A Wee Dram for Martin Moran…
On the 1st of May, my friend Dean and I drove the nine hours north to Mallaig, and started our island adventure. After a well needed sleep, we boarded to ferry to the Isle of Rum.
Read More »A Wee Dram for Martin Moran…Scotland
A Hazy Shade of Winter – The (almost) Twelfth Frostbite Report…
When planning a Highland Mountaineering trip, we all hope for snow – buckets of the damn stuff. It would be nice if the avalanche risk were low, the pack hard and consolidated, and the sun shining. Now let’s get back to the real world…
Read More »A Hazy Shade of Winter – The (almost) Twelfth Frostbite Report…2020 – A Good Year for the Roses…
2019 was a year of death, cancellations and accidents, so I hoped for a more relaxing and rewarding 2020. It certainly started with a bang as during the 2019 Kendal Mountain Festival, I was asked to don my best Edwardian Mountaineering Tweeds and marry two friends in the Lake District. Surely enough on January 18th, I stood before Tom and Emily in Sticklebarn and pronounced them Husband and Wife. I felt extremely honoured to be asked and we all enjoyed a wonderful weekend under sunny skies in Langdale. 2020 was off with a bang..!
Read More »2020 – A Good Year for the Roses…Learning to Fly
I fished as a youngster and have re-discovered the sport as a way to relax and learn. Stubby fingers and bland nerve responses don’t make… Read More »Learning to Fly
Love of the Common People…
Social networking is both a useful tool and an invasive curse. It has allowed us to advertise what we do and where we are, but also invite the world into our homes and create a world of voyeurism and mental stress. Last year I noticed an invitation on the web to a reunion party from my comprehensive school. It was over 30 years since the class of 1985 had walked away from Belper High School and made their way in the world. I didn’t think long before pressing accept. I thought it would be good to catch up with old friends and talk over old times. It was to be held in January, in a local pub, so I could wander down on foot, enjoy a few drinks and wander back home. It seemed perfect…
High Winds and Helping Hands – The Ninth Frostbite Report…
Every winter in Scotland is a lottery when it come to the weather. I’ve experienced everything from snowdrifts to sunburn and blue sky to thick fog. Driving north to the Cairngorms, my friend Ian and I were buffeted and bashed even at lower levels. We drove to the Cairngorm Mountain Ski Centre for a quick look at the conditions before checking into our accommodation. We opened the car doors and almost took off. The next days foray into the hills saw us beat a hasty retreat when the wind speed picked up to hair-raising and visibility dropped to nil. For some, this would be scary to say the least. In my world – welcome to the mountains.
Read More »High Winds and Helping Hands – The Ninth Frostbite Report…
2017 – Quality not Quantity…
The end of 2017 is upon us, and it’s easy to look back and think that not much exciting happened. It was just another year, like the one before and like the one to come. Thankfully I write diaries and looking back, 2017 has certainly been packed with life experiences.
Ordnance Survey #GetOutside Champion for 2017..!
It was late in 2016, when I glanced upon a tweet inviting applications for Ordnance Survey Get Outside Champions. Initially I passed it by, but looked back and thought I’d give it a go. I had no idea, that not only would I be selected, but what a lovely bunch of adventurers I was going to meet…
Mountains of Friendship – The Seventh Frostbite Report…
I first started winter mountaineering when a group of work friends invited me to join them in Glencoe. That was over 20 years ago. I was young, had dark brown hair, fingers and toes. Much has changed since those heady days, but my love of the hills has never been daunted. If anything its got worse…Read More »Mountains of Friendship – The Seventh Frostbite Report…
Trying to Tip Toe in Torridon – The Sixth Frostbite Report…
The end of 2015 brought miserable weather to much of the UK. A time of supposed frosts, snow and ice had produced nothing but rain, and I was concerned about conditions on the mountains of the NW Highlands. As it turned out, they were as challenging as ever…
Read More »Trying to Tip Toe in Torridon – The Sixth Frostbite Report…
2015 – A Year for Europe…
The finale of 2014 was, for me a difficult time. I was exhausted, both physically and mentally to a level where I felt truly lost. I had recently been reported missing in the avalanches of Annapurna, but as with most major disasters, I coped well enough. It was the pace of my day-to-day life which had ground me down. 2015 had to be better…Read More »2015 – A Year for Europe…
2014 – Surgery for the Soul…
My 2014 New Year’s resolution was to have the best and most productive 12 months of my life. Plans were bursting out of my brain, and within weeks my diary was filled to overflowing – speaking engagements across the UK, ski racing in Greenland, climbing in Scotland – the list went on.
Terra Nova Equipment – Brand Ambassador
The best partnerships are those where both sides work to help each other. Therefore I am very pleased and proud to announce that I have accepted a role with Terra Nova Equipment as a Brand Ambassador. We are both based in Derbyshire and have worked together for many years. Where we exactly first met is lost somewhere in the mists of time, but they have helped me on many occasions with my expeditions across the world. Initially it was with the specialist needs that Frostbitten hands require in the way of gloves. Getting any to fit was an almost impossible task, but with a little imagination and a lot of pinning we have succeeded. Since then I have also tested many tents, sleeping bags and rucksacks, and regularly place gear reviews on their website.
You and Yours – Here’s Me and Mine…
The 2012/2013 Scottish winter season has caught the eyes of the press on many occasions, due to the high number of avalanche victims. There have been 13 deaths so far, with Journalist (and ex MSP) Dorothy Grace-Elder attracting much attention with her views. Today, she appeared on the Radio 4 programme You and Yours, with the opinion that all Mountaineers should hold rescue insurance. Here’s what I think…