Three years after a brain injury left me learning to walk again, Ian and I set out to walk the length of Britain. Stage 1 covers the far north of Scotland: hail and sunburn in the same week, and our first 100 miles.
Stage 1 at a glance
- Dates: 6–20 May 2019
- Route: Duncansby Head – John O’Groats – Keiss – Wick – Bruan – Latheronwheel – Berriedale – Helmsdale – Brora – Golspie – Embo – Dornoch Firth – Tain – Alness
- Distance: about 117 miles
- Steps: about 266,000 each
- Walking days: 12, plus 3 rest days
- Weather: hail, glorious sunshine and horizontal Scottish rain
The real starting line
The John O’Groats signpost isn’t actually the furthest point from Land’s End – Duncansby Head lighthouse is. So on 6 May we walked from the signpost to the lighthouse and back. If we were doing this, we were doing it properly.
That night was our first in Pixi, our motorhome, parked behind a pub in Keiss.
A blister on day two
On 7 May we set off south. Day two brought rain and a deep blister on the bottom of my right foot. Because of my brain injury, I hadn’t felt it forming.
Ian worked out my boots weren’t laced tightly enough, so from then on he did my laces every morning. It felt like losing a little hard-won independence, but it kept me walking.
Hail, the A9 and the kindness of strangers
On day four, near Wick, we got caught in a hailstorm – in May! I’d forgotten my rucksack cover, so a Scottish-flag bag for life did the job.
Much of the John O’Groats Trail runs along eroding cliff edges, unsafe for me in the wind, so like most walkers on this coast we spent a lot of time on the A9.
One motorhome passed so close that its wing mirror pulled my hood off. In rehab I was taught “you go where you look”, so I kept my eyes up and ahead.
Getting back to Pixi each evening meant rare buses and a lot of help from locals, who were incredibly kind.
A Scottish couple even stopped us on the road to hand over £20.
Walking with Diana
Our first walking companion was Diana, who saw us on Facebook and stopped off on her way home to Shetland. She had learnt to walk again twice – after a riding accident and later a stroke – and now competes in race-walking across Europe.
She was one of the first to join in with our #stepstowards signs, writing down what she was walking towards. Diana’s was a new personal record. Mine was recovery. Ian’s, inevitably, was a pint.
Bluebells, seals and Dunrobin Castle
Brora to Golspie was one of my favourite days: our first full stretch of trail with no roads, past a deserted beach, Dunrobin Castle, bluebell woods, waterfalls and seals.
My eyesight still wasn’t great, though. At one point I proudly announced our first Highland cows. “No, Zara,” said Ian. “It’s a group of bins.”
100 miles on the Dornoch Firth Bridge
On 19 May, crossing the windy Dornoch Firth Bridge, we passed 100 miles. Ian, busy with maps and lifts until then, broke down in tears. I reminded him we still had 900 to go.
The stage ended with horizontal rain all the way to Alness – and my first real downhill. I’d only trained uphill, so my legs just went, free-wheeling, with Ian shouting “Woah!” behind me.
Tips if you’re walking this stretch
- Start at Duncansby Head if you want the true end-to-end distance, not just the signpost.
- Check the John O’Groats Trail before you commit. Parts follow eroding cliff edges and can be dangerous in wind. Be ready to switch to the road.
- Be seen on the A9. Wear bright colours, walk facing the traffic and step well in when lorries pass.
- Plan your transport. Highland buses are infrequent, often have no marked stops and many don’t run on Sundays. Some seasonal foot ferries only run in July and August.
- Lace your boots tightly and check your feet every evening, especially if you have reduced feeling.
Local facts we picked up along the way
- Keiss has a partly ruined castle perched on sheer cliffs just north of the village.
- Helmsdale was once home to one of the largest herring fleets in Europe.
- Dunrobin Castle, near Golspie, has 189 rooms and is the largest house in the Northern Highlands.
- Madonna’s son Rocco was christened at Dornoch Cathedral.
What’s next
In Stage 2 we head inland to Inverness and up into the Cairngorms. See the full week-by-week route and watch our film on the Our JOGLE page.
Inspired? Set your own challenge, any distance and any pace, and help other brain injury survivors keep going. Find ideas, our info pack and sponsor form on our Fundraise for us page. If you or someone you care for is living with a brain injury, you can apply for funding here.
