Blog Posts in Category: Locations

Ski Touring in Austria

Alastair BegleyAustria, Ski Touring Short Link

After first ski touring four years ago in Scotland I decided that I wanted to go to the alps. This year it finally happened thanks to now having a friend who lives in Münich. The week could not really have been any better, as there was plenty of fresh snow in the weeks running up to my arrival and then an excellent stable, sunny and cold forecast for the week of my trip. Combined with this the air remained extremely clear so we had brilliant views into the distance in every direction. On the first day we headed to Hochfügen so that I could remind myself how to ski and it turned out to be a great day with quiet pistes, excellent snow and plenty of sun. We did get a bit carried away and managed to ski 37km downhill with 800m of descent. The next day we headed over to Küthai for two days of day touring as a more gentle introduction before we headed up into the mountains. Schafzöllen Monday was our only day of bad weather, but as the forecast improved we decided to head out for. Read the full article…

Glen Strathfarrar Munros

Alastair BegleyScotland, Walking Short Link

Having joined Mountaineering Scotland specifically so that we could get access to the Glen Strathfarrar Munros it was great to get the conditions to enjoy this classic remote walk on such a stunning day. We woke up to a hard frost and a cold van due to an unexpectedly clear morning. We drove up the Glen as early as we were allowed to, and it was a beautiful morning as the sun was rising over the mountains. We dropped a bike at the end of the circuit to enable a 6km cycle back down the road to the van, rather than having to walk down the road. The ascent was very warm in the morning sun and out of the wind, but we soon climbed up into the wind. The views throughout the day were fantastic and we could see massive amount of Scotland. To the north we could see Ben Wyvis, Beinn Dearg, the Fannichs, the Fisherfield, Torridon. To the south we could see the Cuillin Ridge, the Affric hills, the Mullardoch hills, Ben Nevis, Aonach Mor, Creag Meagaidh and over to the Cairngorms. The walking along the ridge. Read the full article…

Cùl Mòr

Alastair BegleyScotland, Walking Short Link

After flying up to Inverness on Friday afternoon we headed over to near Ullapool with a plan to climb some of the Fannichs the next day. Unfortunately after driving west the forecast somewhat deteriorated as the wind got stronger and the amount of precipitation increased. Due to this we had a lie in in the morning and headed into Ullapool for breakfast. We decided to head slightly further north to the fine Corbett of Cùl Mòr which is an isolated hill in the Assynt Mountains with fantastic views in every direction. The ascent was fairly windy at times, but the views to the north were spectacular which made the ascent interesting. After we got to the col between the two summits we were greeted with a fantastic view towards Stac Pollaidh and the Achiltibuie peninsula. As we made the final ascent to the summit the wind increased and made walking extremely arduous, I was very glad to only be spending a short period in the full force of the wind! I was hoping to get fantastic views on the descent of Suilven, Quinag and Canisp in the afternoon sun, however. Read the full article…

High Raise from Grasmere

Alastair BegleyLake District, Walking Short Link

Due to a short walk on Saturday we planned a long walk on the Sunday due to a better forecast. We decided on a circuit up to High Raise from Grasmere, which turned out to be an amazing walk as the views were constantly changing in every direction. We started up Castle How and Blea Rigg which gave us excellent views of Wetherlam and the mountains around Langdale valley. It was great to look down Langdale from above, although it was a shame that the light was very challenging photographically. As we climbed up our views over Stickle Tarn and Pavey Ark improved until we got to the summit of Sergeant Man. At this point we had views over to Helvellyn, Fairfield, Crinkle Craggs and Bow Fell. After the short walk over to High Raise we then had views to the north up towards Skiddaw and Borrowdale. The descent then took us down into a beautiful glacial valley and then along a final ridge as the sun light was fading. The final ridge did go on a bit with plenty of undulation, and unfortunately we got soaked in the last. Read the full article…

A Windy Wetherlam

Alastair BegleyLake District, Walking Short Link

Due to a very windy forecast we elected to have a short walk on Saturday which enabled us to have a lie in and then head up to Wetherlam after enjoying brunch in Coniston. We walked through the Coppermines and up to Levers Water. The cloud base was hovering around the summits during this walk which gave us some lovely views, however the light was very challenging for photography. Unfortunately the weather closed in as we approached the col before the final ridge up to the summit. After a quick summit selfie in the strong winds we made a hasty descent back down the other side of the mountain. As we dropped below the cloud base we have fantastic views over Coniston Water and the southern Lake District.

Carnedd Llewelyn from Llyn Eigiau

Alastair BegleyNorth Wales, Walking Short Link

After a very warm January we were not expecting there to be snow on the mid January Avon Mountaineering Club’s trip to North Wales. However the winter seems to have just about started and we enjoyed a nice snowy walk in the Carneddau. The weather forecast was fairly mixed with one forecast suggesting that west was best and the other suggesting that east was best. Due to this we decided to go north in the hope we would get the best of what was available. The weather during the day was fine, it was cool and dry without much wind, but there was cloud above 600m all day which meant that we didn’t get any views which was a bit of a shame. We decided to walk up Carnedd Llewelyn from the northeast from Cwm Eigiau. Our plan was the walk up to Bwlch Eryl Farchog before heading to the summit having found a route from trail magazine which recommended it. However this didn’t look very probably from the bottom, and looked even less probable from the start of the steep bit. Due to this we retraced our steps and. Read the full article…

Autumn in North Wales

Alastair BegleyLandscape, North Wales Short Link

I headed up to North Wales with the Avon Mountaineering Club for the autumn north wales trip, a trip which often has really good weather. Unfortunately this year it was not to be and the weather was awful. We made the most of this by exploring the slate quarries in Saturday morning in between the rain, and on Sunday we went for a low level walk around Bedgellert. It was great to photography some of the autumnal colours with the moody clouds due to the poor weather.

Three days in the Lairig Ghru

Alastair BegleyScotland, Walking Short Link

We had planned an Autumn trip up to Scotland with the hope that we would get an Indian summer and enjoy some nice settled weather with some of autumnal colours. Unfortunately this was not the case, so our plans were changed to head to the east because it had by far the best weather forecast for the whole of Scotland. After much debating on the way up we elected to spend two nights out in the Cairngorms staying in Bothies, which are old buildings in remote valleys which were originally built by the estate, but are no longer used. A change in the weather forecast yet again changed our plan, but somehow the weather forecast getting worse meant that we planned an extra night out… Neither of us had been to Scotland in the autumn before, and the array of colours that were on show in the valleys were spectacular. Unfortunately in the mountains the was not quite the same display of colours. Day 1 – Walk in to Corrour After a disorganised morning packing our bags (which were far too small) we were eventually ready to set off. To. Read the full article…