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Great Glen Way Day 3

Okay I typed this up on word pad last night but somehow must not have saved it...it was the wine, I blame the wine...

So I did write in my journal so will try to piece it from there...

After another hearty Scottish brekky (once we stop walking it is back to toast and cereal) we headed off down the same horrible road back to the path.  At one point I did not have room to walk and just had to stand while vehicles thundered by me and started walking when it was safe to do so.   Not nice but soon we were in the forest and enjoying the trail.  Garnet saw a bench and thought "hmmm..must be a view" and sure enough.  There was a ruined castle on the opposite shore as well as a half sunken ship.  Garnet is a hoot and a real story teller so he decided he was Jack Sparrow!!  Well I guess you had to be there...

Anyway we carried on and enjoyed the walk as it was lovely, flat and in so much simple beauty - trees, moss, rocks..lovely.  At one point Garnet stuck his arm into the moss and it was about six inches. We then walked through a field to the Caledonian Canel and followed the canal all the way to Fort Augustus.   It was so interesting to see all the boats and the locks...at the last lock we stayed and watched some of the boats and after we left we found out one had caught fire!  The hills are so beautiful with fire trees and heather...it really is wonderful walking in nature like this.  It was a twelve mile walk and while it didn't seem that long time wise my feet were pretty sore by the end. 




Lock keepers's cottage along the way

Garnet and June talking and chatting

This is the boat that caught fire - note the dog Belle in the background


It started raining for the last fifteen minutes of our walk so we arrived to a soggy Fort Augustus.  First stop was a place for tea/beer - tea in my case.  We had our drinks then all the women left our stuff with Garnet in the pub and took off shopping.  I managed to buy a couple of gifts and we bought tiny bottles of wine for later that evening.  :)   We also went to the tourist info centre to get specific instructions for our bed and breakfast that evening.

Back to the pub where we had supper - I ordered a ploughman's lunch which came with a ton of cheese that I could never have eaten so I took it with me and we enjoyed it with our wine later that evening in the lounge that evening. (our group were the only ones in the B & B so we commandeered the lounge)   Dogs are allowed in a lot of pubs here....


Ploughman's lunch:  bread, three kinds of cheese & branston pickle.  yum!

 
We then started walking to the bed and breakfast (Thistle Dubh which was quite nice) and stopped off at the Rare Breeds centre and saw some "Hairy Coos" (Cows) 
 

 
 We then got back to the bed and breakfast and enjoyed our wine and cheese in the lounge.  My feet were bothering me so I gave them a lovely moisturing rub with lotion.  
 
And that was day three!!!  (Thursday Sept. 12th) 


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