Sunday, July 13, 2008
The Armchair munroist
I never set out to do the Munros, but as an obsessive logger, I do keep a diligent record of those completed. Between 1981 and 1994 I did 89 Munro's and have only done 1 more since then (Lochnagar in 2000). So this years Cairngorm trip took me 3 steps closer to a satisfying 100.
However, in 1997, in the midst of my 'darkest hour' of mountain activity (I did no 2000ft summits from 1995-1998), another 7 munros were allocated by the SMC, and I had no idea until last week that this had happened. I have just discovered that I've done 6 of the new 7 and so I'm on the threshold of my 100th Munro. I must admit to feeling on the moral high ground, as those I've walked with and I have never been just Munro baggers...prefering to take in the full ridges associated with the munro ....and it's for this reason that I've gained an extra 6.
For the record, I think the new 6 are very worthy...Sir Hugh was little hard on the great Torridonean ridges of the north, but now Ben Alligin, Liathach, Ben Eighe and An Teallach all have 2 munros - and deservedly so. The 2 Buachailles of Glencoe also have 2 munros each - and you wouldn't argue with that if you'd walked from one end of the Buachaille etive Mor ridge to the other. Bidean has gained another too, and importantly an extra 4000' summit in Angels Peak in the Cairngorms. The list of changes is below:
http://www.nigelspencer.co.uk/web-pages/uk-mountain-pages/scotland-pages/munro/scotland-new-1997.htm
So the next munro is my 100th and which should it be..?? Ladhar Bheinn beckons, so does Sgurr nan Gillean, or maybe something like Ben Lomand.. Ideas please - assuming you have intimate knowledge of those I have done.
The high tops of the Cairngorms
Armchair browsing of books of the highlands will always tempt a person to put the Cairngorms in the second division, and views from Aviemore do little to alleviate this opinion. However, whenever I visit this high and expansive summits, I'm always sharply reminded that they are equal with the very best in the highlands, and that their sub-arctic landscape and caledonian glens make for a unique experience.
This year we had a 2 day camp in upper Glen Derry at just under 2000 ft and after an evening walk up Beinn a' Chaorainn ( a connoisseurs munro..!!), we had a wonderful days walk over Beinn Mheadhoin (Vee'an apparently), Ben Macdui, and Derry Cairngorm. The walk had a good blend of path and pathless and a day of brooding skies and passing shafts of sunlight made for an unforgettable day.
I saw an article on the web which summarised the feeling you get on these tops. This guy (Cameron) was standing on Breariach, and I think nicely summarises the feeling I had at the summit of Stob Coire Sputan Dearg, the extremely worthwhile south top of Ben Macdui.
"Stand by the summit cairn on a clear day and gaze down the long, empty miles of Glen Dee, past the bulk of Beinn Macdui and the long arm of Carn a' Mhaim on one side and the angular outline of Cairn Toul on the other and you'll be overwhelmed by a sensation of space and distance, an emotion that wills you to fly."
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_19990829/ai_n13942153
The attached photo on Beinn Mheadhoin shows the essence of Cairngorm walking - plenty of space to really stride out and stay high for a long time. The full series of photos is on the link below:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adeeh2/sets/72157606139230679/
