Hello folks. How is everyone? I was (a bit) active on the forum earlier in the year when myself and Miss CofA were busily roaming the munros. Unfortunately Miss CofA (or 'H' - which is easier to type) had knee pain problems which required a lay off from hill walking and we took to cycling instead. Six months on and after some physio and no doubt some good knee strengthening from the biking, H agreed to accompany me on my regular jaunt around Arthurs Seat and Salisbury Crags (we live very close to Holyrood Park). Everything was okay so I tentatively suggested maybe, just maybe having a little wander up slightly bigger hill. So we did. We returned to where we got started again the last time.
Last January, unfit and after a lengthy period (years) away from hillwalking on what seemed at the time to be an ambitious/foolish endeavour, we drove up to Drummochter and dragged ourselves up Geal Charn to collapse at the summit in cloud and gale. That started something. (Although it wasn't the sport of 'arse skiing' that H pioneered on the descent). We weren't put off and almost every weekend after that we were up on the hills until H's knee problem manifested.
So the weekend before last we were back to Drummochter to ease in with another easy munro in the SW range. We both felt really good to be back on the mountains again, in what has been after all, the best outdoor year despite injuries and set backs. Yesterday we were yet again back up to Drummochter (still taking it easy for a while) climbing A' Mharconaich and rounding things off nicely by coming back over Geal Charn.
However, this wasn't my first munro since H's injury.
(Here follows my mini walk/push/carry/uphill grind - downhill plunge report).
Last month, as I had been plotting for ages I finally got up a munro - Broad Cairn with my bike. It would be innacurate of me to say that I biked it. It was that day after the dry and warm conditions of the indian summer when temperatures sunk to well below freezing and upper Glen Clova was covered in ice. Biking was more than a little tricky and I soon discovered that what looks rideable on a map (or in Kenny Wilson's book for those are familiar with it) might not be on the ground. In fact, futher up as I clambered over boulders trying to balance the bike on my shoulder I thought the whole venture was one the most stupid things I'd attempted. That appraisal changed when we began the descent and headed down to Loch Muick and more so on the incredible Capel Mounth descent back to Glen Clova. It'll be a while (well, probably spring) before I bike another munro but there are a few more that are do-able.
That was a rather lengthy post. Maybe it's because I've been away from here too long. Well done if you stuck with it.
