Day 1 – Sunshine, Conic Hill and Balmaha Bunkhouse Magic

And I’m leaving

The starting point: a gray obelisk without description on the main street of Milngavie. It does not seem the greatest of the beginnings, especially since this is a route that almost always walks from south to north.

I just disappeared at 8 in the morning and I have left my luggage at the Milngavie train station. After very little consideration, I decided to make the most of this luxury and transport my main luggage between my accommodations. This will leave me free to have to wear my day bag. For £ 65 I have reserved through the freedom of luggage that my luggage will collect at 9 am every morning and will deliver it to my accommodation at 5 pm

I ask a man to loom near the Obelisk to take a mandatory starting photo and leave. I am shaking my hiking outfit that they tell me that I would make me look at home on the United States paths, but in Scotland I feel a bit like a traffic cone. This is largely due to my bright orange top, bought in that color only, since it was the cheapest option, combined with my orange hiking skirt of Rain Purple’s adventure skirts. And because it is great outside, I have overcome the look with some pale purple leggings.

Wandering

The beginning is easy. A lot to walk through Woods and Mugdock Country Park. Although it is only 9 am, I can feel that it warms up and I quickly realize that I have too much clothes. My day package contains my complete rain team because in Scotland you really have to be prepared to find all the climates in one day. This is not true today, since the rain team remains in my bag all day.

Taking care of the symbol of the Whw path

Leaving the forest and a distillery box

The road is still flat and does not spend much time before it leaves the forest. I decide to make a boxing stop in Glengoyne Distillery, largely for bathrooms that turn out to be very clean and elegant, but also have some food since breakfast this morning was limited. The Lady of the distillery is very cozy and offers to fill my water tap water when the public tap is broken. Then he insists that I visit the waterfall behind the distillery. It really is not all that, but it is close to some banks in the shadow, so I take full advantage of their to sit quickly.

The views

The long and tedious path

Just after the middle of the day and I’m going well for time. The temperature is increasing and the shadow has gone. The way ahead turns out to be along a path that is long and tedious. An older couple sitting on a bank stops me to chat with me. She shows me her map while he tells me by giving me his views on several parts of the Whw route. He is inflexible that when I get to Drymen, he should not walk the rest of the way to Balmaha, but get the bus because I apparently look totally «arbitrated.» He also advises that he take the high route just south of Inverseid instead of the lower route of the lake. He is right that I am hot and probably very red on the face despite the hat and sun cream. That said, I am not about to rescue on a bus on the first day.

Literally, this part of the whw was just along a road

You need shadow

This is not the scotland I expected. After having been countless times, I usually wear a jacket and a rainy hat, even in summer. This is more unusual. I decide to do the round trip of two miles to stop at Drymen for an inner shadow.

I go to Clacan Inn and quickly ordered a cordial black weight and enjoy sitting inside. Having cooled, I take the most of the protected and decorative bus stop of Drymen and prepare a lunch full of a roll filled with Salami. The hunger took out and I return to the whw.

Drymen’s decorative and protected bus stop

The deceptive forest

The map showed that the next section was through Woods. Forests mean trees. And the trees mean shadow. Unfortunately, this did not turn out to be the case. The road continued along the slopes of the forest to the sun.

Shaded in the deceptive forest

It was at this point that I realize that neither of my two hats is very useful. It makes too winds for the lazy and too hot for the visor. In an attempt to create some shadow, who knows how I would really be and take all my things, I combine a Japanese Tenugui towel with my visor. This creates some pendant sides that look very elegant, but help block the sun a bit and also protect the upper part of my head.

Conical climbing

Conic Hill is the maximum point of the first day at 361 meters and the last section before the descent to Balmaha. The ball of my left foot begins to rub and I do not want a blister on day 1, so I stop to transmit my foot, I enjoy the views and apply a little compensation stick before starting the walk.

Hill conical views before the scale

The views throughout this section are great and I have a lot of time to admire them while I walk slowly through the hill. The road is easy and not steep, since it borders the summit, but the heat is affecting me and I really just want to be in Balmaha.

A lateral path gives the option to go to the summit and I decide that I am not so tired of getting lost this given the impressive weather. And I’m so happy not to do it. Loh Lomond shines in front of me under the sun. I sit at the top and take the opinions that despite my disgust for heat, I was lucky.

Lake Lomond views from the top of Conic Hill

In the house it extends down

Conic Hill’s descent is steep, but is largely composed of steps, which makes it much easier. That and the knowledge that Balmaha is now within reach, which means dinner and a shower too.

Semain, I decide to go directly to the oak tree inn to dinner even before registering in my accommodation to spend the night. Grabbing a table and ordering through a code that toast the success of day 1 with a spritz aperol and put in my tasty fish and fried potatoes.

Delicious: French fish and potatoes and my first day of full celebration Aperol Spritz

Bunkhouse magic

SATED hunger on the way to Balmaha BunkhouseMy home at night. I am impressed. It is a family establishment. I have a private room even though I am sharing a bathroom with another room, and it seems that the family has thought about everything. The bathroom has discardable paper baths with its own recycling box after use, the shared kitchen is so well equipped that it could easily be a kitchen in someone’s house, there are at least nine different types of tea, as well as an outdoor area.

The room itself continues with a multiple socket configured right next to the bed and even a support for the phone while loading. Although I do not need it, the room has a heating clothing dryer and there are facilities on the ground floor for when it is wet and you need to dry your clothes and shoes.

My room for the night in Balmaha Bunkhouse

Nor can I thank the family, especially Elie already her Spanish student enough for her help that night when I meet a possible Tick situation. This is a backpack house that would definitely be happy to recommend and would stay again.

Shower, the phone and the energy bank loaded and the charged photos, I accommodate in my comfortable bed to spend the night. A very good end for day 1.

The most thought load configuration I have seen

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