11/ Walking the West Highland Way: Epilogue
Milngavie -> Fort William, 154km
Milngavie -> Fort William
96 miles / 154 km / 9 days
In the morning, I wake up blearily after a terrible night’s sleep; I think I’ve gotten too used to sleeping on the ground because I found it incredibly uncomfortable sleeping on a bed!
I also reap the consequences of yesterday’s actions, or inactions rather. I’m covered in midge bites, countless red spots marking my neck, chest and arms, and it’s only now that they start to itch. It’s bloody awful. I thought I’d gotten away with it, how wrong I was.
I’ve got hours to kill until my train at 5.30pm so I check out and go have a long, slow breakfast. I walk back and forth the high street several times, trying to find gifts and souvenirs. I have a long, slow lunch. I’ve still got lots of time, so I walk towards the nearby loch and video call the fam to let them know I finished. I walk around, A LOT. It’s too much walking and my body feels knackered but finally, it’s time to go. I go grab my bags from the hotel and amble towards the train station.
I get on the platform as another train arrives and suddenly hear someone calling me just as I’m about to get on the train – it’s a walker I met a couple of days ago! We say our goodbyes and I board the train.
The carriages seem to be full of ONLY West Highland Way walkers and perhaps Ben Nevis hikers. It was a great atmosphere.
The train ride back is a long one, about five hours. The weather clears up as we chug slowly to Glasgow and the sun comes out in time to set. It’s a beautiful golden evening as the train traces the West Highland Way backwards, and I get to see the places I walked through from the train. It couldn’t have been a more perfect evening for one of the most beautiful train rides I’ve ever been on.
Walking the West Highland Way on film
I wasn’t able to share the video clips I’d taken on this trip via email so I thought I’d do a little fun experiment and have made a short film.
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Rewriting this travel journal (or writing it from scratch since I hadn’t had the energy to write a single word on some of the days!) has been a great experience. I always overthink these projects, wondering if there’s any point writing this so far after the actual event has taken place. Probably influenced by the instant culture that pervades our creative work these days; it sometimes feels almost pointless.
However, I’m slowly realising with each little writing project that it’s important I do this even if it’s just for myself. Especially for myself, maybe. At the very least, I’m writing down a memory for myself, documenting the story so that I can remember it later when I forget what it felt like, the things that happened, the thoughts that ran through my head.
It was also a good exercise in getting to understand the lessons I learnt along the way, some things I realised while I was walking, some right after I finished, and some I only came to understand now, months on.
1. It’s okay to move slowly and take my time
Going through my words, I realise how much I keep putting on myself to be faster, stronger, better. It’s a bad habit and a lesson I have to repeat to myself over and over again.
2. I’m more capable than I think
I knew the walk would be a challenge from the moment I planned to do it. I was probably at the lowest level of fitness I’d ever been, not to mention I was recovering very slowly from a foot injury. I wasn’t sure at all how much of the walk I’d be able to do.
In the end, I walked 5 days with my definitely much-too-heavy backpack. I managed it even though I didn’t enjoy it. While I wouldn’t do it again, it feels good to know that I did do that, I was strong enough, even though I didn’t feel it at the time.
3. Keep being spontaneous
This trip came about because I knew I needed to force myself out of the funk I’d gotten into after being homebound for so long during the pandemic. I find it so easy to fall into a bad place of inactiveness and lack of motivation, and I’ve learnt over time that when that happens, I just need to get out and “reset”.
In the summer, I knew that’s exactly what I needed to do and I was inspired by a friend who’d made plans to walk the WHW. The idea had me raring to go, and so I committed without thinking about it too much. The month off work was a bit scary, and it was slow to pick up again when I got back, but in the end it was the best decision I could’ve made for myself.
4. I didn’t need to spend as much money as I did
I overspent on this trip. I ended up spending more on the equipment I bought than on the trip itself which put me back in the following months and I’m still trying to make up for now.
While the kit I purchased – a winter sleeping bad, a one-woman tent – were all good investments, they weren’t necessary. I could’ve gotten away with using my old sleeping bag, I could’ve gotten away with a lower budget tent. I didn’t need to spend so much on food to carry in the end. I probably didn’t need to buy a stove, although I had a lot of fun on my one legit wild camping night.
Saying that, a lot of this is stuff I wouldn’t have really known pre-walk, so I can only take this experience through to the next time.
5. Do it all again soon
It happens every time. Life gets in the way, work, time, money, lack of motivation. But every time I do something like this – especially in this case, my first long walk since the pandemic began – I’m reminded how important it is for me to do this, important for my physical health, mental health, and also my creative health.
To end, in case it’s of interest, here’s my West Highland Way kit list:
Kit List
Tent; MSR Elixir 1
Backpack; Osprey Tempest 40
Rain cover
Daypack (gained mid-trip); Berghaus Twentyfourseven 20
Sleeping bag; Rab Solar 3
Sleeping mat; Decathlon foam folding mattress (Partly cut to make into a shorter mat and an extra piece for sitting, standing barefoot etc)
Pillow; Decathlon basic inflatable pillow
Tent lamp; Decathlon rechargeable camping lamp
Headtorch
Dry bags
Fleece x2
Base layer x2
Trousers; Decathlon walking trousers (Comes with THREE pockets!!!)
Spare gym leggings
Leggings for pyjamas/evening
Hiking boots; Salomon XUltra3 GTX
Spare trainers
Flip flops
Walking socks; Decathlon hiking socks
Knickers x5
Sports bra x1
Waterproof jacket; Decathlon country walking raincoat
Waterproof trousers; Decathlon hiking waterproof overtrousers
Down jacket
Buff
Gloves
Beanie hat
Cap
Stove; Vango compact gas stove
Pot; Trangia Aluminium 1L pan (A last minute buy and nothing else was available. Would have preferred one with a handle!)
Lighter
Bamboo forkknife
Filter water bottle; Water To Go Go
Water bottle 1L
Dish cloth
Bags for rubbish
Toothbrush/paste
SPF30 lip balm
SPF30 moisturiser
Shampoo + conditioner
First aid + bite cream
Covid tests
Make up
Towel
Midge net
Smidge
Notebook + pen
Carabiners x5
Camera + charger + extra batteries
Mini tripod; Ulanzi Octopus
Camera wrist strap; Peak Design Cuff
Camera clip; Peak Design Capture
Headphones + charger
Phone + charger
Powerbank + charger; Juice 4 12,000mAh
Total weight: ~12-14kg
(A guess since I didn’t get the chance to weigh it at full capacity)
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A bit about me
Hey! I’m Ameena – a freelance writer based in London. I love to tell stories about adventure, the outdoors, and our relationship with the natural world, and by night, I’m a portrait and documentary photographer.