2014 was a good walking year for us with two week-long trips to Scotland. The first was to Islay and Jura at the end of May where we climbed most of the Islay Marilyns and several of the Jura ones. The first day on Jura we climbed the Paps where we met Campbell Singer and Alan Whatley halfway up Beinn Shiantaidh and then spent the rest of the day with them. Alan took a diversion to Beinn Mhearsamail while Campbell joined my wife and me down the boggy Corran valley path back to the road, where we were conveniently met by Campbell's wife and a welcome cup of tea.
For most of the day we had seen several fell runners researching their routes for the gruelling Jura fell race later that week, while marvelling at their ability to cover so much ground so quickly without literally killing themselves. My wife and I spent a further two days backpacking through some of the Marilyns north of the Paps. There is some wild and remote country here but we were blessed with good weather and a superb location for an overnight camp.
In July we hired a cottage near Gairloch where our lasting memory will be the appearance of pine martens wanting to be fed every evening. Good walking was done in the wonderful hills of the Flowerdale forest and some of the lesser hills immediately around Gairloch. Again the weather was exceptionally good.
I did not report for 2013 which was a fairly quiet year with the exception of another island trip to Harris and Lewis, climbing mainly in both south and north Harris but with one trip to Lewis to climb those fabulous Marilyns to the south of Uig. Beaches to die for.
I am getting closer to that all-important 600 now so a big push is needed in 2015.
