I'm just about done with my food preparations, and have two boxes to send from Edinburgh. One is just over 3 kilos and the other ~1.5 kilos.

What would be the best way to send them? And where can I do this in Edinburgh?

Ulla, you can send them by the post office or use a courier service, exactly the same as in Sweden. The courier companies can be split into the mainstream international (expensive)outfits that you will be familiar with such as DHL, TNT & FedEx and the low cost couriers such as Hermes, DPD and Yodel, these are the kind of companies frequently used for internet (ebay) shopping.
You can get a comparison and quotes using www.parcel2go.com or https://www.parcelmonkey.co.uk/comparison.

Typically the low cost couriers use a network of small convenience shops as collection points rather than the dedicated depots that DHL etc have. Both types of companies will also collect at a premium cost of course.
Presumably if you are sending food parcels you won't be wanting same day or even next day delivery so you should be able to ship your small parcels fairly cheaply. One thing to consider is that the courier companies tend to put a premium price on deliveries to the Scottish highlands and sometimes their interpretation of what makes the highlands is very strange whereas the cost of sending a parcel using the post office is the same anywhere in the UK whether you are sending the parcel 2km or 200km. I'm guessing that you will want to use a service that includes tracking so that you can confirm in advance that your parcel is delivered and waiting for you.
Often the internet courier companies rely on you printing out and attaching the labels to your package before collection or delivery to their collection point, something to consider if you are travelling, I'm sure any hotel could help you with this or you could arrange everything before you leave home.

In the centre of Edinburgh there is a post office near Waverley railway station, others can be found using http://www.postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder. In your situation using the post office might be the simplest solution, you can just walk in with your parcels, get them weighed, pay the postage, get a receipt and leave. Using a courier may well be cheaper but a bit more hassle to organise.

Thank you for your extensive reply, Brian, I'll check into that this afternoon!

Click here for an Edinburgh location map . I've shown detail for Edinburgh Waverley station. Entrance to the mall is via the stairs leading up from the station to Princes Street.

Depending on your browser this file will either download (Firefox) or open directly (Chrome).

If cost is important, much cheaper to split parcels, to keep them under 2KG....
Royal Mail Prices :face_with_rolling_eyes:

Ulla, are you camping every night ? If your using any hostels or B&B’s or calling into Newtonmore Hostel, Mar Lodge ,Tarfside etc you can send parcels to them too.

Can't actually send parcels to Tarfside 😊

St Drostans then.... It was only a thought 😁

Nor St Drostans...😁

I'm planning on sending one to Newtonmore and one to Mar Lodge. I should probably repack them, to make them weight less than 2 kilos! Oh, and perhaps one to Montrose, with clean clothing :joy:

Yes, definitely keep them under 2kg. And things sent by Royal Mail rarely go astray in the Highlands. I live hete and I despair of couriers but Royal Mail and Parcelforce are very reliable.

Yes, definitely keep them under 2kg. And things sent by Royal Mail rarely go astray in the Highlands. I live here and I despair of couriers but Royal Mail and Parcelforce are very reliable.

Totally agree Vanessa, never have any problems with Royal Mail or Parcel Force here in Scotland, it's couriers that are a problem. And yes, keep parcel weight under 2kg.

So, do you think a parcel sent from Edinburgh on the 10th (or possibly the 9th) would reach Fort Augustus before the 13th?

Would Newtonmore and Braemar be slower (can't edit my own post...)

Hej hej Ulla! I live in a rural area (Scottish Borders) and the postal service is excellent. If you're mailing a parcel with Royal Mail up to 2kg in weight First Class then it will be a 24-hour delivery from any place > to any place in the mainland UK.

This will cost you £5.45 (66:- kr). Fort Augustus, Newtonmore and Braemar will be exactly the same. 24 hours.

These are not big towns - smaller than Vännäs - but they are on major roads. There will be good service.

Sure, you can pay more money for other options Click here to take a look, oh yea. But why bother?

Vanessa and Louise are absolutely correct. I too have never had a problem with Royal Mail or ParcelForce
(ParcelForce is a sub-set of Royal Mail).

At the beginning of this thread I posted a map showing the location of the Post Office at Waverley Station
(the main rail station) in Edinburgh.

I love to cook - we have good food stores in Scotland and at home I manage to make a meal every day :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:
And when I'm on The Challenge I'll cook up some salmon - lax, a rib-eye steak - entrecôtens kärna, black pudding - blodpudding (with lingonsylt of course...!) Yum yum!

Supporting stores in small towns/villages is important!

Life is not complex, oh no. Have a wonderful Challenge, and hope to meet with you in Montrose if not before . . .
Best wishes to you and your husband. Yip Yip !!!

Sorry Ulla, I've only just seen your questions as I'm currently in Australia, but I see Humphrey has it covered, he's a good chap! 😊

Humphrey, are you sure you're not a stalker? How do you know where I live?!?

On another note - if our paths cross on the challenge, will you cook me up some salmon :smile:

Ulla - your home-town is listed on the Challenge Details!

Don't know about our ages on the Details - maybe we should list our BMI (Body Mass Index) instead!

Happy to cook you up some salmon. Last year I stopped into Morrisons (supermarket) in Inverness and bought salmon, asparagus and samphire - glasört - this is a plant that grows on the salt-marsh - saltsumpmark . Delicious.

As a first time Challenger from overseas I understand the hesitation to plan re-supplies through only local stores. I have decided to split the difference and order Mountain Trails dinners for camp nights sent to several resupply points, then buy groceries for breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Since I spent my first decade in the UK and can't get it in the US, my diet may be about 30% Primula Cheese, supplemented by meat pies! I won't worry about the pack weight - just eat more the first day or two of each leg!

For me part of the outdoor experience is the discipline if eating healthily combined with no trace
Camping and overall respect for the journey and everything related. I suffer from inertia but try hard to make the TGO part of a wonderful healthy experience. Example - I have dropped packages oatmeal I. Favour of 60gms of oatmeal
With 25 gems of powered milk plus some series blueberries I’d fruit. Healthier by far and a pleasure. Peace as we all try to find what will make the trip special.

Dara are you suggesting Primula cheese and meat pies are not a healthy way to go? Seriously, your menu sounds tasty and healthy...and:grinning: more like my usual trips in the US. This one is as much like a pilgrimage and homecoming for me as a backpacking trip. It's the memories growing up that were lost and coming back now as it gets closer, including the food. Hope to see you along the way... Ill be the one taking antacids as a trail snack!

I need to learn to control my imogees...he was supposed to go at the end of the reply!

Humphrey, I didn't think about the Challenge Details =) My post was a joke, I hope you got that. Though I did have 2 stalkers when I was in my teens :anguished:

Heh heh Ulla! Watch out for The Werewolves of The Upper Dulnain!!

Peace and Love, Sister!

Ulla - you growl, we howl ! :wolf:

Eimar Woolf
Clan Chieftainess,Werewolves of The Upper Dulnain

:smiley_cat: I just meow :smiley_cat:

With the availability of some food along the way (I start in Mallaig) i calculated my food at 400 gms per meal average. Starting in Mallaig I only need 15 meals to get to Aviemore where I pick up my drop box I will be sending to the bunkhouse I think. The second stage needs 13 meals total 5.2Kgs. Given the load is lightening each day of consumption I should be ok. I used the post office in Glasgow the last time to send food on and it was reasonable and fast.
Safe hiking!

I gave up on parcels a few Challenges ago due to late deliveries. Normal delivery times go awry in the Highlands.

Am happy to shop wherever the opportunity arises, thus supporting the economy and ending up with some creative meals from some unexpected foodstuffs!

Andy, I would love to do the same, but not being used to what's available at UK shops I feel unsure of whether this will work for me! Maybe, if I return for a second challenge, I can trust to find what I need that time!

Point taken Ulla. If you're going somewhere with a good size supermarket (Kingussie, Newtonmore, Aviemore, Inverness, Pitlochry), then choice would not be a problem. I will be shopping at smaller shops this year (Spean Bridge & Braemar) but I know that I will find most of what I need - I'm also not that fussy! It's all part of the fun for me.

Andy