Innholdsfortegnelse for Spring 2021 i The Great Outdoors

AFTER DEVOTING most of his life to protecting and promoting access to Scotland’s wilderness, Dave Morris has won the Scottish Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture. From the Lurchers Gully enquiry in the 1980s to masterminding the whole campaign for access in Scotland before the publication of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, the former Ramblers Scotland director has been a stalwart environmental and access campaigner. His painstaking work over many years enabled Scotland to enjoy the world-leading access legislation that so many benefit from today. The award has been presented every year by the Fort William Mountain Festival since 2008. Former The Great Outdoors Editor Cameron McNeish (the 2018 recipient of the award) described Dave Morris as “the closest thing we have to a John Muir figure… a wild-country…

IT STARTS WITH THE SNOWDROPS and the sense those long winter nights are getting shorter. You forget your gloves, but find a bit of March sunshine is enough to keep your hands warm even before the first daffodil trumpets the arrival of spring. Those first signs of renewal bring with them optimism, anticipation and dreams. Every year we look forward to the release spring offers, but this year it seems all the more important. It is time to turn some dreams into reality and, for us, that means a backpacking trip (Covid restrictions permitting, of course!) Every plan needs a dream at its core – a kernel of ambition that will drive you through the inevitable tricky bits. It might be a long-distance trail guidebook, a TGO Challenger’s blog, or…

CONTENT SPONSORED BY HERE NICOLA ROUNDS UP some of the most impressive and memorable places she encountered on her personal pilgrimage – and shares them for you to enjoy with the help of the komoot app. One of the most enjoyable things about any long-distance walk is the way you uncover gems along the way: fascinating landmarks, natural wonders, expansive viewpoints and hidden surprises. Here I’ve rounded up 10 of the best discoveries on my personal pilgrimage across the north of England. All of these are marked as ‘Highlights’ on komoot, an app that lets you find, plan and share adventures by tapping into community knowledge and recommendations – then bring your journey to life with its easy route planner. 1. Jacob’s Ladder, Peak District In the Bible Jacob’s Ladder…

1. Ben Nevis: An unusual approach to the CMD Arête START/FINISH: End of Glen Nevis Road (GR: NN168691) Distance: 14km (8.6 miles) Ascent: 1360m (4461 feet) Time: 7-10 hours Park at the road end for Glen Nevis and walk up to the spectacular Steall Falls. Continue up the River Nevis for another kilometre then strike N alongside the Allt Coire Guibhsachan. Follow it to the col then head W to Carn Mor Dearg. Follow the Carn Mor Dearg Arête to Ben Nevis. Return down the steep, blocky slopes you’ve just come up to the head of Coire Leis, then head S towards Meall Cumhann. From the col descend to the Nevis Gorge path and back to the car park. 2. Creag Meagaidh: A long way, but worth it START/FINISH: Parking…

THE LAST 12 MONTHS have seen more and more people exploring the great outdoors from their doorsteps – and that’s been amazing to see. But most people have been limited to their towns or cities. Once restrictions ease, getting out into the countryside will really increase your enjoyment of walking. Embracing expansive views from a hilltop will give you a sense of freedom and help you escape the complexities and stresses of modern life by resetting the mind. Perhaps you’ve been away from the hills for so long, you’ve completely forgotten what to pack or wear? Or maybe – after discovering a love for local routes during the pandemic – you’re eager to go hillwalking for the first time? Either way, this expert advice will help you stay safe and…

Two new jackets from Fjällräven The High Coast Hydratic Jacket (right) is a new lightweight 2.5-layer waterproof top made of an eco-friendly recycled polyamide with a fluorocarbon-free polyurethane coating. The jacket has an adjustable hood and side vents, and comes in men’s and women’s sizes. It weighs 281g (size small) and costs £230. Also unveiled is the shirt-style Vardag Jacket, made from durable G-1000 fabric: 65% recycled polyester/35% organic cotton. The Vardag has patch pockets and metal buttons. It weighs 745g (size M) and costs £185. Men’s and women’s sizes are available. fjallraven.com Founder Wayne Edy back in charge of Inov-8 Wayne Edy, who founded Inov-8 in 2003, has bought the company back after it was sold to Descente in 2015. Since taking back charge he has been spearheading the…

1 Start/Finish Public road end by Loch Moraig GR: NN905671 A short distance beyond the parking area, leave the road that turns N to Monzie Farm and take the track through a gate, then climb E onto the moors below Beinn a’ Ghlo. 2 Ignore the track that branches off to the R, and continue E on a well-made path, easily navigable by mountain bike. 3 Bear R on a rougher path down to the Allt Girnaig. Ford the burn and climb the hillside opposite, bearing NE to reach the high ground above Allt Loch Valigan. Continue broadly E, keeping to the higher ground N of Loch Valigan towards the obvious heathery bulk of Ben Vuirich, where a steeper but straight-forward climb leads to the flat summit crowned by a trig point (903m).…

1 Start/Finish Layby at St Peter’s Church, Martindale GR: NY435192 Opposite the church, take a pathless ‘public footpath’ line contouring W to pass Hallin Bank, then slant down field to cross Sandwick Beck to a lane. 2 Head NW 100m, fork L on faint path, then turn uphill SE on steep path. It follows level ridge, then bypasses L of High Dodd to col with sheepfold. 3 In 100m, faint path contours R to rocky knoll The Knight. Head S then SE to trig point on Place Fell. 4 Large path down S to Boredale Hause. Ahead across stream to path up in little hollow, and through col. At junction top of Dubhow Beck, fork R for small path along top of steep slope, bending L to Angle Tarn. 5 Return on higher…

Faraz Shibli Faraz is a walker, writer and lawyer. Born and raised in Scotland, many of his adventures have been abroad: leading camels across the Mongolian Gobi Desert (see his feature on p56), climbing the Kyrgyz Tien Shan mountains and cycling around Laos and Thailand. During lockdown, however, he has been discovering local walks in Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, as well as planning a big trip walking and wild camping around the Scottish Highlands later this year. Craig Weldon Thanks to the council’s core paths network, author and regular TGO contributor Craig has found new ways to explore his Midlothian patch in lockdown. He’s been up early for snowy sunrises, gone on snowdrop hunts, enjoyed moonlit walks, and undertaken muddy runs in the woods tracking deer and badger trails. In any…

“We stepped on to the open mountainside at 7.15pm and came face to face with a cloud-racked, starry sky. The ring of low crags under the summit, the ground beneath our feet, and all the rocks around were buried deep in fogcrystals. Although night had fallen, yet up there so close to the sky there was not true darkness. A mysterious twilight, like that of an old chapel at vespers, pervaded these highest slopes of the Buachaille. We stood at the everlasting gates, and as so often happens at the close of a great climb, a profound stillness came upon my mind, and paradoxically, the silence was song and the diversity of things vanished. The mountains and the world and I were one.” W.H. Murray, Mountaineering in Scotland (1947) THAT…

Cover up: Use a high-factor sun cream, protect your lips and cover as much of your body in loose clothing as possible to avoid sunburn and sunstroke, including your head, arms and legs. Don’t remove them to cool down – you’ll speed up dehydration. Invest in good sunglasses with full UV protection. You can use thin gloves to protect your hands. Stay cool and hydrated: limit your time under the sun, finding shade wherever possible. Try to limit intense activities during the middle of the day, making use of mornings and evenings. Drink lots of water regularly. If you’re running low, take small sips rather than big swigs, move slowly (try not to break into a sweat) and keep your mouth closed or covered to limit dehydration. Be prepared for…

COURSES Plas y Brenin (pyb.co.uk), the National Outdoor Centre in Snowdonia, runs a series of residential courses to help beginners get mountain-confident, including ‘Hill skills – 2 day’ (£228) and ‘Navigation skills for hill and mountains walkers – 2 day’ (£327). Alternatively, simply Google for local instructors running navigation or hill skill courses in your area. ONLINE RESOURCES Our website (tgomagazine.co.uk/skills) has a wealth of information and advice from a range of experts. The British Mountaineering Council’s (BMC) website has an excellent section dedicated to hillwalking beginners (thebmc.co.uk/how-to-start-hill-walking), including two free PDF booklets entitled New Hill Walkers and Safety on the Mountains. BOOKS/DVDS Two useful resources include the BMC’s Hill Walking Essentials DVD (available at shop.thebmc.co.uk) and the book Hillwalking: The Official Handbook of the Mountain Training Walking Schemes by…

In February, news broke that the remotest pub in mainland Britain – the Old Forge in Inverie on the Knoydart peninsula – is going up for sale for £425,000. What’s more, local residents are hoping to bring it into community ownership. Knoydart’s reputation for isolation and challenging terrain is legendary, but under the current ownership the pub has received mixed reviews. If the local bid is successful, it would follow on from another successful community buyout 22 years ago by the Knoydart Foundation. We take a look at what it has achieved since… In 1999, the Knoydart Foundation purchased 17,500 acres of estate land on the peninsula for £750,000. It has since planted 500,000 trees in Knoydart The only way of reaching Inverie- and its pub-is by walking 18 miles…

Share your views, your experiences and your favourite photos tgo.ed@kelsey.co.uk Postal address The Editor, The Great Outdoors, Kelsey Publishing Ltd, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Kent ME18 6AL. Please include a phone number and postal address. More people getting outdoors is a good thing I feel there is a melancholy-for a past that in all probability never even existed-among the old guard like Roger (Smith) and Andrew (Hardy) and along with it a regret that their once select world of hillwalking has moved from the margins to the mainstream. Andrew’s letter (April TGO) talks of meeting ‘like-minded individuals and groups with a genuine love of the hills’. Well Andrew, is the ever-growing popularity of people being drawn the outdoors such a dreadful prospect? Look, this isn’t personal, but…

SPONSORED BY “I WANT TO ENCOURAGE in others the ambition to devise with the aid of maps their own cross-country marathons and not be merely followers of other people’s routes: there is no end to the possibilities of originality and initiative.” So wrote Alfred Wainwright in 1972 in his pictorial guide A Coast to Coast Walk – and almost half a century later I find myself striving for that same sense of individuality. This is more than just a walk; more than just miles and days and camps; more than the sum of its parts. It’s something personal, intimate and intangible. It’s a pilgrimage – my long walk home. I think about Richard, the backpacker in Alex Garland’s The Beach, who laments “I just feel like everyone tries to do…

DITCH THE GUIDEBOOK FOR A MAP The gateway to doing hills wrong is through OS Landranger and Explorer series maps. Without consulting a guidebook or the Internet, your imagination is free to roam over the landscape. Ridges, tarns, gorges, pockets of forest, interesting wrinkles in the terrain can all be included in your route. GET INSPIRED BY NAMES Names can inspire your route too. Who wouldn’t want to visit a place called Loch Brandy? Hell Gill? Or, in a more juvenile strain, Great Cockup fell? SEEK OUT NATURAL WONDERS Did you know that the River Nidd bursts fully formed from the ground at Nidd Heads at Lofthouse, having disappeared into a pothole upstream? Or that, in the Galloway Hills, there’s a lake within an island within a lake? Whose interest…

START/FINISH Glenfinnan GR: NM905808 to Cluanie Inn, Glen Shiel GR: NH076117 Distance 72km/44.7 miles Ascent 2950m/9679ft Time: 4-6 days Maps: OS Landranger 1:50,000 sheet 40 (Mallaig & Glenfinnan) and OS Landranger 1:50,000 sheet 33 (Loch Alsh, Glen Shiel & Loch Hourn). Harvey’s British Mountain Map for Knoydart, Kintail & Glen Affric covers most of the route but lacks coverage for the first day. Time of year: Any time of year possible. This route is arguably at its best in spring or autumn at either end of the midge season. Summits: None, although the route takes you within easy striking distance of Sgurr nan Coireachan (953m / 3127ft), and also potentially Garbh Chioch Mhor (1013m / 3323ft) and Sgurr na Ciche (1040m / 3412ft) via an alternative detour. Route notes: This…

CONTENT SPONSORED BY PART TWO: HOW TO PITCH TENTS IN COLD AND HOSTILE WEATHER TENTS, as opposed to lighter options like tarps or bivvies, really come into their own – and justify the effort of carrying them – when the weather turns stormy. The way you pitch a tent is often key to how secure it will feel. It can be very comforting to shelter in the wilds within a tent you know is sturdy while rain, wind or snow whirl outside. Conversely, being inside a poorly pitched tent that seems at risk of collapsing can be a very unnerving experience and guarantees a poor night’s sleep. To maximise a tent’s storm-worthiness there are a number of things you can do. The first thing you should ensure is that you…

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The geat Outdoors BEST BUY Osprey Talon Pro £175 1.12kg (L/XL) light, stable, water-resistant zips, plenty of pockets quite expensive Capacity: 30 litres Materials: 100D Robic Back system: adjustable, internal frame, injection moulded panel Back length: 54cm (size L/XL) Hipbelt: padded Pockets: stretch mesh front, 2 stretch mesh side, 2 hipbelt, zipped lid, zipped inner, 2 mesh shoulder strap Features: side compression straps, ice axe & walking pole loops, helmet attachment Sizes: 2 men, 2 women (Tempest Pro) Osprey has updated its Talon and Tempest day packs, adding some more technical versions, which have the prefix Pro. Since last autumn I’ve been trying the Talon Pro 30. It has a ziparound top and plenty of pockets. The fabric is a light but tough Robic nylon with heavy-duty reinforcements on the…

Our walks this month 1 Central Highlands Ben Vuirich2 Southern Highlands Beinn Mhor & Beinn Bheag3 Lake District Boredale Horseshoe4 Snowdonia Aran Benllyn & Aran Fawddwy5 Devon Jurassic Coast CONTRIBUTORS…

1 Start/Finish Benmore Botanic Garden car park GR: NS140857 Cross bridge at W of car park and turn N onto track, which follows shoreline for 7km to Bernice. 2 After passing entrance to house, branch off W on track heading up Bernice Glen. 3 Leave track at high point as it starts to swing L, and follow faint path up by stream and fence to bealach. 4 Head N, skirting round rocky top by grassy ramp and then to E of Meall Breac and continue N to Beinn Bheag summit (618m). 5 Retrace your steps to bealach and climb S and SW to Beinn Mhor, 741m. 6 Drop S to Capull Clioche and go SE over series of tops to A’ Chruach, then S to treeline. 7 Pick up path through trees then…

1 Start/Finish Car park at Pont y Pandy in Llanuwchllyn, GR: SH879297 Cross road from car park and take gate marked Crib yr Aran. Walk up lane to cattle grid and go R at bridleway (signed Aran ridge path). Follow grass track up field to R-hand gate, ignore ladder stile and proceed to next gate. Continue on grass track to gate in wall and Open Access land; with fence on R continue to next wall and take stile on L. 2 Keep ahead up ridge, over three ladder stiles, and climb to another ladder stile, with crags and boulders ahead and occasional marker posts. Climb steep slope after large cairn and carry on to another cairn just before a wall crosses the ridge by summit of Aran Benllyn. 3 Drop down slightly…

1 Start Beer Cross bus stop, Beer GR: SY228894 From bus stop bear L past Beer Village Stores down Fore Street to coast. Lane goes right down to beach, but bear R just before it, passing Anchor Inn on R. Follow this road, Common Lane, uphill. Fork L at Coast Path fingerpost along paved path, passing below caravan site. Route is now very straightforward, following well waymarked Coast Path, which leads to Beer Head, then descends to continue along undercliff path. Route goes through a caravan park at other end, then descends grassy slope to Branscombe Mouth. 2 Continue uphill, passing inland of former coastguard cottages to enter woodland. Once out of trees, fine walking along fairly level grassy cliff top, but with a couple of quite deep/steep valleys on the way,…