Additionally, its worth noting that the excellent hostel at Inchnadamph has a small shop, which depending on how picky you are, should have enough options in stock to get you through to Kinlochbervie, : I didnt treat any of my water while in Scotland and had no issues. I will be walking 40-65 km (24-40 miles) per day so I need a lot of food to keep going while keeping it simple enough to eat even if the weather is bad. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); The Hiking Life is a compilation of tips and advice on trip planning, lightweight backpacking techniques, and improving your wilderness skill set. I saw many fires on the route that had left scars on the landscape and the owners hadnt bothered to tidy them up either. Grid: NC 259 746 This probably doesnt sound too exciting, but it still is a vital part of the journey. A Practical Guide To The Cape Wrath Trail, Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), This error message is only visible to WordPress admins. The Cape Wrath Trail is an approximately 350 km (220 mi) walk through the Scottish Highlands, stretching from Fort William to the northwesternmost point of mainland Britain, Cape Wrath. Purchased hot meals at Kinloch Hourn, Shiel Bridge, Kinlochewe, Okyel Bridge, Inchnadamph and Kinlochbervie; 3. Couldnt resist! Midge bites, theyll drive you crazy. I havent had a case of the backcountry trots since 1999.I think a big reason is diligent use of hand sanitizer. Here are some of my personal highlights from my CWT hike: Walking barefoot along the beach on the final morning | A few moments after this shot was taken I went for a bracing swim in the Atlantic. A few hours later a shrieking woman appeared demanding that everyone get off her lawn. Hi Maureen, glad the tips were useful. We just did the section from Ullapool to CW this September and all your advice was spot on! Walking to Cape Wrath, Day 29, June 8, 2022. Theres no point spitting the dummy over something you have no control over. It has the reputation of being Britain's toughest long distance walk. Input your search keywords and press Enter. What sections would you suggest to skip? There are days when its deadly dull, days when your body protests, days when the rain will turn you into an amphibian. Hello Cam, Thank you so much for a great report as well as inspiration. The route is described from south to north in 14 stages, with 6 alternative stages along the way, allowing for a flexible itinerary of between two and three weeks. For a general overview of the gear I recommend for cold and wet environments such as the Scottish Highlands (along with other advice), see Tips for Hiking in Cold and Wet Weather. I will list only what I consider to be the essentials here; Ill leave it up to you how much extra gear you want to bring. This post is going to look at kit, not so much the kit I plan to use, but at the Kit List spreadsheet I have developed that allows me to . Another important note is to know your exit points in advance. Day Four - Strathcarron to Shenavall Bothy (68.52km) Day Five - Shenavall Bothy to Knockadamph Bothy (41.99km) (Collected a food parcel in Clachan) Day Six - Knockadamph Bothy to Cape Wrath (124.79km) (Had some food at Inchnadamph and Glendhu Bothy) The journey was fantastic and the weather was rare for that time of year, with a big high . If for whatever reason you decide you cant go on anymore, at least youll know where to go to get back to civilisation! Exped Thunder 70 A big pack that still manages to keep the weight down. The weather for the walk was mostly pleasant, which was lucky for April. And as I stated before, youll have to be able to carry it all with you. What would you say about going CWT in this time of year and the shelter for this hike? I had initially . Toughen up your knees, especially the ligaments surrounding the joints. Food and Drink Along with the demands of the trail itself, your food supplies will be your main concern along the CWT. The Cape Wrath Trail. Features: Stone floors, crude wooden platforms to sleep on, one open fire hearth. Cheers, This guidebook describes the Cape Wrath Trail, a long-distance trek from Fort William to Cape Wrath crossing the wild north west of the Scottish Highlands. Corryhully Bothy on a gloomy morning. I will mention this again: if you are not physically prepared and/or have no previous experience with (solo) long distance hiking, you should not be walking the Cape Wrath trail alone! I can only show you a rough estimate of the costs you can expect to make. So plan your gear accordingly. No worries. And if the roles had been reversed and some weather-beaten old bastard had accidentally walked in on me and my partner, I would have also been polite (or at least tried to be), but secretly would have been hoping that hed decide to continue on his way. Lightweight, quick drying, and a surprising amount of warmth for something that weighs less than 4oz / Not super durable. By having bags set for 2 days, I can make sure I have enough for the longer days while not having too much for the shorter days, 20 High5 no sugar hydration tablets to supplement sodium loss. Great, lets keep going. For participants that have a diagnosed food allergy that is evidenced by a letter from their doctor, we are able to provide an additional baggage allowance (10kg) so . Great baselayer / Not too thin, not too thick / Spot on for shoulder season conditions. All-time favorite liner gloves. The Cape Wrath Trail (lets call it the CWT from now on) is known as Scotlands most challenging long-distance trail. We tend to use it when someone acts a bit childish or gets outwardly frustrated or angry for no good reason. Long-term review: Bridgedale Stormsocks And of course, with an abundance of streams en route, the trail can become impassable in certain areas. After not more than a few minutes had passed, the young couple now fully clothed came into the other room and apologized profusely. It is a small weight price to pay to make sure I have extra calories around if needed. There is no single definitive . Cape Wrath Trail. While this trail has its share of bothies and other forms of accommodation along the way, they are not numerous enough to provide shelter every night. Due to the unpredictable weather and challenging terrain, it is a hike that is best suited to experienced ramblers who possess a good level of fitness, navigation skill, and a stoic disregard of having wet feet. You could go stoveless on this trip if you wanted to. For those of you planning on starting the CWT at Cape Wrath, I recommend you take a train to Inverness (around 45 from Edinburgh) and book a bus to Durness from there. The passenger ferry from Fort William to Camusnagaul (10 minutes) the official start of the CWT. I can highly recommend the local Durness Bus service. Mother Nature had other ideas. Before you strap on that backpack and get going, you first need to know what youre getting into, what youll be bringing along, how much food youll need, what youre planning on eating and how long youre planning on being on the trail. Ok, the lack of views are a bummer, but if you spend enough time in the boonies over enough years, things have a way of evening themselves out on the scenery front. Overall I was happy with my gear selections on the Cape Wrath Trail. Especially when its not overly humid. With up to 6 days of food, it will never exceed 28 pounds. Iain has found a good balance between guiding the reader in rough terrain and offering challenging or safer alternatives. Thanks for the kind words. To maintain a good level of energy throughout multiple days (or weeks) of intense physical exercise, it is generally recommended that men take in around 3500-4000 calories per day, while women need to hit around 3000-3500 calories. For updates and more photos, follow her Facebook and Instagram pages. Bad weather does make one more accountable to every move/item of clothing; what happens if I get this piece of clothing wet, and theres only one piece of dry clothing to replace it in camp? Which Direction? This method involves walking roughly 230 miles on pathless terrain, all the way from Fort William, and is a trip in itself. On the seventh day of my CWT hike the weather was mostly clear. Interesting too that you went stoveless in that damp weather. Best of luck on your trip! As for spitting the dummy, thats an old Australian phrase thats been around for yonks (i.e. Not only are there only two of them, they are durable and waterproof as well! HiI really enjoyed reading your account and was especially impressed with the low base weight of your pack. Thanks a lot for all the information! I picked up some food and . Fuels: Dried Peat,Driftwood, Birch, Pine. Your best bet is to scan the CWT Cicerone guide. One armed blind folks can sew better than me. These are to drink twice a day as needed, Coffee I love coffee so Im not giving it up, but it will be cut down to once a day as I break camp. Firstly because it is more of an unofficial collection of smaller trails rather than a marked and advertised trail like the West Highland Way, for example. For many years my rehydrating vessel of choice when going stoveless. It connects with the West Highland Way, North Highland Way and part of an alternative route suggested by Cameron McNeish which follows the Great Glen Way out of Fort William before joining the main route in Glen Shiel. Learn how your comment data is processed. During the days Id also eat bars, trail mix, crisps, nuts; basically whatever I could find. When it comes to fuel foraging, take only what you need. Cape Wrath Trail 0: Approach to Fort William. There are some similarities between hiking there and in Alaska, but for the most part I feel like they are quite distinct experiences. Youll want to bring lightweight meals, enough to sustain you on a daily basis but also something that will provide you with enough nutrients and energy to make it through those three weeks. Get a backpack, stuff it with heavy items and start walking uphill two or three days a week. Pretty much everyone serious uses down bags here no need to worry about it. I quickly shut the door, muttering three or four rapid-fire sorries as I did so. Please go to the Instagram Feed settings page to create a feed. Hop over to Ullapool (I went from Inverness bus station) and get an afternoon bus at about 16.00-17.00-ish from Ullapool to Durness or go direct from Inverness to Durness at 10.00 or 17.00 (route 805 for the latter time). Noticed you in good old Ozzie shorts-What was your poison on the little feckers? Go digital! A singular landscape of salt flats, volcanoes, fantastical rock formations and coloured lakes, I completed the journey over 16 days in August, 2017. Will upgrade to. Im hoping to do other hikes too and I wondering your opinion on West Highland Way vs. Cairngorm National Park? Meandering along the Cape wrath trail. Also just to let you know my wife and I did the Wilson Prom Circuit in March and your post was the major resource we used. Day 1 - rain and sunsets. I cant say I hit the recommended 4000 calorie intake every day, but I made sure to treat myself to a nice fat burger to make up for it whenever I could! Pitched the tent & had a comfortable hour having food & few brews before the expected rain came in. . Theres an Estate Office in Archfary where you might be able to pop in and enquire about the river conditions up to Rhiconich (walking south to north). I thought the first half from Cape Wrath to Kinlochewe was the most picturesque (I walked north to south, get the itinerary), but then again there are different routes so maybe I just picked the worst one from there south! I also just noticed that youve listed your umbrella for this trip? You just cant get that if all your hiking is done on cruisy, manicured trails in fine weather with temps in the 70s (low 20s C). Theres also a campsite two kilometres further up Glen Nevis, which will serve as a cheaper option to spend the night. Another option is to walk the epic Cape Wrath Trail. So far the story of this trip. Last year I hiked the CWT (Knoydart variant) and really enjoyed it! I cant do that even in the 70sF! Instead of taking yet another bus all the way to Cape Wrath, we walked about 8km along a dirt road through MOD territory to Kearvaig bothy, which is an absolutely lovely place to start your journey and is located about 3km before the official start of the Cape Wrath Trail. In fact it's only 200 - 250 miles. I was wondering if you could tell me if there are any deer fences to cross on the route? So be prepared to do some research on the different routes available, and bring a map and compass! x. Trekking Solo In the Highlands . I must admit, not completing it hadnt occurred to me, but with gales that had lifted tents from campsites and continual rain only four days before we set off, it was easy to see why. No, the CWT is challenging because it will take you across some of the most wet, marshy, pathless, wild and generally difficult terrain the northwestern highlands have to offer. Cheers. Which is what I did; never let it be said that Cameron James Honan stood in the path of young love! It's hard to believe that this website is now nearly five years old. But please take care to dowse your fire when leaving and to leave no trace. Summary: The Cape Wrath Trail, reputed as the toughest long distance walk in Great Britain, is a hiking route that runs through the Scottish Highlands and along the west coast of Scotland. Theme by Jason M Design. Tinders: Birch bark, King Alfreds cakes, birch polypore. Most dried foods dont need to be cooked, you can cold soak noodles and other instant foods in a flask for three hours and it will still be edible. I redid part of Cape Wrath in 2017 wearing these and had happy, dry feet. As for the up-sizing to the Duomid on this last trip to Scotland/Norway, it was really just to have a bit more space when the weather came in. Thanks for your message. And they might be right. If you dont have the appropriate kit they can be maddening. Hi Frederick, I think its fair to say that keeping your feet in good order is THE most important aspect of any long distance backpack. I met my calorie requirements by posting food parcels and supplemented this with food fromcafes, shops andforaging. Join me and another Andrew as we meet the midges and moody Scottish weather and find ourselves in the beautiful Knoydart wilderness. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Find out where to stay when on the trail. Sign up for occasional email updates with news and updates from the trail. Good to know. Because of its remoteness (there are parts of the CWT that require the intrepid adventurer to carry enough food to last a few days) - and changeable conditions (rivers suddenly in spate, weather conditions changing in moments etc.) Groundhogs are great; in addition to their durability, the red colour makes me less likely to lose them than the generic silver. A memorable beginning to a hike I had long been looking forward to. Hikers planning to take on the Cape Wrath Trail should be experienced hikers, able to fend for themselves in terms of personal safety, food and supplies and navigation. As a general rule, you should eat around 1kg of food a day while hiking otherwise you will lose weight. There are a couple of differences worth noting compared to my 2013 TGO Challenge Gear list. Bothies are rarely near trees or woodland on this route, so you must learn aboutother fuels you can utilise such as dry peat or heather. Midges prefer dark colours to light ones, so why they make black head nets (and more to the point, why I bought one) is a mystery. Pack light. Subjective Participant or Objective Observer? Here's what to expect: The Cape Wrath Trail is a long distance hike through some of the most remote areas in Scotland, the trail is around 250 miles long and it takes the average backpacker around 2-3 weeks to complete. Not as good as new, but still functional / From what Ive seen, the latest models have a different design, and arent in the same league as the old ones. Do you need to make more supply runs? Other resources online make it sound incredibly hard, but I think it is manageable for any prepared hiker. One of my favourite things about rambling in shitty (but not really) conditions (e.g. Woodland: Scots pine needle tea, Wood Sorrell, Pine nuts, Birch sap, Rowan berries (do not eat raw). In regards to what I did for food on the CWT: 1. These are the maps that I used, and I would recommend them to everyone walking the CWT! BUT it isnt always open during term time as geology students book the whole place out to study the nearby Lewisian gneiss. Cheers, Overnight te https://t.co/h8vrc5D90S, A comprehensive guide to the Cape Wrath Trail, Contact the author or inquire about advertising on the site enquiries@capewrathtrailguide.org, Watercolour of Sourlies Bothy, Knoydart by Anthony Harper There are a number of parts of the Cape Wrath Trail like this but knowing this to be the case is useful, knowing that as long as you keep the right bearing, you'll eventually find a track. 9 top tips for hiking the Cape Wrath Trail No.9 is the most important Gear and food reviews Exped Synmat UL Winter M An extremely comfortable winter sleeping mat. A few tips? And possibly in bucketfuls. We had better luck with the weather too!