Eat Sleep Wild
Routes Recipes and Wild Experiences from the West Coast of Scotland
One Sunday last November 2022 we decided to seek out the remains of the American B29 Super Fortress that crashed near Strachur on 17th January 1949, just after the end of World War II. I’m not great on my history, so part of this undertaking was a learning exercise. I was born in 1979 and …
The landscape around Ben More Assynt is a great area to explore on foot as there are numerous options all around depending on the weather and what you’re in the mood for. This point to point journey took us on a section of the Cape Wrath Trail from Inchnadamph to Glen Oykel with a diversion …
Assynt is one of my favourite places in Scotland for a backpacking trip. With few people and even fewer roads, it doesn’t take long to journey on foot into some wonderfully remote and wild places. I’m grateful to live here with a lifetime ahead of me to explore Assynt on foot. This adventure took us …
Achmelvich Bay is famed for its white sand beach at the south end of the bay. It’s a superb setting, popular with tourists, with a neighbouring caravan site adding to draw. For these reasons I find it a bit ho-hum, however a short walk from this beach is a smaller more secluded beach with some …
Ben More Assynt and Conival are the only two Munros in Assynt and coincidentally, the closest Munros to our home base on the Stoer Peninsula. This there and back route from Inchnadamph is a long but enormously rewarding day out – in good weather, that is! Read on for highlights, and if you’d like a …
Just north of Ullapool in the far north of Scotland is the North West Highlands Geopark, a UNESCO status geopark comprising around 2000 square kilometres of coastline, beaches, mountains, peatland and forest. It’s my favourite part of Scotland, not just for the geology, but also for its sparse population, inherent wildness, and unique landscape of …
My birthday tradition for years has been to start and finish the day in a tent, and so this year took me to Glen Affric, often described as “the most beautiful glen in Scotland”. After this trip it was easy to see why. The glen, stretching for 30 miles from Kintail to near Cannich, is …
The West Highland Train Line is one of the most scenic rail journeys in Scotland, travelling from Glasgow to Mallaig through mountains, moorland and lochs. The line also passes through some convenient stations for point to point walks. I’ve had a few on my mind, including this trip from Fort William to Corrour Station via …
Highlights from a week in the northwest highlands…here’s my day-by-day notes from the trip where we took in some iconic hills including Suilven, Stac Pollaich, and Ben Nevis. To quote Mark, “the whole trip was a huge success – a good thing came out of every hill we climbed” – in fact a good thing …
The Cobbler (aka Ben Aurthur) is one of the most popular hills in the southern highlands and for good reason. Its distinctive “triple fang” outline is visible for miles and begs you to take a closer look. From afar it looks intimidating, but a clear path makes the journey relatively straightforward. And if you dig …
I have a birthday tradition that involves starting and finishing the day in the outdoors (usually in a tent!) and 2022 was no exception. This year’s birthday getaway took me to the Cairngorms for a 3-night backpacking trip through the Grampian Glens with Mark and Lucky. The trip was inspired by Route 14 in Graham …
This was a weekend of many firsts, not least of which was our first time around this epic circuit in Glencoe via Bidean Nam Bian, the highest summit in our home county of Argyll (it still feels amazing that I get to call Scotland my “home” – I don’t think that will ever get old!). …
In this post I’m sharing highlights from a Summer Solstice two-nighter near Fort William that we took on 20-22 June 2022 (how cool is that date?). The original plan was to find a wild camp, but I was inspired by the “Overnight at Staoineag Bothy” route in Scottish Bothy Walks, which I’ve had on …
A few scenes from a walk on a perfectly clear day up Beinn a’Chochuill and Beinn Eunaich, two Munros east of Loch Etive in Argyll and Bute. We were lucky to have such good weather and enjoyed sensational views for miles, all the way to the Cuillins on Skye, the Paps of Jura, and Ben …
Highlights from a January overnight stay a Achnanclach Bothy in the farthest reaches of Northern Scotland with my #bothybuddies, Jane and Jimmy (J2). Scotland in winter may seem like a daunting prospect: it’s cold, it’s dark, and unless you have winter mountaineering skills, walking options can be limited. Still, winter has become one of my …
A return to Dartmoor and the Erme Plains, but taking a slightly different route inspired by the Dartmoor Cicerone Guide by John Earle. This route heads up the Erme Valley to Erme Pits, then back via Yealm Valley. Ample camping opportunities can be found pretty much everywhere, be it up on the isolate moor or …
Notes from a one night Lake District wild camping expedition in Borrowdale, camping near Langstrath Beck and taking in the summit of High Raise (762m) just north of the Langdale Pikes. This was not an ultralight expedition – and it was all the better for it! Essentials Getting there: Parking can be challenging in the …
This trip report covers a walk up Creag Rainach via Loch a’ Bhraoin and the associated Lochivraon bothy originally taken on 11 July 2021. For you hill baggers, Creag Rainach is a Corbett at 870m, and like many Corbetts, is very remote and requires an off piste slog to get to the top. The reward …
An off piste route up Pen y Fan via Cwm Crew, an isolated glacial valley with loads of geological interest and very few people. Don’t let the distance fool you – the round trip is less than seven miles but the going can be arduous making for a challenging but supremely rewarding day out. Here’s …
Since my trip to the Cambrian Mountains a couple years ago, I’ve always wanted to go back to explore more of this “Green Desert of Wales”. It may not have the high drama of the Brecon Beacons or Snowdonia (the Cambrian Mountains are mainly rounded hills of grass-covered sandstone and mudstone, verses the older and …
A tale of Type 2 fun and many, many learning moments, told from the cozy Grwyne Fawr bothy in the Brecon Beacons. Following a few very successful bothy trips, including Scotland’s four star Magoo’s, the remote Tarf Hotel, and Nant Syddion bothy in mid-Wales, I’d caught the bug. There aren’t many bothy bagging opportunities this …
I’m a sucker for a high point, and Ryder’s Hill at 515m is the highest point on southern Dartmoor. This became our target on a cold but clear New Year’s Eve. There are several marked footpaths up to this remote hill on Holne Moor, but we decided to approach it from our base near Yartor …
The Llanbedr Horseshoe is a classic ridge walk in the Black Mountains, the easternmost hill range in the Brecon Beacons. With over 16 miles in length and almost 1000 meters of ascent, this walk makes for an exhilarating day out and a highly rewarding challenge, particularly on a beautiful day. After a steep climb at …
Fans of history, solitude, and off piste wild camping will have a field day in The Erme Plains in Dartmoor. All of Dartmoor is rich in prehistory, with the Erme Plains containing a particularly dense cluster of still-visible Bronze Age settlements, stone rows, and stone circles. The first part of this walk takes the easy-to-follow …
