Day 82 – Alness to Tain – 13 miles

It didn't even register

After a good night’s sleep and a full Scottish breakfast, I was ready to walk to Tain. I thought I started out very well, but I was disappointed when the speed sensor didn’t even register. Maybe the breakfast wasn’t as carb-loaded as I thought.

The road out of Alness climbs a small hill, and then continues on through farmlands. I had good views of the Cromarty Firth to my right, and of the colorful farmlands to my left. As I passed a driveway, I was intercepted by a local resident. Although the road on which I was walking is part of the national cycleway, he hadn’t seen many walkers, so I was an oddity he wanted to meet. That was a nice switch, because I’m usually the one initiating the dialogue.

Sean and Rosa

Sean owns a small farm and a couple of horses. He mentioned that his son is temporarily working in California, and believe it or not at the very time Sean and I were speaking, his son was preparing to hike to the top of Yosemite’s Half Dome. Climbing Half Dome is a great experience, and I hope he enjoys it.

JDB, Jack and Maurice

As I continued on, I met a cyclist from Holland who was just returning from John O’Groats. He hadn’t cycled there from Land’s End, but he’s been cycling all around England and Scotland, and was now headed south. While we were talking, two other cyclists came by heading north. They left Land’s End 13 days ago, and hope to reach JOG tomorrow. I left Land’s End 82 days ago and hope to reach JOG next Sunday. Maybe I should re-think this walking thing.

Olga

The cyclists continued on and disappeared over the respective horizons, and I was once again left to plod along, step by step, inch by inch, towards my destination in Tain. But I wasn’t alone for long. A cyclist who had swept past me earlier in the morning as she headed south came by again, heading north. This time she stopped to talk. While it took me all morning and part of the afternoon to hoof it from Alness to Tain, she rode from Tain to Alness and back – without even looking tired. I’m really going to have to re-think this walking thing. Maybe I’ll buy a bicycle tomorrow and pedal to JOG. I wonder if cyclists can trigger the speed sensors.








© 2011 Ken Klug