I wasa goodhalfmilefromthebreakingwaves– the
lorrywasnowheretobeseen.
BythetimeI reachedtheOuterHebrides,thewind
stillblew,butI hadsettledintotherhythmofvanlife.
I wascoveredincutsandbruises– theymappedmy
journey.Hittingmyhead,bashingkneesandelbowsin
thevanbecamethenorm.Scrapesandscratchesfrom
clumsylaunchesintowaterwerestandard.Gettingthe
vanreadyforbedandthenfortheroadbecamelikea
dance.I namedthegrape-yellowvanMonty;it was
likeanearlyromance– joyful,yetdailyanxietieskept
meonmytoes.I thoughtI wouldcampinwildspaces
more,butasI travelledI feltthepullofcompanyand
stayedatcampsites,thesmallerthebetter.Knowing
therewasa toiletblockandsomeonebesidemeatnight
wasa smallcomfort– particularlyinthebadweather.
Wakinguptobreathtakingviews,soundsofwildlife
andthesmellsofScotlandmademefeelfull.Mostdays
I whispered“wow”tomyselfasI rolledthroughthe
Scottishlandscape.I spenta two-hourferrycrossing
discussingmystics,spiritualityandstandingstones
witha strangerwhiledolphinsswamalongside.
I swaminthemostnorth-westerlypointintheUK
andranacrossthewhitesandsatLuskentyreBeach.
I finallysettledinmymindthatI wouldn’tdieof
carbonmonoxidepoisoningfromthegasbottlethat
laybelowmyheadeachnight!
Overallthetripwastransformational;loneliness
appearedbutwassoondisruptedbythekindnessofstrangers.I spentoneeveningwitha friendnear
FindhornBay,metanotherfora swimatPortobello
nearEdinburgh.Therestofthetripwasa blendof
strangersorvasttimealone;somedaysthemost
I spokewassayinggoodmorningtofellowcampers
andgoodnight.Instagramwasa greatwayforme
toconnectandI gainedfollowingasI travelled.
Peoplewhoknewmewellnoticedif I lookedtired
orslightlydishevelledandensuredI wasactually
okay.Ofcourse,therewereplentyoftimesI hadno
connectionandtherewasbeautyinthis.I triedtoput
updailypostsandphotos.I ensuredsomeoneknew
whereI stayedeachnight;apartfromthatI hadlots
ofuh-ohmomentswhenoutwalkingandswimming,
consideringdark,yetliberatingthoughtsthatnoone
knewexactlywhereI wasatthatmoment.
I wasremindedofhowbeautifulourcountryisand
thatadventuresitsrightthereonourdoorstep.I made
it toMull,Skye,LewisandHarris,asI hadhoped,
andendedupinplacesI hadn’tplanned.Thelength
oftimeI wasaway,thewildnessofthespotsI ended
upinandthechallengingweathermadefora very
differentkindoftriptoanyI hadtakenbefore.I loved
seeingourcountryupcloseandimmersingmyselfin
it.Understandingmyfearsandlearningaboutvanlife
wasa wonder.EveryjourneyisdifferentandI was
remindedthatyoucan’tliveinfearandfaithatthe
sametime,soI chosefaith– it isfarmorerewarding.ADVENTURE
“The trip was transformational:
loneliness was soon disrupted by
the kindness of strangers”