Gear reviews

Gear review: Hats

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Helen Webster

Whilst the urban myth that most of our body heat is lost through our head was debunked by scientists in the winter of 2008 (don’t let your kids see this), a warm hat remains an essential item of equipment for hillwalkers in Scotland all year round. Even in the height of summer the Cairngorm plateau can be a pretty inhospitable place; when the wind picks up and from October to April I’ll generally carry a spare hat in case of loss; a balaclava is a good option for the coldest weather. As with all items of outdoor equipment there are…

Gear review: Winter daypacks

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Phil Turner

In the first of a new series of reviews of outdoor clothing and equipment, Walkhighlands’ gear editor Phil Turner takes a look at rucsacks for the winter season. Warm jacket, spare hat, goggles, ice axe, crampons, flask of hot rum tea, spare gloves, bothy bag, snowshoes – it’s easy for a winter load to take on gargantuan proportions and swamp that lightweight mountain marathon pack that seemed cavernous in the summer. To accommodate this increased load I prefer a pack around the 40 litre mark – increasing to 45 or even 50l if I’m carrying group kit. In addition to…

REVIEW: A year in the life of the Cairngorms by Chris Townsend

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Helen Webster

A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF THE CAIRNGORMS is a photographic journey through the four seasons of the Cairngorms, from the pinewoods to the plateau as seen through the lens of Chris Townsend. Chris is a life-long outdoors enthusiast and long distance backpacker, and has lived on the fringes of this remarkable wild landscape for many years. He has vast experience of walking, skiing and camping out on these mountains in all seasons – there could be few who have come to know these hills so intimately. The result is a book with a wealth of photos that capture the…