Transcription
I was just going to say, you don't want to meet a car here. Yeah. Wish there wasn't a bus. Or a tractor. Yes.
So, this is the hotel, Glen Clover Hotel. And I think we parked somewhere around here. Wow. Good afternoon, guys. It's even out here in the Angus Hills and Glenn's. We have found some Steve Marsh construction. It's always in the videos, isn't it? We were struggling to park for a while, but this is the Glen Clover Hotel and Lodges, and thankfully they've been nice enough to let us park in their car park. There is a public car park not far from here, but that is just full of lorries and tractors, and we can't get near it. So, this is where today's little video starts.
Ah, big changes coming here. The reception were so nice. I'd like to stay out here actually. It's cool. Yeah. So, that's the lodges up there. The main hotel just over here. It'd be interesting to see what this is. They're building the schoolhouse. So, if you work here, you can stay stay in here. Oh, is that what it says? Staff residence. Yeah. Nice. And this will be the path we're taking. I love these signs. Yeah. Grumpy. And that is what we're looking for today. Lock Brandy. Might even be a lock full of brandy. That'd be nice.
Now, I'll be honest, Lock Brandy is somewhere that we'd never heard of before, but haven't done a wee bit of research. We have read that it's a bit of a beast of a route to get there. All uphill, but the views are worth it. Here's hoping. These lodges look nice. So, filming date for this one is Monday the 31st of March. We're starting at 4:02 in the afternoon, but I think it gets dark about 4:08. Yeah, almost 8:00 p.m. We should be okay. But that is what we've got ahead of us. [Applause] It was just too nice of a day not to go out and do something today. The Glen Kova Hotel where we've parked, that's under an hour's drive from home and you're out here in the middle of nowhere. It's about 14 Celsius there, but once we get up to the top, it might be a bit colder if we get up to the top. But as always, stop and look behind you. It's absolutely gorgeous. What a day.
You've got your work t-shirt on again today. Yes. I always forget that you work for NASA. I'm sometimes forgetting too, you know. We only made the decision to do this this morning when we woke up, hence the late start. But we had a nice lie in. And here's hoping that gives us a bit of energy for what is probably the first ascent of the year. Yes, feeling rusty. Oh, look at the bird. Bird. What bird is that? There. There. There. Oh, yeah. Some kind of eagle over there. Of course, you won't see it on camera.
The drive to access this walk was stunning along some roads I don't even think we've been on before. In fact, I might insert a few clips just now from the drive as we struggle up the side of this mountain. And welcome back. It's actually a pretty good path to be honest. Isn't that right? That's right. No, it's decent. It might not quite feel like summer yet, but for Scotland, it's pretty close. The difference being, of course, that in summer proper, all this heather will be alive with color. That drive we did was right up through the middle of the Glenn there. And while it's not the most dramatic landscape we've got, it's beautiful nonetheless.
How you doing? I'm doing good. It's quite steep. It's steeper than it looks on the camera for sure. But I think that's the most difficult bit. Difficult is the word. Not to worry. As we were saying, first ascent of the year. Is that some deer we've spotted up there? I think so. Oh, and there's a big bird above them. Those guys are some distance away though. These big steps are appreciated of course, but sometimes it's better just to have a path. I always find that's the killer with Ben Nevice. The big steps at the start that completely drains me every time. Hoping you're not the only one like this about Ben Nevice. Yeah, it's brutal. Wow. It's not taken much of an elevation change for it to start getting a lot colder. So, just as well, we've got the fleces and the jackets and the backpacks. And yes, Alicia's got a backpack. And I've got a backpack. I always get swagged off for not carrying the bag. And this pole here, this one, not this one. It marks the summit. If only.
Oh, look. There's a fire. Oh, a fire. Hope that doesn't spread. You see it over there? If I had any phone signal, maybe we could report it. But let's just keep an eye on it. It seems okay because the closer we get to that fire on the hill, we can see a little quad just below it. So, it looks like there's a ranger there either containing it or it's one of those ones that they start on purpose for conservation. I'm not really sure how it works because you can even see in this little patch just to our left that's had a fire fairly recently as well. And you can see patches of it everywhere. Yeah. So, it does look like it's organized. It's a beautiful landscape. Where's the lock? Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Where's the lock and where's the brandy? I'm not going to lie. I'm kind of hoping there'll be a wee gift shop at the top selling brandy related products, i.e. brandy. Wow, look at the colors. Even more vivid through my sunglasses. So, I'll put those back on. I can't remember if I've said it already or not yet, but I've got a feeling just at the end of these wee steps, we've got the lock. And then afterwards, if we want, we can go right up to the summit up there. That looks an even steeper path. We'll see. No decisions made yet. But think about the views from up there, huh?
Ah, you're right. That's annoying. I can hear a wee plane right above us and I can't even check on flight radar where it's going. Yes, I see water. Yeah, beauty. There it is. Nice. Oh, and there's a wee one there. And there's those fires. Oh, wow. That is really impressive, folks. I wish you could see it in person. We'll just scramble along here and hopefully get right to the lock side. That's the plan. There it is. Lock Brandy. What a stunning name. What a stunning place. Oh, it's beautiful. It's gorgeous. Oh, it's cold. But I've got swimming gear. Oh, you're joking. Well, you didn't tell me that. Thankfully, I don't have my swimming trunks. Despite saying you should always carry them. Where's that fleece? I It is very cold up here. Despite being t-shirt weather down at the hotel, it's definitely fleece weather up here. That's better. Well done.
Ah, beautiful water, but it's not the warmest. Your wee book is a gem once again. Yep. Look, that's it during winter with the snow on top. Oh, it's beautiful. And is that like a waterfall that's flowing down there? It seems to be dry at the moment, but that would be it just there. Yeah. From the log, bear left and follow the steep path up onto the snub. Oh, that'll be over there. Yeah, a shapely shoulder separating Lo Brandy from Cory of Clover. Cory of Clover. Perfect. And progress around the top of the cliff. So, we meant to go up there and then we can go right round round and come back here. A big loop. Yes. And when you think about it, we've got up here from the car park in 1 hour. So, we've got plenty of time. We should do it, shouldn't we? And just imagine you had the energy to carry the kayak up here. How amazing would that be? Yes. So, if we go up to the summit there, I think we just go down this little ridge and then you can almost see the path just looping around the lock. We can do that. We can have them. You've twisted my arm. I just took whatever we had in the fridge. No rest for the wicked. Let's get going. [Applause] All right. We think we just have to go back along this way, rejoin the main path, and then up the hill we go. You caught them. You caught them. This place is an absolute treat. And I can't wait to see the wee lock from up at the top. It's always worth the view, all that effort. It's a There's no escape. There's no escape from the marsh. That's how I feel every day.
Oh, well, here we go. I'm not going to lie, it looks hideous, but at the same time, quite short and sharp. Give ourselves half an hour. Take it slow. We should be at the summit. Now, if I hadn't been driving this morning when we stopped at the supermarket, we might have bought a wee bottle of brandy. You know, I could do with some for this ascent. And it would warm you up. Indeed it would. Boy oh boy. You get to what you think is the summit and you've got another one to go. Nice path though. Very good. I wouldn't like it to be icy. Oh hell no. That's why we are summer walkers. Slow and steady, old man. Slow and steady. Whenever I'm struggling on a route like this, I always think of the legends that laid this path originally. Thank you, whoever you are. We can see the North Sea. It's actually quite nice to feel that burn in your legs. First time I've felt it in a while. Please excuse my heavy breathing. Just enjoy the views. And she's taking the lead. Poland in prime position for the gold medal. Scotland lagging behind. Silver's good enough for me. At last, it's leveled out a bit. We're almost at the summit. W. Wa. That's scary. And it's a good example of why you have to be so careful in these paths in winter, cuz you could be walking up here and then this could all be cornisted and you could just walk right across the snow and fall down there. Not a nice thought. Well done. Well done you. And there's our K. We've made it. Awesome work. The funny thing is though, when you make it to the top, you turn around and it's just flat behind you. It doesn't feel like we're at the top of a hill at all until you look that way. So, like we said, we'll continue around this path right round the other side of the lock and back down to the car park. Time check. It is 2:25. That's not too bad, is it? And that will all be the Kieran Gorms National Park over to our left. I wish I could identify some of these peaks. I need to get better at that. O, that's quite scary. Now I know when they meant when they said stay on the path. It looks dramatic in the camera, but I promise you it's dramatic in real life, too. That's just my face. I want to be on the sunny side. Of course you do. Hey, come on. You didn't tell me we're going to have to go up again. Leap of faith. Oh, that's not too bad. I know. There's nothing worse than when you jump and just go down. Yeah. You sink in. You're like, "Oh, no." There was me saying we've got it all to ourselves. The way up at the top there. I can see a runner coming towards us. Good luck. I wonder how long it will be before they pass us. I tell you what, we've done well today. We have beautiful. You're stuck. I think it's a backpack. Yeah, let's get back on that path and then it will soon be lunchtime or dinner time.
Oh, this one's got a plaque. What does it say? Marine Luke Ireland 1994 to 2014 Zulu Company 45 Commando Royal Marines who tragically died on the hills above Glenova near this peaceful location. Peri sad. And you can see his Royal Marines cap badge sunk into the stone. That's a lovely memorial. Looking back over there at that hill, you can see where there's been a bit of a landslide and to think we were right up there on the edge. The path now is looking straight ahead towards Dundee. Now I can't see Dundee so the camera certainly can't see it but I can just about make out TM forest in the distance on the horizon and that means Montros is over that way somewhere but it's still hard to believe we're only an hour's drive from home. This is fantastic. And do you want to know what else is fantastic? We're going downhill now. You warm enough? It's a bit windy on this side but it's funny when you're walking it's like hot cold hot. Oh yes. I'm actually going to stop and take a photograph of that. It's stunning. Oh, thanks. I didn't even try. This reminds me a bit of that walk we did from Kur Kau station. Remember the big loop? Yeah, it was cool. It's kind of the same. Actually looks cool with the smoke and the lock and the clouds. Yeah, I think from this side you can really see how steep that path was going up to the top. I'm proud of us, you know. I'm very proud of us. High five again. Yes. Yep. Let's go. I really won the lunch, you know. You can hear the fire as well crack on away. Oh, that smells lovely. It's like a cold fire in winter. Hey, look how red that is through the sunglasses. It reminds me of uh Harris Tweed. Imagine it in summer. It will be all pink or purple, but then the the midgetes will be out as well.
All right, true. It's amazing when you think we're just lying in bed this morning. You look out the window, it's quite a nice day, and you're thinking, "What will we do today?" And we end up here. We've got a pack of very excited dogs down here. I can count. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 at least 12. [Applause] So, one happy pack. They're so excited. Oh, the dogs are in the water. Oh, you see, it cannot be that cold. That'll be you soon. The water is freezing, by the way. But they don't feel it. Why did I not bring my shorts? I'm jealous now. Wasn't them breathing. Bless them. Lunchtime. Thank you. Oh no. Oreo. Oreo. Oh yeah. I feel like my energy has been quite good today to get around that track. You did great. But now I'm starting to feel it. You know, I don't think I could go uphill again. I'm glad it's just the path back to the car. Do you hear the echo? If I'm not mistaken, it looks like someone's going for a swim. I don't think I'm going for a swim, but I might go for a dip. Whoa. How is it? It's painfully cold. Oh, does it count as a dip? It certainly does. Okay, I think I'm going to leave now. Great effort. Oh, thanks. Your legs are actually red. I've had a traumatic experience. You legend. Okay. It's only 5:00 p.m. If we get back down to the car, easily by 6 and be home by 7. What a day. Goodbye, little Brandy. That was fun. Oh, it's hazy. Are you warm? I am fine. The jacket might go on soon, though. Yeah. Yeah. I've got to admit, the scenery here is more gentle than epic. But I think that just tells you that not every adventure has to be epic, does it? Yeah. Still had a fantastic day. So lovely and warm. Oh, I can see a red car down there. And if you've ever wondered what the setting of the Glen Kova Hotel and lodges is like, there you go. We're almost back. That was so much fun today. And I think we can safely say we've seen more dogs than people. So I think springtime, if you get a nice day, is absolutely perfect for hiking. Maybe the best time. We've made it. So peaceful here. Beautiful. So that folks was Lo Brandy and we hope you enjoyed that little walk. We've only done about 14,000 steps, which doesn't seem a lot, but when you think of the elevation up there, it was hard. Thank you so much for watching, and we'll see you in the next one. Bye-bye. Bye-bye, boy. Hello. [Music]