Glen Nevis to Fort William
Distance: 5km
The final day. How does one describe the emotional roller coaster that goes with the final day of any incredible journey. There is so much anticipation, planning, curiosities, and anxieties that go into planning a trip and when the experience is happening it can feel so surreal. Borderline an out of body experience. In a snap of a finger the whole thing was coming to a close.
The final 5km of this trek was exciting in the sense of being the last day on trail but boring in the sense of being only road walking. The road walk did have moments of intrigue stand out that I chose to purposefully pay attention to. I am the type of person that loves to just take in the environment around me. It doesn’t matter what it is, generally I can find something fascinating about it. This small journey, in comparison to the past seven days, brought with it the ease of walking that allowed for time to become reflective. As I took notice of Ben Nevis mountain, I found myself reflecting on how wonderful it would have been to climb it. But I knew, it just was not in the cards for this trek. That it would continue to call my name until I would be able to return again in the future.
As I entered into the outskirts of town, I noticed the immediate increase in noise. It was almost overwhelming. Cars were passing by, busses were hissing, people were eyes down and focused on their destinations, and the trees and wilderness were replaced with side by side buildings. The vlogging “episode” for this final day was simply reminiscing on memories of key points, things that stood out and things that were frustrating. To hear more about all of those experiences, check out my video under the Vlog page at http://www.dancynadventures.com
I reached the original ending of the WHW sign and it was the first moment my emotions really hit me. The first step to completing this epic journey that I had spent so long waiting to complete. I knew when I was a teenager I wanted to learn how to be backpacker. I spent many summers at a local camp that I never wanted to leave. My summers after the age of 16 were spent there from the moment summer started until it ended. The problem was, I did not have the life experience, tools, proper gear or mentors involved in my life enough to do this successfully. As a younger adult I very much forgot about this part of my life and the love and passion I had for the outdoors. When I re-found my love for the outdoors in 2020, I was quickly reminded of my deep desire to become a thru-hiker. But once again, I had no idea where to start. Ontario is not very thru-hiker friendly and our friends to the south of us are not very inviting these days. So, I was faced with where in the world could I attempt to complete my first thru-hike and still feel safe?
Hours and hours and years of YouTube hiking videos I learned so much about skills around hiking long distances and started to apply those skills to my own hiking. I gained better gear and became much more confident in my abilities. I learned to trust my instincts and to just be part of nature and not battle against what it had to offer. The spontaneous last minute decision to join mom on her Cotswold Way trek was the first experience of doing some longer distance hiking. It was an amazing trip but we couldn’t call it a thru-hike. One, because we were staying in BNB’s along the way but more importantly, we were not hiking the whole trail. I don’t think I could even be able to pinpoint the moment I discovered the WHW but I do know that once I discovered it, I knew it was going to be the first trail I would attempt to thru-hike.
Placing my hand onto the sign of the original ending of this trail felt like I was part of something so special. In that moment, it actually felt like I accepted that I was going to finish the trail. I never had the feeling of doubt of being able to complete it and so maybe it really came back to that surreal out of body experience I was mentioning. But there was something about coming down to that moment where acceptance became a thing.
The “new” ending was not too far away, maybe a 2km or so, and boy did things get interesting after being able to pull away from the sign. If I thought the noise of town was overwhelming on the outskirts of town, it was nothing compared to what I was experiencing now. The buildings had so much character. Showcasing the history of Fort William to me. The cemeteries had headstones with dates that could almost be considered pre-historic. The flora and flowers around town were exceptional. Bright pinks and greens quietly reminding me of where I had just come from. The heart of Fort William was very touristy and had the feeling of what could maybe be described as something out of a storybook. I looked into the storefronts and found myself tempted to rush to the terminus to be able to start exploring.
Every spot that opened up between the buildings was a tease where I expected to see the terminus. I was looking for the statue they call “the man with the sore feet”. Finally, at the top of the street, the street opened up and there it was, sitting on the bench inviting me to join. I took in the moment rather than rushing up to “tap off”. A tourist stopped me to ask why all of these people with backpacks are going up and touching this statue. We had a lovely little conversation around the trail and what everyone was doing. I stood there staring at the statue suddenly wishing with every cell of being that I could just touch him and then go back in the opposite direction. Of course, I did not have the time to do that. With a deep breath I strolled up to the statue, said a quiet greeting, and placed my hands on the statue in victory.
Hilariously enough, although I was feeling incredibly accomplished and proud of myself. I really don’t have the words the describe exactly how things felt in that moment. As I stepped away, I actually had the thought “now what?”. Not sure if that discounts the speciality of that moment but I spent the next few hours exploring the shops looking for some highland cow stuffies for my two boys at home and an official WHW hoodie. Bonus points assigned to myself for finding a finisher’s medal! As I strolled through, I found the most amazing little cafe that was fully plant based. The food and coffee were scrumptious. Upon finding my way back towards the library (my safe space when I need to kill time) and await for my train I happened upon Rowan. A young man I had met along the way and had gotten to know a little bit. I was not expecting to see him again, so I was given the opportunity to say one final goodbye to the one person I had not yet had the chance.
Oddly, this gave me a beautiful sense of closure. Until my next WHW adventure I ventured onto a train to begin my long journey back to reality. Thank you for reading and enjoying my thoughts as I shared with you. And until I journey again….Happy Trails…
DanCyn' Adventures 