Just back from 4 days walking the Cateran Trail up in
Perthshire. It’s a 55 mile walk long trail and roads that supposedly were used
by cattle thieves and other such types. It is now the close season and the choice
of hotels was limited. We thought about camping, but I’m not a walker and
didn’t fancy waking up wet and bitten every morning not to mention carting all
that stuff around the countryside. I had a large rucksack and chucked various
things into it that I thought I’d need. Tins of beans, pot noodles, stove and
gas, full toilet bag, towel…you get the idea. No idea about the rucksack grief
I was accumulating.
We set off from Alyth on day 1 and trekked up to Glen Isla.
We were doing 2 miles an hour and I couldn’t believe how slow we were going. We
stopped every 2 or 3 miles for a brew up. As it took about 20 minutes to brew
up, this added further to the time. The Glenisla Hotel was a welcome sight at
4ish.
Day 2 saw us set off up toward Glenshee in glorious
sunshine. For us to do the route in 4 days, a 23 mile stage 2 was required.
However, there was no chance of use walking that distance in the light. There
is a short-cut that misses out 5 miles up north and we elected to do this,
cutting straight across west to Kirkmichael over the moors from Cray rather
than going to the Spittal. Crossing the moors was a bit boggy and there were
missing way markers so my map reading skills came in handy. It was a good job
visibility was good though. We coped with the 18 mile leg, but I was puggled by
the end of it and we stopped for a beer at the Kirkmichael Hotel before getting
to the Strathardle Inn. This was the best place and we were welcomed by a gift
of two hot cupcakes from the owners daughter. Dinner was excellent and the
glass of wine ensured that by 9pm we were out for the count.
Day 3 was a 15 mile affair to Blairgowrie. Another dry day
and a very walkable/runnable stage. We met a couple going the other way. They
advised that the Bridge of Cally Hotel were not doing meals and we would be
doing well to get tea and scones. We did this, overseen by a rather dour
waiter. Setting off down the old military road to Blair, we missed a sign and
ended up doing another leg shrinking 18 miles finishing off by taking our lives
in our hands walking along the main road to the town. To add to our woes, we
had booked in the Old Cross in Rattray, another mile or so from the town centre
so we trudged up the hill to the Inn after stopping for another beer at a
converted church. Dinner was fine in the busy restaurant. My rucksack was really
an issue and over the days I jettisoned this and that to try and make it
bearable. All I could think off was that I could run each stage in a couple of
hours. You do, however, get a very detailed perspective of your surroundings
when you walk. It has to be said that walking with weight is a different kettle
of fish to a day trip somewhere. The final stage was Blair back to Alyth. The
Missus promised me a short stage and I couldn’t wait. We passed a load of
grouse and saw a few fleeting deer but saw very few other humans. The sun was
out and the hedges full of berries. Well, it was Perthshire.
I was well pleased to arrive in Alyth around 3pm where we
returned to the Losset Inn and reclaimed the car.
We had spoken to all the
owners of each hotel and they didn’t paint a good picture of the hospitality
industry in Scotland. Lack of staff, falling numbers through the doors and
consumption generally down. I thought closing your hotel during the day to
visitors didn’t help. An inevitable downward spiral. We wandered around a sunny
Dunkeld on the Thursday before returning home via Auntie Maureens for a cuppa
and catch up. Next time I will be much more attentive to what I’m carrying. All
in all it was an enjoyable and tranquil four days and we’ll see where we trek
next.
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