Frae Maidenkirk to Johnie Groat's
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Robert Burns
Today is Robbie Burns Day.
As such, the obvious decision for me was to wake up early and head to
Burlington to run in the 36th annual Robbie Burns 8k Road Race.
I say this without hesitation; the absolute best races in
Ontario are held in Burlington and Hamilton. The organization of every event I have participated in out in the west end is light years beyond efficient. The volunteers are genuinely interested in helping
out and the communities are graceful and considerate as us runners take over
their streets on many Sunday mornings throughout the year. This said, it’s the final little touches that
put the organizers of these events on a different plain than
others. I speak of things like the hot
tomato soup after the Boxing Day 10 Miler in Hamilton and, with respect to
today’s race, the Bagpipes that lead you to the start line and the bowls of
porridge waiting for you at the end.
Absolutely world class in my mind ... it’s at times like these that I
really question my steadfastness towards being an east-ender for life.
Anyhow, back to my adventure.
As I have alluded to in an earlier post, when this whole
adventure of mine started, I knew I had to either start or end at John O’Groats,
but other than that, I didn’t have a clue how I would go. The thing is, once I started researching, the
answer came fairly quickly. References
to John O’Groats on the Internet are frequently (re: almost always) coupled
with references to Land’s End and the popular biking/hiking trek that takes it’s
travellers from the farthest corner of England to the farthest corner of Scotland. While LEJOG (Lands End to John O’Groats) is
certainly appealing, the distance is much longer than I care to tackle at this
point.
Fortunately, at the end of many of the articles about LEJOG,
is a reference to a Scotland-only variant of the hike which seems to have been
born from a line in a Robert Burns poem ... quote above ... full script in the
link below. I find it quite a good read,
but perhaps I’m a bit biased at this point.
Somewhere along the way, the town name has been
inverted. ‘Twas Maidenkirk, ‘Tis
Kirkmaiden today. Kirkmaiden is tucked
away in the far south-western tip of Scotland and, by choosing it as my
starting point, I would basically be running from the most southerly point of
Scotland to the most northerly point (mainland that is). Yes please!
While Kirkmaiden to John O’Groats is a popular journey,
there’s actually no set path to follow.
It’s really up to the individual to decide how to get from point to
point. This challenge seemed a bit
daunting at first, but I soon came across the walkhighlands.co.uk website which
is an unbelievable resource for the many paths and trails that criss-cross
Scotland. Come to think of it, at first,
the site was a bit overwhelming itself due to seemingly endless number of
options it presented. It was like trying
to pick a Dosa from the menu at Udupi Palace, so many good choices, each one
giving you what you need. After a few
weeks though, and with a little help, I nailed it down. Here’s an overview of the route broken down into
three sections:
The South – Kirkmaiden to
Edinburgh
The Middle – Edinburgh to
Inverness
The North – Inverness to John O’Groats
The South – Kirkmaiden to Edinburgh
Kirkmaiden is located a bit inland from the actual southern tip of
Scotland, so I’m planning to make my way all the way down to the coast,
specifically, the Gallie Craig Coffee Shop.
From GC, I’ll head north along, hopefully, quiet roadways, pass through
Kirkmaiden and then aim for Castle Kennedy.
That’s where I’ll hook up with The Southern Upland Way (SUW), a glorious
trail that stretches from the West-to-East in southern Scotland.
While this isn’t the Highlands, the country is constantly
rolling along the SUW and should prepare me well for the bigger vertical later
in the trip. What makes this choice of
route all the more special for me is that it passes just north of the town of Newton Stewart. My maternal grandfather,
one of the most remarkable and influential individuals in my life, was born in
Newton Stewart. He left for Canada when
he was only six and even though he never spoke much of his birthplace, he was
so unique and special that I am convinced his early years in Scotland made him
the man he became. So, I will be taking
a short jaunt down to Newton Stewart early in the run, just to see it for
myself and see where my history lies.
The SUW cuts through the heart of the south of Scotland (yellow) and,
conveniently, crosses the Scottish National Trail at Tranquair (blue). The Scottish National Trail (SNT) is quite
new and takes its travelers on a south-to-north path (generally speaking)
through Scotland which is perfect for my needs.
After a short jaunt on the SNT, I’ll be close to Edinburgh where I’ll
stop for a day to explore the city ... and down a few pints.
The Middle – Edinburgh to Inverness
Oh the middle! The
meat and potatoes of my trip! This is Scotland
in all its glory, at least to a guy who’s never been and believes everything he
reads on the internet ... Did you know that an average city of 1 million people
produces about $1.5 million in silver and gold just in its sewage each year? I’m seeing a new Discovery Channel show on
the horizon, get your sluice boxes in the drains boys ...
From Edinburgh, I’ll travel west to Glasgow
for another touristy rest. Then I’m
moving on up through the Highlands, skirting Loch Lomond and aiming straight
for Cairngorms National Park, home to many of the UK’s highest mountains. The Cairgorms are undoubtedly the most difficult
portion of my journey and the portion I am looking forward to the most. This is where I’ll separate the wheat from
the chaff; where I’ll break or I’ll persevere.
I expect to learn a great deal about myself as I pass through and I hope
that I’ll like what I find.
After the Cairngorms, I make my way to the Great Glen Way (yellow) which takes me along Loch Ness to Inverness.
And no, I did not choose this way because of Nessie. I don’t tend to subscribe or care much about
myths, legends and the like. This said, I’ll
be about 800km in at this point and may be predisposed to seeing things that
are simply not there. Anyways, it’s just
a wee bit to Inverness, where I’ll spend my last rest day of the trip.
The North – Inverness to John O’Groats
Damn ... I really wanted to run the Cape Wrath Trail. The Cape Wrath Trail snakes its way through
the Western Highlands of Scotland. These
are the glorious, rugged Highlands that us foreigners see and hear about in TV
and Movies. Picture the Harry Potter films and the train
that takes the kids to the school at the beginning of most of them. That bridge the train crosses ... yep, that’s
along the Trail. However, the Cape Wrath Trail crosses through many
mountains, burns, bogs and there are few settlements. This is truly one of the most remote places
in Europe and it requires some well-honed outdoor skills to navigate. I have none.
I would be putting my life at risk to attempt to cross to Cape Wrath and
that is not the point of this adventure.
This said, I do see myself crossing it at some point in my life.
The north-eastern side of Scotland isn’t that much more
populated than the west and, as a result, there are very few route options
here. And the one(s) that are available
are almost always panned by those who travel along them. It’s not the towns that cause the dislike, it’s
the fact that you’re on the A9 and A99 roads all the way and, from the sounds
of things, there are some pretty harrowing stretches along the way. Many people claim that it’s a tough way to
end such an epic journey.
With this in mind, I needed to find out whether there was a
better way to the top. This is when I
turned to the man I mentioned at the beginning of this story, Charlie Ramsay. I wasn’t sure whether Charlie would respond
to my questions, but he did and did so in the most genuinely helpful way. He pointed me to the “North of Scotland Way”
which John Butler, a LEJOGer, came up with a few years ago. Instead of going straight up the coast, this
route darts inland from Inverness and, while many miles are spent on roads, my
hope and belief is that I won’t be dealing with the traffic that I would on the
A9. Plus, I will be flirting with the
Western Highlands on the way, so I’m hoping that scenery will be worth the
extra 75kms that will be added to my journey.
The image that follows is not an exact representation of the
North of Scotland Way, but it follows a similar path and is the best I can do
at the moment with my modest Google Earth skills. I am forever indebted to Charlie for his
kindness and assistance and for showing me the way.
There you have it. In
total, the run will be about 1,050km. I’m
planning for 32 days of running which will amount to roughly 33k a day. Clearly, I’m not attempting a FKT or even obscene
daily mileage. This adventure is not a
race for me; it’s about seeing Scotland, meeting the people and remaining
balanced. And I am looking forward to it more than anything else in my past.
For now,
Craig
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