Wild Camping....

"I'm going to have to come in with you."

It's the last thing you want to hear. Rewind a few hours to when Aidan and I set off. Infact, rewind a few days. Aidan and I had been cutting about the place on the bikes, looking for spots in the Borders for a wild camping trip. There were plenty good options, but some map inspection came up with a destination on the banks of a nice loch to the north. We could have got there in a couple of hours easily, but I'd come up with a scenic route on the wee roads. Four hours later at about 6 pm I'm confronted with

"Ahhhhhhhh...... 

I'm going to have to come in with you"

Aidan stood with a blank look on his face. I could tell exactly what had happened. The arsehole had went and forgotten his fucking tent poles. 

"How the fuck?? How the fuck do you manage to come on a camping trip with no tent poles???"

I frantically wracked my brains for a solution. We can go to Tim's in Strontian, he'll have a cabin, it's only 3 hours away! We can make tent poles out of sticks! We will use your flysheet to make a shelter! Eventually I succumbed. I'd have to share my peaceful tent with Aidan's farts and snores. 

Still, the weather was great. We'd had an amazing run up through Glen Devon, through the Sma' Glen and over the Glen Quaich road where we cut off at Loch Tay. The scenery was as good as it can ever get in Scotland with the snow on the hills providing great contrast to the spring colours. Our camping spot was stunning. We'd picked up some coal in the shop but there was still loads of fallen wood close by to keep the fire pit alight well into the night. 

What sort of ringpiece forgets their tent poles? This kind.

With the fire lit, a meal and a few beers all tent pole calamity was forgotten about. It was a clearish sky, so I attempted some night photography between setting the world to rights as you do round a campfire.

The Horror.

Despite having to share my tent with Aidan it was a good night. A great breakfast was provided by the Bredalbane Bakery in Aberfeldy before an easy run home back over Glen Quaich. A braw wee break before the very successful Sunart Wildcat Rally the following weekend.
But more on that soon.

Mike.