A scooter run West to Diabaig (136 miles).
The weather forecast was for the temperature to get into double figures today. After a very cold start it was a beautiful day. As with many of my trips it had to have a bad end.
I left home at 9.35. I did not take my usual quieter way through Evanton but headed by the A9 to the roundabout at Ardullie and then on to Dingwall.
I went on to the Maryburgh roundabout and headed by the Brahan road to Contin. I stopped before Contin to eat. It was cold but you can see what a beautiful morning it was.
The route is then from Contin to Garve where you turn off onto the Achnasheen road. I stopped by Loch Luichart to enjoy the view.
At the roundabout at Achnasheen you go straight on to Kinlochewe. This is by Loch a’Chroisg. The mountains showing faintly ahead are Liathach and Beinn Eighe which we will pass soon.
I stopped at the viewpoint in Glen Docherty. I had the car park to myself. In summer that is an impossibility.
Looking down to Loch Maree.
Beinn Eighe.
Liathach with Beinn Eighe to the right. Liathach is a most impressive mountain from this side. I took several photos of Liathach as I got nearer. But what a beautiful day. I was now feeling comfortable temperature-wise.
At Torridon you turn right onto the Alligin Diabaig road. I stopped just beyond Torridon at this interesting stone.
That is Beinn Alligin. It is over fifty years since I was last here. Martin and I camped a couple of miles up the Coire Mhic Nobaill. We climbed Beinn Alligin even going over the ‘Horns of Alligin’. Another day we walked right round Liathach going through the Coire Dubh. We had to cut short our trip and make an emergency exit as the weather turned to heavy rain and we got flooded in our tent. We walked to Kinlochewe. To cut down weight we chucked heavy stuff like tins of food and even a bivvy bag into the river. I am ashamed to relate that. The ever suffering Uncle Hector drove out to Kinlochewe to retrieve us. He was so good. It was very poignant being here.
The West Coast is quite stunning.
I stopped at the viewpoint above Alligin.
This was a 3D model of the hills around.
Before Diabaig you overlook Loch Diabaigas Airde.
I came down to Diabaig, the target for the day and a new place to me.
I climbed back up to overlook Loch Diabaigas Airde and made my lunch. I had Hugh’s most impressive stove with me.
I don’t normally like sweet and sour but I fair enjoyed this Pot Noodle.
As you can see.
And what I call coffee. The wee white thing amongst the grains is the sweetener. I had milk in the wee jar.
On the way back I branched to Wester Alligin and Inveralligin.
Back at Torridon the daffodils are out. They are further ahead than us on the East.
I returned taking the direct road to Lochcarron. I had to stop every so often to take pictures. Looking over Loch Torridon to Beinn Alligin.
Lochcarron.
I then headed to Acnashellach and just at the end of Loch Sgamhain disaster struck. The scooter would not drive. You could turn the throttle till the engine shrieked and nothing, no forward movement. Oh dear, oh dear. My drive-belt had shredded. I carry a comprehensive toolkit and a spare belt and stripped the scooter down to get to the belt. A few panels have to come off before you get to the belt cover. Incidentally this photo is the last to see that variator intact! I just could not budge the nut securing the variator to the end of the crankshaft .
A delightful gentleman, Trevor from Inverness, stopped to help. He was an engineer. He had an impact wrench (or rattle wrench) and had the nut off in seconds. He then stayed and helped me get the shredded remains of the belt out of the clutch. I fitted the new belt and he tightened up the variator nut for me.
And all was back together. That should have been me sorted.
I pulled off and got as far as the lay-by just showing ahead to the right. The scooter was making a horrendous noise. The air filter had fallen against the back tyre as I had not tightened the bolts up! I am too old. An air filter bolt had worked loose and I walked back retracing to where I broke down but could not find the bolt. I salvaged, or harvested, a bolt from elsewhere on the scooter to sort that. I pressed on but things did not feel right, but I wanted to get the bike home.
The repair only took me to Loch a Chuillin after Achnasheen when I again lost all power. Another belt bites the dust. I hid the scooter in a wood above the loch and packed my tools and precious items into the top box. I phoned Anne to come and rescue me. I then walked with my heavy top box about 3 miles towards Loch Luichart where Anne rescued me. In that time one driver stopped to offer help – yes another van driver. Isn’t that amazing. The van drivers always seem to hassle old slow drivers like me but they are the ones with golden hearts. I didn’t want to miss Anne so kept plodding on.
I passed an entrance to the Fannich Estate. Again a reminder of Martin. He, my two brothers and myself spent almost a week in the Fannich Forrest in a heat wave. There are ten Munros on a ridge which we did camping high up.
The next day I came out in my old Fusion with a big toolkit. This is where I left the bike, above a ruined boathouse.
I had forgotten the scooter keys!!! Poor Anne was called on again and we met at Strathpeffer for her to hand me the spare set of keys. I heaved the scooter back up to the gate at great risk to my hernia. Then I spent three hours stripping it down into parts that can fit my car.
The frame was almost the straw that broke the camel’s back, or ruptured Hugh’s hernia even more. But I managed to get it in. Then packed the car with the other bits and pieces.
And got it back into my garage. I got David to help me get the frame back into the garage.
Next day I examined the damage. The variator was utterly destroyed and another belt shredded. I thought it was the end for the scooter as I thought I had trashed the crankshaft as well. Look at the end of the splines. The inner part of the variator could not be pulled off. The outer part was completely destroyed. So the problem was I had not made sure the varaitor was properly seated on the splines of the crankshaft before tightening down the nut. You learn by your mistakes, unfortunately.
Going back out to the garage on Monday to work on the engine and dressing the end of the crankshaft with a hacksaw blade I was able to clean most of that shiny metal away. It was Aluminium from the variator that was sticking to the splines. I got the rest of the variator off.
No
On the outer side of the variator there are no inner splines left to engage with, they are completely destroyed.
I have decided to go ahead and repair the scooter rather than dump it. But it needs extensive work. The frame is terribly rusty and needs a bit of welding where rust has eaten through some of the steel beneath the bike. Thankfully the main frame is intact. So I will do that. I will de-rust and repaint the frame. I have still to clear the threads on the crankshaft end. The bush on the engine steady is utterly destroyed. But I have managed to extract it by using a hacksaw at different points round the remains of the old bush. I have managed to locate a bush of similar size on Ebay, for a pit bike! I snapped an exhaust stud out at Loch a Chuillin when stripping the bike down. I tried heat. The remains would not budge. I welded a nut onto the remains of the stud and it just sheared level with the exhaust port. But I finally managed to drill down with successively larger bits and retap the thread. I have now a new stainless stud fitted.
So the scooter is out of action for a while. I felt sick about it especially when I thought it had reached the end of the line with a destroyed crankshaft. I have ordered a new variator from China on Ebay. Let’s hope we are back scooting around the Highlands soon.