Scottish Adventure Day 2

The silver birches crowd along the banks of Loch Linnhe, reaching out towards the light and water. We speed past along the road in our red, flowery campervan, children in the front drinking in the view while mummy peers out of the back window. On dark nights or long journeys the back seat is best, you can put your feet up and snuggle up with the dog in a nest of cushions. When driving through stunning scenery though, this seat is the equivalent of being stuck behind a pillar atthe theatre: glimpses of grandeur but you feel you’re somehow missing out.

Fort William - outdoor adventure capital of the UK. Let’s face it, it really needs razing to the ground and rebuilding. So much more could be made of the fantastic loch side, where now there’s a busy road and the scruffy backs of the concrete town centre buildings. I envisage a lovely pedestrian esplanade fronted by the shopping area, the main road passing behind, on the landward side.On fine days (they do have them), people could sit on benches overlooking the loch, or dine outside cafes. We came into town in search of knitting needles as Isobel has recently taken up the hobby, but snapped her needle on Friday. We accidentally also bought trainers, a jumper and lunch. That’s what happens in Fort William.

I love this part of the world. I get a sort of wanderlust. My eyes are drawn to ridges, gullies and woodland with an insistent pull.  You could set off up there... What would the climb be like? What would the view be like? What would that water be like to swim in? I know the reality involves bogs, scree, sharp rock, cold water and the dreaded midgie, but the pull is there nonetheless, and thedesire to row across that loch, or set out on a journey into those hills.

The plan we had in mind today was to catch the ferry from Mallaig to Armadale on Skye, then drive across to Kyleakin and catch the ferry back to Glenelg on the mainland where we would camp. Unfortunately we made a slight error by not booking the ferry, so faced with a long wait to seeif we might get aboard “on standby” we decidedto turn back from Mallaig and play Chase the Steamtrain with the Jacobite all the way back towards Fort William before taking the inland route north.