Reflections TGO 24

This Challenge was important.

I needed to complete my 9th Challenge, I needed to successfully cross Scotland so I can try to get my 10th next year. It's just taken me too long, failed too many times and it's become a monster. This monster has eaten away at my confidence and my anxiety has grown and become almost unmanageable.

I needed a plan.

Friend and fellow Challenger Laura was also having confidence issues, although probably not so much the anxiety thing going on, but I decided we needed a plan together, to get us both to the east coast and restore confidence in ourselves.

The plan was simple, but I think quite clever. I had already plotted a route for myself from Oban to Kinnaber Links, the first day would see me walk a coffin route from Achnaba to Barcaldine. I'd chatted to Laura about this as I had a few queries about it and after a while, she asked if she could walk that first day with me. This was a great idea, but the second day would be tough, through Glen Creran to Glencoe, and quite long, probably too long for me let alone Laura, so I had a think and worked out a way to take out a day from towards the end of my route and squeeze it in to the beginning, giving us three days to get to Glencoe. The basic plan was for us to meet up each night for the first week or so, plotting our own routes in between. This would then give us choice most days, we could choose to walk separately or together. Camping together every night would give us the chance to discuss our day, whether we'd enjoyed it or not and offer each other support and encouragement to carry on. After the first week our routes diverged and we planned to go our own ways to the coast.

We were very organised and had our routes vetted quite early on, this gave me lots of time to look more closely at possible pitches in case my intended spots didn't work out, what shops were available where for resupply, book accommodation and transport and generally iron out all the finer details. I love the planning and always enjoy this part. But as the Challenge drew closer, I got more and more anxious. Had I bitten off more than I could chew? Had I set myself up for failure? We are both solo Challengers for a reason, it's what we enjoy and works best for us. We walk together as friends outwith the Challenge, could we tolerate each other for a week? Two weeks before the off and I was so anxious I could barely eat, I lost weight, it was ridiculous. The day before we were due to travel to Oban, we had a slight hiccup with arrangements, but David came to the rescue and Laura arrived with her gear to stay the night before Ciara took us to get the train to Oban in the morning...

In the end, we reached the east coast, together!

It wasn't easy, Laura showed real determination and tenacity to carry on with blisters from very early on, due to the heat and a combination of the wrong socks and possibly the Gore-Tex lining of her boots. We looked after each, made decisions together, gave each other space at times, but we ended up deciding to stay together to the bitter end and we did it! We had a brilliant Challenge.

Of course, the Challenge wasn't just about us, there was the gear I decided to take with me and how that all performed.

The Good

Last year I'd had blisters for the first time in over a decade which ended my Challenge prematurely. I still don't know why, as I had worn socks and boots that usually suit me and that I have crossed Scotland wearing before. I decided to try different socks, Injinji liner and hiker socks, but also stick with my favourite, tried and tested style, Bridgedale Hike Midweight Merino socks. I also carried a pair of Bridgedale liners, just in case the Injinji pair didn't suit.

I found the Injinji socks very comfortable and they worked brilliantly with both pairs of hiking socks.

I had a new pair of boots, Hoka Sky Kaha II, but when I started to wear them in the lead up to the Challenge, realised that they were a tad short and I could feel the end of my boots with my toes. I was a bit surprised, they were the same size as the previous pair, but obviously, they were no use for the Challenge, so I'd bought another pair a half size up and they were just dandy.

No blisters this year. No sore spots at all. In fact, I usually have slightly swollen feet by the end of the Challenge, just because walking every day for two weeks, 20-25km most days, is hard on the feet. Once my feet settle down the skin usually peels off, a very odd experience.

I didn't even have swollen feet this year! So no skin shedding either. Brilliant!

I was very aware I was going to have limited laundry opportunities, so I had reverted to carrying long sleeve merino tops, one to wear walking, a clean one to walk in when the first could walk by itself, and one to sleep in. Long sleeve because I don't like bare arms and they give protection from insects and the sun.

Worked perfectly, kept me comfortable at all times, walking and in bed, no pong, this will be my go to for future Challenges.

I also returned to taking my Tilley hat. It is my trademark hat and gives the best sun protection.

I have been cold on the last couple of Challenges. In 2022 I had forgotten the silver mat I put under my Synmat and thought that was why I was cold, but last year I had taken the mat and still felt the cold. I'd also omitted my thermal tights in a bid to shed a few grams from my pack weight, about 100g, to be precise. So this year, I had a rethink. Instead of my primino hoodie, obviously I had a merino LS top. I also swapped my primino zip top for my Montane Allez Micro Fleece. I decided to take my Montane Prism jacket and RAB Xenair gilet, despite them being a few grams more than just taking my Montane Fluxmatic jacket, because I felt the combination was more flexible. And I took my thermal tights.

This was also a good decision, being able to wear thin layers under the Prism jacket, tights under my 'social' leggings and have the gilet loose in my bag over my hips really helped keep me warm and comfortable this year.

Sorted.

I've started to carry a GoPro to video my adventures. I'm not very good at it, but quite enjoy doing it. The problem has been carrying it, along with my phone, my maps and my compass.

This year, my compass was in a hip pocket of my belt. Last year, I had taken my OMM Chest Pouch, but I found it very faffy and annoying with the way it attaches to the chest strap of my pack but the bottom attachments or elastics and hooks and I haven't found a way to attach them that isn't a pain, so this year, I took my Montane Gecko waist pack.

It worked an absolute treat, proved to be very useful when we were in civilisation as a handbag (we do like gear to have two uses) and I only nearly lost it once...

I also took mesh Tesco fruit and veg bags as a food come shopping bag. They are super lightweight, you can see the contents easily and they are stronger than say a plastic carrier bag.

The Bad

I did consider carrying my Osprey Exos pack to save weight, but on closer inspection one of the webbing shoulder straps is worn and damaged and I was worried it might fail during the crossing, so I took my Ariel AG 55L. I do like the way it carries and I have a routine for where everything is packed, nothing dangling on the outside, but yet again I had very sore hips, grazed and bleeding, especially my left one. As one is worse than the other, it's clearly not just the hip belt that is the problem. I have realised that not only do my knickers have a seam in an awkward place, there is a label on the left side.

So, I need to solve the hip belt issue and the seam/label issue. I may get my Exos fixed, so long as I can keep my base weight low, currently 7.209kg without pack or food, the Exos should be fine. Or I could carry my Ariel without the top pocket, which would reduce its weight by about 200g, but I would still get sore hips.

I need to source different knickers...

I have an Exped Hand Pump for my Synmat and air pillow. It's great, but it does have a drawback. It's fine when the weather is good and I can pump up my mat with it inside my tent and me standing just outside, pumping with my foot, I just look a bit of a plank. If the weather is pants, I have to lie in my tent, with the Synmat lying on top of me and pumping the pump on my head to inflate the mat. Laura could hear all this going on and found it hilarious. Me, not so much... But I have solved this issue! For my birthday I asked for a Flextail Zero Pump. Weight wise, it is only one gram lighter, but it takes up so little space. It will also be useful for pumping up our Exped mat in Ellie. Perfect.

The Ugly

I love my Tarptent Notch. Or at least, I did. I like having two porches, the space inside the inner suits me, it is quick and easy to pitch once I got the hang of it, but I do think the half mesh inner is colder than my Terra Nova Laser.

I also discovered a leak.

Or more precisely, five leaks.

There are four ties to tie back the outer doors. Loops on the outside and a hook on a loop on the inside. It would appear that, despite having paid for seam sealing when I bought the tent, the ends of the loops caught into the seams have not been, or not done properly, and after a couple of periods of rain the loops wet out and moisture then tracks along the loops inside the tent and drips off the hooks onto the inner. The moisture makes the inner damp and anything that touches it then gets wet, including my sleeping bag, if I'm not careful or don't notice in time. The centre seam also appeared to spring a leak and again, looked like it had not been sealed properly.

I need to have a look at these areas and see if I can seal them effectively myself, but I have lost a little confidence in the Notch now and I might just go back to using my Laser again, because I do love it.

So just a couple of projects to get sorted.

Challenge Afterthoughts

If you have read the account of my TGOC21 here, you will know I suffered an unfortunate injury and had to retire from this year's event. It is not the first time this has happened to me, but I must remain positive and decided to make a few changes to try to ensure I can cross successfully next time.

The injury itself was caused by slipping as I tried to climb a boggy bank beside the Allt Innis na Larach. There is little that I could do to avoid that in itself, I did nothing wrong, it was just unfortunate. I did wonder though if my pack was lighter or less bulky if it would not have swung. And carrying a lighter pack is always preferable anyway, so I started to look through my spreadsheet of kit and examine it more closely.

I know the quickest way to save weight in a pack is to consider the biggest items first. I have already got a new down sleeping bag, it is super warm, doesn't leave my tent looking like I've been plucking chickens in the night and weighs less than a kg, so I am happy with that. I have an Exped Sunmat UL7, there is no need to replace that. I have a new tent, having replaced my Terra Nova Competition with a Tarptent Notch. I could have gone further and bought a Li version, but didn't like the idea of it being see through. I have changed my light Exos pack for a heavier Ariel 55 AG pack, I need the padding on the hipbelt and harness and will not be changing it. The next item to consider would be my Jetboil Flash.

I adore my Flash, I have carried it on all my Challenges so far bar one, when I borrowed David's Flash Lite. It has never let me down, I only boil water for rehydrating meals and making hot drinks and usually manage to cross using just the one 100g gas canister. However it isn't a particularly lightweight system, at 426g, as I have to carry a mug to drink from so that adds bulk and at least another 116g, so altogether about 737g. I could improve on that.

After some investigation and asking for recommendations, I decided an MSR Pocket Rocket was ideal, David persuaded me the Deluxe version was even better, so that is what I went for, at 83g. The Snowpeak pots I have would do the job, but the lid is a frying pan which I don't need and doesn't sit tight on the pot, so would probably be loose in my pack and annoying. I wanted a pot that was big enough to boil all the water I needed in one go, if necessary, and be used as my mug, to save taking a pot and a mug. After much thought and internet browsing, I suddenly remembered Alpkit and found they had the MytiPot 900 that fitted the bill, similar to the MSR Titan Kettle, but much cheaper.

Altogether, that would be a saving of 339g, if I took the same size gas. I would obviously need to be able to replace that as I crossed, so if I took a larger canister there would still be a saving of nearly 200g. I can make that decision nearer the time, depending on what the supply of gas is like next May.

The one thing that I worried about this year was my tent pegs. I didn't really consider these until the week of the Challenge, when it was too late to do anything. I realised that the MSR Mini Groundhog pegs that I love were perhaps not long enough to cope with the different forces on my new tent. There was nothing I could do, but I coped with the pegs I had , double pegging the main points and using the longest peg in my possession for the end into the wind. I don't know the origin or the composition of this peg, but I used it and survived. Mainly because there were no high winds. I can replace these pegs, I will take four MSR Groundhogs, four MSR Mini Groundhogs and six Terra Nova skewers to help pin the ends out and the inner. None of this will affect the weight I am carrying much.

I need to consider my washbag, there may be more in there than I really need to take.

If I can get nearer to the 11kg mark, or less, including food, I'll be happy.

And in the meantime. I am already back to running to maintain and improve my fitness and I will start back on the yoga and strength training as soon as I am completely happy with my shoulder.

All good.

Well, That Was Christmas!

And I have a new toy, so here’s my first post using it and Open Live Writer. we’ll see how it goes!

Merry Christmas!

Well, there it is! Or was. Another busy Christmas almost done and dusted. Lots of lovely useful stuff and I can't wait to get on The Challenge and use some of it.
Merry Christmas one and all!

Home

When on the Challenge, your tent becomes your home and I like to be comfortable in my tent and on the walk in general. What did I take this year that made a difference?

Well, my tent, for a start!

My new tent

My tent was wonderful. It was tested to an extent in rain, wind and snow and I had no leaks or major problems with condensation. I felt confident with the pitching and didn't lose any pegs or pins. So I was happy.

I took a different cloth this year to wipe the tent down when wet, a spongey yellow one. It was brilliant, extremely absorbent and I could more or less wring it dry after use. It was also useful for drying my feet after fording in the first few days when I wasn't carrying a towel (I was wild camping all the way to Bearnock, seemed little point in carrying it, so I posted it to myself...)

Speaking of feet, my boots! My beautiful boots. My Meindl Burmas with green Superfeet were the bees knees. I know I only walked the first four and the last five days, but I didn't have a mark on my feet and for the last two Challenges, I've had the beginnings of blisters by the end of day two. I think I've cracked it!

I had my own iPod this year, a tiny little Purple Shuffle. Sir Ian MacKellan read to me every night and as on the odd occasion I may have woken up and realised I'd missed a bit, I think it worked!

The only other change would be the hand warmers. I carried my reuseable ones on my first Challenge and despite being cold on several occasions, didn't use the handwarmers because I would have had to boil them. Last year I carried a few disposable ones. I didn't use them either because:
a I'm stupid
b I didn't think of it and
c I'm stupid
This year I'd had one or two frights and was determined not to get cold. I carried enough handwarmers (and posted some on) to use a pair in the morning and pair in the evening, if necessary. That's nearly 24 hours of warmth if required and once or twice I did use them morning and evening. Once or twice I didn't need them in the morning, but did at night and used both pairs at once! It was bliss, waking a few times in the night and just moving the handwarmers around my body to the next chilly bit. Brilliant! I won't ever be cold on a backpacking trip again, yey.

As for Home. I was worried that when I came home, having failed to complete my Challenge, I'd be on a slippery slope again. I felt quite awkward at first when I joined Laura at Braemar, I wasn't quite 'one of the gang', I was an outsider, a bit of a misfit. As we walked however, it all fell into place, we walk so well together, Laura and I. After a couple of days I felt so much better, we were laughing and having fun, despite Laura's pain and discomfort and my disappointment. Once in Montrose at The Park I had a brief moment of upset (sorry for the damp sleeve Alan) but after we were settled in our roum and had met up with a few friends, we went out for a curry with The Pieman and Peter and had a brilliant evening. All was well with the world again.

Once home, I was happy. Happy I'd had a good time and happy to be back safely with my family and I had a head full of plans.

And planning has been done! I have the best walking partner ever booked for next year and I have a route. Happy, happy, happy!

Stuff and nonsense

I have to sing the praises of Fuizion Freeze Dried Meals. On Saturday 28th July I ordered two breakfasts from Fuizion, just for David to try. They arrived on Tuesday morning, 31st July. I was somewhat surprised to receive a duplicate order the following morning and being the good person that I am (naughty TTS said just keep it) I emailed Alison at Fuizion to explain and offer to return the meals for reimbursement of P & P. I was a bit chuffed to get an email to thank me for my honesty,  a suggestion that they may have been over efficient and that I might like to keep the duplicate order. What nice people at Fuizion! Their products and service are always excellent and I will be happy to keep ordering from them.

I haven’t been so pleased about having to visit A & E twice in three days, due to the careless men folk in my family.

Just before lunch on Monday, Aedan was summoned into the kitchen and the door firmly closed. This usually means someone is in trouble but I had no clue what he might have done.  A short while later, David emerged and I went to the back porch to do some chore or other, but he called to me to stop what I was doing and take him to hospital. (This is the second time in fourteen years that the day after returning from holiday I’ve had to make an emergency dash. It’s a habit I’m not liking.) Somehow, whilst clearing the draining board of washing up, he’d manage to stick a knife, new and extremely sharp, into his forearm. We had to wait about an hour and a quarter in the emergency department before he was stapled together and I could take him home. (Last time he was doing the same thing but manage to smash a Bodum cafetiere and slash his other arm. I’d left him ironing whilst I collected the dog from kennels.)

On Wednesday, I’d popped out for my brisk walk. As I was on my return journey, my mobile rang and Rhiannon informed me Aedan had got up too quickly (again) and passed out in the kitchen, whacking his head off the butcher’s block island and gashing his eyebrow. There was blood. I gave advice to stem the flow and speeded up a bit to get home. By the time I got there, the blood had stopped, but it was quite a gaping wound that needed attention, so David was summoned (eventually, he lives in a black hole for communication) and another trip to A & E ensued. This time it took only twenty minutes for his head to be glued back together.

Both appear to be making rather elaborate attempts to get out of kitchen work. NOT HAPPENING BOYS!!

The Christening

We caught a train to Inverness, armed with new boots, new trousers, a new pack, a new tent, a new Tilley, Spenco 2nd Skin and a new sleeping bag. So, this was just an overnight trip to try out new stuff. Not much of which was mine.

Firing up Viewranger

Determined to get to grips with Viewranger…

And finally we’re on our way

 Lairig Ghru in the distance

We had a minor faff in Aviemore to buy paracetamol (suddenly realised I’d not replenished tablets whilst checking dressings in my first aid kit before we left) and a last visit to porcelain, then a GPS faff, before heading off towards Loch an Eilein. At Inverdruie we faffed briefly and then took a woodland track leading to the loch but at some point, we became slightly navigationally mislaid. The usual, I knew where I was, I knew where I wanted to be, I just had to take an unplanned route to get there! Shortly after that I had a minor left/right issue, but that was easily corrected after a few hundred metres. Oops.

Too hot

Pretty lochan…

 …which strictly speaking we shouldn’t have seen

 Wasn’t planning on going that far

Heading in the right direction again, we no longer needed the map as this is very familiar territory. We crossed the Am Beanaidh via the Cairngorm Club Footbridge and started looking for a pitch.

 Crossing the bridge

 The Pitch

 Time for dinner

 There were midges

*After sometime, a suitable pitch was found and the new Voyager Superlight was thrown up for his Christening. Gear was unceremoniously stowed inside, water fetched, boiled and meals rehydrated. The Voyager Superlight was duly toasted with a wee dram of Glenkinchie (it managed to survive the Challenge) and named ‘Sorley’, the anglisized version of the Gaelic  name Somhairle meaning summer traveller. A quiet evening was had before we retired to listen to the rain pattering on the flysheet, quite relaxed in the knowledge that TTS had seam-sealed a few days ago and we would be water tight.

9.67 miles, 632 ft ascent, 3 hrs 35 mins total and 2.7 mph average.

We woke to find a few drips. Some were splashes of condensation (TTS is a ‘moist’ sleeper’, I blame him…) but some looked more sinister. Like a bit of a leak. (Hey, I can blame TTS for that too!) This will have to be investigated thoroughly and I will be disappointed if it is not remedied easily as I have plans for this tent. There were a few more light showers and we decided to wait a while before making a move and breaking camp. We were in no hurry.

Eventually, after a luxurious breakfast of coffee and petit pain au chocolate (we were only out for one night on a short walk, we could manage a few luxuries) and baby bel (not together, yuk) we stuffed everything back into our packs and set off back to Aviemore in time for a couple of pints of Cairngorm Brewery Wild Cat and a bite to eat at the Winking Owl before making our way to the station to catch the train back home.

 Aviemore station

2.42 miles, 66 feet ascent, 54 minutes total, 2.7 mph average speed.

The New Gear

Meindl Burma Boots

We both have a pair of these now, but at least they are different colours so aren’t quite matching his and hers. We both found them extremely comfortable although quite warm, so walking on a hot day like I did towards the end of the Challenge could be interesting. I had no rubbing or discomfort and considering my feet have only just fully healed, so are potentially still vulnerable, I was pleased. Of course, we were using easy tracks, so it was only a gentle test, but I don’t foresee any issues.

Berghaus Ortler pants

I concluded after the heat at the end of this years Challenge that I needed some summer walking trousers. I settled on a pair of Berghaus Ortler pants and I have to say they are extremely comfortable. They fit well, which I often find difficult with my silly shape of ridiculous waist and unfortunate hips. I love the leg venting and the feel of the fabric. I am overall very pleased with these.

Osprey Kestrel 58

I have persuaded TTS into an Osprey pack, but he still feels more comfortable in something more substantial, so a Kestrel it is. He found it very comfortable to carry when loaded and loved all the features, especially the external bladder holder and pole stashing system.

Tilley TH5

I have finally persuaded TTS into a hat he will enjoy wearing and avoid the glowing pate he tends to sport when out and about. I adore my hemp Tilley and having tried a few on, TTS also settled for this model. Bit of a shame, now we have matching his and hers, but they are excellent hats!

RAB Neutrino 400

David needed a better sleeping bag but wasn’t prepared to shell out (like I did) on a PHD bag, so we settled for a RAB Neutrino 400. He was certainly warm.

Terra Nova Voyager Superlight

There are investigations to be carried out and perhaps another seam-sealing moment will be in order, but the tent itself is easy to pitch and drop, splits nicely between two but I could quite happily carry it myself (and probably will) as it weighs no more than my Kraz but will obviously give me far more space and comfort.

Spenco 2nd Skin

I had the misfortune to need this on the Challenge (fortunately someone was kind enough to donate some to me) and it is magic stuff, so I have sourced some and will now carry it with me at all times. Hopefully, armed with my new Burmas, I won’t need it, but I know it’s in my first aid kit if I do.

* Now is probably the time for a small confession. I had intended a wild camp somewhere after the Cairngorm Club Footbridge, however, as we wondered up the track, everywhere appeared to be a tad damp and overgrown. I couldn’t be bothered to wander too much further on so we turned back and made a bee line for the Coylumbridge campsite. Porcelain and hot showers!

Hatching a plan

As I previously mentioned, David has a new tent. This tent obviously has to be christened. We haven’t taken delivery yet, but plans have to be made and so do lists!

I have a little route planned which will involve catching the train to Aviemore, walking to Loch an Eilein then off to the Cairngorm Club Footbridge, where we will find a pitch. The next day, we will return to Aviemore via Coylumbridge in time for a nice lunch, a couple of pints and the train home.

There is no great distance or ascent involved, it will all be purely for the pleasure of pitching the new tent.

In a couple of weeks time, we hope to do a second trip, this time catching the train to Blair Atholl, walking along Glen Bruar and continuing along the Minigaig, pitching somewhere roughly NN816838. We’ll make our way the next day through Glen Tromie to Kingussie to catch the train home.

So, we have plans. We just need all the new shiny gear to arrive! Photographs to follow.

Advice please

David is now the proud owner of a Voyager Superlight, part of his Significant Birthday present.

My question is, do we need to seam seal before use, if so, how and with any specific product? Information from their website is not completely illuminating and I know someone out there will enlighten me.

Thank you.

So, 49 weeks to go then…

And what do you do with yourself when you’ve been back from the Challenge for a week and you’re still suffering withdrawal symptoms?

You go looking for a new pair of boots of course!

Anybody who knows me, knows that I am exceptionally bad at making decisions, so if you have anything useful to say that might help me, please do. Useful, mind.

I have had my feet properly measured and all that and tried on a few boots. On the shortlist  Meindl Burma Pro or Meindl Softline (that in itself is a bit of an issue, as there appears to be two versions of this boot and I think the pair I tried were the 2011 version. That might help the decision making in the long run.)

As it happens, I had to go up half a size in the Burma, which puts me into the popular size that is trickier to get hold of.

I like them both. They are both very comfy. The Burma has a more rigid sole which I am lead to believe is more suitable, but I don’t know anything about the technical side (nothing new there then.)

Any ideas?

I’m erring towards the Burma…

Keeping up

There seems to be a bit of a kit list thing going on, so I’ve taken the easy way out and done a bit of copy and paste from my spreadsheet. Of course, the trouble with that is no one else is likely to understand it all, especially the food bit, it’ll only make sense to me, but that’s just something for you to puzzle on if you’re bovered! The food is not necessarily listed in meal order. It will be supplemented with fresh en route as it becomes available.

As it happens, the Merrell shoes should read Keen Sandals, but the weight is right. The book is in actual fact an iPod, so the weight is correct for that too. With water, of which I may carry about 1ltr (I treat, so do more in one go to save stopping too often) it should be around 12.5kg on the first and fourth days. Roughly.

So, all in all, I’ll be carrying roughly the same as last year including the odd extra bits. I have a spare top this year, so that I can be more ‘sociable’ in civilised areas and the iPod is a concession. I found one of my biggest issues last year was the inability to get to sleep, despite having had a good walk and plenty of fresh air during the day. This was probably due to the fact that at home, I read every night before bed and I hadn’t wanted to carry a book. I originally planned to carry a book this year, but have been persuaded to let Sir Ian McKellen read Wolf Brother to me at night and soothe me to sleep. Hopefully. I’m nipping home for the night mid-Challenge, so I can swap for a book at that point if it doesn’t work. By treating myself to a beautiful new Osprey Exos, I can carry these one or two extra items and more food comfortably without feeling the load and I’m very pleased with that.

No photographs, Ciara tells me that is obsessive and would require counselling…

Happiness is…

…seeing my first osprey of the year fishing in the bay.

…completing my tick list. Well, except for posting my re-supply parcels.

…decanting lotions and potions into tiny bottles in readiness for packing a rucksack.

…solving a little boot/gaiter issue, with a little help from A Very Clever Person.

The lacing on my boots goes through a loop centre bottom. This means that when I’m wearing my gaiters which hook onto the laces, it’s a little crooked at the bottom, putting stress onto the laces. I don’t want them to snap as I wade my way across Scotland, so I needed a plan.

“Mini split-ring,” he said.

“Wa?” I said.

“You need a mini split-ring on the bottom loop that you can hook the gaiter to,” he said.

“Genius,” I said, “I’ve got a pair of those!”

Genius!

I have yet to try this out, but it looks convincing so far. (And yes, I am aware there are no insoles in my boots, they’re in my shoes at the moment!)

Happiness is…

…the little treasures going back to school tomorrow.

Phew!

Who’s a Mrs Grumpy?

David managed (was strongly encouraged) to take last minute leave this week, so as the children were in the middle of their Tatty Holidays, we thought it was an ideal opportunity to pop down to visit his family in Fife. His dad has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and is quite poorly, so it’s good to visit from time to time as they can’t travel up here so easily. An added incentive was that his middle sister was away for the weekend and happy to loan us their house so we could enjoy several short visits over a few days, making for a more leisurely weekend.

When we returned, we hoped the weather would be good enough to do some walking, but perhaps not as much as I would have liked. I would have loved to visit Glen Affric this time of year and take a stroll around the loch, but it’s a long journey from here for a day out, so to warm up our legs on a low level walk, David and I stayed local for a walk on Wednesday around Romach Hill and the  loch there that we’ve done before. It was a pleasant enough day, not too cold, but with an unexpected snow shower! A total of 13.5 km, 315 m ascent and 3 hrs 32 mins, so a reasonably quick sprint and nothing remarkable, except none of the children could be bothered to get up and join us!

Yesterday, we attempted our third assault on Bynack More. Again, I thought we were being a little ambitious. It’s a walk that David and I could do very comfortably and even with the start of winter in the hills, I wouldn’t have been too worried. We could easily have set off at 8 am to make an early start in the hills. The problem was, this was supposed to be a family walk…

Needless to say, we didn’t set off from Glenmore Lodge until nearly 10.30 am, so it was fairly clear from the beginning we weren’t going to achieve our preferred goal. We should have made for a different venue given we didn’t make the early start we’d wanted, but we merrily made our way towards Ryvoan Bothy before turning off for Bynack Stables and stopping at the bridge for lunch.

Ahead of our leader

Our leader, bringing up the rear after a GPS battery faff

Looking south-west towards the Chalamain Gap. I’ve been there!

Looking north, towards Abernethy Forest

Meall a Bhuachaille, my favourite Corbett

Heading for that path in the distance

It was not a bad day at the start, bright, a light breeze although chilly at times. There was low cloud around and snow on the hill tops with the risk of some precipitation and this was all going to be taken into account.

We passed several people out and about, this is always a busy, popular area. Lots of people seem to mountain bike out to the foot of the hills and then make their way on foot to the summit and back. There was a chap and a couple out with their dogs, a large group of men and a second group of  a father and three teenagers, all equipped for winter camping and a couple with their two children. Our children all carry a small rucksack with food, water, waterproofs and a few extra layers. I took the opportunity to try out my Exos to carry a few bits for them, given the conditions. I like them to carry their own gear, but not so much that it puts them off. The young family we saw had no kit with them except a small rucksack carried by the father. Maybe I tend to be over-equipped.

Looking south along Strath Nethy

There were plenty of red grouse seen along the way and the resident herd of reindeer were seen in the distance. On way up the path, Conall suffered a clothing malfunction. The popper on his waistband un-popped and wouldn’t stay popped, thus allowing the zip to unzip and the trousers to fall down. Not good. Luckily, in my rather well equipped first aid kit, I have a couple of safety pins that were used to effectively resolve the issue. Still heading up

Catching up after the clothing malfunction

We didn’t make it all the way up the hill.

We reached a point where the boys both stated they’d had enough. I was pretty sure we weren’t going to make it off the hill before the weather became more moist and I’m never in favour of cajoling the children much to continue as it becomes painful and miserable for all. I think maybe David, Ciara and I have the determination and the boys aren’t really fussed.

We turned back.

Around 11.62 km, 275m ascent and 4 hrs 18 mins.

Today, poor TTS is spending a miserable day in the city, waiting for the car to be MOTd and serviced.

So, who would be Mrs Grumpy? Well, it was me, briefly, yesterday, when our walk had a different sort of outcome from that intended, especially as this was our third attempt. I don’t want this hill to become some kind of nemesis, I have visions of just ‘having’ to pop up it as I pass by on my route, if I’m lucky enough to get on the Challenge next year.

All in all though, it was a nice couple of walks and I now know that my new Exos is indeed comfy and stays on my hips where it should be, one of my main objectives. My Paramo was also comfy and effective, but I still haven’t tried it out in torrential rain. I’d like the confidence of knowing it can cope, just in case I have to deal with conditions similar to this year’s Challenge again.

Oh. That didn’t help

I have still been pondering rucksacks. I took the advice offered about trying out a rucksack with all my gear on board, but felt weak at the idea of doing this in the shop. I still have confidence issues and I knew I would feel too self-conscious. However, I came up with a plan.

I like to use websites that offer free P&P including returns. On this occasion, the best site I could find offered free P & P excluding returns but at a good price for both the Exos 46  and 58 in Ember (I don’t like the green). After a quick perusal of the Post Office site, it was still cheaper to pay for a return than to travel to my closest dealer (Aviemore or Inverness) and pay parking (ok, so I can find free parking in Aviemore). So that’s the option I took.

Ordered Sunday afternoon and delivered this morning, not too bad for the north of Scotland. I felt a little nervous at first and put off loading them up by doing some housework (must have been absolutely desperate!)

I tried the 46 first, but perhaps was a little too gentle and couldn’t quite fit it all in, so on to the 58. Everything fitted in neatly and logically, but I had a little room to spare. Bum!

Back to the 46, this time using a pack liner (another dilemma, liner or cover?). It still didn’t all fit, although I was more brutal (tricky when being careful) but I’m still not convinced I could, even with a bit more squeeze.

There’s nothing included that I didn’t take on this year’s Challenge, although there have been one or two swaps. I’ve packed my tent into a smaller bag and it is now quite a bit smaller. The only two bits of kit that would warrant change are my Prolite mattress and my tent. Despite the bulk, I love my Prolite, it’s comfy and robust. I would be paranoid using a Neoair or the like, especially at the cost. My tent. I’m not planning to replace Bill (my Coleman Kraz) anytime soon. He has his faults, but they are all minor and easily dealt with. He’s comfy, cosy, watertight and suits me. I don’t intend to buy another tent until David and I can Challenge together when Maisie will be replaced (I’m not hoofing even half of Maisie across Scotland, she’s no lightweight!) That could be another eight years hence. (By which time, I might need a new, smaller rucksack!)

So, a decision must be made.

It all fits in the 58 although there is unnecessary extra space. I can’t see me happily squeezing everything into the 46 to save 90g and I’m not likely to pack in extra items just because I have extra space. I have a list and I stick to it. (I have a thing about lists…)

I’m going to sleep on it (the thought, not the rucksack) and make my decision in the morning.

I hate decisions.

Distraction techniques

Having finished planning my route for a possible future Challenge, I decided to step away from the maps before my tweaking went a tweak too far! I’ve worked out distances and ascents, food parcel drops and accommodation.

Instead, I took a sideways step towards gear. Oops.

I happened to heft my Karrimor Wildcat 60-65 at the same time as David’s Jaguar 65 the other day and realised that, despite being of sightly lesser capacity, mine is heavier. A whole 400g heavier. No wonder I felt relieved when I swapped packs at Laggan! So, I started vaguely casting about for a replacement. I had been considering Deuter and Osprey packs and decided Osprey was the likely winner. That was the easy bit.

I like the women specific packs, Ariel 55 and 65, mainly because I have a problem with hip belts. Due to my shapeliness, I tend to find it tricky to keep a hip belt in place and I thought a specific one might help. I also like having a separate compartment for my sleeping bag.  However, neither of these packs are lighter than my current pack, the 65 is obviously a similar volume, so they were duly discounted.

That left me with the Exos 58 or 46. I’m concerned that  (despite my guide kit list weighing in at around 10kg, it’s quite bulky,) I’ll never squeeze it all into a 46, so the 58 may be a better bet and is still over a kg lighter than the Wildcat. However, it has been pointed out to me by a far more sensible and less impulsive person, that spending that amount of cash warrants taking my kit to a retailer and trying one. That’s the plan.

To further distract myself I’ve been reading up a few previous Challenge reports and on Shirley’s I found a reference to this hostel. I haven’t changed my route, just my stop over that night!

Still at Shirley’s, I found myself investigating her favourite bits of kit. Quite how that led me to this isn’t immediately obvious, but I then made another sidestep from a new pack to a new tent! A particularly tempting offer on both the one man and two man versions, so I need to go and cook dinner. Now!

All in aid of distracting me from my annual fasting blood test tomorrow.

Pathetic.

What fun!

EDITED

As David had a Bank Holiday weekend and the children were at school, (well, they were until the senior school didn’t open due to a burst pipe…) we had intended an assault on Bynack Mor. When we eventually set off (late, again) the weather was quite interesting. The forecast had been for buffeting winds, showers and low cloud until the afternoon, but we decided to drive down anyway and adjust our plans accordingly.

I could barely see the top of Meall a Bhuachaille as we passed and Bynack was lost, so after a comfort stop at Aviemore (middle age gets you) we consulted the maps and decided on a lower route from the car park NH 985 074 through the ‘Chalamain Gap’ to join the Lairig Ghru, back north to Rothiemurchus Lodge then hot foot it along the north side of Loch Morlich and back up the road to the car.

So, off we went.

Looking south from the footbridge

And north

There was a lot of faffing during the first part of this walk and very little of it was done by me, apart from a few photographs! David soon stopped to don his Paramo. The couple ahead of us left the path to look through the gate to the reindeer enclosure, returned to the path and went ahead, faffed, then returned to the gate, an elderly couple behind us faffed with waterproofs, then we both faffed with our waterproof trousers. It could be a long day.

On we went, the elderly couple never caught us up. It’s quite a nice, well looked after path and I daresay with less cloud, there would be some lovely views. I felt the drifting cloud and ever changing views added atmosphere and mood.

Couldn’t see a lot behind us at this point

Looking south along a moody Allt Creag an Leth-choin

We wended our merry little way and soon came across a small group of people crossing from the north of Castle Hill and making their way onto our path. Interesting looking route they had taken, but they didn’t pass us so we didn’t get to know why. They were wearing jeans. It was a very pleasant path.

The Chalamain Gap

Looking at the Gap from a distance, I had commented to David that it was difficult to imagine a path through. How prophetic.

Meall a Bhuachaille, from the Gap

Still hoping for the path on the map

“I think we find our own way.”

Camouflaged!

As we got closer it became clear this bit was going to be ‘fun’. As we scrambled our way over the boulders I giggled and called to David, “Two years ago, what would I have done?” “Cried, sworn. Turned back.” Very amusing to think that here I was now, relatively happily picking my way round and over these enormous rocks, almost enjoying myself! I say almost, I did, but as you can occasionally catch a glimpse through the gaps in the rocks to the depths, I found it a little unnerving. But fun!

We were eventually overtaken by two ill-equipped young men (no daysack, waterproofs or map…), but the elderly lady behind us was in difficulty and we think the couple turned back. The two young men disappeared ahead only to return shortly after to take the path up Castle Hill. Maybe a map would have helped?

As we made our way through the Gap, we occasionally thought we heard a dog barking. As we passed the foot of Castle Hill we did again. Never saw a dog, so it was a bit odd.

The path continues on and down, eventually meeting with the Lairig Ghru. David was ahead of me at this point and I was a little concerned when he headed south down the path, but when I spotted the large rocks placed neatly by the burn, I realised his sandwiches must have been calling to him from his pack and he’d spotted the *perfect picnic spot. We lunched.

Looking south along the Lairig Ghru

North 

We then headed north. The path was a but rocky and muddy at this point, but then improved. Sadly, we opted to leave it soon after to take another rocky, muddy path to the Lodge, but at least once we reached there, we were on good tracks all the way to the road.

Rocky and wet

Better

There were occasional breaks in the cloud, but I wouldn’t have wanted to head south today. There was a distant, but familiar sound as we made our way north, a rescue helicopter hove into view. It tried to head south at first, but they must have realised they couldn’t as it circled round Carn Odhar and came low past us.

Someone needed help

It circled around  by Castle Hill and up the Ghru a few times, but then we didn’t see it again. We hoped they found who they were looking for safely.

The track from the Lodge is straight forward but I had never seen anything like these before.

Brightly coloured, plastic bee hives?

It became a bit of a route march from this point as, as usual, we were up against time and as we’d been a shade tardy, again, we were running late for a couple of evening activities. Not to mention trying  to fit in an evening meal. Oops.

It felt a long way on the road up the hill to the car park, but our concerns for the lost someone were heightened when a car drew up along side us and the driver asked us our names. Actually, he asked us three times, I caught it the first time, but because the man was not asking us what David had expected him to (“Would you like a lift?”) he couldn’t comprehend the question. (Age thing again?) The chap had hoped we were the people the Mountain Rescue were looking for who had been heading up Coire an t-Sneachda. Not something I’d have thought wise in the rotten conditions. We couldn’t help as we hadn’t been that way, but we haven’t heard any news. I hope they were safe and well.

All in all, I loved it. Towards the end was hard, because we had to pick up the pace, but yet again, I found myself doing things I would never have done before, or would have found challenging and perhaps even refused to attempt.

As  to my kit, I wore my new Merrells and my new Paramo. The boots were surprising. Despite the odd wet, muddy patch, my feet remained dry and comfortable, however, they were never fully submerged. I suffered no discomfort or hot spots at all, not even on my funny big toes (funny peculiar, not ha ha). I did notice a slight ache in my arch, which I used to always suffer before I invested in my green Superfeet. I am using these in my Merrells, but maybe I need something more in them. However, the ache didn’t last and my feet were fine when we got home. I think maybe my feet need to get used to the souls of these being thinner than my Brashers. They were lighter too and although my right hip grumbled briefly, it settled again. This could have been down to the weight of the boots, perhaps.

The Paramo was great. The weather didn’t rain persistently or heavily, but enough to get one wet, but I wasn’t. It dried quickly in between damp times. I was comfortable at all times (until the route march) with long and short sleeved merino tops on. I think we will be happy together.

EDIT

Forgot the statistics (age again?)

Roughly 16.8 km 517 m ascent and approximately 4 kph

* Well, it would have been the perfect picnic spot if there hadn’t been the rubbish left behind and just before we left, we discovered somebody had felt the need for the toilet in rather a large way just in the gap between two rocks, a few feet from the burn. Lovely.

Why? I will never, never understand.

 I have taken to taking other people’s rubbish home if I have the means to carry it

Full marks

During the Challenge, my Rab gaiters had developed a fault. One of the rivets at the bottom of each gaiter holding the hook on had come out, so the hook was swinging. Strangely, over time, David’s pair had developed a different fault.

Last week I finally got around to packaging them up and returning them to Webtogs from whence they came last November. I received an email to say they had arrived and been forwarded to Rab for investigation. I had assumed that David’s would be repaired and returned and that mine might have to be replaced.

Imagine my delight when I received a package this morning containing two new pairs, ten days after I first posted the original pairs! Excellent service I’d say and this happy customer will be returning to make more purchases sometime in the near future.

Another success has been the purchase of a Gram-Counter Gear Side Guy Kit from Ultralight. Again, a very quick service (I love free P&P, especially living in the north of Scotland, some companies seem to find it an outrageous £20 of difficult to reach!) and I’ve experimented by attaching a Grip Clip to my Kraz and pitched it in the garden to see if it helps with the saggy bottom (the tent, not mine!) Success, a very useful bit of kit and the second one (they come as a pair) is light enough to carry, with a length of guy and the spare peg, if my long side ever decides to get overly flappy in a stiff breeze.

Before

  After

Of course, still not the best pitching ever, but I was limited by the obstacles…

Happy, happy, happy.