I didn’t get much sleep that night- not even because I was worried about my tent- my alarm was set to wake me up every couple of hours. I was poking my head outside and checking the sky. Sadly, no sign of the northern lights. But in the night, when the whole world was at it’s calmest, I decided not to give up, no matter what, I wanted to finish the challenge, even if that meant sleeping in the bus shelters (good luck finding those in the wild, Karol!). Breathe, recalibrate, deliver- motto I have adapted into my life from the special forces. Checked the forecast for the next day- thunderstorm warnings and heavy rains didn’t seem like ideal conditions to test out my tent. I sent a message to Gordon, with whom I was supposed to cross the Loch Ness following day, asking to move it till Monday morning and booked myself into Loch Ness Backpackers Lodge. Knowing I have done the right thing, I fell asleep again.
When I woke up in the morning, it seemed like everyone at the campsite already knew me and the story of my tent. But I wasn’t that girl with tears in her eyes anymore. I was laughing and proudly showing how me managed to solve the problem night before. Breathe. Recalibrate. Deliver. I knew everything was going to be okay- I’ve had a coffee, quick snack for breakfast and packed my stuff. It was the time to check if pen knife would work. I removed tarp’s pole and replaced it with the knife. With the right angle- it worked! I bursted out laughing with relief. Who would have thought such a small tool can hold the whole tent in one place!
I have returned the tarp to Col and filled with new levels of positive energy I’ve hit the trail. Even going uphill after leaving the campsite didn’t seem too steep all of a sudden! The day was lovely, sun was shining and mostly spent on forest tracks. I was no longer worried and, somehow, blisters were not as painful as the day before.
The closer I was getting to Drumnadrochit, the darker the sky was becoming. The day was becoming as grey as soviet countries in the movies. You knew the rain was coming. But it was just a drizzle when I was on my way down. Just a quick light drizzle. Seeing Drumnadrochit in the distance, somehow, I took the wrong turn. Tried to cut towards my path and ended up bashing through the brambles. Something must be wrong with me if I thought that was a great idea! Now, I definitely looked like I spent some time in the wild with those scratched legs!
Loch Ness Backpackers Lodge was a wonderful place! Just a little cosy hostel (with on-site bar too!). Having the luxury of two showers in a row I was just relaxing in the lounge when the heavy rain has started. It was pouring down like someone was throwing buckets of water. That clearly wasn’t the night to test the pen knife trick out. Unaware the rain was so bad it managed to leak into some of the Challenger’s tents, I was enjoying my cup of tea, listening to the sounds of the storm.
Rote taken: Cannich- Kerrow Lodge- Millness- Shenval- Drumclune- Creah Dubh- Craig Mony- Drumnadrochit (28km)
Outdoors with Karolina 