'Mountain Elixir'

I first came upon the recipe for the above beverage when given my first climbing guide as a Christmas present. It had been neatly written inside the red cover of the SMC's 'Climbers' Guide to Glen Coe and Ardgour' Vol 1, along with a description of its considerable benefits when climbing mountains. But alas I was too young to sample it.

A few months later I came across it again, being used in earnest, as it were, by Bill Murray and R G Donaldson on their successful traverse of the Cuillin Main Ridge plus Clach Glas and Blaven in August 1939, now known as 'The Greater Traverse'. Leaving Glen Brittle at 10 pm, they rested on the summit of Garsbheinn at the southern end of the ridge, left there at 2 am and arrived at a pre-pitched tent at Loch an Athain in Glen Sligachan at 4pm.

Only Clach Glas and Blaven remained to be climbed and Murray writes of how they 'enlivened their diet' with a shared pint of, 'Mummery's Blood', prior to climbing these two peaks: 'equal parts navy rum and Bovril, served boiling hot. Its effect on both mind and body is nourishing, warming, strengthening; it lowers angles, shortens distances, and improves weather'

                                 Clach Glas                                                 

                            

Hill Tracks Campaign - e-petition

Lynne and I have just signed this important petition at Hilltracks campaign, where you will find details. Wild areas in Scotland are being ruined by the uncontrolled bulldozing of ugly tracks, and the issue has now been taken up by Peter Peacock MSP after Hebe Carus of the MCofS raised the problem with him. Please take a moment to visit the link and consider signing the petition. (Source of information: "Scottish Mountaineer").

Waymarking

I was pleased to see that 70% of those who wrote to the MCofS regarding waymarking on Scottish hills were against it (although 18% of those were for it on a few 'honey-pot' mountains) and 30% were in favour. (Source: 'Scottish Mountaineer'). Personally, I don't want urbanisation to go along with the, admittedly worse, industrialisation that is taking place on our hills. 'Honey-pot' mountains already have good paths and cairns, usually far more than are needed. In addition, waymarking is usually unsympathetic in my experience:

This sign is not on a hill and gives directions at the start of a 'trail', but what was wrong with the old one on the right? Why is the new one so big and intrusive? The new cairns on Ben Nevis are, apparently, 6ft high!

As one writer points out, there are already plenty of  waymarked trails for those who like them. People who want to go into remote country should learn to navigate. Let's keep what wildness we have left, wild.

Winter

Lots more snow today, at least 9", and a 5 hour power cut to help things along. Heating bills aside, don't you just love a real winter?

More on Electric Fences in the Angus hills

According to Gordon Snedden the issue of electric fences in the Angus hills is being addressed by the Council's Access Officer.

More winter weather

It's snowing heavily again and I've just been out to feed the birds. We've spent most days this month on the local hills, so when we spoke yesterday of heading north soon, we sort of guessed that the weather would break! Anyway, I'm going to pop over to Alan Kimber's site (see Links on this blog) to have a look at conditions. This is an excellent site and even if you don't climb it's worth a look just for the pics and other information.

Ben Cleuch

Sheep Rescue

Our walk yesterday was delayed somewhat when we spotted a sheep in what appeared to be the same place it was in three days earlier, and went to investgate. Lynne got the binocs out while I started the descent to the burn, and sure enough it was well and truly trapped with a hind leg caught in the top wires of a fence. Eventually, with the help of a chap from the house near the reservoir and wire cutters, she was released. That's my eighth I think. Deer we have found similarly trapped have not been so lucky, being dead long before our arrival, like this little shrew in its Mithril-like vest.

It was about mid-day by the time we got underway again and the forecast predicted poor weather moving in early in the afternoon. No sign of it though as we stopped for lunch in the sun.

It arrived on the top of our hill for the day and stayed for the descent.

It had been a shorter day than we'd planned but all these relatively short trips, averaging about 6 hours, have kept us fit and ready for a trip north soon. Just need to get the box back on top of the camper van and we'll be ready for the off.

Electric Fences - response from Hebe Carus, MCofS Access and Conservation Officer

I have now received a reply to my query regarding the erection of electric fences in the Angus hills. My thanks to Hebe Carus, Mountaineering Council of Scotland's (MCofS) Access and Conservation Officer, for his prompt reply.

 If you climb and/or walk in Scotland, please consider joining the MCofS which represents climbers, hillwalkers and mountaineers in Scotland. Visit http://www.mcofs.org.uk/


Here is Hebe's reply:

"hi gibson and lynne

"That could be a book in itself if Iwere to answer with all the relevant laws and regulations. Equally without looking into specific case I dont think anyone can say whether or not the fence was erected for the purpose of preventing access. What I can definitely say, and will probably be more useful to you is the knowledge that all fences should be made crossable due to the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, whatever their purpose. That means there should be reasonable provision of crossing points and / or the type of fence that is easily crossable. If there isn't a reasonable provision of crossing points, you are within your rights to climb a fence / locked gate / dyke - choosing the most sturdy point - respectively fence post / hinge end / through stone. I am aware of a few fences around the Angus Glens that do not follow this, and are being dealt with by local Access Officer, and it is vital that if you find a fence with insufficient crossing points, please send a report to the relevant local Access Forum (based in the relevant Council and also contacts listed on http://www.mcofs.org.uk/access-reporting.asp and copy to myself so I can follow up. I have also planned an article for the next TSM on this very topic."

hebe


Hebe Carus- Access and Conservation Officer

"What hills are like the Ochil Hills?"

Apart from the rhythmic crunch of boots on hard snow, all was silent; the February sun had only a trickle of warmth. Our eyes were constantly drawn to the north by the snowy peaks of Ben Vorlich, Stuc a Chroin and the Ben Lawers group, but today we were happy to be here climbing the friendly familiar slopes of Innerdownie Hill.

The cairn was a cold and exposed place so we headed for the shelter a short distance from there, but it was completely filled with snow.
                                      

The drystane dyke, part of which can be seen, was built by a local man and his brother in the early 1890s.

The Shelter

 Constructing a small wooden hut inside, they spent two summers up here building or repairing all the walls running over the surrounding hillsides and once a week they would walk down to Dollar, at the foot of the southern slopes of the Ochils, for provisions. We didn't linger long since we intended to visit Tarmangie, the hill to the far left in the picture below, and enjoy the grand panorama to the north en route.

               Drystane dyke running from Innerdownie

I have a great affinity with the Ochils, a predominantly grassy range of hills running for about 45 km west to east and 13 km north to south and I climbed the highest, Ben Cleuch (721m) when 9 years old. Only Dumyat at the western end is craggy and I did my first rock climb there, Raeburn's Gully (of Harold fame) 6 years later. I am eternally grateful to the teacher who introduced me to climbing, by leading me up the route on as foul an evening as could be imagined.  Such a long and happy association with these hills makes it hard, therefore, to witness the thuggery now in progress preparing the way for 13 wind turbines on Burnfoot Hill; turbines which will be seen from every summit of the Ochils, completely ruin the view northwards from many of them, and destroy the feeling of tranquility.  But it's equally heartbreaking to see this happening on a masssive scale across the Scottish hills.
  

NW to Stuc a Chroin and Ben Vorlich                     

Happily I was not thinking these gloomy thoughts as we strode along the flat ridge, keeping to the hard snow for easy going, and noting that Glen Quey Reservoir, like the three others in these hills, was still frozen.

                                 Frozen Glen Quey Reservoir

Save for a solitary crow, birds and other wildlife were not to be seen though there were many faint tracks in the snow. We reached the top of Tarmangie in a biting northerly wind  ".....austere and pure".   

What hills are like the Ochil Hills?

- There's nane sae green tho' grander.

What rills are like the Ochil rills?

Nane, nane on earth that wander.

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