Guitar Girl Around the World: November 2013

I finally took the time to put down the books and get out of St. Andrews for a couple days. I joined the Postgraduate & Staff Hiking group on the weekend trip to Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands and they were AMAZING. We left St. Andrews Friday afternoon and took a little sight-seeing detour on a road called Glen Etive before the sun set. Snow-capped mountains, rivers with cottages right on the edge and a pack of deer greeted us at the beginning of our adventure. After we made our way over to the Clachaig Inn for a bite to eat and a quick drink at The Boots Bar before arriving at the Glencoe Independent Hostel. After a long day of driving it was nice to relax before our adventures began on Saturday morning.

Saturday the group made our way up to the Blackwater Reservoir. The hike up was a great trail, paved roads, uneventful (a little rain/sleet, but nothing major that was unexpected). We had lunch next to the dam with stunning views of snow, clear water, and just wonderful nature everywhere. Then we started the hike back down. I knew it was not going to be the smooth walk back when we climbed over a gate with a "Danger... do not enter" sign on it. But, the group was going so I stayed with them. Shortly after is when things got really interesting. The path down was more of a creek-bed with varying levels of water, thankfully my boots were totally waterproof and I stayed pretty well dry the whole time. We had to cross water, sunk into boggy land, and slid across wet rocks. All in all, it was still beautiful, but the type of hike that can really turn someone off to being in the outdoors; many people had wet boots/socks, twisted ankles, and by the end were not enjoying being on the trail.

Sunday had two options for hikes, those wanting to climb a Munro and those wanting a more flat walk. I opted for the flat walk, and holy moly, was it worth it. We started at the Glencoe Ski Centre and headed out on the West Highland Way trail to the Bridge of Orchy. West Highland Way is an old military road that was made in the 1750s and is used today by hikers and cyclists (mountain bikers) and is a great path that is pretty easy to navigate and get across. The views from this trail were so stunning we had to keep stopping just to take them all in. The day was clear, warm, and offered views for miles. About ten minutes into our start we had to take off several of the extra layers we had all put on thinking it would be a cooler day! We had lunch on a bridge with snow all around us, a stream below us, and clear blue skies above us. As we continued on we came across a herd of deer and some old ruins. Later on we even had some great views of the childhood home of Ian Fleming (my geek side was impressed). Both groups met back up at the Bridge of Orchy pub for some pints and chips before getting back in the cars and heading back to St. Andrews.

The photos below are a combination of my own and some I grabbed from friends that were on the trip.

Cheers!

Friday