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Walking Land's End to John o'Groats with Mark Moxon

Inverness to Dingwall

Inverness from Kessock Bridge
Inverness from Kessock Bridge

I don't know whether it was the effects of last night's alcohol or the hostel that did my head in the most, but at 7am this morning I gave up trying to get a proper night's sleep and got ready for the off. Inverness Youth Hostel might be one of only two hostels in Scotland to receive a five-star rating from the Scottish Tourist Board, but that doesn't mean their beds are any better than normal. To say that the bunks creak in Inverness is an understatement; once again I can't believe how thankful I am for earplugs, and how inconvenient it is that I'm a light sleeper.

Kessock Bridge
Kessock Bridge
A Monument to Sir Hector Archibold Macdonald
A Monument to Sir Hector Archibold Macdonald

Trials and Tribulations

A Monument to Sir Hector Archibold Macdonald
A Monument to Sir Hector Archibold Macdonald

The walk went well except for a tiny section in the middle, which was the only part of the whole day that wasn't on tarmac. On the map it looked so innocent, just a little black dotted line that indicated a half-mile path along the side of a forest, linking two roads in a particularly innocent way. It looked trivial and we decided we'd have lunch when we reached the road on the other side.

Bloody B&Bs

Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth

It took a long few hours of road walking to reach Dingwall, punctuated only by a pint of shandy in a featureless village called Conon Bridge, so by the time I finally rolled up at my B&B it was 6.15pm, a respectable time to check in. I was therefore more than a little surprised to find that nobody was in; this happens a lot in the middle of the afternoon, which is only to be expected, but not during the early evening. A mobile number was tucked into the door, so I rang it.

Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth
Beauly Firth