CAPE WRATH TRAILS: LOGISTICS AND ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE AND GETTING OUT 
We hiked the The Cape Wrath Trail northbound, which means we started in Fort William and hiked our way to Cape Wrath. Getting to Fort William is easy. We landed in Glasgow and took the train to Fort William. This train ride is known as the West Higland Line and is very beautiful! When you have arrived at Cape Wrath, getting out is a bit harder. There is a tour operator that leaves right outside the lighthouse. The following website provides more information about this service –> Cape Wrath Mini Bus – visit Scotland’s most north westerly point (visitcapewrath.com). Beware that this tour operator only operates when the weather is good enough. There are opportunities to book a room at the lighthouse. But spending another night in your tent is also an option. The touroperator brings you close to Durness. In Durness we stayed at a local campsite for one night. The next day we took the Durness bus to Inverness (Durness to Inverness – The Durness Bus). In Inverness there a many options to find your way to for example Edinburg or Glasgow.
FOOD PARCELS 
Along the Cape Wrath Trail there are limited options for buying food. Since we did not want to be dependent on the opening times and the selection of products we chose to send packages to ourselves in the future. We bought all our food in the Netherland and took it with us in our luggage. In Glasgow, we went to a parcel shop, bought two boxes and sent them to the following two locations:
Location 1: Kintail Crafts in Kyle
Location 2: Oykel Bridge Hotel, Lairg (Fishing Lodge)
We called both the store and the hotel up front to ask if it was oke if we would send them the packages. Do take notice that this lined up the best with our plans. We hiked the Cape Wrath Trail in 14 days. If you plan on hiking if faster or slower you might want to look into other options.
FOOD 
Given the absence of supermarkets or restaurants along our route, indulging in good food became a necessary luxury. As we’re both sizeable individuals (Bob towering over 2 meters), a mere pack of noodles wouldn’t suffice for us. Check out our food-dedicated page to find out everything you need to know about or daily food-intake during trails!
WATER SUPPLY 
Getting water is not really a problem on the Cape Wrath Trail. Do bring a water filter, because you will be drinking from streams on a daily basis.
MIDGES AND TICKS 
One of the biggest struggles we encountered on the Cape Wrath Trail were the constant presence of midges and ticks. Prepare yourself for midge-attacks the moment the wind is gone. What worked best for us were a headnet and using a anti-insect spray. The biggest struggle every night was getting into your tent at night. The moment you take too much time hundreds of small midges would infiltrate your inner tent. With proper preparation it is doable, but it something to consider when going on this hike.
NAVIGATION 
Some navigation skills are required to hike the Cape Wrath Trail. Using a gps-device will sufice, but some basic map and compass skills will help out a lot. The Cape Wrath Trail is a non-marked trail. Occasions occured in which we were walking through the highlands with no path, a lot of rain and even more fog. Since there are also many streams and rivers in the highlands you will have to check your map often, otherwise you will be hiking back and forth endlessly. We employed two navigation methods throughout the trail:
– A printed map created using Caltopo, although we eventually discarded it after the first week.
– GPX tracks on both out watches and smartphones.
We found that combination sufficed for safe navigation on the trail. It’s crucial to bring enough supply of power banks to ensure everything remains charged. The majority of the trail follows a well-marked track, indicated by wooden poles, making it challenging to veer off course. Regulary checking your GPX file will ensure a smooth and secure journey,
