It was my aim to reach my target of 2500 Humps before the Portree meeting in June but I wanted to do this by only climbing pleasant Humps. Finding such hills was not easy. It took us far and wide: Shropshire, south Wales and even to Orkney and Shetland. Finally, I stood on the summit of Hoo Kame in Shetland on 30 April 2011. Unfortunately, a recount revealed it was number 2501.
I have always maintained that one should set oneself an achievable target. With Munros and Tops it had been 500. Starting with the 1974 edition of Munro's Tables the total was 541, of which I finally managed 539.
When I stood on the summit of Meall a'Bhaine in July 1998, my target of 1500 having been achieved, I felt that I had finished with Marilyns, but I've done a few more. St Kilda's Conachair in May 2003 seemed more like the end.
Perhaps it is good to go beyond targets. In January 2001 we climbed Mount Cameroon saying this was our last big mountain. But for all that, in October 2011, we climbed Tullu Deemtu (4377m), the second highest peak in Ethiopia. We must confess that most of the work was done by a 4x4.
New aims? Peter Caton's 'No Boat Required' gives a new objective - reaching all 43 tidal islands. This is not all that straightforward as tidal times and private ownership create problems.
