Difficulties with Laundry

Fort William to Skye

I have to say, fort william isn't a very exciting place. And they don't have a launderette. The largest town in the highlands (second to inverness, the only city in the highlands) and they don't have a launderette. I got in a bit too late to do my laundry the night before, but thought I'd be able to do it on my own the next day. And so my washing hunt began.

I checked out of the hostel, had more cheese and salsa sandwiches, wandered around a bit, and went into the big hotel to ask if they had ideas on where to do my washing. They said there was a launderette in the next village up, but it was closed onsundays. But there was a hotel three miles the other direction that had a laundry room, yes she had used it and was sure I could use it.

She gave me the wrong time for the bus out there, and I just missed it, and thinking I was going to malaig and maybe sky today, I wanted to get on with things, and not wait another two hours for the bus with a trash bag full of my very smelly clothes. So I found a taxi to this hotel. I paid the guy a very large amount of money, got out of the cab, went into the hotel, and the guy said, yes we have a laundry room, but all of our dryers are broken. At this point I wanted to cry, but the sun had managed to come out, and so I sat outside reading for an hour waiting for the bus to take me back.

At this point I found internet somewhere, and did a futile search for launderettes anywhere near malaig. None. And so I came to the logical conclusion, about four hours and 10 pounds on transport too late. I could stay at my hostel for another night, and do washing. And so I sheepishly checked back in, then went out, now too late for anything to be open, I got the most amazing scone, and as the place was closing, sat on a bench, eating my scone from a Styrofoam box, writing and trying to make sense of my life.

A couple came up to me, wanting to know where I got my food. It's that way, I told them, but it's closed now. As was everything else on the street. But they found food somewhere, and returned to the bench next to mine, to eatchinese, and give their dog water. They were headed to inverness.

My clothes actually got clean! There's nothing so good as burying your face in freshly washed and tumbled dry laundry, still warm. I ate canned tesco soup, watched brave heart, went out for half an hour to hear music in the local pub, and then collapsed into my bed.

Once again having to leave the hostel by 10, I had more salsa and cheese sandwiches (see a pattern?) and then went to the train station. The train that was leaving formalaig was the Jacobite express, pulled by a steam locomotive. Similar rolling stock was used for the filming of harry potter, and they filmed it on this very bit of railroad. The company has used it as an excuse to make it's prices way high, and so I settled for photographing the train as it left, and then taking the next train on the same track.

The steam engine was so cool!! As it pulled out, I took a photo every second. For a train nerd, it would make a super cool flipbook. And the ride itself was absolutely amazing. A conductor kept telling the group of older people near me about the landmarks along the way, and so Ieavesdropped and saw the viaduct that features in harry potter. This is one of those railways that doesn't go along the road, but
instead goes straight through the mountains, ending inmalaig. It's also called the road to the isles.

I spent all of 15 minutes in Malaig before deciding it wasn't exciting and that I should get on the boat for skye that was about to depart. And what do you know, but it started to rain. After ditching my pack inside, I stuck my camera underneath my raincoat, and headed to the top deck. It was very misty, but clear enough to be able to see the outline of land in front of us.

As the boat was landing I returned inside to put my camera away. I set it on the seat next to me and then heard a woman ask "bubenim fotograf makinesim mi?" ("is that my camera" in Turkish) "benim" ("mine") I automatically answered. She had a bit of difficulty comprehending, and so asked in English.I once again aswered in Turkish. She and her husband were from Izmir, and in scotland visiting their son and his girlfriend who live in Aberdeen. The son is an engineer working with BP. We chatted and then they insisted on introducing me to the son and girlfriend. It was slightly awkward, and only succeeded in making the girlfriend feel bad about not knowing more turkish. The son said they would like to give me a ride, but there really wasn't space. No problem I said, I'm going to camp around here tonight.

It was pouring as I walked into the one shop by the pier. It's a shop of funky clothes andjewelery , and seems a bit out of place out by the sea in the grey mist. The women inside told me that they actually do a lot of business with people going to and from the boats. I was no exception, and bought a bag to replaced my much loved and completely worn out bag that I bought in Marrakesh, almost a year and a half ago.

The woman inside told me that there was not much to do in town, a pub, that's it. She thought people sometimes camped in the woods a bit up the way because she had seen fires there sometime. And if I walked about three miles up the road there was thegaelic collage, and sometimes they had events there. I decided to try my luck with the town, as it was much closer. The town consisted of a run-down hotel with tiny and completely empty bar, tiny shop, and a few houses. Stepping back out into the pouring rain, a bitdisillusioned, I began to walk north along the road. I passed the armandale castle, home of some clan, and a bit farther on saw a trail leave the road. I hiked up it, and in the first clear spot I got to, pitched my tent. Thank goodness for the lack oftrespass laws in scotland.

It was only 4 pm at this point, and I spent the rest of the day hiding inside my tent, reading, and for the first time, used the enormous porch on my tent to cook. Earlier in the day I had stopped into an outdoors store to get more methylated spirits for my stove. Reading the bottle I discovered that this noxious purple liquid is mainly used to clean glass, and has a very highVOC rating. But, some clever person had invented cans of green jelly made of high quality sugar alcohol that burned to leave only water and carbon dioxide, left no trace, was absolutely amazing, etc. This was my first time using it, and to me it smells just as bad as methylated spirits, but in a different way.Nonetheless, my conscience was eased by the promised environmental qualities and I breathed through my mouth.

At some point late in the evening the rain mostly stopped, and as I fell asleep I listened to the mournful moo of a cow, which lasted all through the night.