Day: July 22, 2024

Tremula Network

Kilmartin Glen, Kilmartin – Monuments & Ruins | VisitScotland

Wild for Scotland Podcast – An Immersive Travel Podcast

Heathery Heights – Outdoor Adventure & Discovery

File:Urquhart Bay and Drumnadrochit from Cnoc a’ Bhuachaille – geograph.org.uk – 1773511.jpg – Wikimedia Commons

File:Looking towards Ben Nevis – geograph.org.uk – 2975904.jpg – Wikimedia Commons

File:Above Fort William – geograph.org.uk – 2971581.jpg – Wikimedia Commons

File:Loch Ness, Fort Augustus and the Caley Canal – geograph.org.uk – 2435359.jpg – Wikimedia Commons

The routes Information – Great Glen Way

Kilmartin Glen – Wikipedia

Scottish Digest Podcast is a production of cluarantonn.com

Hosted and Researched by Dawn

Edited by Erin Erin Ferguson (@erinfergus0n) • Instagram photos and videos

Map courtesy of openstreetmap

Images courtesty of commons.wikimedia.org/

Music:

Epidemic by ES_The Celtic Flavour – Alysha Sheldon & ES_A Sound Foundation – Airae

 

Production Company Name by Granny Robertson

Dawn [0:00 – 1:30]: Welcome to another episode of Scottish Digest. In this episode, we’ll be speaking to Francesca from the podcasts seizure adventure and on the outside, who is also the founder of Tremula Network. And she also runs the outdoor podcast Club, which Scottish Digest is proud to be part of. And she will be talking to us about our favourite places in Scotland, specifically the Kilmartin Glen area and the great Glen Way. Before we hear from Francesca, let’s find out where the areas are that we will be talking about today. So, the Kilmartin Glen, according to Wikipedia, is an area in Argyle, located between Oban, where I grew up, Loch Guilphead, where I lived for the first couple of years of my life, and is just over a two hour drive northwest of Glasgow. And there’s the great Glen Way, which, according to Highland Dot gov dot UK, is a 75 miles or 120 kilometre walking route that stretches from Fort William in the south west to Inverness in the north east, taking in Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest mountain and sections of the caledonian canal. Now let’s hear my chat with Francesca about her visits to these areas. So, hello, Francesca. Welcome to the podcast.

Francesca [1:30 – 1:33]: Hello. Thank you very much for having me.

Dawn [1:33 – 1:38]: Oh, it’s an absolute pleasure. Can you tell us a bit more about you and your background?

Francesca [1:39 – 3:03]: I can indeed. So I guess for your listeners, they might be interested in knowing that I too am a podcaster and audio producer. So I have a small network called Tremula Network and we really focused on podcasts which are to do with outdoors adventure and particularly the unheard stories within that space. So slightly less about the. The big first and the macho stories and a bit more about the everyday adventures and the things that might resonate with a lot more people, essentially. And, yeah, in terms of myself, I am quite adventurous and do quite a lot of hiking and a bit of long distance running and this kind of thing. And that, as a lot of people would probably recognise, includes things like doing the three peaks when I was a bit younger and that kind of thing. So one of the. One of my connections to Scotland, going and doing the Ben Nevis when I was 19, I think young, that’s an achievement. Yes, I do have a big story about the first one of the three peaks that I did when I was, uh, seven years old and I did Snowden. Don’t necessarily have to go into that, though, because it was, uh, going up, down and around Snowden when I was seven years old.

Dawn [3:03 – 3:06]: Pretty fit then, at seven. Be sore.

Francesca [3:07 – 3:16]: Yeah, I mean, I remember being very, very, like, sore footed afterwards. Uh, so, yeah, God.

Dawn [3:17 – 3:21]: So what tell me about. You’ve got two podcasts, haven’t you? Tell me about them as well.

Francesca [3:21 – 3:57]: Yeah, so two podcasts of my own. So one of them is called seizure adventure. That was my OG podcast. And, yeah, that’s very specifically about people with epilepsy that do adventure sports. That does come from personal experience. I was diagnosed in 2015. Had to think about that. So a little while ago now, and luckily I’m doing quite well with it. I haven’t had any proper seizures for about six or seven years. So since, oh, longer since 2015, getting on for nine years now.

Dawn [3:57 – 4:01]: So at the time you were diagnosed, that was the last time you had the market?

Francesca [4:01 – 4:13]: Yeah, I was lucky enough to get medication that worked quite, quite quickly for me. So, yeah, that was my first foray into podcasting, speaking to other people.

Dawn [4:13 – 4:19]: It’s a great idea for a topic. And the title is clever as well. Seizure events. Very, very clever.

Francesca [4:19 – 5:06]: I can’t take credit for that. That was my boyfriend that came up with that one. And he reminds me every single time, it’s really good. But I do love a pun, podcast name. So, yeah, anything. Anything. That’s a pun I do love. And then the second one is a little bit more outdoors and adventure and countryside and, like, that kind of thing in general, but thinking about, like, outdoors culture a bit more and the types of news stories that are happening there. And specifically, I try to speak to people and get panels of various different voices within the outdoor space, so we get lots of opinions and different stories.

Dawn [5:06 – 5:21]: And you also mentioned that you’re also the founder of the Tremulina network, and you run the Outdoor podcast club, which is Scottish Digest is part of. Why did you decide to set up the network and the club as well?

Francesca [5:22 – 6:26]: Yeah, well, I know that, as you know, being a solo podcaster can be quite hard at times. And I think that the outdoors podcast club was just a way of connecting with a community of people rather than doing one to one calls. After I started my first podcast, I actually started working in podcasting over the pandemic period. And so I been a baptism of fire in terms of learning the skills to do remote podcasting and this kind of thing, and specifically outdoors podcasting. Taking, like, the remote recording skills out into the field can be a little bit tricky as well. So, yeah, the podcast club was my way of kind of like, sharing those skills in a quite accessible way. And like I say, building a community of people that are all working on really good shows, essentially just trying to kind of amplify them and make them as good as they can be, including my own. I learn a lot from teaching, so.

Dawn [6:27 – 6:40]: Yeah, you do. And every month, if you’re part of the club, Francesca does a presentation for you and, you know, you go on a call with her and you really, I’ve learned a lot from, from yourself. So it’s been, yeah, I’m glad I’m part of the network.

Francesca [6:40 – 6:43]: Very, very glad to have you contacting.

Dawn [6:43 – 6:48]: With other people that are in similar situations and getting that advice and help. It’s been really beneficial.

Francesca [6:48 – 6:49]: Yeah.

Dawn [6:49 – 7:01]: And, yeah, and youre always there to just help with any little questions people have got. So anybody out there listening that’s got their own podcast for outdoor podcasts? That’s the one. Francesca’s the one for you.

Francesca [7:02 – 7:09]: Thank you. Yes. Yeah. My mind is very preoccupied by podcasting most of the time, so.

Dawn [7:10 – 7:15]: And you’re also the editor for a pod Bible. Tell us about that as well.

Francesca [7:15 – 8:14]: Yeah. So pod Bible is a magazine all about podcasts and it is just coming up to five years old, actually. So it might be five years old when this goes out. So it’s been around for quite a long time. OG podcasting magazine in the UK and, yeah, we basically write reviews for podcasts and recommendation lists and that kind of thing. We interview lots of podcasters and last year I was really lucky to actually be a guest editor on one of the issues of the magazine. I’ve got that very proudly in my office, just the hard copy of the magazine, which I was the guest editor of. And yeah, the outdoors podcast club features in that. And we had the recommendations from all of you and I think, oh, what was it? There was a true crime podcast, which you suggested, which was really good. Is it?

Dawn [8:14 – 8:15]: It was real.

Francesca [8:16 – 8:25]: Real. I was going, I had unreal in my head and I was like, that’s a different one. Entirely real. That’s the one. It’s a really, really nice, true grime one.

Dawn [8:25 – 8:40]: So just pulls you in. I thought we just hooked. Yeah, yeah. But that was nice. And I’ve got that magazine, the little magazine as well. The little original. Yes. I’ve kept that too. It’s like, it’s so cute. It’s just a dinky thing. It’s lovely.

Francesca [8:40 – 8:46]: Yeah, yeah. It’s a six size, so that really, really kind of like quarter of a page. I love it.

Dawn [8:46 – 8:52]: But it’s packed, packed full of information and you can get it online as well, can’t you can still read it online too.

Francesca [8:52 – 8:53]: Yeah, you can indeed.

Dawn [8:53 – 9:08]: Yeah. So it’s there for energy all right, so now we’ve found out all about you, let’s get down to business. So we’re here to talk about your favourite places in Scotland. So can you tell us where it is?

Francesca [9:09 – 10:24]: So, my number one place in Scotland is the Kilmartin Glen area. So it’s in Argyle, the west coast of Scotland. And, yeah, the reason that I like it is a little bit convoluted, to be honest with you. I don’t know how often you get this, but I actually was obsessed with a fantasy book when I was younger, and it is not a certain wizarding series. It’s actually a book called the White Mare that was set in the Killglen, set in the Kilmartin Glen area during the kind of like, roman invasion of Scotland. So that’s the first century ad and, yeah, it has, like, druids and priestesses and fights against romans and all of this kind of stuff. And, yeah, that’s kind of like how I was introduced to that area of Scotland, essentially. And it’s a really good place for that kind of fantasy setting because it has so much history going backwards. There’s, like, neolithic stone circles and carvings and this kind of thing. So, yeah, really lovely area I see.

Dawn [10:24 – 10:36]: Coming from all the highlands and argyle areas and I hadn’t. I don’t know about that area. I’ve never visited that area. So it was fun. I was like, yes. When you said argyle, I was like, yes. And then you said where? And I was like, oh, no.

Francesca [10:38 – 10:55]: It does seem to be quite a hidden, hidden place. Yeah. I don’t know. Like. Like I said, a very convoluted route into finding it for myself. But, yeah, I would say everybody definitely go and visit. It’s got a lot packed into that little glen. Definitely.

Dawn [10:55 – 10:58]: So you sent me over some photos?

Francesca [10:58 – 10:59]: Yes.

Dawn [10:59 – 11:08]: Yeah, Ken, they’ll obviously will show them on YouTube, but can you just talk about them and the ones that relate to Kilmartin and your time there?

Francesca [11:09 – 11:20]: Yeah. So I sent you over a couple of photos from when I went on a trip to meet one of the. Another podcaster within the Outdoors podcast Club, which is Cathy from the Wild for Scotland podcast.

Dawn [11:21 – 11:23]: I didn’t even recognise Cathy.

Francesca [11:23 – 12:24]: Yeah, no, but it was one of the people that we interviewed for the podcast. I think it was the fourth series. So, yeah, we were doing some interviews for the fourth series of that one and I convinced her to go to the Kilnbarton Glen area and, yeah, we met up with this woman called Heather who does history tours around the area and she was telling us all about some of the kind of like the, like I said, the stone carvings and standing stones. So this photo in particular, there’s like a layer of rock and you’ve got a little bit of heather just like poking up in the foreground and then behind you can see that there’s me in my full on producer podcast mode like pointing this microphone at Heather and she is telling me a little bit about the rock that we’re standing, standing near. And this is called the ardnabracan rock, I believe.

Dawn [12:24 – 12:26]: It looks like it’s.

Francesca [12:29 – 12:32]: That sounds right. I knew it was. Yeah.

Dawn [12:33 – 12:35]: Akna Brick rock.

Francesca [12:36 – 13:32]: And this is a rock which is very flat on the ground and when you can see it, particularly if it’s been raining, it’s really clear. There’s lots of cup and ring markings on it. So those are markings that are almost exactly what they sound like. Like little indentations and then little rings within the stone. And nobody quite knows what they’re for. But we do know that they go back a long way. So I think it’s about 5000 years. Some of those markings can go back. And Heather’s the person to speak to in terms of a bit more about the history and stuff. And she told me, told me a lot whilst we were standing there and looking at them. But yeah, really, really interesting to just go and see and wonder how long that’s been there and what people were meaning when they were carving them.

Dawn [13:33 – 13:35]: It’s a lovely picture. Was that Kathy that took that one?

Francesca [13:35 – 13:42]: It was, yeah, yeah. Kathy did all of the ones that were the good pictures I sent you.

Dawn [13:42 – 13:50]: It’s beautiful. So the other one, is this actual stand in stone one as well? Is that in the same place?

Francesca [13:50 – 15:17]: It is not far away, so it’s still within the glen. But we did have to get in a car to kind of like go between them. So you could probably walk it if you were really adventurous within a day. But certainly I’d suggest a car if you’re doing lots of the visits in a day. This one I do know is called the Nevalaki stones. So I think this is the south Nevalaki stones and they are your stereotypical standing stones. So they’re really quite tall. I think they’re about like seven, seven or eight foot. So me being five foot tall, it towers over me quite a lot. And they are just in this field that’s like a farming field, you know, and you’re walking up to them and there’s several of them in the field and you’ve got lots of lichen on the stone and this kind of thing. And in the picture, you can see again, Heather being like the very good tour guide and, like, pointing and telling me about it whilst I’m just in awe of what we’re looking at. So, yeah, really, really lovely place to visit. And that’s one of several different things within a similar area. So you’ve also got Templewood stone circle and there’s a few, like, cairns and kists and this kind of thing. So, yeah, lovely, lovely place, it looks like.

Dawn [15:17 – 15:26]: And you had an okay day. A bit overcast, but it looks. It was clear. Quite nice walking through there. I can imagine it with the grass rustling and.

Francesca [15:26 – 15:54]: Yeah, yeah, it was definitely as far as rain in Scotland goes. It was barely there. There was the tiniest drizzle as we were kind of like just setting off. And we were slightly worried about having to do everything in a downpour. But no, we managed to do everything outside and sit and do a nice recording without any. Any rain going on. So, like you say, a bit grey and overcast, but, yeah.

Dawn [15:54 – 16:09]: And it’s just, again, it’s another beautiful picture with the other stones further ahead. And then you’ve got the hills going up at the back of you. It’s beautiful. It’s really nice. God. Did you go up? Did you go anywhere else from there, then? Where did you go from there?

Francesca [16:09 – 17:42]: Yeah. So one of the main places within the Kilmartin glen that people will go to as well on a bit of a sightseeing thing is called the Donnard Hill fort. Like, it’s a really quite steep hill that is very rocky in places. And it used to have a hill fort in. I can’t quite remember the century, but post roman hill fort, shall we say. And it was part of the kind of like, argyle area of Irish coming over into Scotland and that kind of thing. So lots of the connections there between the two sides of the Irish Sea. So, yeah, a really nice hill fort to go to. And when you can climb up it, you can hike up it. When you get to the top, there are, for one, you can just see how flat the plains were around. So you can see why people kind of like, settled there and were there as a kind of like, fort protection. But the other thing that you can see when you’re at the top of the hill fort is a kind of like, carving that’s foot shaped. And it is believed that that carving was used to kind of like, crown the kings of Dunard and that kind of thing. So the kings would like, put their foot in it and declare that they would protect the people and this kind of stuff. So lots of mythology and history based around that. That carving.

Dawn [17:42 – 17:51]: That sounds really nice. That’s. I’m gonna go. Next time I’m in open, I’m gonna take a trip to Kilmartin. I love these kind of things. I can’t believe I just know it was there.

Francesca [17:51 – 18:14]: It is incredible. And it is especially, like, knowing about it from a book and a fantasy book. When you go up there, it is really quite moving to see it is a real place and there’s history to it that is, like, far beyond the kind of, like, imagined history that the writer chose to write about.

Dawn [18:14 – 18:23]: So when you were up there walking through everything, could you kind of play back scenes from the book and think, oh, I can see how this would play. I can imagine that must be quite cool.

Francesca [18:23 – 18:45]: Absolutely. And I was obsessed with this book when I was a teenager, so it’s pretty much ingrained in my head. I could probably tell you the entire story from memory. So, yeah, it was very, very interesting to see the bits that she’s picked from the real place and put into this story that she told.

Dawn [18:45 – 18:57]: Yeah, fascinating. And what else did you do when you were there? Did you stay overnight? Were you just there for the day? Did you, any recommendations of accommodation or places to eat or anything?

Francesca [18:57 – 20:11]: Yeah, so, unfortunately, I think where we stayed has actually closed now. So it was a b and b that was not too far from the hill fort. You could see it from the window, but I think they have closed down, unfortunately. But I do know that there are a couple of other b and b’s around Kilmartin itself, the town Kilmartin. And it is pretty easy to get to from places like Oband, which you mentioned, and that kind of thing. So, yeah, lots of, like, the slightly bigger towns that you might want to stay in and do a day trip out. And we kind of did it the other way. And we actually went out from Kilmartin for a day to do a boat tour. So we did kind of like seal watching and bird watching and did, like a little trip out around some of the islands on a little boat to do a wildlife tour, which was so amazing. And we actually saw a pod of porpoises when we were out, which was incredible. Lots of seabirds, lots of, like, gilly motts and that kind of thing. And.

Dawn [20:11 – 20:14]: Yeah, you did that. Is that from Kilmartin?

Francesca [20:15 – 20:50]: Yes. So we. We took a car up and then we went to. I can’t remember the name of the town, which is really bad. I’m very bad with names, but I can remember that we went over a bridge that’s called the. The bridge over the Atlantic. I think it is. It’s the bridge over the Atlantic or the bridge over the sea, because you kind of, like, take this tiny bridge which goes over the sea there.

Dawn [20:50 – 20:53]: Yeah, yeah, I’m learning so much.

Francesca [20:53 – 21:25]: Yeah, yeah. It’s one of those where. Because I had, like, such a good tour guide in cafe, I didn’t necessarily take note of a lot of the names, but I could tell you to very much kind of, like, seek out people that know the area and that kind of, like, work in the area, because there’s so much to take in. There’s, like, bits and pieces I’ve maintained, but, yeah, everything. Everything in terms of, like, names and exact locations, definitely, yeah, definitely worth double checking.

Dawn [21:25 – 21:30]: How long is it since you’ve been there? Can you be forgiven? Is it. Has it been a while?

Francesca [21:30 – 21:32]: Nope, it’s been about two years. So.

Dawn [21:35 – 21:43]: Francesca, I know I’m the same. I just like looking and seeing, but I’m not good at retaining the names. I mean.

Francesca [21:43 – 22:04]: Yeah, I mean, people have asked me in terms of, like, travelling and doing adventures and stuff, they always go, what’s your favourite adventure? And I’m always, like, the last one because I can remember it, or the next one because it’s something I’m excited about. So, yeah, I don’t have the best memory from maintaining it.

Dawn [22:05 – 22:17]: There’s too much else in there, isn’t it? Can’t remember everything. So, on that trip, did you go to your next favourite place in Scotland, or is that a different time?

Francesca [22:18 – 23:56]: No, it was that trip. I did a nice long one. I was away for about ten days in total. So after we kind of did the Kilmartin Glen area, I said goodbye to cathy and went off on my own little adventure, which was to walk the great Glen way. So, yeah, the great Glen way is a really nice, low level route for kind of, like, hiking. You can, like, go and kayak it as well, you can cycle it and this kind of stuff. There’s lots of different ways that you can take that route, and I think it’s just over a hundred miles in total. So it’s like, in terms of long distance routes, it’s a shorter one that you can do in, like, a week, quite leisurely, as it were, for hikers that are used to doing mega distances. So, yeah, the great Glen way starts in Inverness and then it goes down the kind of like, rift that’s between Scotland’s lowlands and Highlands, essentially, and goes all along Loch Ness and the various different lochs that separate the two halves of Scotland there. And, yeah, it is really incredible when you’re walking along it. And loch Ness in particular. I knew it was big, but when you’re hiking alongside it for three days in a row, how long it took, you suddenly realise how long it really is. Is. Yeah, just kept going.

Dawn [23:56 – 24:01]: I’ve nipped along in a boat, but, no, it didn’t take three days.

Francesca [24:02 – 24:32]: Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah, that one. If you are a hiker, I would say it’s really worth it. I think a lot of people that like to hike mountains, there are other routes that are a bit more kind of like high, high level and go up into the hills a bit more and that kind of stuff. But I found the great Glenway was really nice for something that’s a little bit more relaxed and you can go through a few towns and this kind of thing. So, yeah, a really lovely one.

Dawn [24:32 – 24:37]: Oh, and where does. Is that. Where does it come out, then? Where does it end? Where did you come out?

Francesca [24:38 – 24:43]: It goes all the way down to. I think it’s called Drumnard.

Dawn [24:44 – 24:46]: Drumna Drocket.

Francesca [24:46 – 25:23]: Drumna jocket. Yeah, that’s where I finished it. But I think it does go a little bit further. And when you kind of, like, get past that, you can see, like, Ben Nevis and this kind of thing, you come into that area. And I think it does go all the way to Fort William. So Fort William is kind of like the end point, start point for a lot of people. But I kind of gave up on that aspect then kind of. I got a little car tour b and b from there. It’s like, no, I’m not doing this anymore. I’m kind of running out of time. I’ll just skip the last bit.

Dawn [25:23 – 25:29]: And what did you think of the wee places on your way past, then, when you got out? What did you think of it all?

Francesca [25:30 – 26:31]: Yeah, it was really lovely there. You go through a couple of places which are quite touristic because it is on Loch Ness. So Fort Augustus, Washington, one of the ones that I did kind of, like, go through. And I did actually manage to get a little. It was meant to be a sunset boat tour, but there wasn’t really a sun to set that day. So it was more a twilight boat tour. But, yeah, I did get a sunset boat tour out on Loch Ness and do all of the. Listening to the stories about what could possibly be in Loch Ness. I was drinking a nice little whiskey on the boat. They had a bar on there. So that was very nice. So, yeah, Fort Augustus is a nice little stop. And yeah, there’s a couple of kind of like just backpacker hostels along the route that were just nice little hostels that really look after you, essentially. So, yeah, nice.

Dawn [26:31 – 26:36]: And tell me about the couple of photos you sent me over about this trip then.

Francesca [26:37 – 28:57]: Yeah, so there was a couple that I sent you that were I from the great Glen way. So they’re from a few different places along that route. First one is that start for me end for a lot of people, which was in Inverness itself. So you get the lovely tower that tells you this is the start of the great Glen way. Or well done, you’ve made it if you’re coming from the other side. And yeah, that’s me at the start, pointing at it, going, I’m here, me looking very excited that I’m about to start. And then there is another one, which is just kind of like a pretty little heather field, essentially. So I was walking along a road that didn’t have any cars on it on the entire time I was walking along it. But it’s just running through this field of heather. And it was the season that the heather was lovely and purple. So you’ve got a kind of like marker stone showing where the next town is, which is quite far away. And then in the middle of the heather field there. And then another one, which was really nice, was not far from that. That kind of like heavyfield picture. You kind of like duck back in through some woodland. And as I was walking along, I just saw this really welcome sign that was like cafe 100 metres. And I was like, oh, my goodness, I wasn’t expecting a cafe here. So that’s always a nice, kind of like a treat, a bit of trail magic if you’re doing a long distance hike. And yeah, I obviously popped down to that cafe and met the folks there and they said that they basically catered to people that are doing the great Glen way and that’s all that they see. And I think I was like one of the few people that they saw that day, but they kind of like, give you a lovely lunch for a very decent price. And I got a soup and a slice of cake and some lovely homemade bread and, yeah, a really, really lovely little idyllic cottage and cafe in the middle of a woodland.

Dawn [28:57 – 29:01]: But just it’s on its own in the middle of this woodland.

Francesca [29:01 – 29:11]: Yeah, yeah. And the, uh, the owner was saying that they they very much are there for the trail, but they’re pretty much off. Off grid otherwise, so.

Dawn [29:11 – 29:15]: Wow, that’s nice of them then, to have done that just for the walkers.

Francesca [29:16 – 29:17]: Yeah, absolutely.

Dawn [29:17 – 29:23]: So did you not see, did you not pass or come across any other walkers either, then, on the route?

Francesca [29:23 – 30:01]: Not very many. I did come across a few hikers, most of whom were going the other way, because I think most people start in Fort William and then go up to Inverness. So I was very much, like, out of sync with a lot of people that I did see. But, yeah, on the trail itself, I probably bumped into people a handful of times, like, less than I could count on my fingers, as it were. And there were maybe a couple of places where I, you know, coming into towns and stuff, it would get a bit busier, but actually out on the trail and people that were walking. Yeah, it was quite a low number.

Dawn [30:02 – 30:05]: So must have been so peaceful.

Francesca [30:06 – 30:42]: Yes, definitely peaceful at times. There was also the slightly scary bit when there was a thunderstorm, and I was like, am I high enough to be worried about this? I don’t think I was. And the fact that my feet just gave up before the end. I’ve done a few, like, long distance hikes, but this time I was like, no, not wearing the right shoes this time. And I think after about five days of walking, I was just, like, done. This is no longer. This is no longer the peaceful hike.

Dawn [30:43 – 30:47]: You want to enjoy it, don’t you? Yeah. Not to be miserable.

Francesca [30:48 – 30:48]: That’s.

Dawn [30:48 – 30:54]: God, is that when you stopped at Port Augustus and that was you? You’re done?

Francesca [30:55 – 31:09]: Yeah. So it was the stop after Fort Augustus. I kind of, like, gave up on. So, yeah, the book that I was following gives you kind of, like, different stages, and I did that stage after Fort Augustus and then kind of, like, hopped off.

Dawn [31:10 – 31:17]: Glad you did well, though. So did you never get to Fort William then? Did you not make it to Fort William, or did you go.

Francesca [31:17 – 31:52]: Not on that trip? No, no, I kind of. I hopped back on my train back down to London at the stop after Fort William because it was, like, a little bit closer. And, yeah. So this time I did skip Fort William, but I have been there a couple of times, and, yeah, it’s obviously quite a. Quite a well known town for being near to Ben Nevis and that area. And it has a really nice climbing wall with a cafe that’s inside a church. So I do remember that about Fort William.

Dawn [31:53 – 31:54]: I didn’t know that.

Francesca [31:55 – 32:03]: Yeah, yeah, one of those, like, hidden. Hidden inside churches things. So much stuff where I’m like, oh, church. Oh, no, hang on.

Dawn [32:05 – 32:14]: And tell me, do you think you’ll do the trips again? Do you think you’ll do that? What did you. Was it the glen, what was the name of the walk?

Francesca [32:15 – 32:43]: The great Glen way? Yeah, I would be really tempted to, and I think that if I were to do it again, I might try to do it by kayak. So because it goes through the kind of like the locks and the canals, you can kayak the whole way as well. So, yeah, I’d be really tempted to do that. And I know there are a couple of tour companies that will kind of like, take you and this kind of thing. So that would be how I would do it again, I think.

Dawn [32:43 – 32:47]: Yeah. Oh, that’s good that you do it again. No, but save your feet this time.

Francesca [32:47 – 32:54]: Yeah, definitely save my feet. I’ll probably just be complaining about my arms after the next one, though. Oh, gosh.

Dawn [32:56 – 33:05]: Oh, God. Well, um, it was really. Yeah, I loved learning that so much, I didn’t know about where I’m from.

Francesca [33:06 – 33:13]: It’s always the way, though, isn’t it? You kind of don’t realise when you live there, you’re too busy doing the living to.

Dawn [33:13 – 33:30]: You don’t appreciate what’s on your doorstep. So, no, it’s been really, really interesting learning about these things and beautiful pictures. Really nice. So thanks for sharing with us. If you want to tell everybody just how they can find your podcast or how they find you on social media.

Francesca [33:30 – 34:06]: Yeah. So I am fairly easy to find, if you can spell my whole name. So. Francesca Tarauskis. But if you want a slightly easier way of finding me, my podcasts are@tremula.net work. So that’s Tremula.net work and that’s the main website that has all of my goings on, all of the podcasts that we do, including links to the podcast club and this kind of thing, and hopefully there’ll be some exciting news coming later in the year on there as well. So definitely worth following there.

Dawn [34:07 – 34:11]: Yeah. Oh, well, thanks for coming on, Francesca. It’s been really interesting.

Francesca [34:11 – 34:15]: Yeah, this has been lovely. I’ve enjoyed reminiscing about Scotland.

Dawn [34:20 – 35:53]: The exciting news Francesca alluded to is that she has organised the first Tremula network festival, which will take place on the 20th and 21 September 2024 in the South Downs. The two day festival will be a celebration of audio storytelling, outdoors, nature and community, and will include live panel shows, interviews, storytelling and practical workshops teaching recording techniques for outdoors production. So if this sounds like something that you’d be interested in. You can find out more from tremula.net work. A link to this and everything mentioned in this episode will be in the show notes and on our website, cluranton.com scottishdigest that’s cluaranton.com scottishdigest. We hope you’ve enjoyed this episode listening to adventures. Join us next time for another wee slice of Bonnie Scotland. Scottish Digest is a production of chlorin tornado.