WHW Day Two - Assault on Conic Hill

Drymen to Balmaha - 7 miles - but oh, what a 7 miles it is.

So here we are, sitting in the Oak Tree Inn pub, drinking pear cider,
William Wallace Ale, aka Braveheart beer, and tea with Bailey's Irish
Cream. At least we are diverse!

Left Drymen around 9:30, but decided to stop at a nearby clinic for a
tetanus shot. Dr also decided antibiotics might be a good idea. So
with that taken care of, off we went to climb a "hill". Who the heck
decides on what's a hill and what's a mountain? Started off in the
Garadhban Forest, planted in the 1980's. Looked like we were walking
in Oregon! This part was about 2 1/2 miles. Then we started the hill
climb. It started out through sheep pastures of green grass, spongy
soil and a slight incline. Then the real deal hit. Rocky and steep,
it seemed like being part mountain goat would have been an advantage.
We did a slow climb to the top, which was 1184 feet. It was mostly a
rock climb! Very little smooth trail on this one.
Once to the top, we were all starving. Working on a light breakfast
today, the group proved to not be too smart when it came to carrying
food. Before leaving the B&B this morning, I packed a banana and two
tangerines. Of course my snack food supply was still pretty much
intact from what I brought to travel with. So with an ample supply, I
contentedly settled in for a snack break. Everyone devoured their
sparse rations and then stood around talking of hunger. After eating
my banana and tangerines, I then brought out my bag of snacks, which,
after discovering what I had, was pretty much depleted by everyone
else. Ya, sometimes it pays to be a food hoarder. Even though I am
sometimes criticized for carrying "too much sh**" no one complains
when I save everyone else's ass for what ever needed item pops out of
my bag. Once snacks were eaten, we headed down the other side. Our
descent down to Balmaha was just as rocky and probably more steep than
the ascent! Sore feet, jammed toes, and a balancing act were all a
part of this day. We got into Balmaha around 4:00 p.m. Bags were
waiting for us, so we settled in and had a great meal, which ended up
pretty much being the only real meal of the day. We cant get Internet
in the room so that is why we are sitting in the pub. We are
realizing that the further north we go, the less it may be available.
So if we miss a blog day, know that we are having trouble getting on
line.

Tomorrow we head to Rowardennan. This will be about an 8 mile day.
It will mostly be along the shore of Lake Lomond, which may be a muddy
mess due to so many creeks flowing into the lake, which we will have
to cross. We aren't sure of Internet there, but if there is, we will
post our adventure. If not, we'll catch up soon! Walk on!!