2015 seems to have been a slight improvement on the previous year, with regards to the rain.
The year began with a snowy visit to the Pentlands, followed by a couple of Marilyns in Clackmannanshire. In February I finally accomplished what I had set out in doing, and that was a snow-covered walk up Schiehallion. Fortunately, the road had been ploughed, but the car park was like an ice-rink. Similar conditions for Ben Chonzie. I also visited Hill of Nigg but did not realize until I got home that I had walked up to the old grid reference. Doh. Fortunately, I visited the actual summit in October.
I finished the Fannich group of Munros in the year, which are under-rated by Munro baggers. For some strange reason, I have heard people describing these hills as comparatively boring. I could not disagree more.
I visited Ben Vorlich and Stuc a'Chroin in March while there was still snow on the buttress of Stuc a'Chroin. I had a look up and decided to give it a go. I was scrabbling for every rock I could find poking out of the snow and soon popped my micro-spikes on. Coming down was hardly any easier. I took the alternative way down, via the corrie on the north side, but a large wall of snow had built all the way up. I had met a couple near the summit who told me that was their route of ascent and that I would be safe enough if I used their holds and faced the wall of snow on my descent.
My sister and I took a trip to Moffat in August and walked up Broad Law and White Coomb over the weekend. We pitched our tent on the Friday night in the wind, rain and darkness, and on the Saturday evening, there were still midges around.
Deuchary Hill is a little gem. I had no idea where the ascent path was but I found it on the way back down and enjoyed the walk thoroughly.
Deuchary Hill (photo: Alan Dawson)
September has to be the best month though. I hit it lucky with my holidays and visited Rum, Harris, Islay and Jura, all for walking. Islay was better than I imagined and I ended up spending more time there than I did on Jura. The Oa peninsula is particularly impressive.
I also finished the Munros in the Lurg Mhor group on a weekend trip, with a bivi bag. I am glad there was no rain as the zip had burst on my sleeping bag and I kept waking up, at the summit of Sgurr a'Chaorachain, to pull the bivi bag back up over my head.
Late in the year I took a colleague of mine up his first Munro. I had been up Lochnagar on plenty of other occasions but I had never been up the Black Spout. He was keen to follow and, once we got to the summit plateau, he could not have been happier. He reminded me more than once over the following days how much he enjoyed the trip. Lochnagar never gets old for me.
To finish things off, I bagged some Munros around Crianlarich in November's snow, and I ended the year's hill bagging with a snow-covered Beinn Mhanach in mid-December. It really was a great year for me, far better than 2014. Let us hope 2016 is as good, if not better.
