Munros Two Hundred and Sixty One to Sixty Four

[Chris Henshall]

Friday, 31st. May, 2024:
After a week in the hills and with Alex and Stefan slowed by some form of food poisoning, only Chalky and I were fit to leave Ullapool reasonably early and begin our journey south - stopping first at Balsporran Cottages on the A9 to the south of Dalwhinnie. Arriving there some time after midday, we completed a pretty routine round of the four Munros to the east of Loch Ericht in better weather than we had enjoyed on the west coast. Apart from some extensive views from Beinn Udlamain as far as the Black Mount and Ben More to the south west, the only real points of note were a rather large ceramic dish / pipe on the bealach between Beinn Udlamain and Sgàirneach Mhòr and the intensive nature of the grouse rearing on the northern slopes of the latter hill - as ever, dressed up as wildlife conservation.
The last two and a bit miles back alongside the A9 didn't make for an especially fine end to the day but we got down in good time and checked into the excellent Old School Hostel in Dalwhinnie where we were surprised to meet Alex and Stefan, recovering from a bout of food poisoning but still too delicate to travel to their homes. They were, understandably, keeping pretty quiet and it was left to Chalky and me to mark the end of our trip with a terrific curry in Kingussie's Royal Tandoori - superb Chicken Madras - before our long drive back to the Kent lowlands on the following day.

Section Five of (the 1974 edition of) Munro's Tables complete (31.05.2024.)

[The English Alpinist]

I like the 'countdown' element in your titles. Very dramatic. I think I'll use the idea if I ever get that close to compleation! Also it's nice to know those Munros around there are 'routine', having just come back from the ones west of Ericht (Alder and co) which were not an easy access.

[Chris Henshall]

Many thanks EA,
Not sure that the countdown (or, perhaps more accurately, count up) is adding much drama - the numbers simply arose as a function of me keeping track of the hills I've climbed. Ironically and all being well, the count will finish on 291 (rather than 282) as, when I started in 1975, Munro's Tables were different and I'm aiming to climb the all the demotions as well as the promotions since that time. Oddest of these is probably Beinn an Lochain in Arrochar which Munro included in his tables but which now has a height of only 901 metres; the OS maps of his time were not always surveyed very accurately!