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Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Tips for a Corbett Bagger!


Postby IamAJMiller » Thu Aug 04, 2022 2:41 pm

Hi there, when I started hillwalking 13 years ago there are a few things I wish I'd listened to:

"Don't leave the far away Munros 'til last" & "Do your Corbetts at the same time as your Munros!"

Now that I've accepted my fate and I'm going to start my Corbetts properly, what advice would you give? As is customary with this forum, it can be sarcastic or serious! :D
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby prog99 » Thu Aug 04, 2022 3:05 pm

Get used to the solitude.
Climb the nearby grahams :D
Climb the nearby Donald’s and tops :D :D
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby Moriarty » Thu Aug 04, 2022 6:03 pm

"Don't leave the far away Corbetts 'til last" & "Do your Grahams at the same time as your Corbetts!"

What other advice did you ignore before? Probably do the same substitutions as above. :wink:
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby simon-b » Thu Aug 04, 2022 7:22 pm

This is a local knowledge tip I picked up in Sutherland. On pathless Corbetts, stick to recognised routes (eg SMC guide) during the stalking season. Even better if you get the OK from estates, of course.
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby prog99 » Thu Aug 04, 2022 7:58 pm

simon-b wrote:This is a local knowledge tip I picked up in Sutherland. On pathless Corbetts, stick to recognised routes (eg SMC guide) during the stalking season. Even better if you get the OK from estates, of course.

Good advice. We walked right past an in progress stalk once when on a right of way that was the voie normale for one of the north west corbetts. Stalking party weren't bothered at all.
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby WalkWithWallace » Thu Aug 04, 2022 8:18 pm

Trekking poles for the pathless vegetation. :shock:
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby weaselmaster » Thu Aug 04, 2022 9:53 pm

The Corbetts have better paths now than a few years ago, so it’s relatively easy to access most of them. As others have said, don’t miss out nearby Grahams. You never know….
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby IamAJMiller » Thu Aug 04, 2022 10:10 pm

simon-b wrote:This is a local knowledge tip I picked up in Sutherland. On pathless Corbetts, stick to recognised routes (eg SMC guide) during the stalking season. Even better if you get the OK from estates, of course.


That's very good advice, I really got out of the habit of checking stalking on Munros routes. Makes sense to start doing it again for these hills!
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby IamAJMiller » Thu Aug 04, 2022 10:18 pm

With regards to doing my Grahams at the same time, I think I'm still in denial about doing this list........just as I was when I set out on my Munros! :lol: Seems like such a long way away, will I really want to start them when/if I finish my Corbetts?! And do I already know the answer to this question?!
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby prog99 » Thu Aug 04, 2022 10:46 pm

IamAJMiller wrote:With regards to doing my Grahams at the same time, I think I'm still in denial about doing this list........just as I was when I set out on my Munros! :lol: Seems like such a long way away, will I really want to start them when/if I finish my Corbetts?! And do I already know the answer to this question?!

We often added them on to extend the day a bit.
With the donalds that were adjacent to a corbett though I decided there was no way I was going back without ticking off every heathery bump. Never intended on the donalds initially but was glad of those heathery bump ticks.The Merrick, Cairnsmore of Carsphairn, Corserine & Shalloch on Minnoch all lend themselves well to this.
You'll thank me for it later when you realise you don't have to do an awkward approach to a heathery bump in years to come!
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby rockhopper » Fri Aug 05, 2022 12:32 pm

Like others, I tended to add appropriate Corbetts on to Munro days. I also added on some Grahams to both esp when they were en route. However, there were days when I bypassed a Graham or two, e.g. because of bad weather or just couldn't be bothered, as I never planned to finish the Grahams....may come to regret those decisions :roll:
As to the Corbetts, while there are some notable multiples, you'll find them harder to link up with many more singles than for the Munros. Took me about 25% more hill days for the Corbetts than Munros. Accept that you're likely to need many more away overnight trips unless you live near them or are happy to have long drives for a single hill. I found that planning Corbetts groups in an Excel workbook helped; building in distance and ascent calcs from my own experience allowed me to plan multiple single hills per day of a trip with driving in between.
Above all, they can be more challenging, frequently steeper and more widely dispersed than the Munros but arguably more enjoyable. Best wishes. :)
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby WalkWithWallace » Fri Aug 05, 2022 1:26 pm

I've got 60 Corbetts to go and worked out its still 47 individual hikes, that includes pairing some up with a drive in between.

Certainly seen very little on the way of paths on most of them outwith the typical honeypot Corbetts. :?
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby weaselmaster » Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:04 pm

One thing I'd add is to my earlier comment would be to make bigger routes involving multiple Corbetts, esp in places where they're hard to get to anyway, like the Fisherfields, Glen Dessarry etc - I don't know whether you are a fan of taking a tent for overnighters, but it will give you way more range. Plus you get to make up interesting routes.
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby Sgurr » Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:35 pm

Buy Manny Gorman's book on his continuous run. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Corbett-Round-Continuous-Traverse-Mountains/dp/0992771609. It will give you a good idea of what can be combined....and probably what can't unless you are going to run them too. ....and we appear in it as "a lovely old couple". Don't see how he could tell if we were or not, as he ran past so fast. We shouted after him and he shouted back "I can smell the beer." The Auch Five. Took him about 4.5 hours and us 14.
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Re: Tips for a Corbett Bagger!

Postby iain_atkinson_1986 » Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:37 pm

Go west whenever the weather is decent. There are a lot more trips down Glens Quoich, Dessary and various other godawful single-track roads with the Corbetts than with the Munros. Then you have the island Corbetts to think about. I've tried to stick to this but still managed to burn through the east Corbetts due to better weather and a couple of years of COVID restrictions and subsequent tourist boom making travel to and accommodation on the islands more problematic than normal.

As mentioned above, stalking and in some places driven grouse shoots are more of a consideration. Some estates I've found really accommodating and others clearly just don't want plebs walking on their land. Some hills are best done away from those times for that reason.
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