Disaster in the Heart of Scotland

Hi Followers (currently few, get more people on board, spread the word, the countdown continues),

The middle warm-up for Sept's onslaught is 2 nights in a hotel in the Heart of Scotland. There's a big, famous mountain nearby which I intend to climb again. Probably a quarter of a century after the first ascent with my dad and brother. Hopefully tomorrow it shall happen again. She's named after a Scottish Pilsner Lager beer which comes in big bottles. I bought 2 at the Tesco at work this lunchtime and stuck them in the car for tomorrow. Took off from work after 4pm and drove up. Made good time and should have been in my room well before 6pm for the latest Murdoch scandal nonsense on the news, but the hotel which was just a mile outside a famous town just over a bridge built by a General who tamed the Highlands didn't have my booking and they were full.

Sounds like between Expedia and the hotel there is someone to blame. Maybe they got a better offer for my room and spun me a well practiced yarn. Australians were muttering "Fawlty Towers" as the constantly troubleshooting main man escorted them upstairs for some reason, probably something wrong with their room. Anyone the cute young girl who was dealing with me was instructed my the main man to phone up the sister hotel and see if they had a room. Luckily they did.

I was amazingly calm the whole time, I knew it had gone badly wrong the moment I walked in and told the girl that afterwards as she repeatedly apologised. I think she was relieved as I never got close to looking upset, anxious or homicidal. I then drove up some pleasant narrow roads I'd been on a few times before to a place at the end of a loch in a small village. The other hotel is fancier they said, but more remote. Fantastic view of tomorrow's target on the way, could see the trail from the side as I drove right past the turn off to her, and then headed down and could see her to the south as I headed alongside her impressive profile.

Took ages to get checked in at this hotel which was impressive as promised. I've definitely driven past her many times in my life, and probably never expected to stay here. The chap was pleasant enough, although he momentarily got concerned when he realised my booking was for 2 nights, not just the Friday. Another fiasco coming on I silently thought, he said that the girl never mentioned that on the phone. They're always getting people sent over from the other joint when bookings go mysteriously missing in the ether. Maybe the Internet doesn't work in the Highlands when you go west of the A9.

Now I have a dilema, I have no map with me, but it might be possible to do the big mountain tomorrow from this side and skip the hordes who do it from the other more popular direction on the well defined path I saw from the car this evening. Looks like I have some planning to do, or join the masses on the easy route.

They forgot to give me the PIN number for the Wifi on check-in. I also forgot to ask. Whilst I was sipping my first cerveza of the soir in the adjacent pub's Jardin de Biere, I managed to get the first draft of this published. However my mobile connection kept dropping out, so fixing the obvious spelling mistakes was going to be tiresome. After ordering food and the 2nd beer I got the PIN number from reception. We're now cooking with gas as they say! Not a bad signal for the Highlands. Strange how it's just my reservation that went missing up here. Are they trying too tell me something?

Everything is an opportunity! Things happen for a reason. Blue skies above. I'm not going to tempt fate by looking at the weather forecast, not that I can get the TV and freeview box combo in my room to work anyway, or is that legacy only and people get all their info from their PC or whatever now on the web?

Sun has dipped a bit. Midgies coming out. Face and elbow are getting bitten. Cajun poulet burger et frites avec mayo est fini.

I suspect the OS maps on Steetmap.co.uk may get abused tonight. Tomorrow after breakfast I could set a waypoint on the Garmin here at the hotel and then head for the mountain, and then regardless of mist etc. know how to get back. Or maybe take the car. Options, options and more options. However the DJ or band just turned up and are trucking equipment into the bar. I trust I exercise willpower and go to bed early in preparation for tomorrow.

More to follow...

Cheers,

Stu B