Day Five…

…really was mostly downhill!

That was always the plan; the day after the big climb would be mostly downhill, and not too far either! It was mostly, though, on the A82 so did not promise to be the most pleasant cycle.

Inside the tent we are mostly midge free (but only because we’ve had all night to swat the ones that got in!) so only when we have to do we leave the tent. My bladder decided when that was. But I was not going to be allowed in again so I had to get all my stuff together and go.

It had rained on and off through the night so everywhere was wet, which meant that lots of people were using the kitchen and the picnic tables to eat breakfast. This continued the great atmosphere of last night with everyone sharing plans for the day. Most were up early to continue their walk on the West Highland Way, a couple of guys were going climbing, some just doing local walks.

Thankfully most of our wet stuff was now nice and dry thanks to the amazing drying room. The boys soon joined me whilst Becca packed everything up inside the tent, only emerging when she absolutely had to! The trees that made the campsite so pretty meant that the sun was not going to emerge and dry the tent, so it was packed away wet.

We had been told that today is the day of the West Highland Way Marathon, and since we were following pretty close to the route we were expecting to see support vehicles darting around and maybe a few runners! Our route started along the Way and we did pass the few that had made it this far already. Being off-road meant that E could ride free, for the first time. An undulating path through the woods in the cool of the morning was delightful. Along the river for a stretch and mostly well paved.

Eventually, though, we had to rejoin the A82. It was definitely busier than we have had so far, but since it was generally downhill we could make a good pace and we didn’t hold people up for long.

We pulled off the main road to stop in Crianlarich, which offered a tea room and some places of historical interest. Sadly it turned out to have neither. We locked the bikes up and walked into the village. Following signs to the tea room we were taken up a hill to the back entrance of the train station. The “tea room” was nothing more than a kiosk on the train platform. It didn’t even have a coffee machine! On the way we passed a rusty old playground which the boys had to stop at, so they were happy. The historical interest was a notice board with a map showing where the drovers used to bring their animals to be taken South in bigger groups. It was interesting to read that many of them, being seasonal workers, dropped the sheep and cattle off and then left to find work elsewhere, leaving the sheepdogs to get back home on their own!

Road signs suggested we might see a red squirrel, but we didn’t!

The downhill got a bit steeper so we made good progress, but the road was thinner so we stopped often to let cars pass; the queues being a bit bigger now it seemed. As we occasionally came close to the walking path we saw more and more marathon runners the further south we went.

Then we started to see signs for Falloch Falls. I love a waterfall, and it was almost lunchtime so we decided to stop there for lunch. We noticed people, who seemed like locals, taking BBQs so figured it was a place to stay and picnic. We took our stove and food but since it was also threatening to rain we took a tarp for shelter just in case!

The falls were amazing! One big waterfall had carved out a big deep bowl to swim in, then a cascade of falls creating lots of smaller pools going down along the route of the river. It was pretty busy with lots of people stopping by and lots of people obviously there for the day. There were people in wetsuits and some in tiny bikinis!

You don’t have to tell us twice to strip off and jump in!! The boys loved it, despite the cold water; the lower pools were ideal for them to play in a swim a bit. We had soup and noodles for lunch, under the shelter, and had a wonderful time. After lunch, we made our way up to the big pool and I went for a swim out under the water falling! I loved it. The power and noise of the water is quite overwhelming, and the beauty of the place makes it a really special experience. It was VERY cold, though, so we didn’t stay in there long.

We ended up spending a few hours there; a really lovely afternoon! Once we were back to the bikes and off again it was only a few more miles downhill to Beinglass Campsite.

The West Highland Way passes right through, so again it was full of walkers and set up to cater for travelers. A couple of big camping fields, a travelers’ kitchen, a shop, a small play park, and a lively bar/restaurant called Stagger Inn, with live music.

By the time we had pitched, showered, played on the park and got everything sorted the fields were pretty full of tents and a wide range of people! We had been gifted some money to eat out one night so we headed out of the intermittent rain into the bar and had a tasty meal. It was busy and lively and chatty!

As well as the site being busy with people, though, it was also busy with midges, which meant sitting out and chatting was not really an option. So after dinner, we all headed back to the tent and we were pretty much asleep even before the live music started at 8pm!