged stones were slippery. It was tough going. Reaching the other side i could no longer feel my toes. I quickly put my socks and boots on and began heading back to the sandy beach. With every footstep i felt the feeling return to my feet. It was painful but I kept going.

The gorgeous sunset was soon replaced with darkness. Reaching the far end of the beach i had to use my head torch to light the way and without knowing exactly where i was i fumbled around looking for signs that would guide me to the village where tom adams had arranged a bed for me at his parents hotel, the Carradale hotel.

3rd February  day 334

Waking up at around 8am i was reluctant to leave the soft matress and comfy duvet. Needless to say i did and headed down to the restaurant for breakfast. It soon became time for me to carry on with the trek.

Left the hotel and headed off to pick up the coast again. As i walked along the street it became apparent that I'd gone the wrong way. I wasn't far from the harbour though so I left my pack behind the public convenience and set off to find the beach I'd left the night before. It wasn't far and without the weight of my pack i made good progress.

It didn't take me long to get round the point and back to the harbour looking for the ruins of the castle as i went. Once I'd reached the golf course i knew I'd missed it.

From the harbour i collected my pack and set off following a fairly reasonable footpath following the shore. It was a gorgeous hike that took me through woods and over rocks. Eventually the footpath ended and i was back to scaling small rocky outcrops and crossing secluded beaches and bays. Along the way i saw a couple of otters but failed once again to get a photo, they were simply too nimble and quick.

After several more miles i arrived at grogport and decided to call it a day.

4th February day 335

It was a stunning morning. I'd been expecting more snow and wintery conditions but with the sun shining and a light breeze it was very different to what I had prepared myself for. Was the good weather here to stay.

Leaving grogport i continued heading north, the shoreline ahead was very rocky but generally easy going. My friends the seals were basking in the sun and as i approached all headed for the water. Again the coast here was particularly rocky and as a result whilst lowering myself of one of the rocks i managed to rip the seat of my trousers as well as popping one of the eyelets on my new boots. There's no denying it, the trek wasn't only tough on me but also on my kit.

It was getting late when i arrived at Port a' mhara (port of the dead). This was where i decided to call it a day but i felt quite satisfied I'd covered a fair bit more of Britain's coast quite successfully.

5th February day 336

Once again it was a quite and calm day as i got dressed. It had been raining during the night and although the sky was overcast i didn't feel like I would need to worry about getting wet. Was spring really here now. Had i seen the last of the Scottish winter.

I left the  port of the dead to continue scrambling over rocks, pretty much the same routine as normal. As i continued i began feeling particularly hot and wondered if i had a few too many layers on. Surely it was still too early in the year to be dressing down for summer, still i opened my jackets up to allow the cool air to cool me down.

As i carried on walking i began  thinking about the  nile trip,  the dangers it had in store and the obstacles I'd have to overcome in order to make it not only possible but also a success. Crocodiles and hippos weren't my only concerns and certainly not the only things that could potentially kill me.

With my mind occupied by the thought of a future adventure i covered a fair amount of ground, i was getting quite excited but at the same time i was also still feeling quite hot, uncomfortably hot. Then it began to lightly shower which provided  a welcome cooling down.

A little further on the shower passed, it hadn't rained hard at all. I was now confronted with a river to cross. It wasn't deep so i removed my boots, rolled up my trousers and waded  across. On the far side i had to climb quite a high and steep bank, the loose dirt crumbling under me. Kicking my boots in to create a kind of dirt ladder and using a wire fence i pulled myself up onto the grass above. Following the river down i ended up on a long shingle beach which i was able to follow until i reached the arran ferry  crossing. From there i had to hike along the road to Skipness.

Skipness was not what i had imagined in the slightest. I'd expected it to be a small town but in fact it was quite literally just a small row if houses,  you couldn't even call it a village really.

In front of the houses ran a fairly long beach which terminated at a headland, it was where i was planning to end the day. The tide was once again a fair way out so i set about hiking across, as i did i passed two swan swimming in the calm waters. Little things like this are often a calming distraction from the exhausting 10 mile hikes i took every day. They were moments of relaxation even if it were for a few minutes at a time.

Leaving the swans to enjoy there paddle i carried on along the beach passing by a fine example of a ruined castle. Again i didn't make the detour a way  from the coast to investigate closer, the days hike was coming to an end and i was looking forward to the rest. A little further along though i did see something that did draw my attention. It was the ruins of an old chapel. What made this ruin so special. Oddly enough it was the windows. More precisely it was the red sandstone window surrounds that caught my attention. I had to take a closer look, I'd seen tens if not nearing a hundred ruined chapels on my journey but this particular one stood out. It was quite fascinating to look round and in the grounds, covered by wooden flaps that could be lifted were some excellent examples of ancient tomb stones with very well preserved carvings in. Again i felt like indiana jones uncovering ancient relics.

After taking plenty of time out to thoroughly explore the chapel and its grounds i carried on to the headland, the perfect place to end the day.