Cairngorms D of E

Lucy: Here are some pics from a great gold expedition in the Cairngorms working for Mary Erskine School in Edinburgh.  This is one of my favourite, regular bits of work as the school has a strong ethos of hillwalking and outdoor activities, and the girls are very motivated.

On Saturday, I was supervising remotely in the Lairg Ghru.  It's a fabulous walk, and I never tire of it. We had perfect weather, cool, breezy and sunny, with no sign of the dreaded midge untill we got in to camp at Luibeg.

The following day, I shadowed a team as they headed up over Ben Macdui. This is a big challenge for a DofE exped, but one that the girls tackled with enthusiasm.  It was very cold and windy on top, but fortunately the visibility was perfect and the navigation presented them with no problems.

On the third day, myself and another member of staff shadowed a team over Beinn a Bhuird. These girls were awesome navigators, which was just as well as the visibility was shocking.  In these conditions, supervision is necessarily a lot less remote, but I was happy to observe and let them get on with it! Easy life!

Meawhile, Wally was out in the Arran hills with clients, leading over Stacach and Goatfell. He didn't take any pictures, (doh) but it sounds like they enjoyed themselves with a fine ridge walk and some amazing views.

Where the heart is...

Lochranza Castle, a 13th Century Scottish hall and tower house.

Lucy: A huge contrast to the bright colours and fierce sunlight of last week. It's good to be back amongst the soft greys of home. There's been just a little rain, only a few midges, and a refreshing breeze.  I'd forgotten how tangy the sea air is until it hit my nostrils when I arrived back at the coast.

This week has been mostly wildlife tours, with a couple of days spent in the company of lovely Val, enjoying otters, seals, wildflowers and a bit of Arran history thrown in for good measure. 

Samoëns: IML Summer Assessment

Lucy: I'm back on Arran after a couple of weeks living the high life in the Haute Savoie.  This was a personal trip, preparation for my International Mountain Leader Summer Assessment, followed by the assessment itself, which I'm delighted to say, I passed.

Based in Samoëns, I had 10 days to get to know the area, before assessment, trekking up high, exploring the passes and steeper chained sections of the main routes, and learning about the amazing biodiversity of the area. The backdrop was an incredible karst limestone landscape, baking sunshine, lively marmots and badass alpine flowers throwing shades at 2500m. Guidebook: Cicerone's Walking in the Haute Savoie: South. 

Now all that remains is the (not) small matter of my Winter Assessment!

Massive thanks to the posse of aspirant IMLs and other warm and friendly folk who I joined in the hills, to the Plas Y Brenin staff for a professional and challenging assessment, and Ian Spare, Communications Director of BAIML for organising an aspirants day in the hills.

On the way up to the Refuge Alfred Wills.

Cascade de la Pleureuse, Sixt fer a Cheval.

Field Gentian.

Heavy Whalley: A life in Mountaineering and Mountain Rescue

EVENING TALK:

Heavy Whalley, A life in Mountaineering and Mountain Rescue

Wednesday 9th August, Corrie Village Hall at 7.30pm.

Hosted by the Arran Mountain festival. This promises to be an exciting evening.  Heavey is an experienced local mountaineer, who has dedicated his life to the mountains and mountain rescue. He has many adventures to tell both on Arran, and further afield.

If that isn't enough, Kirstie and I will be talking about our Arran 700s challenge, and Arran MRT will be flipping their legendary burgers...

Adults £10, u16 £7. Tickets from Arran Active.  BYOB!

Slovenské Tatry

Lucy: I've just returned from a fantastic week assisting Andy Charlton of Adventure Expeditions: Duke of Edinburgh's award expedition experts. Alongside their excellent UK based journeys, they also provide a number of bespoke European Gold expeditions including an adventurous and frankly, stunning journey through the Tatra mountains of Slovakia.

Initially, we based ourselves on the Polish side of the border in the bustling town of Zakopane for acclimatisation and last minute equipment and food purchases. Once underway, we quickly crossed the border in to Slovakia. The first day we explored the eastern fringes of the White, or Belianske Tatry. With quiet farms and meadows, this was a big contrast to the noisy tourism of the Polish side.

Belianské (White) Tatry

For the following three days, we crossed the White Tatra, and headed deep in to the High Tatra, or Vysoke Tatry, journeying from hut to hut and crossing remote mountain cols. We met a few fellow travellers, and almost as many chamois and marmots. We saw no sign of the reported bears and wolves.

This was was my first time in this wild and exciting mountain range. The nearest comparison I can come up with, is that it is like a huge pumped up Cuillin Ridge, with dark and jagged ridges towering over remote lakes and corries. The terrain is complex and steep, but the paths we used are well maintained, making this a great place for a very special DofE Gold exped.

Vysoké (High) Tatry

Tatra Chamois

Lomnický štít Cable Car

Téryho Chata mountain hut.

A special whisky tasting

Lucy: All quiet on the blog recently but that doesn't reflect daily life here at Arran Wild Walks, both Wally and I have been flat out with freelance work, Duke of Edinburgh's Award expeditions and otter watching trips. Today was a little outside the ordinary however and worth a quick update. 

As part of the annual Arran Malt and Music Festival, I was commissioned, along with Jackie Newman of Arran in Focus,  to lead a walk to a special tasting at Loch Na Davie, which is the source of the water that the world renowned Arran Malt Whisky is distilled from.  The location of the disillery, in the remote village of Lochranza was selected for the special qualities of this water- purity, pH and minerals, as well as being in plentiful supply year round.

This point was not lost on our intrepid explorers who endured wet peat bog and plenty of standing water to achieve their mission: A dram on the shores of the loch where the magic starts.  And what a special dram it was!

Holy Isle: Arran Mountain Festival

Lucy: Today I was volunteering for the Arran Mountain Festival. The festival's strapline is "Small groups, big walks, huge fun" and it certainly delivers. Every year I lead the Holy Isle walk, in partnership with Russell and Elspeth Cheshire from the Community of Arran Seabed Trust (COAST). Whilst our walk isn't the biggest, it has lots of adventure in the form of a trip over to the island in Russell and Elspeth's RIB and the feeling of being marooned, if only for a few hours.

Today the weather was pretty wild, with strong winds, and a bit of mist on the summit of the island (Mullach Mor, 314m). There's a bit of a scramble over the top, spiced up by the crosswind, which the team enjoyed. Once we had descended back to sea level, we took a leisurely stroll back along the coast passsing nesting oystercatchers and curious seals.

Arran 700s- The Go Pro edit

The all talented Kirstie Smith made a wee film about our exploits on the #Arran700s, raising money for mountain rescue on Arran and in Malawi: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Arran700s

Arran 700s

Somewhere in the clag on the Western Hills.

Lucy: What a day, what an amazing, sore, exhausting and ultimately uplifting day.  We were truly blessed with the weather, and with generous helpers who all played their part in getting us through our Arran 700s trek.

Kirstie's partner Mark was up all night on a lifeboat shout, but still managed to drive us to Pirnmill for our dawn start. Kirstie's wee search dog Caileag joined us and we headed for the Western Hills, still swathed in clag from the previous day's weather. The first few summits came thick and fast, ticking off the Beinn Bharrain ridge, serenaded by Golden Plover.  These "peeper squeakers" as we called them accompanied us all the way around the top of Glen Iorsa and up on the the Leac an Tobair of Caisteal Abhail. The mist cleared and it was super exciting to get our first glimpse of the eastern part of the island.

Getting up on to Caisteal Abhail was a monster, and was the point at which I began to doubt myself, but Kirstie kept the banter going and after some food we both felt better.  Cir Mhor was a doddle and we were given an extra bounce by four gentlemen who kindly emptied their wallets in support of the cause.  Things got mentally tougher as we traversed under A'chir, for an out and back to Beinn Nuis via Beinn Tarsuin (so good we climbed it twice). It was a bit grim to pass A'Chir twice and not climb it.  Even wee Caileag started to lose her enthusiasm and it began to rain.

A'Chir Summit

Morale was saved by dropping in to Glen Rosa to meet Mark and Wally. The rain stopped and Caileag had the chance for a nap with Mark while Wally made himself in to a human boulder problem, physically getting us on to the summit block of A'chir. This was the bit that had been daunting both of us thoughout our preparation and with that over, it was as if a weight was lifted from our shoulders.  The four of us and Caileag skipped under Cir Mhor and up to the Saddle to meet Arran MRT Team Leader Alan McNichol, waiting with a huge flask of tea, biscuits, Jelly babies etc. We cooked a bit of scran, and were ready for the last three not insignificant summits. Caileag, bless her, was done in and returned down the Glen with Mark and Alan.

Up, up, up, with help from Wally...

I'd always known that the climb out of the saddle would be hard, but Wally stayed with us and helped to pace us up the ridge. It was great to have his company as we ticked off North Goatfell and Mullach Buidhe (the second summit of this name of the day).  Finally, before we knew it, we were on Goatfell. Absolutely punch drunk but over the moon.

So its a huge thanks to everyone involved, especially our Arran MRT colleagues who were out on a shout late on Saturday night but didn't call us, thereby not jeopardising our attempt.  Of couse we'd have turned out if asked, and postponed the challenge, but they saved us from this fate as well as successfully finding a missing person on a dark, damp night in a remote part of the island.  This is what MRTs do, made up of volunteers who unquestioningly put themselves forward to help those in need. I've met some of the finest people on the planet through MR and if you ever need them, they will do their best to help you. 

We enjoyed the challenge despite the hard graft,  and the biggest thrill is seeing the amount of money we have raised so far for our own Arran and Mulanje MRT in Malawi, a team with very few resources, who not only save lives in the mountains but support vulnerable people in their community,  a place with little or no safety net. 

We both love being part of an MR team, the teamwork and camararderie are a big part of the reason why we do it,  as well as wanting to help those in need in the hills that we love. MR work is expensive, and rightly free in the UK at the point of access. MR teams depend on public donations to do their work.  Thank you for your support (and to Kirstie and Wally for these great pics)! Please keep the cash rolling in. https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Arran700s

The Saddle and the Goats

Wally writes: Today I was on the ridge above Glen Rosa with two clients from the Alpine regions of Europe, Beatrice and Elizabeth. Although our mountains are a little smaller than theirs, they punch above their weight and we had a very enjoyable day traversing the highest ridge on Arran.

We approached via the lovely Glen Rosa, and from the Saddle took the steep scrambly ridge up to North Goatfell.  From there it was a steep rocky romp over and around the blocky tors of Stacach and on to the summit of Goatfell.  The sun shone all day! Good luck to Beatrice and Elizabeth who begin their circumnavigation of Arran via the Coastal Way tomorrow. Hopefully the weather will continue to be fine.