The Meall nan Tarmachan ridge is a fine venue for a winter's day hill walk. Twice now this season, I've been up there with groups, navigating on its intricate and complex terrain and practicing steep group movement skills, with ice axe and crampons. Being based in Glasgow, finding a good winter venue not too far …
Tag: guiding
Making Ice Cream on Meall a’Bhuiridh
Saturday was looking to be a pretty special day weatherwise with sunshine, cold temperatures, little wind and complete snow cover. Fantastic winter hillwalking conditions like that don't fall on a weekend all that often in Scotland so I was keen to get out and enjoy the hills. Me, Hua and Ainslie decided upon Glencoe and …
Winter Hillwalking on the Grey Corries
November and December are a quieter time of year for me, time for catching up with friends and some personal hillwalking adventures. I'd arranged to meet my friend Jon Foden (Nettle) on December the 4th for a day on the hill. He's a man of many talents: a paramedic, marine, ski-mountaineer, climber, mountain biker, fell …
What’s a bothy and how do you spell it?
This blog has been written by Al McGowan. Al works for Aspen Outdoors Ltd as an outdoor instructor. He's a blogger, hill runner, geologist, Duke of Edinburgh's Award supervisor and Assessor and holder of the Hill and Moorland Award. Check out is website and blog on http://www.hillsofhame.com. A team of instructors from Aspen Outdoors Ltd …
OUTXE Powerbank Review
Having a powerbank handy to charge up electonic stuff whilst in the outdoors has, for me, become an essential bit of kit. When guiding clients in the mountains I use my iPhone6 for photographs, navigation apps and as an emergency telephone. Some of the apps I like to use are: Mapping software like Memory Map ; …
Sgurr na Banachdich
Sgurr na Banachdaich is a 965m mountain on the Cuillin Ridge, the most dramatic, precipitous, technically difficult range of mountains in Scotland. Along its 12km length there are 11 prominent mountains (munros) and a further 26 separate peaks. Almost all involve scrambling on steep and exposed terrain to reach their summits. Sgurr na Banachdaich, peak of …
The Mullardoch Round
3 day Guided Round with Murray Wilson - 28 May 2021 The Mullardoch Round is one of the biggest Munro-bagging challenges in Scotland: 55km, just under 5000m ascent and 12 munros altogether, four on the north side of Loch Mullardoch and 8 on the south. The round takes in the four highest hills north of …
Ben Macdui
Ben Macdui is Scotland’s second highest mountain (1,309m) and is a big hill day at any time of year, but particularly in winter. Last Sunday (1 April) I met up with four clients with the aim of reaching the summit and practicing some winter Skills on the way. The forecast was great: cold air temperatures …
The Coldest Bothy in Scotland
Bothies vary a great deal in terms of cozieness. I like to apply the following criteria in determining whether a bothy has that 'hygge' feel: First, does it have a fire place? If it doesn't - Carnmore in Fisherfield or Callater Stables in the Eastern Cairngorms are examples - then it doesn't get of the …
Sunrise on Snowy Ben Venue
The forecast for Sunday was to be still, cold and sunny. With snow covering the mountains there was a prospect of fantastic wintery views. So I left the house at 6am with a plan to catch sunrise on Ben Venue, at around 8:38am. Ben Venue is a popular hill in the Trossachs. Most people either …