Speyside Way, Buckie to Fochabers

June 30, 2023June 30, 2023 / runningforthegate / Leave a comment

We kicked off the Speyside Way today and could not have asked for a better day! After a full Scottish Breakfast at the Struan House B&B in Cluny Square of Buckie, we left our front door at 930am and literally walked steps to the official start of the way!

After a brief photo shoot and video upload to Instagram, we started the first 8km along the coast, skirting between side streets to stay close to the water as we searched the waves for bottle-nose dolphins, and minke whales. We didn’t find any of those but found a Mecca of harbour and grey seals – did you know they sing? It’s amazing and really unsettling actually it sounds so mournful. But so cool!

We wrapped up the coastal portion / half way in our day with some time at the Dolphin Centre were we enjoyed the hospitality of a warm cafe with such kind servers. We loved the scone with clotted cream and raspberry jam they served us. Washed down with a hot pot of tea, of course! Perfect warm up before heading out again to finish part 2 of the day.

We spent the rest of the afternoon, 8kms and about 3 hours kitted out in waterproofs but we were not bothered. The temp was great and the rain was only moderate not the torrential sideways stuff this country is know for! The rain started almost as soon as we left the Dolphin Centre so we even had a nice warm, dry spot to get our waterproofs on!

The afternoon had a fantastic detour (about 300m off trail) to this very long and neat aqueduct bridge! We loved it and just had to spend a bit of time taking some very cool photos. We had the place to ourselves which was fantastic!

After the bridge, we were on a well covered and flat forest path with loads of pine trees, rich ferns and some beautiful wild flowers that stood out so bright against the grey sky and green backdrop. Rosa snapped some of her epic flora pics!

We wrapped up our second 8km at just after 3pm when we arrived at our accommodation for the night, Gordon Arms Hotel, just a block of the trail. A tired but neat and clean 18th century hotel with creeky floors and ghostie vibes!

Along our way we met some great locals. The man walking Suki the greyhound / husky dog who told us about the seals in the harbour and whereto look for them; and the nice lady in the dream home built on the water who gave us the history of how she received the land from a fisherman’s bothy owner; and the amazing lady at the Dolphin Centre who was so kind and dropped off Rosa’s hiking poles to is at the hotel! She was not even coming through Fochabers but made a detour for us!

The stats …

Trail: Speyside Way, Scotland

Day: 1/5

To/From: Buckie/Fochabers

Start/Finish time: 9:30am/3:19pm

Distance: 16km trail (18.9km Hiiker App)

Steps: 28,557

Terrain: flat (forest track, tarmac, trail)

Weather: 16C Overcast AM, Rain PM

Breaky: Full Scottish Breakfast

Lunch n Snacks: Scone w Clotted Cream and Raspberry Jam, Sour Kids

Dinner: Steak and Ale Pie w Chips

Pints: 2

Tonight’s home: Gordon Arms Hotel

Mood: happy as all heck

Body: feeling great, right knee (torn PCL) misbehaving only a little

Highlights: seals singing!

Lowlights: lost poles

People of interest: Suki the dog) and her owner who told us all about the seal on the coast line

Funny bone: ‘special’

Spontaneous dancing: at least a few times

Deep thoughts: walk for the walk, the sights, the feels, the smells .. not for the finish line

A day to be grateful for and we assure you the gratitude was running deep! We had fun, we feel good, we are reminded of human kindness and the amazing places we are so blessed to hike through. Wow, what a day!

Tomorrow we are off to Craigallachie!

Brande

Speyside Way Starts Tomorrow

June 29, 2023June 29, 2023 / runningforthegate / 2 Comments

After some bumps in Rosa’s travel plans (thank you airport power outage in Calgary), Rosa and I have finally arrived together in the small coastal town of Buckie, Scotland where we will start the Speyside Way tomorrow!

The Speyside Way is a 106km (66mile) ramble from Buckie on the North Coast of Scotland down to Aviemore, a fantastic little ski town in the Cairngorms mountain range. The route is never far from the Speyside River which feeds the many distilleries along the Way. A wee dram for ye lass? Yes please!

I have the pleasure of walking this one with Rosa my sis-in-law-law and we are here in Buckie staying at the Straun House B&B (so cute, they even have teddy bears!) getting out gear ready for tomorrow – our first day on the trail!

Our next 5 days on the Speyside Way looks a little like this:

Day 1, Buckie to Fochabers, 16km
Day 2 Fochabers to Craigellachie, 23km
Day 3 Craigallachie to Ballindollach, 19km
Day 4 Ballindollach to Grantown-on-Spey, 23.5km
Day 5 Grantown-on-Spey to Aviemore, 26.5km (the finish line!)

Tomorrow we have a nice 8km walk along an ocean path where we will hit a dolphin centre that boats dolphins, otters and seals … and a cafe where I will be looking for a cuppa (tea or coffee) .. and then another 8km along the Speyside River to a small town of Fochabers. A nice warm up to the days ahead.

The weather is looking fine for tomorrow’s walk, 50% chance of rain (that’s basically a dry day for Scotland) and a high of 17C (perfect hiking temp). We will be sure to have our rain gear on hand when we head out in the am.

I will be posting a before we start walking, highlights from the trail video and after we finish walking videos on the Running for the Gate insta and new YouTube – see ya soon!

Brande

Loco Local – 2 Weeks to Go

June 11, 2023 / runningforthegate / 3 Comments

We are in the 2 weeks-to-departure window now folks!

This close to departure my excitement meter goes way up and, full transparency, I also experience a few moments here and there of anxiousness too. All part of the process I think! It helps to focus on being prepared. So, this last pre-departure stretch will be about packing, confirming travel plans, figuring out why British Airways has changed my seat on a 9hr flight from the one I paid 100 bucks for, and making sure all the things I leave behind are left in order.

Seems I also need this next couple of weeks to pick my lip up off the floor and figure out a little adjustment to my approach to the 400km I have on trail ahead of me … why?

Sadly, frustratingly, madly, grumpily, growly … I am fast and furiously wrapping my head around a new injury. I messed up the PCL in my right knee in a soccer match. Noooo!

Honestly, the knee has been misbehaving for a while now. Ever since I tore the ligaments in my right foot last year (dramatic details here) I have been landing quite differently when I jump. To protect my sore arch, I am landing flat footed which is jarring my knee. I have had some pretty sore days following soccer and volleyball matches. A jumped to head the ball in a soccer match a couple weeks ago and it did me in I guess. When I landed, I felt a rip (not a pop so that’s actually fantastic news) and yikes a good amount of pain. The PCL in my right knee now has my full undivided attention!

What is a PCL you ask?

Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) is a ligament ‘is a band of tissue that crosses inside the centre of the knee joint. It connects your thigh bone to the bone of your lower leg. The PCL keeps your knee stable when it moves forward or backward.’ (thanks HealthLinkBC.ca)

I mean let’s think about this … is knee stability important? Sure. Will I be moving my knee forward and back as I walk 400km? Most of the time. Is it a 6-12 week recovery and I only have 2 weeks before departure? Yes. Am I sad but also mad and pouty as heck? Also yes!

The good news, my PCL is intact it’s only a tear. My knee doesn’t feel too hugely unstable – just not right on inclines and declines and stairs, and a misstep over extends it quite easily. And, also good news, when hiking – unlike soccer and volleyball – I can watch exactly where I put my feet. Heck I won’t be doing anything but watching these dogs for the next month! Also good news, there is a brace on the market specifically for the PCL.

The ‘bad’ news, I had to shell out a bunch for said brace (think the equivalent of my entire spending money budget for the trip in the UK for 30 days – I am gonna need a bake sale before I go so I can refresh my pint budget). More worrisome, I am breaking my most cardinal hiking rule – never ever EVER hike in something you have not trialed at home. Nothing gets packed unless it is tried, tested and true and a BUNCH of times before you depart. Well not this time B – we will adapt on the trial with a smile and as many spontaneous energizing dance parties I might need!

Stay tuned – lots more to come as I wrap my head around this turn of events and a brace a around my rebellious knee. So much to think about but also not over think. I got this! Right? Right! Absolutely!

Brande

PS the injury has also caused a Baker’s Cyst on that same knee (lovingly named jumbo prawn thanks Lana) which I hope just magically goes away and I never have to blog about! A girl can dream …

Loving Local-ish – 4 Weeks to Go

June 6, 2023June 6, 2023 / runningforthegate / 2 Comments

Just wrapped up end of my 4 week countdown of the 2023 Scotland Trifecta and things are getting really, real!

First, let’s get the skinny of what was on the training list since my last post Living La Vida Local – 6 Weeks To Go. As we get closer to departure the training ramps up but in a couple weeks it will also ramp down to ensure I am for ready for and also rested for this 400km challenge.

Here is 5 Weeks To Go training looks like on my tried and tested 20 Week Training Plan:

1x 6km Hills (with 15lb pack)
3x 7km (with 15lb pack and poles)
2x this week let’s get some muscle on:
- 50 squats
- 25 lunges
- 40 calf raises
- 20 fire hydrants
- 10 donkey kicks
- 15 cat/cow
- 35 double Ds
- 60 second plank
1x slow flow yoga for flexibility

Last week, at 4 Weeks To Go, there are a couple of subtle differences as this is a ramp it up week:

1x 15km (with 15lb pack and poles)
4x 7km (with 15lb pack, poles optional)
3x this week let’s top up the muscle:
- 50 squats
- 25 lunges
- 40 call raises
- 30 fire hydrants
- 10 donkey kicks
- 15 cat / cow
- 40 double Ds
- 60 sec plank
1x flexibility session (stretching, yoga)

Of course, for each hike there should be some gentle stretching as your warm up, and some post hiking stretching too. And to be clear that means more stretching than just the reaching my arm across the bar for a cold pint – add in a calf stretch with your toes on the leg of the bar stool while you do it for extra pints .. I mean points!

My bestie was visiting a couple weekends ago and we had to chance to get in a few of my training sessions with local walks or hikes on a little weekend adventure to Vancouver Island .. hence the local-ISH.

Westsong Walkway

The Westsong Walkway is fantastic, flat and easy walk along the Victoria inner harbor!

A mix of paved path, some boardwalk and a few rock trails that gives you fantastic views of the water, float planes landing and taking off and, if you plan it right even offers a chance to quench your thirst at a fantastic local watering hole, Spinnakers.

We walked about 5km. You can add some additional kilometers if you walk from Johnson Street to Esquimalt and back around the harbour over to Fisherman’s Wharf. Basically, it’s beautiful Victoria and walking all the places is just a total joy!

Thetis Lake

We also had the chance to hit one of my favourite hikes from when I lived in Victoria – Thetis Lake! Instead of the regular (busy but beautiful) lower and upper Thetis lake trails we did some meandering on Phelps Trail, Trillium Trail and more on the outskirts of the park. We were able to cobble together about 12km. It’s been a while since I have been to Thetis and I am still amazed at just how beautiful a hike surrounded by city can be!

Pre-hike energy loading may have been a most fabulous, delicious, amazing Pork Belly Eggs Benedict from Six Mile Pub and post-hike celebration may have been a refreshing flight .. or two … from Herald Street Brewing in Victoria. All the yumminess! This day was pretty close to the daily activities I will be experiencing over in Scotland. In Alba, the day will start with a Full Scottish Breakfast transition into a hike then transition into pints. They do say your training at home should be as close to the real deal abroad! I am just following great advice 😉

Juan de Fuca Trail, Mystic Beach

Completing the entire Juan de Fuca Trail is on my to-do list but not on this trip. This trip was more around getting some kilometers on the training dashboard and ensuring my bestie from land locked Alberta got some max ocean views in! Hello Mystic Beach.

After a great drive from Victoria to Shirley, BC and a stop for breaky at Shirley Delicious (which was most surely delicious) …

… and a quick waltz down to the Sheringham Point Lighthouse, which was so picturesque and barely a soul around …

… headed to the China Beach trailhead / parking lot and walked the well marked 2km trail down to Mystic Beach. This short trail had all the things we love – suspension bridge (Lana loves those not me), boardwalks, bridges, some up and some down, and enough people to keep the bears away! We saw a bear on the road just before starting our hike so we may or may not have been on high alert!

We spent a good amount of time down at the beach just taking it all in. The sound of the waves, hot sun and views you cannot even believe are in front of you makes it easy to stay a while.

Once we tore ourselves away from the view, and humped the 2km back to the car – where we may or may not have discovered just how bad my misbehaving knee / leg / foot / is feeling (more on that later) – we made our way back to Victoria. Well, not before a quick post hike refresh at Sooke Brewing Company! Yum!

Back in Victoria, we parked the car and accidentally headed to a couple more local breweries. You sensing a theme here? Including Whistle Buoy Brewing in Market Square – so delicious! That pretty blue one on the end was a perfectly sour Gose to cleans the flight-pallet!