Before I go on to describe our last 2 days in Fort William I must tell you about the beautiful chaffinches we encountered on the afternoon of our last day. We were sitting on some felled tree trunks having the last of our tea and cuppa etc. The male chaffinches were so tame they were looking for the crumbs around Julia's feet. They would not actually eat from our hands, but almost. Never before have I seen them so tame.
Yesterday, Thursday, started out dull and wet. As boarded The Jacobite train (the one in the one in the Harry Potter films) at 10am. The journey took us over the stone Glenfinnan viaduct - it is just a shame that you cannot see it very well from the train!
On arrival at Malaig we noticed a seagull and her chicks on a nest against an old track alongside the in-use track! The chicks seemed quite happy with the steam train running by their nest twice daily.
We had fantastic fish and chips in.a cafe (though the service was a bit slow due to the numbers of people getting off the train) then went for a walk round the shops in the small fishing village - and to watch the antics of the gulls trying to get food off the tourists!
The return trip was made in sunshine but I felt a little nauseous - either from the food or the motion of the train so I spent the evening reading while J and K went out for tea and a pint. However we did call in to Ellis Beckham mountainwear shop when we got off the train - Kev bought new trek boots and I got a new gortex lightweight trek jacket (half price).
Today we persuaded Kevin that a distillery tour was much preferable to climbing Ben Nevis. He agreed to come along to the High Wire activity at The Nevis Centre first - to watch Julia having fun swinging through the trees on wires - a high-level obstacle course. When he realised I was going to do it too, he decided he could not lose face by wimping out, so he did it too.
We waited for the 9:10 bus but it did not Drive, so we went up to the centre by taxi. We paid for our tickets then went for a coffee and cake to kill time until 11:00 - just as the bus pulled in!
At 11:00 we were issued with our kit and allowed onto the first of the 3 sections. This was a traverse round an oblong obstacle course on single wires, loose swings, moving logs etc, about 20 feet above the ground. By the time we finished that we were aching and tired - but then we went into the woods to do the harder courses through the trees - even higher! At one point I was feeling exhausted and said to Kev that I was getting a bit tired - which he points out was amusing as, At The time, I was traversing a line of swinging tyres! I almost fell off laughing but it helped me forget my tiredness!
The black run ended with a zip wire down through the trees. FANTASTIC
We caught the bus back - remembering to get off at The Ben Nevis distillery for a tour and tasting. Kevin sacrificed himself to, reluctantly, drink my taster, as I only drink the stuff in coffee!
On our walk back into town, we saw a few walkers coming in at The end of their West Highland Way trek - even 2 guys in moors. Julia commented that Kev should have done it in a quilt - which set us all off laughing again.
We are now back in our triple room, ready for bed and catching the early train to Glasgow in the morning. Another fun, enjoyable trek and soon home to start planning the next one - we want to do the whole of the South Coast Path, from Minehead in Somerset to Poole in Dorset, about 600 miles, in sections over the next few years.
I will upload some photos once I get home - then some more when Julia sends me theirs - so keep checking blog friends!
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