When I was climbing alone up toward the peak of Mt. Cairngorm (1245m) in Scotland on July 25 2017, I was following behind two middle aged women hikers with no other walkers seen on the mountain path. When they took a little bit longer rest at the site with a good view, I caught up with them and had a chat about small things like where each of us came from. I found that one of them was especially enthusiastic to be on the top of the mountains listed in the ‘Munroe’. But I was confused about her mention of “Munroe”, because there was no such a word in my dictionary at that time.
After returning to Japan, I found that the Munro represents the 277 mountains in Scotland that are least 3,000 feet (914m) high named after Sir. Hugh Thomas Munro (1856-1919), who published a list of all such mountains in the journal of the Scottish Mountaineering Club in 1891.
In Japan, we also have a similar bible for mountain hiking lovers that is called as “100 beautiful mountains in Japan" by Kyuya Fukada published in 1964. Before the age of 35, I had already completed nearly half of them. But after I had the right lung surgery due to the suspicious symptom of a cancer, I had given up the idea of climbing all 100 mountains in Japan. So I had empathy with this rather quite woman.
There was a mountain cable car connecting the bus stop at the foot with the restaurant on the mid-slope of a mountain. But if you got on this cable car, you would not be allowed to go outside at the restaurant and miss the chance to be on the peak.
Mt. Ben Nevis, the highest in UK
The small country town of Fort William is called as the “Outdoor capital of the UK. Based here for 5 days, everyday I enjoyed an excursion for hiking. On the 1st Day, July 21 2017, I went to climb up Mt. Ben Nevis, the highest in the UK with the peak of 1345m high. In comparison with mountains in Japan, 1345m is not impressively high, but the climate here is drastically different from that in Japan due to the location. Fort William is located at the north latitude of 56.8 degree while the far most northern part of Japan at around the NL 45 degree. So the weather above the middle-slope was severely cold with a violent wind blowing to block my way. I several times thought back over the advice from a kind staff in the Fort William tourist office saying that if the trekking path invisible due to a heavy fog, you should return.
After the last several hours of struggling to advance under the severely strong and cold wind with sleeting rain hitting all my body, I have made it. Now I’m on the top of Mt. Ben Nevis, the highest in UK! There seemed to be no solo hiker there with the age of older than 67 years.
I took a taxi from the town to the entry point into the mountain instead of using a bus which did not operate so early in the morning. I started to walk at around 7 am and returned here at 16 pm. After the total 9 hours walk, I enjoyed from the bottom of my heart the real Scottish Ale Beer at the Ben Nevis Inn which stood nearby the entry point.
Pap of Glencoe
The Glencoe village is located less than 30km south from Fort William with the bus driving time of 30 minutes. The village was lying on a U-shaped glen of volcanic origins, formed by an ice age glacier and spread about 12.5 km long & 700 m wide. Glen Coe is said to be one of the most spectacular and beautiful glens in Scotland.
In February 1692, an incident known as the Massacre of Glencoe took place here where thirty-eight men of the Clan MacDonald were killed by the sudden sneaky attack of the England king forces and another forty women and children later died of exposure after their homes were burned. This tragedy seems to be still rooted in the minds of people in the Highlands of Scotland and symbolize the historical conflicts between Scotland & England. The place is also famous for the Harry Potter film shooting location.
On the 2nd day in Fort William, July 23 two days after climbing to the peak of Mt. Ben Nevis, I went for an excursion to Glencoe village and attempted to walk up the nearby Mt. Pap of Glencoe. From the bus stop I had walked through the really picturesque village of Glencoe.
The ascent was only 716 m high, but the path was steep and so narrow and rough that I often found it difficult to recognize the right trek. As I walked up, I realized how the glen opens out to Loch Leven.
Compared to Mt. Ben Nevis, there were very few hikers on the path. When I lost my way, wondering which direction should I take, I met beautiful hikers from France.
They were students and said that they would be graduated from university in September. They were going to sleep on top of the hill, equipped with all camping tools including a portable tent. I recalled my younger days when I used to climb mountains in Japan carrying a heavy rucksack on my back together with my friends in the university. I was impressed by these charming hikers, so gentle and energetic.
The Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye
When I departed from Fort William using a Citylink bus on July 24 heading for the Isle of Skye, I was joined by my old friend who came from Italy where he was working. Based on the SYHA Broadford Hostel, we planned to make a drive tour to explore this bizarre Island. On the day after arriving, we together made one day car-tour in the northern part of the Isle, visiting the old man of storr.
The Old Man of Storr is a large pinnacle of rock that stands high & created by a massive ancient landslide, leaving one of the most picturesque landscapes in the Isle. With that having been said, as usual in Scotland when we approached toward the hilltop, the sky became suddenly dark with the winds blowing violently in the dense foggy atmosphere. But we were happy to be here to be able to walk in the magnificient landscape. Back to the parking site, we started to explore the northern coastal area of the Island, which made us feel how severe life was in the winter season for those islanders in the old days.
Below is my itinerary in Scotland during July 18 to 31, 2017.
