West Highland Way Copyright © Barry Smith 2012. All Rights Reserved. Day 5 - Bridge of Orchy – Kinlochleven 21½ miles Today we had excellent weather, with a cool wind blowing. We started at 8.30am with Batman and Robin pledging to stay with the mere mortals that were Martyn & myself. This pledge was kept by Phil, but would soon be forgotten by the young Graham however. The first 13 miles to Kingshouse is described as challenging, and after the first 3 miles, from the head of Loch Tulla, the cobbled track slowly ascends to the Black Mount - a rising of high moorland with the vast expanse of Rannoch Moor to the east. A very ‘pleasant’ 4½ hrs of unrelenting ascent. The track now took us over this very desolate landscape, which as ever is along the old cobbled track underfoot. The next 10 miles is the remotest and wildest section of the whole walk, and from the highest point of 445m/1460ft, the Way descends to the main road and the isolated Kings House Hotel and the stunning mountains of Glen Coe. This is where we stopped for lunch in the climbers bar, and where we again happened upon our swift ‘companion’ Graham. Just as we were leaving, the hotel bar where we lunched was invaded by the Orks in all of their regalia, and whereas by now we were used to them, they drew some strange looks from the rest of the guests. The final 8½ miles to Kinlochleven provided spectacular walking across the mountain terrain. Graham,who again was trying to find his ‘zone’ quickly departed from us, and we quickly departed from A82 which the track parallels, to begin the climb to the highest point on the West Highland Way: the Devils Staircase. The ascent of 259m/850ft up the south side of the ridge between Kingshouse and Kinlochleven is a sustained climb, but not too hard. This old road climbs to the pass at 548m/1797ft where, thankful of the good weather, we were rewarded with views over the Glen Coe peaks and over the Mamores to our  first view of Ben Nevis. Whilst we were up there we were again joined by 4 Orks following who posed for pictures for us, and explained that not only were they going to Fort William, but they were going to climb the Ben also. (We were almost sure that this is what they said!). We then had a long descent across rugged mountainside and onto a very steep four-wheel-track down to Kinlochleven. The latter descent ran alongside the 6 massive water pipes which took water from the Blackwater Reservoir to the smelting plant in the town below. We arrived at our accommodation for the night, the plush and very pleasant Tigh-Na-Cheo guest house at 6.30pm, to find that the early arriving Graham had (in what I think was a rare act of contrition), taken the bags up the rooms for us! That evening we ate at the Tailrace Inn, gave Graham a load of earache for his anti-social behavior, sympathized with Martyn whose limbs had suffered the most from the cobbles, discussed the resolution of the world’s problems, and talked of the joy of finishing which awaited us the next day.