The learning curve for beginners is always much steeper. Now that I’m safely back from my first ever cycling trips, I thought it would be a good moment to share some tips.
Read more5 beginner’s tips for cycling up mountains
Scotland
The truth about the first Lithuanian ascent of Sgurr a’ Chaorachain
False summit claims were back in the news when a Swedish mountaineer retracted his summit claim after studying photographs and realising he hadn’t reached the very top. He was praised for his refreshing honesty, but a similar story of mountaineering integrity also deserves attention.
Read moreThe peat-bog method of training for a big adventure
In the last three weeks I’ve cycled 830km across 1273 hills, hiked up 8 Munros and 4 Corbetts, and scratched 253,953 midge bites 37 times per day. I camped for 20 consecutive nights and have lost count of the number
Read moreGet me off this bike and back on my feet
There was a surreal moment during our cycle ride of the North Coast 500 a few days ago. I had pedalled myself to complete exhaustion up and over steep hills for nine days, and my legs had nothing left. I
Read moreThe long road to Chimborazo on legs and wheels
By the time you read this I will have embarked on the first stage of a two-month adventure that will take me from the mountains of Italy to the coast of Scotland and – if all goes to plan – the highest point on the planet in a way that’s never been done before.
Read moreMonti Ernici: a taste of the Scottish Highlands a short drive from Rome
A couple of weekends ago I visited Monti Ernici, a group of hills little more than an hour’s drive from Rome, that reminded me so much of the Scottish Highlands that I just had to write a blog post about them.
Read more5 ways to prove a summit claim
If a climber reaches the top of a mountain and no one is around to see them, have they reached the summit? Lots of people make false summit claims, for all sorts of reasons, so how can you be sure? Here are some of the ways of proving a summit claim.
Read moreA winter wonderland above the Bridge of Orchy
It might be April and the beginning of spring, but the conditions on Scotland’s hills are still distinctly wintry. I checked the avalanche forecast before spending Easter in the hills above Bridge of Orchy, home of the poet Duncan Ban MacIntyre, famous for composing an Ode to Trousers.
Read moreMet Office website facelift is a godsend for hill walkers
For a while now I’ve been using the excellent Mountain Weather Information Service (MWIS) website before I head for the hills, but that may be about to change now that the Met Office website has had a revamp. Standard regional
Read moreBackpacking in the Black Mount: a high level route for midges
The most talked about subject in Britain at the moment isn’t the upcoming London Olympics, but the crap weather we’ve been having. First it was the wettest April on record, then it was the wettest May on record. I happened
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