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15th December 2006 Blackrock Cottage - Glen Coe Robert’s Last Munro Blackrock is always a special date in the club calendar, but this year held a much greater significance for me. On return from the Alps and after an ascent of Seana Bhraigh from the Naismith Hut, the decision was taken to attempt a completion of my remaining Munros in time for a Blackrock finale. To bag the remaining twenty or so necessitated a bit of effort and a large amount of petrol. To say it was a ‘good excuse’ to get out would be a gross understatement with 10 out of 12 weekends spent away in the hills at one point. Some excellent trips were had with folks dragged to all sort of far flung places including Sourlies Bothy in Knoydart (thanks Dave), the Fannichs, Loch Ossian, Glen Affric (thanks Mike), Loch Quoich (thanks Sam), Loch Fyne (thanks Colin), Glen Etive and Glen Shiel. On one long weekend in the north-west we managed 4 days on the trot and on another, three consecutive days were spent at Loch Quoich, Tyndrum and Glen Nevis and all that from a starting point in Pitlochry!. It all came good in the end and despite only bagging Sgurr na Sgine, my second last Munro, the weekend before, the scene was set for Ben Sgulaird on the Saturday of Blackrock. As usual, folks turned up in dribs and drabs with Mike somehow making it up (and back) without any brakes on his car!! The decision to purchase two barrels of ale from the Harbour Bar turned Friday night into a rather liquid affair and of course, a few sore heads (especially mine) were apparent on the Saturday morning. A big thank you goes to Dave Simpson for both transporting the kegs to the hut on the Tuesday beforehand and setting up and administering a most excellent ‘wee pub’ in the kitchen. The weather in Glen Coe was wild on the Saturday and this put a few folks off from driving round to Ben Sgulaird. Not to be deterred, us hardy soles ventured forth and were thankful for an improvement in weather the further west one went. In the end; Mike, Dave, Colin, Gav, Ally, Sandy, Dave Simpson, Neil, Ronnie and Keith did the proper thing and accompanied me on the hill. It turned out to be a challenging day with wild weather at times. With all the ups and downs required to get to the summit we also realised why the hill is ‘affectionately’ known by locals as “the bastard”! Coincidentally this was to be Ally’s first Munro. Of course, there was much “you can maybe climb 7a but…” and “a bit different from Alien Rock and Costa Blanca… etc etc”. In the end I think he enjoyed himself. What an occasion to start with though! The summit was a strange experience and I was suddenly hit by a barrage of memories and emotions. I didn’t really want to touch the cairn. All the days out over the years came flooding back. The hills. The battles. The friends, some of whom no longer with us. The Champagne helped sort me out in the short term but given that it was almost dark and ‘blowing a hoolie’ we didn’t stay too long on the summit. The chosen descent however, turned out to be a fairly nasty undertaking… Anne, Mary, Shiela, John and Dan had decided to come round and walk to the Clachaig via Glen Creran, where we all met up for a pint on the way back to the hut. By this time, Pete, Calum, John K, Lorna and Jacqui had also turned up after doing various things on the way up. In the end, 21 people attended the meet and as usual, the Saturday night party was enjoyed by all. As the beer flowed, the usual shenanigans were undertaken. Song sheets were passed around, cans of beer were balanced on Colin’s head, Dave Simpson drooled on his jumper and apparently someone was even seen playing the bagpipes… Sunday dawned fine but to my knowledge only John (surprise, surprise…) and Colin took advantage of it. Fortunately for them, they had the advantage of staying up for a further night. Kat turned up with her dog and all was going well until both the retiring and incoming custodians turned up and firmly banished the dog to the car! In the end, Kat took the decision to drive home – rather pissed off by it all I’d imagine. Colin did explain why he didn’t accompany her on the long and winding road. Apparently the barrel of ‘Cauld Turkey’ wasn’t yet finished ! A final mention should be made of Lorna’s troubles (who else!) at the Ice Factor on Sunday. That most placid of canine creatures, Tara, had been left in the car whilst Lorna and Jacqui did battle at the Ice Factor. On returning to her car, Lorna was dismayed to find that Tara had decided to eat most of its contents, accounting for £200 of damage in the process. On storming back to the centre, Lorna was so upset that Jacqui had thought the dog to have died. Apparently, by the time Lorna was finished with it, this wasn’t too far from the truth… Perhaps Lorna had simply forgotten to turn off the Take That Greatest Hits CD and had driven the poor mutt to distraction. Poor Tara I’d say ! Again, I’d like to say a big thanks to all those good friends who made the effort to be there; whether that be on the hill or at the party afterwards. Also a special thanks to those (especially Mike) who accompanied me (most weekends) on my final hills in the run up to the Blackrock. Anyone for a second round ? RM
Robert on his last Munro, Ben Sgulaird
The hardy group (can you see who's who ?)
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