I nearly didn’t make it to Parkrun.
The postcode took me to a turning that was signposted as Belladrum and then told me ‘You have arrived’ but it was a narrow road that continued winding through the dark trees. There were a couple of houses and two ‘private’ roads branched off the main track and there was no hint of any hi Vis pink jackets or fluorescent yellow ‘Caution Runners’ signs. There were just the trees and the track and the silence.
I pulled over into a verge and got out. Perhaps if I walked/jogged a bit further I’d see it. I didn’t at all think that I was a woman wandering alone in the woods. I did think that I should have read the info on the website better so that I could have completed my first ever Scottish Parkrun instead of being lost. After a couple of long minutes I heard the sound of tyres over gravel behind me. Three cars in quick succession passed me by before I could look inside to see anybody looking sporty.
By the time I’d got back inside my car there was nobody again, but I drove along anyway, winding through the trees and finally I came out into the open where there were pinks and yellows in abundance.
Scottish Parkruns begin at 9:30, or certainly this one did, and I think it’s because the winter months can get dark for a lot longer. It was a good job that it did. I parked up with fifteen minutes to spare, and the new runners corner looked very big, unsurprisingly. There were plenty of others here doing the marathon tomorrow or the 10K, so this parkrun was ideal as a shake-out run.
I do recommend Belladrum. The volunteers are very friendly, there’s a café and the route, although it is a three-lapper is a nice trail course. That much at least I had pre-checked, because my usual Brooks Ghosts would have been slipping on the mud. I have some Hokas which I would describe as gravel shoes. Cushiony enough for tarmac but with a bit more grip underfoot. I didn’t buy them; a friend was getting rid of them, but they’re great for this kind of terrain. I aimed for tomorrow’s hoped for marathon pace, and kept it nice and easy, although my Garmin heart rate begged to differ.
I’ve only noticed the term ‘shake-out’ in the past couple of years, but I really did need it to ‘shake’ my legs ‘out’ after the long, long road trip made to get here yesterday. I calculated eight plus hours of driving in total, the most I’ve ever done in one day. There were two up to Tebay Services, and then one over the border to Moffat where we were dropping Anne’s mum off to Anne’s brother. They live in Peebles, but Moffat was a handy rendezvous as it was just off the motorway. So, we had a spot of lunch with them and then carried on.
The final five hours or so was around the houses a little because of road works but eventually on the A9 to Inverness.
‘Let’s have another break after three hours,’ I suggested.
But could we find anything resembling a service station? Could we ‘eck. At one point after three and a half hours we attempted to pull off into a place that signposts a café/town thingy in the middle of the arc of a semi-circle. It looked like it was a simple pull in and a simple resumption.
We found the café, and not much else but it was closed and then when we tried to find the A9 again we were driving all over the place before it became visible again. In the end we had to stop at a layby, where Anne found lots of exotic fungi to photograph and I found a spot for a wild wee.
Our little one-bed home for the next few days is in a courtyard of homes, which all seem to be AirBnBs. It’s nice, has a bath and is a mile out of Drumnadrochit where I can get picked up by the buses taking us to the start tomorrow. I went into Inverness after the parkrun, to get my bib, and a photo op with a stuffed sea-monster (guess who).
Then we had a little look around the ruins of Urquhart Castle as it’s very close to our abode. As old ruins go, the presentation is very good – there’s a short film of the history that finishes with a nice flourish, and the grounds are well maintained and interesting – and I highly recommend it.
We’re back in the house now, and I’ve got my feet up. Annie’s making a pasta dish in a minute, which will be my second helping of the day. An incredibly cheesy macaroni cheese dish was my lunch in Drumnadrochit itself, so I’m going to be well fuelled up for tomorrow.
