Scotland..? 19 6 13 (6) 25 2 3

I have heard it said that some Scots people actually leave their native country because they can no longer tolerate all the rain, and I used to say that I know you have to be prepared for some rain if you are going to visit Scotland but then it rarely rains all day long..?

2019 however reached a new low point for me and my endeavour to climb all its 282 Munro hills: those hills which top 3000 feet (914,4 metres) and stand sufficiently alone from all the rest, though some mountain ridges may contain more than one summit: like the 12 mile long Cuillin Ridge of the Black Cuillin on the Isle of Skye which boasts a total of 11 main peaks and 9 subsidiary summits, or tops as they are known for example..?

That is to say the only new peaks I managed to climb in 2019 were all climbed or at least summitted in Mist and Rain, and on one occasion, the worst day when it rained pretty much without respite for all 13 hours I was out in it! That then is the bad news!!

And the good? That in order to climb these 3 new summits involved me in 3, 4 and 3 days subsisting in the Scottish outback: walking and climbing and/or spending the second of two consecutive rainy days simply drying out my equipment, and resting to recover my strength, in which I covered a total of something of the order of 70 miles or about 110 km, when overall it only rained for 4 out of the 10 days of using bothies, those are the uninhabited cottages among the hills in Scotland’s more remote places, and/or wild camping, when the associated equipment of sleeping mats and bags, gas stove and cooking utensils, food and changes of clothing, maps and compass and now in recent years a GPS navigation system, waterproof clothing comprising coat and over-trousers all have to be carried...     

The foregoing began when my wife E departed for home after 3 weeks which we spent together, first visiting members of our England-residing family though our British born son, P, and his family of wife, J, and their daughters F and S, who are now newly registered British citizens, (not J who is Finnish) in addition to carrying also Finnish citizenships, a safeguard development to deal as appropriate with Brexit, if they see fit to leave UK? 

Then subsequently my brother J and his wife M, and also my sister M and her husband B plus many of their children and extensive family of grandchildren in the North West of England, en route to the English Lake District where, exceptionally we spent a couple of nights in a newly acquired cottage by sister M’s daughter, L and husband D, when on the second night they re-joined us together with their children, daughter E, and son L.

Before spending the final 2 weeks travelling round Scotland for walking less arduous routes with only the occasional hill walk, joined as we were with a couple of friends from Finland for 3 days, and visiting some old friends from the distant past.

My final walk of 3 days greatly assisted by nephew-in-law D who has become a regular visitor and companion for what increasingly has become the more epic walks involving some of Scotland’s most remote hills: driving up from NW England for long weekends, and when he has carried more than his fair share of camping supplies and equipment for the two of us. Our prize on this occasion the remote Cairngorm hill An Sgarsoch, which is Gaelic for "hill of the sharp rocks": my momento piece of rock from this summit a sample of quartzite, and betraying the reason for so naming the hill!

And more? Only that I surprised myself that I came through the sometimes desperate conditions as well as I did…Have a good day everyone!