v-g Backpacking in Britain BlogA grand tour of the listed tops of Dartmoor:- a second visit to the two Nuttall mountains of the region and thirteen new 500m+ Dewey tops, including two of the small group that top 600m.
A Dartmoor backpack had been on the radar for some time, our only previous visit being a day walk in 1995 […]
A fine 5-day backpack in the NW of Arran, including the Beinn Bharrain range of hills on the western side of Loch Tanna, the long wild glens of the north and the high-level path from Lochranza to Laggan.
After a long and hard winter with a significant late snowfall only a week or two before, many […]
Time to fill the one remaining hole in my kit list: a very lightweight down jacket for Spring and Autumn. Actually it’s more of a kit optimisation than gap filling.
I already have an excellent Mountain Equipment Lightline jacket, a serious beast for the arctic months that has kept me toasty warm for years, but is […]
A superb 3-day winter circuit of the mountains and lakes around Beddgelert and Nantgwynant.
The winter clarity in three days of unbroken warm sunshine and very cold nights made this an incredible backpack of crystal clear views and gorgeous frozen lakes. In particular Llyn Edno presented a morning spectacle so magical it surpassed all previous encounters […]
A short winter backpack to one of our favourite locations in the Arenigs: the south ridge of Arenig Fawr, experienced this time in fantastic clarity and part snowy conditions. Arenig Fawr made a majestic backdrop to the snow and ice covered lakes and rocky knolls, and the superb frosty tent pitch in the little […]
One of my very rare posts about walking apparel: not a very interesting subject and I very rarely buy any, other than footwear.
I loathe trousers with a passion. There are things to hate about walking in trousers, the main one being that I’m walking in trousers. For many years I’ve avoided any reason to wear […]
The first backpack of 2010: a winter return to a familiar circuit of hills from Dolwyddelan, ascending Moel Siabod via the splendid steep rocky ridge of Daear Ddu and following the arc of hills around to Allt-fawr, then returning on the south side via Moel Penamnen and the fine viewpoint of Y Ro Wen.
This time […]
Backpacking stats for 2009
Stats table 2009
Miles
Backpacks
Days
Total
412m
16
42
Joint
198m
8
21
Solo
214m
8
21
First and foremost a Happy New Year and good walking to all readers for 2010. We have really enjoyed all the trip reports of fellow bloggers and others over the year.
Our end-of-year review for 2009 is underway and the figures are shown in the table: this time last year I […]
Seasonal best wishes to all readers.
Any hope of a Christmas backpack has been dashed primarily by the weather, in particular the state of the roads: many people seem to have the bravado to drive in these conditions but I’d be a nervous wreck long before I arrived at the hills, not to mention the worry […]
A short backpack in the northern Arans with the objective of a pitch by Creiglyn Dyfi, designed for the brief daylight hours approaching the winter solstice and the delicate condition of my foot, still recovering from plantar fasciitis (it’s going to be a long haul with this).
We had promised ourselves a pitch in this excellent […]
