Rowardennan to Inversnaid - 7 miles
This morning we woke up to rain. After a Scottish breakfast, we
headed out. It was only overcast when we started, but about one mile
or so into the hike, the skies opened up and we were walking in a
downpour. Since it was really muggy, the rain seemed to be a welcome
change. However, as time went by, the rain got heavier and so full
rain gear came out. Even the packs had to have the rain covers on.
We started crossing small waterways that flowed into Loch Lomond. As
we walked, the waterways turned into water falls. Crossing these was
easy enough for 6' men. Not so, for 5' women with shorter strides.
Kari and I needed help crossing and I actually made it, but not
without a few frightful screams. As you can see by the pictures,
there was a lot of water!! Even the path on the hike became a series
of running water, deep puddles and muddy bogs. We moved right along,
not stopping and having a snack while still walking. We arrived at
the Inversnaid Hotel by 2:00 p.m. Looking forward to getting out of
the rain and having a hot meal, we were somewhat disappointed in the
atmosphere. The hotel relegated all walkers to a room, totally absent
of any ambiance, to dry off. We could only order food and drink from
the bar. Restaurant meals were restricted to the restaurant, which we
were not dressed appropriately for. We did have a nice hot meal. We
then called the Inversnaid Bunk House for a ride. It was about a mile
or so up a steep hill, so we were all very happy that the Bunkhouse
offered rides from the hotel. We were all soaked to the skin when we
got to the hotel, so by the time we arrived at the bunkhouse we were
all cold and in dire need of a hot shower and dry clothes. A
refreshing surprise is the "drying room", which is for our use to hang
wet clothes and lots of shelves for boots, wet packs and anything else
needing to be dried out. Not unlike a sauna in there, we all were
very happy to spend time in there to warm up! Upstairs above the
bedrooms is a sitting area with places to relax, eat, watch a movie or
sit on a computer! Of course we are fortunate to get free wifi here,
so we can post the blogs. Tomorrow we go to Inverarnan where we will
be staying at the Drover's Inn. Hopefully, we will be able to
communicate from there, but again, Internet and cell signal can
sometimes be sporadic. Weather forecast is for sunny skies tomorrow.
While that sounds great, the midges will be back. Sometimes, a rain
walk has it's advantages. On we go!!! We'll post again when we can.
So did you see anything interesting?
ReplyDeleteI was at a deck party awhile back, and the bugs were having a ball biting everyone. A man at the party sprayed the lawn and deck floor with Listerine, and the little demons disappeared. The next year I filled a 4-ounce spray bottle and used it around my seat whenever I saw mosquitoes. And voila! That worked as well.. It worked at a picnic where we sprayed the area around the food table, the children's swing area, and the standing water nearby. During the summer, I don't leave home without it....Pass it on.
ReplyDeleteOUR FRIEND'S COMMENTS: I tried this on my deck and around all of my doors.
It works - in fact, it killed them instantly. I bought my bottle from Target and it cost me $1.89. It really doesn't take much, and it is a big bottle, too; so it is not as expensive to use as the can of Bug-spray you buy that doesn't last 30 minutes.
So, try this, please. It will last a couple of days. Don't spray directly on a wood door (like your front door), but spray around the frame. Spray around the window frames, and even inside the dog house.
FYI: THOUGHT YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO USE THIS INFO.I TOLD KARI ABOUT IT.