It's not easy being kilted

[gazbot]

Hello the rabble,

I am planning a long 30 mile easy terrain kilt walk this year in Wirral (pm me i you are interested to hear more)My kilt recently sustained a nasty spillage (Cullen sling I all things) I have managed to gently clean between the pleats and I am going to have to baste the pleats but the kilt does not seem to have been affected.

I am planning this walk and was wondering if a kilt will stand up to this kind of walk. Will te pleats fall loose, will the sporran rub on the apron, will I be better trying to get a cheaper spare kilt or am I being to pathetic and not letting these hardy beasts do what they do best?

Kind regards

[Calgacus]

Hi gazbot,

I have walked many a mile over many mountains in my Mackenzie kilt and it has suffered not a jot. I'm wearing it ascending Sgor Gaoith above Glen Feshie in my avatar picture.

Just make sure that your sporran and strap/chain have no rough edges at all on them.

[Calgacus]

Just some more pics of walking in the hills in one of my kilts.

On Sgor Gaoith



In Glen Feshie



Ascending 'Ledge Route', Ben Nevis



On Stac pollaidh, Assynt



On Cul Beag, Assynt

[EagleJCS]

As Calgacus suggests, be sure your sporran strap/chain - I would think a strap would be better than a chain - doesn't have any rough edges or your kilt apron could sustain a pull or a friction mark. Otherwise, you should be good to go.

[Andrews Son]

Lol on the film Angels Share the chap has problems with his sporran so i wouldnt carry too much weight in your sporran

[cessna152towser]

By thirty mile walk in Wirral, do you mean the Wirral Way from West Kirby to Hooton and back? I've done that walk and it is fairly easy going. A kilt should be fine, just make sure the contents of your sporran are not too heavy.

[gazbot]

Calcagus, Great pictures. What's the Tartan? And what oz wool? So no sporran run age etcetera. It certainly looks good to me from the pictures. I have tested this leather sporran and strap a few times and it seems to sit well. Presumably if the rains come just don the Inverness cape?! By the way those pictures are stunning.

Cessna it will encompass this area but it is a walk for my Masonic Lodge Festival Charity. I won't say to much a I know we don't towt for money on this website but happy to discuss te route and kilts and other details with you in pm.

Thank you for your help folks. Pictures to follow.

[Calgacus]

Thank you gazbot,

The tartan is Mackenzie modern, and it's 13oz. I bought it over twenty years ago and there is no damage from sporrans.

I'm going to be controversial here and suggest that in fact a chain does less damage than a strap, but only if is is completely smooth. I think the problem is that many modern chains are not as well made as they should be and it only takes one tiny rough piece of metal on a chain to quickly ruin a kilt. A leather strap on the other hand is pretty much guaranteed to do little or no damage.

I have been caught out in the rain on occasion (it is Scotland after all) and just wear a waterproof jacket, and gaiters on my legs. I have never had my kilt get wet all the way through, it seems that it would take a lot of rain to get more than the top layer of wool wet. I don't however wear the kilt if I know it's going to be a very wet day. An Inverness cape wouldn't really be practical for the sort of walking that I do.

[Andrew Breecher]

Having backpacked over 5,000 miles in a kilt, I'd say definitively that you should go for it! I second the advice to not overload your sporran - you can always carry a small rucksack for essentials, or if you're planning on camping you'll already have a backpack.

[Geoff Withnell]

Make sure your kilt is of a length where the bottom edge will not rub the backs of your knees raw. Just sayin.