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I had a mega sleep from 9 pm to 4:30 in the morning, woke feeling very refreshed and ate my breakfast. Today promised to be an epic day. I was about 3 miles past Drymen, but with 26 miles to go if I was to reach the campsite at Beingloss farm, where a shower, food and all good things awaited.

The walk will involve crossing Conic Hill  and then a walk along Loch Lomond, which sounds straightforward, but I knew from experience it was not. The walk is really beautiful, but many of the Loch Lomond sections would feel like an ultra intense step class, on paths winding around the shore of the loch up and down around trees and rocks until its end, about 3 miles from Inveranon. The good thing is that there are regular opportunities for refreshment, at Balmaha, Rowardenan and Inversnaid. The danger would be tarrying too long at each or all of them. Heading off it was a fine morning and I was hopeful of good views from the top of Conic Hill. 

I was pleased to be walking well from the outset today. Obviously, the Cullen Skink had the intended effect. I climbed Conic Hill and was rewarded with some early morning views of mist rising above Loch Lomond. I then descended down the steep rocky pathway to Balmaha and the Oak Tree Inn where I had a fabulous breakfast, including fruit compote with yoghurt, porridge, lots of juice, coffee and a fairly restrained amount of fried breakfast. This should see me through until Inversnaid, at least, I thought. 

I was very pleased with my progress, albeit there was still over 20 miles to walk so I set off towards Rowardennan at 8:20 hoping to arrive before lunchtime.

On the way into Rowardennan, I caught up with a young Polish guy called Jacob who lived in the Netherlands. He was a really interesting fellow, so much so that we walked past a turning and added another mile to our walk. He had travelled extensively particularly in the far east and we talked about India, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. By 12 o’clock we arrived at the Rowardennan Hotel. I was good. I had a quick pint and said goodbye to Jacob and headed off again towards Inversnaid. 

It was a beautiful day now, really quite warm and I’d taken some nice shots of the lock side. Walking to Inversnaid I took the quicker higher route. As the name suggests there were more hills but the path was more direct. I pushed it a bit and arrived at Inversnaid at a 3:15. However, my feet were aching and I was getting a bit dehydrated. I decided to rest for an hour, drank 2 pints of orange juice and lemonade and got chatting to two lovely women from Hull, where I went to university. They were about my age and we talked about the clubs in Hull at the time, John Godber’s Hull Truck Theatre company and the many changes that have been made in the city since I was there last. One made a donation to Mind and said she was inspired to walk from Lands End to John O’Groats as well. Perhaps I was looking better than I felt.

At just after four, I set off on the final leg of today’s epic walk to Inveranon. I’d walked this stretch three times before and knew it was beautiful, interesting but tough. The path snakes around the boulders and trees by the lock side for 3 1/2 miles past Rob Roy’s Cave never rising or falling more than a few metres at a time, but continuously. I managed the first 2 miles easily enough, although I was tired. At this point, I met Grace and Sarah, American post grad students at Edinburgh University. Over the next hour and a half I’d meet them half a dozen times as we struggled to walk the final mile and a half along the loch. Grace was used to walking in the desert in America. Sarah is a marathon runner. I’d successfully walked over 900 miles by this point. Did I mention that this part of the walk was tough? In some spots gaining even 100 yards was a major achievement.

Finally arriving at the little beach at the end of Loch Lomond I paddled in the sunlit water, remembering that Helen had swum there the previous October. All that remained was a 3 1/2 mile walk over a couple of hills into Inveranon.

On the way in, I passed several backpackers who I suspect, like me, would’ve been happy for their walk to end right there. The views were beautiful and the walking was now straightforward and at 8:30 I walked into the campsite, paid to pitch my tent, ordered food and drank a pint with unseemly haste. I had a shower rinsed out my T-shirts and socks which though well ventilated were humming after a hot and humid day.

I bought Grace and Sarah, who had just arrived, a drink. They are impoverished students after all. I then collapsed into my tent and slept very well indeed.

Day Summary

Epic, exhilarating and exhausting. 28 miles, 60,000 steps and 150 flights climbed (by a lochside)!