1991
Crossing the Abhain Strath na Sealga before climbing the Fisherfield Six. Shenavall bothy is visible in the background. I seem to remember completing the round in good time but feeling very tired walking back up a slight uphill from the river to the bothy. In those days, I was very skinny and had little in reserve, but some hot food lead to a fast recovery. I wish I still had those climbing tights!
Photograph taken by Graham Brigginshaw.
Photograph taken by Graham Brigginshaw.
1991
Taken at the top of Window Buttress, Difficult, Coire na Banachnich. I cannot remember who I was climbing with - someone from the Worcester Mountaineering Club. I believe I still have those Ron Hill Tracksters! As for the helmet, I left it on a ledge on Pavey Ark. It never did fit very well which is why it seems to sit lop-sided on my head.
1993
Taken on Ben Macdui (Beinn Mac Duibh). That was a really comfortable TNF pertex/fleece jacket. It was stolen from my car while parked below Wild Boar Fell a few months later. It was reversible and when I had the pertex inside, there was little friction between the layers. It was called The North Face Renegade and I have never been able to replace it with something quite the same. I wish TNF would make them again!
As for the Lowe Alpine microfibre trousers (in plum), they were left in Corryhully bothy. The main fabric shed the rain particularly well for something that that was not supposed to be waterproof. Rain did soak through the stretch inserts easily though. I still have the matching jacket.
Photograph by Simon Archer
As for the Lowe Alpine microfibre trousers (in plum), they were left in Corryhully bothy. The main fabric shed the rain particularly well for something that that was not supposed to be waterproof. Rain did soak through the stretch inserts easily though. I still have the matching jacket.
Photograph by Simon Archer
1995
Taken on Ben Oss with Ben Lui in the background. I had climbed Ben Lui via Central Gully. The Coire still held quite a lot of snow and freezing temperatures overnight meant that I was climbing a steep staircase created by previous climbers. One of my best days on the hill.
1995
Taken on Helvellyn during February. Most of this kit is still in good condition! The Koflach boots eventually broke at the hinged cuff.
1996
My final Munro, Beinn na Lap. It was a horrible wet day - or at least it was until we were down off the hill. It was great having friends there to help me celebrate.
1997
Now concentrating on the Corbetts, this was taken on Ben Loyal. I was feeling very fit but sprained my ankle some minutes later. I was fortunatley able to largely run it off. Whatever happened to ETA fell shoes?
I have just looked them up and it seems that the company still exists but do not have their own brand of kit. I preferred their shoes over Walsh's but perhaps they did not last quite so well.
I have just looked them up and it seems that the company still exists but do not have their own brand of kit. I preferred their shoes over Walsh's but perhaps they did not last quite so well.
1998
Brandon Mountain. I think this was the completion of the Furths but not sure. Certainly, that was an objective of my tour of Ireland, along with drinking Guinness. There was clag on the south side of the hill and glorious sunshine to the north. That is Irish weather for you!
The trousers are very 1990s and not to everyone's taste. They are very fast drying and cool in summer conditions but it is very difficult finding things in my wardrobe that match (unless it's black)
The trousers are very 1990s and not to everyone's taste. They are very fast drying and cool in summer conditions but it is very difficult finding things in my wardrobe that match (unless it's black)
1999
I think this was taken camping next to a loch in the Trossachs. I remember falling asleep in the car and being rudely awakened by somebody tapping the car window. He asked for a pair of pliers. His friend was fishing in the loch and had somehow pierced his nose with a spinner. He wanted the pliers to stick up his nose and cut off the barb. I didn't have any pliers and they took him off to the hospital to have it removed. Lucky it wasn't his eye!
2001
I always found that running was a good way to keep fit for the hills. I had chased this guy and closed up a very large gap but once he was aware of me he accelerated and beat me across the line. This was my fastest marathon at 3 hours 17 minutes. I had been through a very stressful period of my life and my hair was rapidly disappearing (but still no signs of grey).
2002
New Years Day on Ben More (Crianlarich). This and Stob Binnein were my last hills before heading for Russia. The ascent was very steep in places on slopes of compacted snow. Back at the youth hostel I spoke to a couple of lads who, it seems, had followed my tracks but turned back. I am sure that I did not follow the best line up the side of the coire but I had heard of accidents in the coire and had kept well east of it. I had a great time in the full winter conditions which helped me to acclimatise to the Russian winters.
2002
Taken on Maol Chean-dearg. I think that is Beinn Damh in the background - something on my 'to do' list. I really liked that fleece - another piece of kit I lost along the way. It provided just enough warmth for summer days and had a great pocket at the front that would hold a map.
2003
(I've finally arrived in the digital age). Like many who visit the highlands to climb the hills, I have visited quite a few distilleries. This is Aberlour. It cost £50 to bottle my own whisky from the barrel. The whisky has remained sealed. I decided to keep it for my son's 18th birthday. This was two years before he was born! I hope that he shares it with me!
2003
Perfect weather for rounding up a few Munro tops. This is on Beinn Eibhinn with Aonach Beag and Geal Charn behind. I had previously climbed these hills via the Lancet Edge during the Foot and Mouth outbreak. I had phoned up the Dalwhinnie estate about staying at Culra Lodge, expecting them to tell me to stay away . . . . but they didn't! They just asked me to use the foot dip as I went through the gate at Dalwhinnie and wished me a nice time. So walker friendly. Very different to when I wanted to do the Fannichs from the south some years earlier. The person from the Lochluichart Estate said "Och well, it's best to stay off the hills altogether at this time of the year". I have always wanted to avoid disturbing the stalking activities of the estates but I found this very discouraging when it comes to phoning estates to agree on a mutually acceptable route. The next time I visit the Fannichs, it will be from Lochluichart.
2004
A perfect day for the hills . . . . on Mullach Fraoch-choire.
2004
I suppose that if I was to be honest, I also bag bothies, though I have no intention of bagging them all! Unlike mountains, they renovate new ones while others get burnt down or locked up due to vandalism. While wind farms vandalise the hills and their status may be changed due to revised height measurements, they are a relatively permanent feature.
2005
2005 was a year that I did not go to the Highlands, partly due to the birth of my son. However, I did manage a few days in the Lake District during a heat wave. Here on Grag Hill (Eel Crag).
2006
Unusually, I managed to go up to Scotland in May and although the tent is wet here, this must have been just an overnight shower as all I can remember is sunshine. Camping here in the Fairy Clen (Gleannn an-Slugain).
2006
Stitched photographs of Beinn a'Bhuird. What fantastic weather!
2006
Wild camping at its best and too early in the year for the midges!
2006
On Carn Gorm - looks a little windy! - Still a free Mann!
2006
This is the year we got married and we enjoyed fantastic weather honeymooning in the lake district. I was allowed a couple of short days on the hill including Mellbreak. Here is a delicious pint of Mellbreak bitter with Mellbreak in the background.
2006
My August trip to the Highlands was a bit of a washout, but there were some brighter moments such as here on Beinn Mhic Chasgaig.
2007
Another wet trip but a brighter spell here on Beinn Mheadhoin. I somehow wasn't at my best on this trip. I think I was tired and a little stressed from life and work. I lost a bag of clothing including a Goretex jacket. The green jacket was bought in a sale and a short while later, there was the blue version being sold really cheap so I still had a pristine spare jacket back home in the wardrobe. I have absolutely no idea where I lost the bag of clothes. I think it must have slipped out of the boot as I closed it or maybe I just left it somewhere? It's a mystery!
2007
During such trips, a bothy fire is so much appreciated such as here at Tomsleibhe on Mull. Beinn Talaidh had been on my tick list for some time. It has now been demoted to a Graham but it looks and feels more like a mountain than a hill. Always nice to combine a couple of nights at a bothy with bagging a hill.
2008
Living overseas leads to different kinds of adventures - Here cross country skiing on the frozen Lake Baikal in Siberia.
2008
I had a much better trip this time - In fact, one of the best! Back in the late eighties we had backed off climbing the Pinnacle Ridge of Sgurr nan Gillean due to verglass. It had therefore remained high in my list of things to do but due to a lack of a climbing partner and the persuit of other adventures, it was put off for many years. In the end, I engaged the services of mountain guide Graham Paterson for a bespoke day up the Pinnacle ridge, taking in the top of Knight's peak to the top of Sgurr nan Gillean, descending the West Ridge and on to Am Bhasteir before down climbing to the Bhasteir Tooth. This latter stage was not too difficult but it was a long way down and I was glad to be roped.
2008
On the way down, I was too busy talking and not concentrating. When dropping down a rock step, my foot landed on a rounded rock which rolled beneath my foot and I badly sprained my ankle. Graham must have been quite alarmed by my cry of pain. I limped down to The Sligachan. I have had quite a few sprained ankles over the years. They seem quite weak but I have not sprained an ankle since - maybe they are a little stronger or perhaps I am just a little bit more careful.
2008
A few days later, still limping a bit, I got to the top of my final Munro Top, Stob Coire Sgreamhach. I know this is a Munro but it wasn't when I compleated the Munros. It was nice to have a my final top as one that had been promoted to Munro status and also nice that it is a sister peak to my first Munro Bidean nam Bian which I then continued to. It was as if my journey was complete, returning to where I had started. There are other journeys though!
2008
The journey is completed full circle - well more of a squiggly pattern really.
2010
After not visiting Scotland in 2009, I was back; this time with my family. Arran was a place I had been wanting to visit for many years and I was finally there. As you can see by the rain on the lens, this was a very wet day to do the Glen Rosa horseshoe.
2010
Having a family means having a larger tent. Thomas chose orange over green. Here we are camping in Glen Rosa but it was not ideal for family camping due to the number of ticks.
2010
The ticks on Arran were nothing compared to Jura. Having packed up the tent for two weeks and then putting it up to air one fine day, there were still ticks on the tent, some of which were still alive!
2011
I was allowed time off for good behaviour in 2011 and tried to pack in as many hills as possible. I was joined by a work colleague , Gary for the first week before he headed off for Edinburgh. I was very lucky wit the weather over the three weeks though there were some wet days. The photograph was taken on Eagle Crag, a slight detour from our route around Glen Oykel taking in Ben More Assynt, Conival and Breabag.
2011
As a boy, I only ever had a second hand bike so it was quite exciting to buy a folding mountain bike in 2009 and this was the first trip that I used it to any great extent. Here I had cycled to Knockdamph bothy and then on to Coiremor to leave some supplies for a four day expedition into the hills. The bike has a full mountain bike specification and it really does fold in half so I can put it in the back of the car. Click the image to see Montague bikes.
The bothy has beds! However, I used my thin foam mat, not for any puritanical reasons but because I thought the mice probably prefer a soft bed too!
The bothy has beds! However, I used my thin foam mat, not for any puritanical reasons but because I thought the mice probably prefer a soft bed too!
2011
Wind and light rain on Carn Ban before heading to Coiremor/Magoos bothy.
2011
There are two connected bothies in Coiremor, the MBA one and this one maintained by the RAF in memory of a pilot called Mark Maguire. I stayed in Magoo's bothy with it's hard chairs rather than Coiremor with its damp soft furnishings.
2011
I always particularly enjoy the challenge of multi-day walks and love to spend nights out in the hills whether it be in a bothy or wild camping. This is on day 3 at the summit of Meall nan Ceapraichean with Beinn Dearg in the backgound. The new backpack seemed to carry the load well. 55 litres seems just big enough with a lightweight tent etc. However big your pack is, you are sure to fill it. It's the same with cars.
2011
Beinn Enaiglair. Last hill of the 4 day walk with an easy walk back to the road. A kind lass gave me a lift back to the car. I really do not like walking along roads.
2011
The next five days saw some amazing weather; just the sort of weather you want when heading out towards Knoydart. On the fourth day, it was mid-afternoon before the mist cleared but otherwise warm sunshine without being too hot for walking. A'Chuil is a fine bothy but there is a serious toilet problem over in the trees with excrement stuck to the side of rocks. Does anybody out there know how to use a spade?
2011
Soulies, another fine bothy with a hammock and a sleeping platform. The bothy is small but only two walkers slept in the bothy while two campers/kayakers cooked inside away from the midges. I noticed that people who explore Scotland by Kayak are able to transport more luxuries.
2011 Slideshow
2012
This was a family trip with me trying to balance my responsibilities with my love of the hills. Yuliya and Thomas (and Vladyk) were comfortable in the Rowardennan Youth Hostel while I headed up Ben Lomond. The weather was much better than it appears here. The south side was sunny with cloud to the north.
2012
Thomas' first Munro - Schiehallion.
2012
Thomas' first Corbett - Meall an Dobharchain (The Sow of Atholl)
2012
Thomas' second Munro - Sgairneach Mhor. A Corbett and a Munro in the same walk. He didn't even look tired. We were returning to the luxury of a lovely cottage in Aberfeldy.