Reports from Helvellyn were of snowdrifts 1500 mm deep, and some avalanche potential. But on the opposite side of Patterdale, the less-frequented Place Fell offered an ascent on more scoured windward slopes, (i.e. on the mountain’s western side) a lesser elevation avoiding the deepest snow, and a pleasant circuit of… Continue reading
By Loch T During the first half of October, Ang and I climbed Kilimanjaro. The trip out was uneventful but the long wait for a connecting flight at Addis was tedious. The walk itself was pretty good. As you ascend you pass through five different zones cultivated forest moorland… Continue reading
I recently spent a week in Scotland, for a spot of walking and climbing, and was delighted to be joined by a number of companions along the way: The drive up to Inverness is a fairly long one, but one thing I take heart from is the point when you… Continue reading
The Lakes of Vens looked impossibly beautiful. High in the mountains at 2400 metres the three blue-green pools lie in a hanging valley surrounded by sensationally jagged ridges, overlooked by a small Club Alpine Francais refuge. We spent most of the afternoon failing to take good enough pictures, and were… Continue reading
July and August came showery and uncertain. In July Angela and I were steered by the weather to the east of the A9 where the vast plateau of A’Bhuidheanach Beag and Carn na Caim is notable chiefly for its emptiness. Even in clear weather, the navigation should not be under-estimated.… Continue reading
Piz Badile & other adventures in the Bregaglia Maria and I took Ruby the campervan over to the Alps for a couple of weeks in July, with the North Ridge of the Piz Badile being the main objective. Our preparation wasn’t the best, with Maria having injured her shoulder falling off… Continue reading
Continuing our club tradition stretching over 20 years, May Day is often the time to take a step off the beaten track, in a wee tent or a cosy bothy (before the midges awaken…..). Watching deer from the front door, red squirrels on the track, gathering wood in the gloaming,… Continue reading
Some pictures of a couple of days at Easter. Steve’s Munro list took us to Glas Tulachain and Carn an Righ — the Hill of The King, followed by the Beinn a’Ghlo circuit. Boisterous northwesterly weather often means short sharp squalls of rain or hail which quickly… Continue reading
Thomson Holidays don’t include the Highlands as a winter sun package; but with miserable weather flooding in across the North Sea, the forecast was there for the north and west. Paul and I drove to Glen Shiel before finding a hill which met our criteria: something new with blue sky… Continue reading
WEST COAST TOUGH NUTS Downwards, we made our weary way in the bright afternoon. Already, the low November sun had cast Loch Creran into a black fjord-like shade, where its waters pointed seawards to Lismore, Ardgour, Mull, and the West. The conversation was mainly about how two relatively lowly west… Continue reading
