So i got a bit drunk the other night, and bought a one way ticket to Glasgow in two weeks.
I’m sober now, but i’m still going. Gave two weeks notice at my job today.
The plan at the moment is.
-Boston to Glasgow on Oct 9/10
-Stay in Glasgow for a day or two.
-Head North towards Loch Lomond and eventually Glencoe.
-Isle of Skye?
-???
-???
-???
-Fly back to the states, on the cheapest flight, on the cheapest date.
I have nothing planned beyond that. But now that I don’t have a job I have no obligations until I return to University in January of 2017. I don’t know how long i’ll be in the country, or where, but I may stick around until as late as December. And at some point i’d like to head south into England proper to see a few places, but I suspect i’ll spend a good amount of my time in the Highlands.
My ticket to Glasgow cost about 250 USD, and thankfully for me I don’t need a visa for tourism. Praise be to the Scotts, I’m allowed to camp in the wild as well as in national parks, provided i follow certain guidelines. So I can effectively cut my costs to dirt and be homeless for the next 3 months. Also lucky for me, the UK appears to have pretty good infrastructure for public transportation, so I can head South for pretty cheap as well.
I honestly don’t know what i’m doing, but i’m doing it anyways. If you have any suggestions, or if you UK boys want to meet then let me know.
No i’m not joking.
Yes I know i’m an idiot.
Did you know you can live off nothing but Potatoes, Dairy, and Water?
Alright, so this is just going to be a random list of things I remember from my childhood in Scotland.
Places you should go/things to do in the Highlands:
Ullapool
Applecross
The Highland Wildlife Park
Loch an Eilein
Glen Etive
Walk the West Highland Way
The Quiraing in Skye
Rest of Scotland:
Edinburgh is a must-see - probably the prettiest city centre in the UK
I’ve heard Ayrshire is nice but I’ve never been there myself
The Outer Hebrides are great, especially if you can make it out to St. Kilda
If you want to see where I grew up, the area around Banchory in Aberdeenshire is lovely - you could visit Crathes Castle, the Linn O’ Dee or Scolty Hill
Scots do celebrate Halloween but I can’t think of anything especially interesting that happens - I remember dooking/apple bobbing but I guess that’s only a thing for kids. If you’re on a budget you could try to spend a few nights in a bothy or two. Be ready for the rain.
If you end up heading down into England there’s a huge amount of stuff to see and do, don’t get taken in by the tourist trap of London though - way too expensive.
I’m pretty well prepared and equipped for the cold. I’m more worried about rain than anything tbh, especially since i’ll be camping in the wild for the most part. You guys have the most amazing and lenient camping laws, i absolutely love it.
Are there any decent chain hiking/outdoors stores around Glasgow? Something like EMS or REI?
There’s a lot of stuff i’ll have to buy there because I can’t bring it over on a plane. Like a pocketrocket stove, trowel, other misc shit.
Specific dates? Looks like a train ticket from Glasgow to Worcester wouldn’t be too bad. I don’t know what my pacing is, but it looks like it might only take me a week to get from Glasgow to Skye, and then a week back. Putting me back in Glasgow for the 23/24?
That looks to be near the Puzzlewood/Forest of Dean which i’d like to see as well.
Is there a Eurail type pass for the UK? Like a pass I could get for a 3-4 month period instead of paying for rail tickets individually? That would give me so much fucking freedom.
I’m thinking I want to spend most of my time up North in Scotland and the highlands.
I’ve found some pretty cheap flights in mid December from Edinburgh to Boston, so I may be able to save money and get back before Christmas. And I may outright buy a return ticket this week, that way I have a finite return date.
But i’ll look into train tickets, it would be nice to head down south for a week, and then maybe head straight back North.
It looks like I might be able to get from Glasgow to Skye, and then back to Mallaig in time to take a Bus down to Worcester (apparently for only £32) and meet up with you guys. Would be nice to travel with some people for a bit. And after I could check out the puzzlewood and some other stuff in the area before heading back north on the cheapest bus or train. Then I could go straight to Cairngorms and wander around in the west during November. Then Head South to Edinburgh a few days early and see the city before I head back.
I’ll do some more research and calculations for transport and what funds I have available and figure it out this week most likely. Gotta spend the next few days buying some stuff and packing tho
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/timesandfares/MLG/Worcester/271016/0415/dep
If bus tickets are generally that cheap then maybe I could explore some other areas down South. I kind of want to head into Cornwall and See the coast and Tintagel. Anything else of interest down in the Southwest? I’ll also have to research the camping laws down there, because I doubt they’re as lenient as rural Scotland.
Only time I’ve been out of the country is to Canada. Those who have gone abroad before. Cellphones?
I want to bring mine just in case of emergencies or something, and so I have an internet device to connect to wifi whenever I have it.
Mostly i’m just worried about picking up random charges. I’ve heard horror stories about people getting fucked for roaming in other countries or something, and literally can’t afford to mess up like that.
There’s loads to see/do around here - Dartmoor/Exmoor, the Eden Project, Dartmouth, St. Ives, St. Michael’s Mount and Penzance all spring to mind. You generally have to get permission to camp from the landowner or find a campsite.
In terms of your phone, I’d check with your provider first, though I suspect you might need to get a pay-as-you-go SIM card here in the UK.
Alright, I think for the moment I’ll plan to go from Glasgow to Dumbarton on Day 1.
-Then head North towards Glencoe.
-Then through Glenfinnan.
-Up to Mallaig.
-Catch a ferry to Skye, and head North exploring the island.
-Head back south, ferry back to Mallaig.
-Take a Bus down to Worcester and meetup with you guys for the weekend.
If you’re still up to meeting up for a hike. @Fornad
(Will either leave from Mallaig, or if I have extra time I’ll plan to wander my way to another station to catch a bus on the 26/27 down to Worcester area)
That also shouldn’t take me too long, so I’ll probably make some arbitrary pit stops like the Lake Lochmond Aquarium, Glen Etive, and maybe elsewhere.
Beyond that I’m not sure what I want to do for November-December. I’ll have to explore some options in the south (maybe i’ll go campsite hopping) and see if there’s anything back up in Scotland that i’d like to see specifically. But I’d like to solidify my plan for the first month or so atm.
Side note, if i’m down in Malvern hills until the 30th then I guess I’ll spend Halloween down there, or I could catch a bus to somewhere else. You said there isn’t anything special in Scotland for Halloween, but are there any kind of cool festivals or something down south?
Edit: Been looking into your mentions down in the Southwest. I think I might head there after we meet in October. I’d especially like to see Dartmoor and Tintagel, as well as maybe some others on your list. Maybe I’ll spend a few weeks down there and then head back north towards Cairngorms for the remainder of my time until i head to Edinburgh. I think I’ll be buying a return ticket around Dec 12/14 this week just to have that deadline.
Edit 2: Ok the UK is smaller than I thought, I have no sense of Scale. Google maps is telling me I could walk from the Eastern edge of Dartmoor, through the center, and to Tintagel on the coast in 15 hours. So, like a 2-3 day trip on good pace?
