Near the Spittal of Glen Shea

August 2010

... is a tourist centre, once proud Victorian, now a little faded in grandeur with "outdoor equipment" shops always featuring a closing down sale with flimsy cagoules and cheap walking poles.

However it's a useful centre for stocking up on stores - very good co-op, a fish and chip shop (battered haggis anyone?) and a little store packed with everything from nuts and bolts, kettles and hoses to jam pots, wasp sprays and batteries, and there are easy walks near by, plus a vital railway station.

Easily accessible from the A9 Edinburgh to Inverness road the cottage of West Balnald is about 15 miles further on, near the village of Kirkmichael, into the woods and up the hills.

We used this as our base and walked up trails from here to the Spittal of Glen Shea on several occasions

Weather up here, even in August, can change swiftly from glorious sunshine to fierce downpour - but it's sometimes then that the best views emerge - the changing shadows on the landscape, the rainbows, the black sky behind sunlight hills ....

So gather in the logs, prepare the fire for lighting, assemble the waterproofs and head off in the knowledge that a warm home awaits you even if you come back cold and bedraggled. Marvellous views await you!