Our penultimate day! We set off from Wick, looking first for a post office to get my form stamped, but once again the post office was closed. (Fortunately we have electronic proof of our journey and those stamps are superfluous!). The trail was easier today and well signed, and the sun was shining! Once we left the streets of Wick behind, it was a pleasant coastal walk, initially through paths which had been cleared of the deep vegetation, although that changed. We passed the ruins of Girnigoe Castle, then along sand dunes and on to a long beach in Sinclair’s Bay, where the walking was easy. Unfortunately we arrived at high tide, and so were unable to ford the River Wester (which was now waist deep!) and so we had to follow the river inland for a mile to cross on the road bridge. We arrived in Keiss and stopped at the pub for a drink and to restock our snack supply (there are no shops in the village) before making our way to our B&B.

A Backward Glance

For the first time, today we had a glimpse of our final destination. Soon after leaving Wick we had views of the very tip of Scotland and the Orkney Archipelago just off its northern coast line. Compared to past days on the John o’ Groats Trail, today was almost a casual stroll. As we were leaving Wick this morning we met a Sikh named Gurnam Singh who was walking back from John o’ Groats, having walked there from Lands End, and was now heading for the Himalayas via tops of Ben Nevis, Snowdon and Scafell Pike. When we left him he was wearing rubber sandals! At other times we were caught up among day visitors to castles and viewpoints on the route. You can see weird stuff up here, after passing Castle Sinclair Girnigoe we saw ancient whale bones embellishing a large stone wall! I think the overriding sense Carol and I felt today though was relief. Relief that the toughest walking was behind us and the undeniable relief our tired bodies felt at seeing the top end of our End to End adventure.