I’ve got some last minute stuff to do this morning and then some work in the garden. Then it’s up to Crewe to catch the Sleeper. Tomorrow I will probably wake up somewhere near Blair Atholl. I hoped be asking breakfast with fellow Challengers in Inverness, probably at the bus station. Then it’s the train to Strathcarron and the bus to Torridon.

Route highlights this year:

• Torridon (a few hills), Struy, Eskdale and Drumnadrochit
• The Monaliadth, Findhorn, Kincraig
• A day’s walk through the Rothimurchus
• Glen Avon and be Ben Avon range
• Ballater
• Humphrey’s lost route to Feughside
• The Fetteresso
• Stonehaven and a visit to Celtic Guitars.

Doesn’t sound that exciting now, but I’m sure it will be fine!

Big Stuff

• Mountain Laurel Designs shelter – Cuben Fibre
• Mountain Laurel Designs Duomid Bug Inner
• Mountain Laurel Designs Exodus Backpack 50 litres (Frameless)
• Mountain Laurel Designs Cuben pack liner

Sleeping

• PHD Minimus 400 down sleeping bag
• RAB silk sleeping bag liner
• Neoair sleeping mat

Cooking

• Titanium Honey Stove Wood Burner
• Vargo Triad Alcohol Stove
• Folding titanium spork
• Mountain Laurel Designs titanium pot
• MSR titanium mug
• Fire stick
• Zip lighter
• Hammo Firefighter paper
• MSR coffee filter

Clothes

• Paramo Third Element Jacket
• Paramo Velez Trousers
• Paramo summer walking trousers
• Smartwool merino base layer
• Smartwool merino boxers, 150
• Icebreaker Merino Polo Shirt
• PHD down Jacket
• PHDdown trousers
• PHD down booties
• Tilly Hat, hemp
• Paramo wind cap
• Icebreaker merino beanie hat

Feet

• Inov-8 Terrocs 330
• X Socks Trek Lite
• Teko Lite merino socks
• Sealskins socks (used only with wet feet in camp or civilisation)

Accessories

• Pacer Poles – aluminium
• Lightweight iPhone charger
• lightweight solar charger – backpacking light.co.uk
• Solar powered key light
• Toilet trowel
• Various cuben and lightweight stuff sacks
• Ortleib map case
• Ortleib case – the ‘office’
• Midori Travellers Notebook
• Dr Brommers soap
• Toothbrush
• Sun screen/midge repellent
• Midge hat
• Water bottle and filter, backpackinglight.co.uk
• Platypus water carrier
• Swiss army knife

Camera

A pretty light load so far. This is where it goes wrong Mind you, Al compensates with booze bottles!

• Canon 5iiD full frame DSLR
• Canon 17-40 USM lens
• Gitzo Traveller Tripod
• Really Right Stuff lightweight Ball Head and plate
• Lee Filters ND Grad set
• Spare battery
• Hot shoe spirit level
• Cable release

Food

On the menu this year the usual home dehydrated goodies, including:

• Chilli con Carne
• Chicken Chasseur
• Beef Ragu
• Dehydrated fruit
• Tomato leather
• Lidl Porridge with golden syrup
• Cafe Direct Coffee
• Co-op Fair Trade drinking chocolate
• Co-op dried semi skimmed milk

These will be supplemented by real food bought on the way. As I have a wood stove and grill there will be the scent of bacon sandwiches wafting over from my place – hee, hee ..

I must have missed something, but that will do!

When you see me in Scotland I will look much the same. I will still be wearing my trusty Paramo and Terrocs but will have a new pack and now a new hat!

I pondered not replacing it but you lot told me things would not be the same! This one is made of hemp which is lighter than duck cotton. It is a fetching shade of light brown. But, thinking about it, I’m sure Bob has one that is exactly the same. When we do our Bob and Andy Big Day Outs I must be careful to make sure I keep hold f my own hat. Bob’s head is bound to be bigger than mine.

From Bein Liath Mhor — I shall be strolling down this wonderful ridge on day one!

 Today is the day when I have finally realised that everything is under control. I still have a few things to to but a lot of time to do them in. I’m prepared and have time in hand to deal with any unforeseen circumstances. 

As a result I have gradually sunk into a zen-like mode, composed, relaxed and ready to go. OK, the bad weather has meant I’ve not as many miles as I would like in the bag, but then it’s only walking. I’ll get fit on the Challenge. The gear is all here and mostly the food is prepared. I’ve even taken the decision to replace the Tilly Hat — I wouldn’t want to disappoint my public.

I can now spend the next few days anticipating the joys of the first days of walking, hours and hours each with nothing else to do but to walk and blank out the mind. Of course, there are always things to see and do, food to prepare, toilet stops to navigate, photos to take and so on. But the days are long and everything will take its place in a leisurely map of priorities. There will be time to take in the view, to marvel at mountains, to gaze down from summits, to stop and watch wildlife. Of course, this assumes good weather but of course this year it will be fine, clear, sunny and with just a gentle wind to help things along. I know it will.

If your are currently preparing for your first Scottish coast to coast you are about to have an amazing first few days. The North West is always the highlight of the trip. Blue skies and matched with blue water and green and gold hillsides. Climb that hill and take time to look out West, gaze across to Skye and a host of other islands.These views, these climbs are exhilarating.

It is one of the great luxuries of life to have nothing to do but to walk and soak in the atmosphere. On day 2 of my first Challenge I remember strolling through the woodland at the top of Glendessary. The sun was flickering through the foliage. I stop to eat on a grassy bank and then back and took a nap in the gentle and warm afternoon air. When I got going again I met a retired guy who was returning from a walk in the upper glen. He was a volunteer responsible for spotting birdlife and he had his patch which he patrolled every couple of week, compiling reports of what he had seen and reporting back to control in Inverness. It struck me this was a pretty nice way of spending your retirement. Somehow, the challenges of the North west seem to fade to the back of the memory. There have been several sinking experiences in bogs, torrential rain storms and even lightening. But somehow I know that I’ll be spared these this year.

My route this year will be a pretty quiet one until I reach Drumnadrochit. Of course, there are people to consider but they will be put in their right context.

There will be fun and games on the way to the start, folks to meet in Inverness off the sleeper, breakfast to be found in some greasy spoon, gear shops to invaded and the wonderful second hand bookshop and map shop to be explored. There will be the comradeship of the train journey to Strathcarron and the post bus to Torridon. There will be beer to drink and a last meal to eat in the pub and then off we will all go the next morning.

The North West will put me in the mood for encountering my fellow Challengers. Some need a little preparation for. For example, there is Sloman’s party no doubt stomping across the country in a slightly inebriated fashion. Al and Andy Walker seem to have conned one of Al’s oldest mates to come along with them; he had a bit of a dress rehearsal for a few days last year but I just hope his constitution is up to the task!

As I intend to miss Braemar this year (but you never know) I reckon I’ll meet most people towards the end of the trail or even at the end. But I am looking forward to catching up with you all. There’s Laura who seem to be preparing in France. The Rev David and his hillwalking hareem. It will be good to catch up with David Lintern and meet his partner. Then there are other first timers such as David Pettifor and Bryan Waddington and Carl the loco man _ it will good to finally but faces to the email addresses. I shall look forward to meeting David Towers and hope to find him in good spirits. And then there is Phyl and Lou again. I shall take my traditional photo of them once again in the bar of the Park Hotel.

And how about Mick and Gayle who are confusing all of us by taking a big chunk of time to do a whole mix of walks and walking stages. I’m looking back to spending some time in Mick’s laid back company while Gayle no doubt presents graphs and pie charts showing how many inches of rain she has walked through this year. If anyone ever sees a foldable and lightweight white board, for goodness sake don’t tell Gayle!

And then there are the lightweights  —and no doubt we will have to take stick again from those who feel they are only men if they are carrying a semi detached house on their back. — such as Rob Slade. There are the funny men like Dennis Pidgeon and this year Sam Hacket is back — I always like bumping into Sam. And, if I’m really lucky, I might even encounter the lesser spotted Chris Townsend!

And of course there are many more besides.

All this, two weeks and walking and I will be facing the highlight of the whole trip. I shall struggle up the stairs of the Park Hotel to Challenge control and to be greeted with the traditional volley of Yorkshire abuse from Deputy Dog Manning It will make everything seem worthwhile.

What can go wrong. The weather will be fine and the company grand. The beer will be cheap and the venison casseroles sublime. The camp site showers will be wet and warm. The red squirrels at Glenmore café will have been practising their entertaining routine for weeks. Birds of prey will soar above the Monaliadth without a care in the world. The electric fences will have their charges switched off and every deer fence I encounter will have a gate in it. The rivers will be running gently and I’ll be able to skip across them. The skies will be clear but the nights not too cold. Nessie will make an appearance as Gordon ferries us across the Loch. The tea and biscuits and Alt na Goire will be waiting. And there will be a free table at Ballater’s Alexander Hotel.

Bring it on. For those of you approaching your first crossing with mounting excitement, here are some pointers of what you will see!

]]> http://www.andyhowell.info/trek-blog/2012/05/02/challenge-preparation-zen-and-the-art-of-hitting-the-zone/feed/ 17 http://www.andyhowell.info/trek-blog/2012/05/02/the-enduring-appeal-of-an-ultralight-delivery/ http://www.andyhowell.info/trek-blog/2012/05/02/the-enduring-appeal-of-an-ultralight-delivery/#comments Wed, 02 May 2012 15:56:55 +0000 andy http://www.andyhowell.info/trek-blog/?p=4091 I’ve just picked up my new Challenge pack from the Post Office, an Exodus pack from Mountain Laurel Designs. It’s been a while since I ordered some of this stuff and it was nice to get the old feeling again as I strolled into the depot and picked up a package that just seemed to be full of fresh air. I still get a kick from that. First impressions of the pack are very good but I’ll write a full report about it when I get back from the Challenge.

andy.howell@me.com

The New Nomads Blog

Some new Challengers will be hiking in trail shoes and taking the advice that it is best to let you feet get wet while wearing shoes that dry out easily – and that usually means no Gore Tex lining. Anyhow, some key pointers!

• Wear good, light and breathable socks. Smart wool and Teko are good for merino wool (with Teko having the edge I think) and X-Socks which are my preferred socks for coping it’s wet.
• Always carry a spare pair or two. Dry socks at the end of the day is a real luxury.
• If the weather permits give your feet a rest during the day, take off you shoes and give your feet access to some air.
• Use barrier foot creams. I use Gerwol creams which you can get from backpackinglight.co.uk or from some High Street shops. There are two to condiser. The Extra cream is used as a barrier at the beginning of the day. I helps protect the feet and – I swear – my feet feel colder without it. The refreshing balm is applied at night in camp, is heavy on lanolin, and really pampers your feet.
• If you can rinse your socks out at it do so, it’s not necessary but is more pleasant.
• Don’t worry about putting on wet socks in the morning – you soon get over the shock!
• Carry a small tube of athlete’s foot cream. You might not need it but I find a good application at the first signs of itching keeps any problem away. This can also be used to treat the beginnings of other fungal infections: this may seem odd but if you need it you will be grateful of it!

I would put foot care in the essential category rather than the optional extra category.

The problem with chicken is that it takes former to rehydrate and if the pieces are too big you will be chewing horrible chicken bullets for hours.

You must dice chicken pieces really finely. I prefer to mince mine but this requires a bit of care. You only need put chicken through the mincer once, or give it a quick bits in a food processor. What you then have is a raw mousse. If you just throw this into liquid it will clump together and be just as much a problem.

After you have cooked onions, garlic and so on – I tend to simmer these in water until soft – add the chicken and stir until you have a paste. Then add your liquid, tomato, wine, stock or so on, slowly making sure the dish maintains a paste like consistency. Cook and dehydrate while still at this consistency. It will now rehydrate without any difficulty.