The Wilderness ARC
The Leaders Looking Strong
24.08.2005
“It was awful during last night,� said Nick Gracie, “it was difficult going along the shore of Loch Arkaig and we caught the worst of the weather there. It lashed down with rain and we got to a river that was too high to cross so we spent an hour in the bivvy bag. I’d like to say we slept but it was uncomfortable and we discovered Chris is claustrophobic! He was saying he was unhappy in the enclosed space … and we told him to try and get some sleep!�
As they picked a way from the checkpoint down the side of a swift flowing stream Chris Near and Warren Bates were navigating trying to find the track, which was on the map, but not on the ground! “Some of the tracks have been good,� said Near, “some not there at all. It’s just been slow going in places and the river crossings are tricky.� It was slow going on this final part of the trek as they crossed the river, then sloshed downhill through slippery mud and waterlogged ground, descending into woodland and trying to find the checkpoint.
Ruth Metcalfe was keeping up well but was looking tired. “I’m just exhausted,� she said. “We slept that hour by the river last night, and 20 minutes before that, plus 90 minutes at TA4, but that’s all.� This is her first multi-day race and the team she is with have experience of the World Championship and Southern Traverse in which they’ve placed in the top 10.
They were surprised to find themselves in the lead so early on this race, when most of the teams they’d expected to be competing against withdrew.
SleepMonsters
