2016 Highland Trail route.

[ianfitz]

would be interested to see a definitive list too.
.

I've each one in a GPS format I made for the first year.... but you know that'd be cheating to get that don't you.

Would it be cheating? Best just email it to me and then no-one else will know...

[GregMay]

Dream on :)

[ianfitz]

Dream on :)

to be fair I have spent quite a few lunch breaks and idle moments doing google searchs for as many bothies, shops and hotels as I can find on the route. I do have a fair list already!

[mountainbaker]

I can see myself carrying a lot of food.

I assume water in the highlands is mostly drinkable (where it's not below livestock obvs)?

[ScotRoutes]

Aye - and there's plenty of it (except when it's frozen )

[ianfitz]

Aye - and there's plenty of it (except when it's frozen )

hoping it'll have thawed by the end of may though!

[mountainbaker]

Thanks!

Yeah, better have thawed by then.

[boxelder]

Don't forget the garage on the road to Glen Affric from Dornie. There was quite a crowd there this year for a second breakfast/brunch after the Strathcarron 'sleepover'.

[Ian]

So, on the whole I thinks it's fair to say there's lots of choice. However, the main challenge is hitting the ones you need (or want, though that isn't quite the same thing...), at the right time.

[fatbikephil]

So, on the whole I thinks it's fair to say there's lots of choice. However, the main challenge is hitting the ones you need (or want, though that isn't quite the same thing...), at the right time.

That is the trick and my plan is to adjust my pace to always to hit the food suppliers when they are open. This lead to me spending a fortune and eating a massive amount of food this year..

Bridge of Balgie also has an ace cafe but it might be a wee bit busy! Also Lagan Wolftrax has a cafe which should shut at 5 but stayed open 'till 6 this year, just for us!
I hear that the Oykel Bridge hotel is up for sale so worth keeping an eye on how that pans out. The Achness hotel just down the road also does good food.

There is a 24hour garage in Fort William but finding the easiest way to it off the route requires a bit of planning.

http://www.mountainbothies.org.uk/ has all but 3 of the bothies on route. the rest require careful searching on geograph, peoples write ups and OS mapping

[trail717]

Obviously I am in a different time Zone and just took a moment to quickly glance thru all the responses to my question about resupply. Wow this is exactly the info I need to begin my in-depth research and develop a primary (and back up race) strategy, at least from a resupply point of view.

Thanks to all who responded and Thanks again!!!!!

When I have more time I will sort thru all the responses and am sure I will have focused questions about specific locations, times and type food items (like what is a crisp?).

Personally I use TopoFusion software (from Scott Morris—same guy as in Trackleaders) in combination with and Google Earth/Street View followed by focused web searches for fine detail. Anyway both the old and new HT 550 GPS tracks were up and going in my TopoFusion even before I was registered here on bearbones.

Part of my winter time training motivation comes from doing web based route research. This helps me get on the trainer when I am traveling and stuck in a hotel room (like now) or the snow is too deep when home. Over the years, between web study and actual experience, I now have the TDR, AZT 300 & 750, CTR, KT and SC 400 routes locked into soft memory and really look forward to cramming in some ‘new-to-me’ HT 500 route details. I am so excited to start a multi-day route research that so different and new.

Thanks again to all…………..

Marshal

[Ian]

Our crisps are like your chips
Our chips are like your fries (only fatter)

Simples.

[ScotRoutes]

Does anyone want to explain to Marshal what a fanny is?

[boxelder]

Marshal, carry a stove and food. Spirits are broken by failing to get food from a cafe/shop that you were relying on. Being able to stop, shelter and brew up saved me twice on HT550 2015.
The Whistle stop cafe at Kinlochewe is a must...

[philipft]

Liking the route changes, won't miss the tollie path, I'm sure my 'Alan cursing' must still be echoing round there

[Justchris]

A bit of advice for Marshall.

Turn up a week early and tune into how Scottish people talk. And local idiosyncrasys. It will make ordering food, getting about easier.

For example.

Black pudding is not a tasty chocolate desert.

A can of juice, will not necessarily be a beverage based on fruit.

When asking how long it will take to get somewhere, Scottish people are known to say something like " aboot the back of the hour pal. Ya ken" (18 years in Scotland and this still confusses me).

http://m.wikihow.com/Understand-Scottish-Slang

Thankfully in the Highlands people speak very clearly compared to other parts of Scotland. I travel all over Scotland for my job and it takes me a while to tune into certain areas.

Good luck. If the weather is even just allright you will have a great time. If the weather is 'driech' it will be a right 'bawbag'!

[ianfitz]

Places I've visited that the route goes through that do good food are
The real food cafe at the start/finish lochinver pie shop (yum!) harbour chippy at Ullapool (wow) the hotel at kylesku

[ScotRoutes]

Liking the route changes, won't miss the tollie path, I'm sure my 'Alan cursing' must still be echoing round there

You do know what a tollie is in Scots?

[philipft]

Liking the route changes, won't miss the tollie path, I'm sure my 'Alan cursing' must still be echoing round there

You do know what a tollie is in Scots?

Google just led me to a few meanings not all scots

[touch]

Our crisps are like your chips

Haha, you've just reminded me of one of the low points from last year.
Feeling sick on day2, grabbed what I though was a big bag of plain crisps from contin to eat that night - I can usually eat plain crisps no matter how ill I feel.
Nope, lemon flavour crisps (YES, LEMON!). They got chucked out of the tent in a rage! :(

[ScotRoutes]

You should have popped back to the shop for a bottle of gin and some tonic water

[Ian]

" aboot the back of the hour pal. Ya ken"

That would be about 65-70 mins, based on my recent exposure to Scottish terminology.

[trail717]

Guess I will need to read thru this: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Appendix ... and_jargon

Once I have given some thought and study to 'where/when' on the route I expect reach each day I can begin to determine what my resupply options might be (and make 'hoped for' plus 'contingency' plans)

I will say as nice as it might be under certain circumstances, there will be no stove in my gear. Just not part of my normal multi day race mode.

I am wondering how best to guesstimate my miles per day on terrain and in weather that are both quite foreign to me? I will be studying historic Spot dots of mid pack racers but I can already see the route offers a wide range of average speeds--seems to be fast sections linked by what looks to be extended technical/slow sections.

Anyway, barring unexpected misfortunes I run a pace in the top 1/2 to maybe top 1/3 in the US multi days--I realize this is an unanswerable question with all the variables involved--but any suggestions on how that might translate to distance per day in the HT 550?

[whitestone]

Liking the route changes, won't miss the tollie path, I'm sure my 'Alan cursing' must still be echoing round there

You do know what a tollie is in Scots?

I'd assumed that it was the anglicised version of "tollaidh", though I see on the map there's a "Tollie Farm" in the area. A bit of searching and following through (sic) links and given the earthiness of Gaelic place names I'd suggest fanny (US).

[boxelder]

I'd work on 6 or 7 sleeps Marshal at that kind of pace if not familiar with the Highlands. Evening eats or overnights at:
Fort Augustus
Oykel Bridge
Kylesku/Lochinver
Ullapool
Strathcarron/Dornie
Fort William

Experience is from last years route though...