Monday 22 February 2010

Scotland for Winter 2010

Glenshee from Glas Maol


Winter skills practice (with a sunbathing twist)

For those of us fortunate enough to have been outdoors in Scotland this weekend, it was a memorable experience. I was with a group from Angus College 'Winter Upward Bound' course and setting off on Saturday morning could hardly believe our good luck. Destination was Glas Maol, Glenshee. Sunglasses were dusted off and firmly in position....not missing this chance to be out for an airing.
Strangely, this was my third trip to the same munro in as many weeks, each time with a different winter skills group. However thanks to the massive mood swings and vagaries of Scottish weather, each weekend has felt like an entirely different venue so no chance of boredom creeping in...
This weekend in comparison to the previous two was like a great celebration of Scottish winter mountain at its best, I'm sure there was fanfare to be heard echoing round the glen as we crunched up the hill. We stopped often, to admire the views and grin at each other like idiots.. Oh the joy of getting great weather when you don't expect it!
On the munro top the experience just got better (note Ian in his T- shirt) There was none of the usual shivering and battling elements, no-one wanted to leave. The view was incredible and mountain leader Mike spent ages pointing out and naming munros for miles around in all directions. We were on top o' the world. Eventually we packed up and began our descent, skipping as much as our crampons would allow, bonded by our enjoyment of a perfect day on a Scottish mountain.


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