MLC training - getting serious?

From 1980 to 1985, I was teaching Physics at Craigroyston Community High School in Edinburgh. It was in a tough area, and we did a lot of outdoor education. At that time, Lothian Regional Council had an extensive in-service training programme for teachers, so i took the chance to embark on the Mountain Leadership Training programme. We had evening classes once a week - navigation skills, first aid, ropework etc, and a few trips. And, of course, we had to start keeping a logbook, so I had to go back through my diaries and list all my hillwalking experience to date. That was the start of keeping proper records - dates, times, weather conditions, hills climber, and so on.

However, I clearly wasn't yet fully "smitten" with the Munro bug. How do I know this? On the 7th May 1983, the MLC group went on a navigation exercise up Glen Lochay. The target was the top of Meall a' Churain in the mist. A few of the group took the chance to visit the Munro summit (Sgiath Chuil), a distance of about 500m away, but I didn't. Imagine being so near the summit of a Munro, and not bothering to walk that far to get to it! In fact, i didn't get there for another 22 years - it was my 187th Munro, on a showery day in August 2005 before I rectified that omission!

Mind you, I must have been getting serious about it, as I was prepared to go off for a day's walking with the MLC group, leaving Anne and 5-day old Iain at home on their own!

(written 12/08/09)

Farm or Forestry?

September 15th 1979

Anne and I were spending a September weekend with Anne's sister, Marjorie, in Inverness, and decided to head up the Ullapool road to climb hills in the Ben Dearg group.

In those days, there was no gate on the forestry track up from Inverlael, but there was a big sign which said "Farm and Forestry Only". However, we were reliably informed that the sign could be safely ignored, so up we drove in the wee Fiat 126, and parked at the top of the road. Just as we were getting our boots on, a Land Rover drove up, and a gentleman in tweedy clothing jumped out and enquired "Well - farm or forestry?" in a plummy accent. We grovelled appropriately (thought afterwards we could have pretended that none of us could speak English), and he turned out to be reasonably friendly, and advised us where they would be stalking, and where we could go safely.

We climbed Meall na Ceapraichean and Eididh nan Clach Geala, but we always refer to it as the "farm or forestry" walk.

Nowadays there is a locked gate at Inverlael, but it is well worth cycling the 3 miles up the track - as we have done twice since, once to climb Seana Bhraigh (12/07/04), and once to climb Ben Dearg and Cona Mheall (15/0707).

And, of course, checking abut stalking by using Hillphones.

(written 12/08/09)