Hill Walking from Braemar

Four day (three nights) booked at an AirBnB in Braemar as a base with a plan to tackle 6 munros. Booking in advance of course meant uncertainty about the weather which turned out not to be great.

Day 1 on Saturday was pretty nice weather wise after the 3 hour drive up from Edinburgh. Drove to the NTS car park at Linn of Dee then mountain bike for around 20 mins to Derry Lodge. From there a very nice walk up to the summit of Carn a Mhaim. A nice path pretty much all the way to the top made this a pretty pleasant walk.

Day 2 the plan was to do Ben Avon and the nearby munro. I cycled from Braemar to Invercauld Bridge and then a long approach along the Sluggain before parking the bike and walking onwards. Weather was poor with steady rain and poor visibility. At the foot of Ben Avon decided not worth attempting the summit but leave these two for another day. Probably a wise decision with the weather and the equipment I had with me. Could stay on the bike longer next time as some good sections of trail further along the path than I rode.

Day 3 was again a wet day but I set off very early at 6 am to get the best of the forecast weather. Bike from Braemar to Derry Lodge then hike up to Beinn Bhreac. Whilst OK further down the summit was in the clouds. Decided against a 4 mile slog in the upland bogs with zero visibility to the next munro. 

In the evening went for a bit of a blow out at the Fife Arms with Steak and Chips, Lemon Meringue Pie, a pint of beer and a glass of wine.

Day 4 was another early start to catch the weather window and a bike and hike up to Derry Cairngorn. A nice walk with good path most of the way and initially good weather. The top clouded over however and with poor visibility decided against trying for a second peak.

Three munros done with the other walks being about as good as can be expected in the weather conditions. Expect I'll return for the other three on day trips or with 1 overnight stop when I know the weather will be fine.

Manchester 2024 - Boys "Weekend"

I drove down to Manchester on Saturday to meet up with Hannah and help out her flat move from Oxford Place to The Mayfair at 59 Palatine Road. We continued on Sunday and got most of it done by early afternoon. I then headed off to the Travelodge and to join the boys for the get together which this year was Sunday to Wednesday to enjoy the cheaper hotel prices.

The crew this year was me, Tim, Warren, Ian, Glenn and Mark.

On Sunday evening we just visited pubs and had a good Thai meal.

On Monday we went to the Imperial War Museum, the Coronation Street Experience and a boat trip on the canal.

On Tuesday we went to the Police Museum which was very interesting and to the Science and Technology Museum which unfortunately had quite a large part closed. In the evening we went to Mackie Mayor for dinner and then to Night & Day Cafe for a gig featuring Dea Matrona and Housewife in support.

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Wednesday was a drive home after an LV Zoom meeting in my hotel room.

  

The Japanese Garden at Cowden and Culross Palace

A day trip out for Colin & Cherry to some gardens. The Japanese Garden at Cowden near Dollar was pleasant enough but like most Japanese gardens a bit lacking in floral display and the overall shape and look didn’t overly impress. 

Culross was very nice. Lovely village and the stepped walled garden is lovely. Mainly a fairly untidy but attractive fruit, veg and herb garden but with a great structure along south facing walls. We’ll aim to return next summer.