Waypoints: My Scottish Journey

When Sam Heughan announced earlier this year that he was releasing his memoir, I had mixed feelings. This is a man I admire very much, and who I’d love to know more about, but also this is a man who is fiercely protective of his privacy and that of his loved ones. Would a memoir betray that? Had someone forced him to do this, to reveal some big secret before they did? He seemed excited about it, if a little nervous and the truth was I didn’t really know what to expect. I wondered if I might be a little disappointed.I should have known better, this is Sam Heughan, who doesn’t do anything he can’t put his whole heart and soul into it and doesn’t deliver anything less than the highest quality, no matter what the product.I chose to read along as I listened to Sam himself deliver the audio book. It seemed the perfect way to hear this story, or collection of stories. Sam’s voice is enchanting and he weaves a spell over me as I picture myself in his (soggy) shoes on the West Highland way or riding endless busses to attend casting calls in L.A. I imagine myself with Sam, in a quiet nook of the Drovers Inn sharing a few drams as he animatedly shares his tale. (A girl can dream.)‘Waypoints’ follows two threads. Sam’s life and career so far,(at only 42 I’m sure there’s much more to come) and the tale of a spontaneous adventure along the West Highland Way ending with climbing Ben Nevis. We flit between past and present as Sam navigates the highs and slippery slopes of life as well as Scotland’s landscape. What we learn is that Sam has always been driven, someone who has sought to please others but also to push himself. He’s not a team player, choosing instead to compete against himself, this is something I can relate to. I wonder if it’s a trait of most if not all introverts. For all his lack of team-skills however, I’ve yet to hear anyone say a bad word about working or just meeting him. He has an easy manner which comes across in the writing and telling of this story, he says himself it’s important to him that he pleases others but I don’t get the impression this is something he feels he has to force, it’s just who he is.We learn that much of who he is comes from who was not present in his life as much as who was there to guide and support him. His father left the family when Sam was a toddler and his Mum was deeply hurt by this. It seems this made his father persona non grata in the Heughan household and while his mum worked and raised her boys alone, she also pursued her own dreams to become an artist. You can’t help but see how this inspired the perseverance and determination of a young man who desperately wanted to be an actor but who faced rejection right from the start. The absence of his father wasn’t something Sam felt as he grew up, but he acknowledges that some part of him does see himself as a child of a father who left, and that has had it’s role in shaping his attitude to relationships. It’s a sad thing to hear and something I hope he overcomes as the one thing that is abundantly clear in reading this book is that Sam has so much to give.The journey along the West Highland Way becomes allegorical, teaching us… and Sam… that it’s important to look at and appreciate where you are and not to spend all your time and energy looking ahead, or behind. He starts out intending to “smash” the walk, he’s planning on wild camping all the way and buys everything he could possibly need, including an Aeropress coffee maker. Caffine is important right? He soon finds that carrying all that on his back is seriously sucking all the fun out of the experience. He comes very close to giving up until he dumps most of it after the second day and is released to finally fully enjoy the experience. How symbolic, to shuck off the trappings of modern life and finally find yourself free! Wild camping is replaced by stays in cosy inns and a renewed appreciation for the basic creature comforts of a warm bed and a hot meal.I’ve never seen Sam as someone who has fully embraced the celebrity lifestyle, but it’s nice to know how much he enjoyed something as simple as Pie and Mash in a rural pub while in the company of a fellow walker who thought SAS:Red Notice was rubbish. It’s interesting to me, as a fellow introvert and someone who also craves solitude at times to read about Sam’s response the people he met on his journey. Initially, almost offended at the intrusion he quickly finds himself seeking company, to the point of inventing companions in the form of the various mushrooms he encounters along the way. I love these parts of the story, they show the boy who never grew up we all know is there in him and it’s hilarious when another hiker literally stumbles across taking a selfie with some mushrooms. I have no doubt Sam learned many lessons on his 6 day adventure but one of the biggest I think has been that solitude is not all it’s cracked up to be and sometimes you need other people more than you know.As for his career, the tales highs and desperate lows are enlightening and make his current en devours all the more enlightening. He’s making hay while the sun shines because he’s seen how easily he could be back to sofa surfing and endless rejection. Acting is clearly his vocation, nobody would stick with it as he did unless it was. He’s also embraced other loves and incorporated those into his life, Whisky, Fitness, and motorcycles.So was this an in-depth tell-all autobiography? No, and if it were, I’d be disappointed; that wouldn’t be Sam. However, we do learn a lot more about him and he does share very vulnerable thoughts and feelings and I have a renewed appreciation for his desire to keep much of his personal life private. He shares so much with his fans on Social Media and in this powerful book, I have questions, so many of them, but I know the answer is none of my business. Maybe, if I persevere like Sam has taught me in his book, maybe I’ll get to chat with him one day. Probably not, but this book, Sam’s story has shown me the power of resilience, of determination and also of patience and perseverance.I think I’ll listen again.Slainté Sam.

Brilliant readWell done Sam.It sure takes dedication and hard work to write a book and climb a mountain

Read in 2 days - such an honest and at times heart-wrenching account of where life has taken him. He deserves every bit of success he’s seeing now and a medal for completing that trek!

Waypoints is the first book I've started and finished in a very long time.I literally felt every emotion and step along the way. I love the contrast of the two journeys, past and present and the fellow friends and walkers along the way. When you go out walking or hiking and meet others doing the same, it feels so friendly as we're all there with our own thoughts and goals.The most beautiful and sometimes brutal landscape we walk and see with own eyes, helps us find meaning in our lives.The wee fun guys along the way made me laugh, I'd probably feel the same! Then when Lucy appeared I felt like it was going to be a Narnia moment when she met Mr Tumnus, without the lamp-post and snow of course.Your final goal was simply amazing. Will you tell us in another book what happened at the end when you went back? I really want to know! LolBut honestly Sam, I loved walking with you and I hope to do the same at some point in my life. Fingers and toes crossed!Fantastic writing and easy to read, especially for me. It was the most excellent adventure!PS I enjoyed my wee dram at the end of such a challenging and magical journey into the unknown.Take care, DM x

An insight into the author who I’d seen but knew nothing about

The story of his walk along the highland path mirrors his journey from boyhood, struggling actor to successful media personality. The ups and downs, successes and failures all met and overcome with dogged determination. Sam has clearly imbued his Jamie character with many of his own personality traits. Strength of character, desire to be honourable in his dealings with others, to grasp and maximise the potential of every opportunity that life presents him with whilst at the same time learning from all the adversities so that he is continually growing as both an actor and as a man. What a father he would make. Hope he finds a life partner who will nurture and appreciate his beautiful soul who will give him children and help him settle in his beloved Scotland, calm the wunderlust and find what he is clearly searching for.

It’s an interesting read and insight into the loneliness of the long distance hiker and how he’s looking into himself and trying to find what is, and isn’t valuable, mentally and emotionally.Of necessity, Mr Heughan stays private about those closest to him, but he has an interesting and amusing narrative style.I bought the Kindle version for ease of reading. One caveat - I don’t know whether it’s an editorial or formatting issue, but it seems that some paragraphs are repeated throughout the book almost verbatim. Otherwise, a good read.

Bought for a frequent & well travelled hiker, who now has less time to enjoy his journeys to us here in Scotland.He is still reading !!