Torridon 1

Friday 19th August

I arrived yesterday at the Caravan Club site at Kinlochewe.

I have a good EE phone signal but no wifi. The pub a few hundred yards away has wifi but for a reason unknown has it switched off between 6:00pm and 9pm, and I am self contained here and have no reason to go to the pub so posting on here and comments on other blogs will be intermittent at best.

Today I climbed Beinn a Mhuinidh NH 032 660 (Marilyn) from the car park at Incheril. From leaving the Loch Maree footpath there were no paths. First a short climb through chest high bracken then continuing very steep on rough ground up to the rim. After that endless undulations and rough going to the summit - three hours, return two and a half hours. The views of the Torridons, Slioch and further north to An Teallach were overwhelming, and I do not use that word lightly. It is a while since I have been in the Highlands and I was taken aback by the scale of things. I had an unrealistic feeling knowing that I had climbed many of the peaks I could see, that is the ones that are Munros, and I found it difficult to accept that I had the energy and motivation to press on and complete them all, most of them within a short period of time when I was in my sixties. It was pleasing to find that I can still do the odd hill like this at age 76, and I was once again uplifted with that Scottish Highlands magic tonic the weather was perfect, and although tough this was a little classic - no Marilyn pushover.

Back at the caravan midges were at about 8 out of 10, and it had started to rain heavily. I wanted a shower, but knew I would be eaten alive on the way back from the CC Club heated toilet block, so I used the one in my caravan which I rarely do. It works fine. Time now for a sundowner and catch up on the Olympics.

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What about the new verb: to medal? It has come under some criticism, but language is a living thing continually developing, and I like this new addition.

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