Purple Thistle Weekend 2008

Kerrera

Kerrera – an island just south of Oban, a short ferry journey, low-lying but with intricate contour detail and stunning views to Mull, the Garvellachs (the Islands of the Sea) and numerous other islands dotted around the Firth of Lorn.

All photos were taken by Iain Shepherd, INVOC. Many thanks for these Iain.

It sounded like a good idea!

Like most ideas I have, I think they sound great when I first propose them.

The problem comes if anyone else agrees with me at that stage and things are taken a step further – by which time I am usually not so sure about the original idea.

Deeside Hill walking and Running week

Paul and Lochnagar

Will we go sea kayaking in the Raasay / east Skye area or will we go hill-walking around Deeside? This was the question we discussed with our friends Chris & Barbara in mid-July. The weather forecast kept changing and we eventually decided on Deeside as it looked a little unsettled for the sea kayaking.

Hungary July 2008

Typical forest

Why select Hungary? How did Paul feel about this – it could come under the category of ‘dodgy country’ (smelly drains, plenty chance to catch disease, things that bite, questionable water, etc.); with that classification almost everywhere is dodgy!

Global Warming or is it just us?

JK in the snow

Each Easter, Paul & I think long and hard about our plans. We never seem to get it right though!
This year I had a long weekend over Easter as it was so early. Easter Day should be on or after 21st March. That date is the Equinox, when we often have storms or, as in 2007, run out of water as the tidal range can be extreme. The JK was to be in SE England so we decided to drive down and compete over the weekend.

Stumpy’s first outing of 2008

Wood trucks

We have had a dry spell of about 10 days so Paul reckoned that the trails would be OK for cycling. It has not always been dry & sunny – quite thick fog some days which has taken time to clear, overcast some other days, but NO RAIN! High pressure to the east often gives reasonable conditions in February, just a shame that there is little snow on the hills.

Bike talk

Conversation between a Stumpjumper (S) and a Specialised Epic (E), overheard in the garage.
E: What on earth are you doing, coming in to the garage in this state?
S: Speak for yourself, last time you were out you had to have a shower and then a dry off by the radiator.

Decisions!

Orienteering is sometimes known as ‘The Thought Sport’ and it is quite easy to see why; navigating to each control requires the orienteer to constantly make decisions regarding the route they will take. They are basing these decisions on the information they receive from the map, information they receive from the ground, their personal navigational skills and the way they are able to move over the ground.

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